Showing 43 results for Iron
S. M. Y. Bidaki, M. A. Hajabbasi, A. H. Khoshgoftarmanesh, H. R. Eshghizadeh,
Volume 16, Issue 59 (4-2012)
Abstract
Waste tire rubbers are considered one of the environment pollutants. Increased production of these pollutants has led to more serious consideration of ways to reduce the harms caused by their accumulation in the environment. Therefore, the effects of incorporation of waste rubber crushed particles in two sizes of 1-2 and 3-5 mm and the amounts of 0, 5, 10 and 20 Mg ha-1 in a calcareous soil (0-30 cm depth) on some chemical properties of soil was investigated in Isfahan University of Technology research field (Lavark). This experiment was performed using seven treatments along with a non amended control treatment in a randomized complete block design with three replications in 1387. Eight months after incorporation, soil samples were collected for laboratory analyses. Results of ANOVA tables show that soil pH, electrical conductivity, percentage of total nitrogen and DTPA-extractable concentrations of cadmium, lead, copper and iron were not significantly affected by application of rubber particles. Incorporation of rubber particles into the soil significantly increased soil organic carbon and carbon to nitrogen. Increases in the DTPA-extractable Zn in soils treated with 10 and 20 Mg ha rubber particles in fine and coarse sizes were significant in comparison with the control soil. DTPA-extractable Zn content in the soil treated with 10 and 20 Mg ha 3-5 mm waste tire rubbers particles was about two and three times higher than that in the control treatment, respectively. The results of this study showed that in short-time, incorporation of crushed tire rubbers particles had no significant effect on most chemical properties of the soil but increased the available Zn content. In this regard, further studies to monitor the effects of adding waste rubber crushed particles on organic matter mineralization, plant toxicity and physical properties of soil in long-term are recommended.
M. Arabi, A. Soffianian , M. Tarkesh Esfahani,
Volume 17, Issue 63 (6-2013)
Abstract
Physicochemical characteristics of soil, land cover/use and human activities have effects on heavy metals distribution. In this study, we applied Classification and Regression Tree model (CART) to predict the spatial distribution of zinc in surface soil of Hamadan province under Geographic Information System environment. Two approaches were used to build the model. In the first approach, 10% of total data were randomly selected as test data and residual data were used for building model. In the second approach, all data were used to build and evaluate the CART model. Determination coefficient (R2) and Mean Square Error (MSE) were applied to estimate the accuracy of model. Final model included 51 nodes and 26 terminal nodes (leaf). Calcium carbonate, slope, sand, silt and land use/cover were determined by the CART model to predict spatial distribution of Zn as the most important independent variables. The regions of western Hamadan province had the highest concentration of Zn whereas the lowest concentration of Zn occurred in the regions of northern Hamadan province. The results indicate good accuracy of CART model using R2 and MSE indices.
Amir Hossein Khoshgoftarmanesh, Hamid Reza Eshghizadeh, Azadeh Sanaeei Stovar, M. S. Mirlohi, M. Taban,
Volume 17, Issue 64 (9-2013)
Abstract
Iron chlorosis is an important disorder of plane trees (Plantanus orintalis L.) in green space of Isfahan city. Before using reclamation methods for correcting Fe chlorosis, it is necessary to find a suitable index for evaluating plant Fe status. Therefore, activity of glutathione peroxidase (GP) enzyme and concentration of carotenoids and chlorophyll a and b pigments, as physiological indices of active Fe, were compared to total Fe concentration in leaves to evaluate Fe status in plane trees. For this purpose, severity of chlorosis of plane trees at different regions of Isfahan city was recorded. Then, 73 trees with different severity of chlorosis symptoms were selected and their leaves were sampled on July 2009 and 2010. Concentration of Fe, chlorophyll a and b and carotenoids in leaves as well as activity of GP enzyme were measured. Results showed large variation in leaf Fe concentration between young and old leaves and also between leaves with different chlorosis severity symptoms. No correlation was found between leaf Fe chlorophyll concentration and severity of chlorosis symptoms. Also, concentrations of chlorophyll a in young and old leaves with very severe chlorosis symptoms were 44 and 37% smaller than that in young and old leaves with slight chlorosis symptoms, respectively. Concentration of chlorophyll b in young and old leaves with very severe chlorosis symptoms were 40 and 37% smaller than that in young and old leaves with slight chlorosis symptoms, respectively. Concentration of carotenoids varied among young and old leaves with different severity of chlorosis symptoms. Activity of GP in young leaves was also reduced by intensifying severity of chlorosis symptoms. According to the result of the present study, activity of GP enzyme and leaf concentration of carotenoids and chlorophyll a, as suitable physiological indices of active Fe, had close correlation with severity of Fe chlorosis in plane trees. Also, deficiency of active Fe in leaves is a probable reason of chlorosis symptoms in plane trees.
