Distribution and Assessment of Trace Elements Contamination in Sediments of Conceição River Basin, Brazil

Geosciences

RitaMaria Ferreira Fonseca¹  LucasPereira Leão²  MariângelaGarcia Praça Leite²  HermínioArias Nalini Júnior²  Raphaelde Vicq Ferreira da Costa² 

[1] Earth Science Institute (ESI), University of Evora, 7000-812 Évora, Portugal;Geology Department, School of Mines, Federal University of Ouro Preto, Ouro Preto 35400-000, Brazil;

关键词: trace elements;    sediments;    contamination factor;    enrichment factor;    principal component analysis;    Conceição river basin;   

DOI  :  10.3390/geosciences11060236

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

The Conceição river basin, in Quadrilátero Ferrífero (Iron Quadrangle), Brazil, has a long mining history which dates back to the late 17th century, with large gold and iron mines. These activities may be associated with river sediment contamination by trace elements, which were evaluated in this paper by the enrichment factor (EF) and contamination factor (CF). Potential ecological risks, assessed by combining sediment quality control guidelines (SQCG) and potential ecological risk indexes (Er and RI), are presented. Anomalous values for As (92.5 mg·kg⁻¹), Cd (22.49 mg·kg⁻¹), Cr (2582 mg·kg⁻¹), Cu (65.9 mg·kg⁻¹), Pb (58.6 mg·kg⁻¹) and Zn (133.4 mg·kg⁻¹) are observed. The EF and CF indexes indicate contamination by Cd, Cr, Fe, Mn, Ni and Zn in at least one site, with the highest values for Fe and Mn downstream of the iron mines, and Cr and Ni close to the gold mines. According to the SQGC and Er, As, Cd, Cr, and Ni are the most probable to result in adverse effects on sediment-dwelling organisms in this study. The results of principal component analysis (PCA) indicate distinct lithological units as sources of the analyzed elements, which, associated with the indexes, made it possible for the first time to delimit and classify the high concentrations of some analyzed elements as contamination in the Conceição river basin.

【 授权许可】

Unknown