N. Shafiee, H. Shirani,
Volume 17, Issue 66 (2-2014)
Abstract
Copper is considered as one of the most important nutrient elements for plants. If its contents are concentrated higher than the standard value it can be considered as a pollutant element. The content of absorbable copper in the area around Sarcheshmeh copper mine can be significantly high. In this study, samples of soil were collected in summer through a particular sampling method with chimneys of Sarcheshmeh plant as the center of sampling area within a radius of 6km, in three different directions (Rafsanjan, Sarcheshmeh City and Sarcheshmeh mine) and. The total concentration of absorbable copper and some chemical properties of soil (i.e. pH and EC) were measured for 122 surface samples (depth of 0 to 35 cm). There was a significant negative regression between pH and total absorbable copper content, and a significant negative regression was observed between EC and total absorbable copper content. The best fitted model was spherical model, and Ordinary Kriging was applied to map the absorbable copper content. Results showed that most concentration of copper occurred in the Rafsanjan direction. Also, regarding wind orientation which blows towards Rafsanjan, the chimneys probably have a significant effect on increasing copper content in Rafsanjan moreover, the copper content is substantially higher around chimneys than other areas. Also, transition of copper elements from chimneys by wind can be significant up to 4 km from Sarcheshmeh plant.
H. Torabi, V. Moradinasab,
Volume 18, Issue 70 (3-2015)
Abstract
Terraces are old geomorphic surfaces that are not related to present streams and are best places to study the effect of time on soil formation (chronosequence). This research was carried out to study some physico-chemical parameters especially different forms of iron as soil development indices on terraces of Karaj River in Hassan-Abad, southern Tehran. To determine soil development indices in 4 profiles occurring on 4 terraces, some physical and chemical properties were measured and free iron(Fed), aluminum(Ald), silica(Sid) and manganese(Mnd), amorphous Fe(Feo), Al(Alo), Si(Sio), Mn(Mno) and Fe, Al, Si-humus complexes were extracted. Results showed that clay, fine clay/total clay, CEC, the color redness and leaching of calcium carbonate increase toward higher terraces. Contents of Fed, Ald and Sid increases from lower terrace (T1) to the higher terrace (T4). Fed-Feo and Feo/Fed as the most important indices of soil development were enhanced and reduced from lower terrace (T1) to higher terrace (T4) soils, respectively, which indicate an increase in iron oxides crystalinity and soil profile development. Contents of Fed-Feo in the B horizons from T1 to T4 were 600, 800, 1000, and 1400 mg/kg soil, respectively. Calculation of Ferrihydrate and Fe-hydr(oxide) such as goethite and hematite showed that the amounts of these components were increased from T1 to T4 terraces confirming the variation of (Fed-Feo), (Feo/Fed) and (Feo-Fep) indices.
S. Shahmoradi, M. Afyuni, M. A. Hajabbasi, A. H. Khoshgoftarmanesh, M. Shirvani,
Volume 19, Issue 71 (6-2015)
Abstract
In this work, the effect of raw and modified bentonite and zeolite with trivalent iron on the stabilization of water-soluble and adsorbed arsenic in a calcareous soil was studied. Raw and modified bentonite and zeolite were added to the soil in different weights in a completely randomized block design with three replications and kept to field capacity soil moisture content of 80% for 8 weeks. The concentrations of water-soluble and adsorbed arsenic, water-soluble and absorbed phosphorus in soil and soil pH were measured. Treatments significantly affected the mobility of arsenic and phosphorus in soil. Raw zeolite and bentonite in different levels increased arsenic mobility (about 107 to 325 % and 259 to 350% respectively). Despite the change in surface properties of zeolites modified with iron, this treatment at different levels increased arsenic mobility in soils by about 124 to 246%. Bentonite modified with iron had the greatest effect on reducing arsenic mobility in soil (about 91%). Phosphate mobility was similar to arsenic in different treatments.
M. Ebrahimi, M. Jafari, E. Rouhimoghaddam,
Volume 19, Issue 72 (8-2015)
Abstract
The present study was conducted to increase phytoextraction efficiency of Festuca ovina L. in lead contaminated soil in the EDTA-assisted (0, 1.5, 3, 1.5+1.5, 3+3, 6 mmol kg−1), assess the best time of plant harvesting to increase Pb uptake and method of EDTA application to reduce Pb leaching risk. The results revealed that the greatest Pb uptake was observed in 3EDTA treatment. Therefore, 3mmolkg-1 was used in the second step for assessing harvest time for 15, 30 and 45 days. Results showed that the concentration of Pb in plant tissues was increased with the passage of time and the best harvest time to achieve maximum removal of Pb was 60 days of the first harvest. In the third step to reduce leaching of Pb-chelate, 3mmolkg-1 EDTA in five ways of single, double, triple, quadruplet, quintuplet were added to the soil. The results indicated that under quintuplet application, Pb content reached its minimum concentration in the soil and in the plant organs, the Pb concentration was maximum and metal concentration in the plant organs did not vary significantly when triple, quadruplet and quintuplet dosages were added (p<5%). Overall, optimum phytoextraction of F. ovina L. and Pb leaching reduction were achieved when 3mmol kg−1 EDTA was added in quintuplet dosage and the plant was harvested at the end of growth stage.
S. Molaei, H. Shirani, M. Hamidpour, H. Shekofteh , A. A. Besalatpour,
Volume 19, Issue 74 (1-2016)
Abstract
This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of vermicompost, pistachio kernel and shrimp shell on the immobilization and availability of Cd, Pb and Zn in corn in polluted soils. Treatments consisted of two levels of pistachio kernel, shrimp shell and vermicompost (5 and 10 % w/w). In control treatment, no amendment was added to the soil. The experiment was carried out as a completely randomized design with 3 replications. Plants grew for two months in the greenhouse. Then, all the plants were harvested and their shoots and roots were separated, washed with distilled water and oven dried at 65 °C to a constant mass. The measured characteristics were dry weight of shoots and roots, leaf area, greenness index, chlorophyll fluorescence, maximal quantum yield of PS photochemistry (Fv/Fm), performance index (PI), and total concentrations of Cd , Pb and Zn in shoots and roots. Results showed that plant growth parameters (dry weight of shoots and roots, leaf area) and photosynthetic characteristics (chlorophyll fluorescence, Fv/Fm, and PI) were higher in plants grown in vermicompost and pistachio kernel treatments as compared to those grown in control. Plants died in shrimp shell treatment after two weeks. The concentration of Cd, Zn and Pb in shoots and roots of plants grown in vermicompost and pistachio kernel treatments were lower than those grown in control.
A. H. Khoshgoftarmanesh, H. R. Eshghizadeh, A. Sanaei Ostovar, M. Taban,
Volume 20, Issue 76 (8-2016)
Abstract
In order to assess the status of the iron (Fe) chlorosis of plane trees in green space of Isfahan city, the chlorosis intensity of 73 trees in different regions was recorded as (1): low (less than 5% of leaves), (2): moderate (less than 50% of leaves), (3): severe (more than 50% of leaves), and (4): very severe (more than 95% of leaves). The whole leaf (with petiole) samples were taken from the top and bottom of each tree, separately, during 2008 and 2009. Then selected chemical properties of the leaves were analyzed. The results showed that in more than 95 and 71% of the young leaves, Fe concentration was less than the critical deficiency level (202 mg/kg). Concentration of Fe in the older leaves of all plane trees even those with slight symptoms of chlorosis was less than the critical level (382 mg/kg). No significant relationship was found between the leaf zinc concentrations and intensity of iron chlorosis. In more than 92 (in the first year) and 87% (in the second year) of the plane trees, Zn concentration of young leaves and in all trees, Zn concentration of old leaves were less than the critical deficiency concentration (23 mg/Kg). The comparison between concentrations of Cu in the leaves with its critical deficiency level showed that more than 90% of young and old leaves accumulated toxic levels of Cu in both sampling years. In regard with the sufficient range of P, about 79% of the trees in the first year and 53% in the second year accumulated excess levels of this nutrient in their young leaves. This condition was slightly modified for the older leaves so that excessive concentration of phosphorus in mature leaves was not observed in the first year and in the second year, only about 29% of the samples had concentrations higher than critical levels.
A. Reyhanitabar, K. Khalkal, N. Pashapour,
Volume 21, Issue 3 (11-2017)
Abstract
In this research available iron was measured in 21 calcareous surface soil samples (0-30 cm) by five methods including DTPA, AB-DTPA, AC-EDTA, hydroxylamine, reference ammonium oxalate and rapid ammonium oxalate. Fe fractions were also determined by the modified sequential extraction procedures introduced by Singh et al. According to results, rapid ammonium oxalate and AC-EDTA methods extracted the maximum (856.03 mg.kg-1) and minimum (4.46 mg.kg-1) amounts of Fe, respectively. Rapid ammonium oxalate extraction method, in addition to Fe-Afeox, extracted other fractions of iron such as Fe-Ex, Fe-Om, Fe-CFeox and Fe-Res. Hydroxylamine method compared to other methods, ectracted Fe mostly from the amorphous oxides source. Regression analysis indicates that Fe-Ex, Fe-AFeox and Fe-Res fractions have major and Fe-Car and Fe-Mnox have minor role in releasing available Fe (with AB-DTPA and DTPA) in the studied soil. According to the statistical relationships, carbonates associated Fe, does not seem a potential source of available Fe in calcareous soils. Organic carbon content and cation exchange capacity of the soils appear the two most influential soil properties that predict available Fe in the studied soils.
H. Sarmadi, E. Salehi, L. Zebardast, M. Aghababaei,
Volume 22, Issue 2 (9-2018)
Abstract
Since the introduction of cities and urbanization, healthy water supplement and urban wastewater treatment have been considered as an important factor to evaluate progress in the urban areas. Tehran as a megacity is facing the lack of water. Tehran water supplement is far from its area; therefore, Tehran-Karaj plain has been considered in this study. So, Tehran water quantity index using the DPSIR model (Driving force, Pressure, Status, Impact and Response) in a period of 3 years (2008-2010) was considered in this paper. Driving forces included population, urbanization, green spaces, and industries. Pressures on urban water included water consumption, water losses, rainfall and evaporation. Then, Tehran water quantity status was investigated based on the existing water in dam reservoirs and groundwater resources. Their impacts on urban area were evaluated and finally, appropriate responses were presented. Some of the presented approaches included industries transmission, improvement of water consumption pattern, improvement of the water treatment plants status and unconventional water resources reuse, identification and rearrangement of subterranean, improvement of irrigation systems operation, and reduction of Tehran urban population.
S. P. Mousavi, M. A. Asghar Mokhtari, Y. Khosravi, A. Rafiee, R. Hoseinzade,
Volume 22, Issue 2 (9-2018)
Abstract
In this study, the distribution of heavy metals pollution including arsenic, antimony, nickel, copper, cadmium, cobalt, bismuth, lead and zinc in the stream sediments of Zarshuran- Aghdarreh area was investigated by using statistical techniques and the geometric integration of each sample basin. For this purpose, the degree of pollution in 154 stream sediment samples was analyzed and the distribution maps for enrichment factors were prepared by using a combination technique, pixel estimation, and statistical and geostatistical methods. The results of calculating the enrichment factors indicated that the higher enrichment was related to arsenic, antimony, bismuth, cadmium and lead. Furthermore, the concentration of zinc, copper, lead, arsenic, antimony, cadmium and bismuth in the stream sediment samples was higher than the global average. Application of the principal component analysis on the data led to the recognition of 9 main components for the dataset; the first 5 were components with eigen values greater than 1 and a cumulative percentage more than 85%. Arsenic, antimony, cadmium, lead and zinc in the first component, cobalt in the second component, bismuth in the third component, copper in the fourth component and nickel in the fifth component had the highest values.
A. Khatoon Abadi, E. Parvizi, M. Ataie,
Volume 22, Issue 4 (12-2018)
Abstract
In the recent decades, dams have paradoxically been considered as a constraint and or a driving force of surface water conservation. On the other hand, dams have had a number of socio-economic and environmental impacts, the main reason for conducting the current case study on Shah-Qasem Dam in Yasouj, Iran, was to employ the survey field research through a questionnaire to assess the rural peoples’ viewpoint; this was done in four villages of the Southern Sar’roud County. Based on the (Cochran) formula, 192 individuals were relatively selected from each village. According to the findings, the most important impact of the dam was mainly economical (the average impact was between 2.37 and 3.7), whereas the least one was environmental (the average impact was between 1.81 and 3.54). Also, the results of the hypotheses’ analyses by means of 2 and Wilcoxon showed the following results: rise of the villages’ income, increase of the cultivated farms, increase in the employed individuals, enhancement of the cultivated crops, the regions production rising, improved tourism, lack of people’s participation in the decision making process, and reaming of the same plant varieties in the area, as compared with the pre-dam era. It is worth considering, however, that based on the statistical population used, this study was concerned mainly with the short benefits of the dam, rather than its long-term destructive ones.
M. Habibian, S. Jafari, M. Sheklabadi,
Volume 23, Issue 1 (6-2019)
Abstract
Sugarcane is cultivated in the wide area in Khuzestan province. In these areas, irrigated sugarcane cultivation consumes more than 30,000 cubic meters per hectare annually. This research was carried out to determine the effect of sugarcane cultivation on the soil development process and forms of iron oxides. Different sugarcane fields with different utilization times were selected and soil physico-chemical properties and different Fe forms were measured. The results showed that with enhancing the utilization time, the total amount of total iron oxides (Fed) and crystalline iron oxides (Fed-Feo) was increased. The average value of the Fed from 6958 mg/kg in the fields with a medium utilization history was decreased to 4560 mg/kg in fields with a short utilization history. Similarly, the average amount of crystalline iron oxide from 5888.3 mg/kg in the fields with a long utilization history was decreased to 5003.9 mg/kg in the fields with a short utilization hostory. This increase reflected the effect of sugarcane cultivation on the soil development process in the cultivated fields. The amount of non-crystalline iron oxides (Feo) was decreased from 443.9 mg/kg from the soil surface to 273.8 mg/kg to the subsurface. This increase was related to the more organic matter and the microbial activity in the surface soil. The amount of active iron (Feo/Fed) was dropped in all fields after the cultivation. Also, this ratio was dropped from 0.055 in the fields with a long cultivation history to 0.064 in the fields with a short utilized field. The results, therefore, showed that the increase of crystalline iron oxides was due to sugarcane and its heavy irrigation.
Z. Ghorbanpour, O. Abessi, F. Kardel,
Volume 24, Issue 4 (11-2020)
Abstract
Drilling material from the tunnel of the Tehran-Shomal highway was estimated to be about 2.5 Million Cubic Meters by the project authorities. Sadly, from the beginning, the drilling materials had been deposited on the open space in the floodplain of the Chaloos river with slightest environmental considerations. During the previous years, weathering and leaching from the drilled materials besides the discharge of drain water from the tunnel had led to seriouse contaminations and the deterioration of the water quality of the Chaloos river. In this paper, the ecological risk of nonorganic pollutants due to drilled materials was investigated. The sampling was done from the excavated materials and river sediment in five different locations throughout a complete year. From the many pollutants, Nickel, Cadmium and Copper were chosen to be investigated. The results showed that almost 15 percent of the samples had a high degree of pollution, while 60 percent of them were clean and the other 25 percent included the highly contaminated ones. All samples were also estimated to have a low to high ecological risk.
M. Masoomi, M. Pourgholam-Amiji, M. Parsinejad,
Volume 26, Issue 1 (5-2022)
Abstract
In this study, the Drainmod-S model was used to vary soil salt concentration and the effect of underground drainage on the amount of leaching in a physical model (large lysimeter). A soil extractor was installed at depths of 40, 50, and 70 cm at a distance of 35 cm from the drainage to measure the salinity of the soil solution. In this study, three scenarios were applied including salinity profiles under conventional conditions (mid-season and end-season drainage), soil salinity profiles under different drainage conditions, and prior scenarios with saline irrigation. The second and third scenarios were applied in four drainage stages, respectively. These stages include transplanting and mid-season drainage (days 15 to 20), mid-season drainage (days 35 to 40), mid-season and end-season drainage (days 55 to 60), and end-season drainage (days 75 to 80). The results showed that after simulating the total solute concentration overtime at a depth of 40 cm and comparing it with the measured values, the coefficient of determination (R2) was 0.77 indicating an acceptable Drainmod-S model simulation. This parameter for simulating solute concentration at 50 and 70 cm depth was 0.76 and 0.75, respectively. The mean absolute error parameter (MAE) value was also negligible.
S. Azadi, H. Nozari, S. Marofi, B. Ghanbarian,
Volume 27, Issue 3 (12-2023)
Abstract
One of the strategies for agricultural development is the optimal use of irrigation and drainage networks, which will lead to higher productivity and environmental protection. The present study used the system dynamics approach to develop a model for simulating the cultivated area of the Shahid Chamran irrigation and drainage network located in Khuzestan province by considering environmental issues. Limit test and sensitivity analysis were used for model validation. The results showed the proper performance of the model and the logical relationship between its parameters. Also, the cropping pattern of the network was determined in two modes of non-stepwise and stepwise changes to determine the optimal cultivated area of the Shahid Chamran network with environmental objectives and minimize the amount of salt from drains. The results showed that the amount of optimized output salt from the network has decreased in both non-stepwise and stepwise changes compared to the existing situation in the region. The total output salt in the current situation, from 2013 to 2017, was obtained at 2799, 2649, 2749, 2298, and 2004 tons.day-1, respectively, in the stepwise changes, are 2739, 2546, 2644, 2223, and 1952 tons.day-1, and finally, in the non-stepwise changes, are 2363, 2309, 2481, 2151, and 1912 tons.day-1. The results showed that the non-stepwise changes due to considered limitations have been more successful in reducing output salt than the stepwise changes. The analysis of the results showed the model's success in optimizing and achieving the desired goals. The results showed that the present model has good accuracy in simulating and optimizing the irrigation network, cropping pattern, and defining other scenarios.
S. Najmi, M. Navabian, M. Esmaeili Varaki,
Volume 27, Issue 3 (12-2023)
Abstract
The increasing need for water resources and controlling the discharge of wastewater into the environment shows the necessity of wastewater treatment. Green methods such as constructed wetlands and phytoremediation use biological processes in the environment for wastewater treatment. Considering the effect of cultivated constructed wetland performance from wastewater quality and climatic factors, the objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of hybrid and subsurface vertical and horizontal wetlands to improve the biological and chemical oxygen demand of the wastewater treatment plant in Rasht City. The effect of Phragmites australis and Typha latifolia plants on the treatment performance was investigated. Wastewater retention time in wetlands varies from monthly in winter and weekly in spring and summer. The results showed that the performance of wetlands in reducing biological oxygen demand (BOD) was more than chemical oxygen demand (COD). Plants improved the performance of the wetland by more than 50%, but no significant difference was observed between the performances of the two plants. The arrangement of the plant's cultivation was not effective in the amount of biological and chemical oxygen removal. The hybrid wetland was able to improve the wastewater quality twice as much as the vertical wetland. Comparing the concentration of the effluents from the wetlands with the standards showed that the effluents from the hybrid wetlands could only be used for agricultural consumption.
B. Akbari, H. Khademi,
Volume 27, Issue 4 (12-2023)
Abstract
Street dust enters the urban environments due to the resuspension of particles smaller than 100 micrometers. The magnetic properties of street dust and their relationship with the concentration of heavy metals have received less attention from researchers worldwide, and not much study has been performed on this issue in Iran. The objectives of this study were: (i) to investigate the spatial and seasonal changes in street dust, and (ii) to determine their relationships with the concentration of selected heavy metals in several cities in the Isfahan province. Sampling was carried out in the first half of the second month of each season including 20 samples from Isfahan city and 10 samples from Natanz, Shahreza, Falavarjan, Khomeinishahr, and Najafabad. The concentration of selected heavy metals was measured using an atomic absorption spectrometer. Also, the magnetic susceptibility values of the samples at low and high frequencies were determined and frequency-dependent magnetic susceptibility was calculated. The results showed that the presence of ferromagnesian minerals in the parent materials could be the reason for the high values of magnetic receptivity in Natanz City. However, the high level of this characteristic in the street dust of other cities could be due to human activities, especially in Isfahan city. Based on the results of principal component analysis, the high correlation of the first component with magnetic susceptibility and the concentration of zinc, copper, and chromium elements most likely indicates the absorption of these elements by particles close to superparamagnetic (SP). The high correlation of the second component with frequency-dependent magnetic susceptibility and concentration of nickel and cobalt is most likely related to the adsorption of magnetic elements and heavy metals into coarse polyhedral particles that remained on the street floor after the re-deposition of street dust particles. Also, the high correlations between magnetic parameters and the concentration of copper and zinc confirm their anthropogenic origin. On the other hand, low or negative correlations of Pb, Ni, Cr, and Co concentrations with magnetic susceptibility might confirm their natural or non-anthropogenic origin. The higher values of magnetic parameters of street dust in the spring season reflect the significant contribution of magnetic minerals in this season, compared to autumn and winter, and indicate the higher influence of human activities.
J. Ghaneiardakani, S.a. Mazhari, F. Ayati,
Volume 29, Issue 2 (7-2025)
Abstract
This study investigates the impact of agricultural activities on the soils of southern Mehriz by analyzing their geochemical composition and comparing the physicochemical properties of pistachio orchard soils (agricultural soils) with those of undisturbed natural soils. The results indicate that agricultural practices have led to an increase in Total Organic Carbon (TOC), averaging 1.5%, and a reduction in soil acidity. Additionally, phosphorus concentrations have risen in agricultural soils. These soils also exhibit enrichment in elements such as cadmium (Cd), antimony (Sb), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), scandium (Sc), and rare earth elements (REE) compared to natural soils, with a more homogenized REE distribution pattern. Although the concentrations of these trace elements remain within national environmental standards and below critical thresholds, the study highlights a significant increase in the bioavailability of heavy metals due to agricultural activity. This finding underscores a potential environmental risk if such changes are not properly managed in the future.
