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Soil con & rem > Inorganic pollutants > Flashcards

Inorganic pollutants Flashcards

1
Q

What are inorganic pollutants?

A
  • metals, metalloids
  • nitrates, nitrites
  • minerals?
  • radioactive substances
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2
Q

Naturally occuring inorganic pollutants?

A
  • some are essential for life:
    Co, Cu, Fe etc.
  • some are always toxic (non-essential)
    Pb, Cd, Hg
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3
Q

Can inorganic pollutants be destroyed?

A

No

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4
Q

What about their background concentrations?

A

Something occurs and we cant do anything about it, but we need to know how much

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5
Q

Adaptation to inorganic pollutants?

A

Some species can adapt to high concentrations while some die.

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6
Q

List some Potential toxic elements (PTE)!

A
  • Arsenic
  • Chromium
  • Cobalt
  • Copper
  • Lead
  • Mercury
  • Zinc
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7
Q

What are potential toxic elements?

A

Elements that exhibit metallic properties.

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8
Q

PTE:s are sometimes referred to ‘heavy metals’, what does it mean?

A
  • relatively high density (above 5g/cm^3)
  • relatively high atomic weight
  • toxic at low concentrations
  • cant be destroyed
  • widely distributed
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9
Q

What are metals properties?

A
  • accumulates in organisms
  • cant be broken down by liver
  • persistent in environment
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10
Q

pH effect on metals?

A
  • toxicity depends on pH
  • decreased solubility as pH increases -> less toxic
  • free ionic form usually most toxic (except aluminum)

Toxicity is pH dependent!

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11
Q

Something about mercury (Hg)?

A
  • most volatile of all metals
  • highly toxic in vapor form
  • liquid in ordinary temperatures
  • liquid mercury itself is not highly toxic
  • rarely occurs naturally
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12
Q

Anthropogenic (human made) presence of mercury?

A
  • fossil fuel burning
  • waste incineration
  • mining
  • smelting
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13
Q

Some sources of mercury?

A
  • emissions of mercury vapor from large industrial operations
  • unregulated burning of coal and fuel oil
  • emissions from batteries, thermometers
  • gold and silver extraction from mines
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14
Q

Environmental effects of mercury?

A

Mercury is normally a problem only where the rate of natural formation of METHYLMERCURY from inorganic mercury is greater than the reverse action.

Methylmercury is the only form which accumulates

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15
Q

Which waters can contain a lot of mercury?

A

Acidic surface waters can contain significant amounts of mercury.
Low soil pH increases the mobility in soil -> water ecosystems in danger

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16
Q

Other environmental effects of mercury (bio) ?

A

Bioaccumulation:
- increase in concentration of a pollutant from the environment to the first organism in a food chain
Biomagnification:
- increase in concentration of a pollutant from one link in a food chain to another.

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17
Q

Health effects of mercury (ways)?

A

Toxicity in all forms:
MeHg > vapor > Hg2+ > liquid

Liquid is readily excreted
Hg2+ affects liver and kidneys
Vapor Hg diffuses from lungs to bloodstream to brains
Methylmercury:
lipophilic (soluble in fatty tissues)
Converted to Hg2+ in brain (neurotoxin)
18
Q

Health effects of mercury?

A
  • skin burns
  • irritation of nose and skin
  • rashes
  • damage to kidneys
  • damage to vision
  • loss of hearing and muscle coordination
  • severe brain damage
  • CNS dysfunction
19
Q

Something about lead (Pb)?

A
  • melting point of 327 C
  • commonly used in the building industry for roofing, flashing and soundproofing
  • when combined with tin, it forms a solder, used in electronics and other applications to make connections between metals
  • used in batteries, paints and ceramics
  • in foods, soft drinks and wine
  • application with gasoline
  • industrial processes
20
Q

Chemistry of lead?

A

Exists in Pb2+ form (PbS is highly insoluble)

PbO (batteries), PbCO3, PbS, PbCl

21
Q

The solubility of lead compounds in water is a function of?

A
  • pH
  • hardness
  • salinity

Solubility is highest in soft, acidic water

Significant fraction of lead carried by in undissolved form

22
Q

Lead, chimistry + soil?

A

The sink for lead is the soil and sediment

  • strongly absorbed to soil
  • generally retained in the upper layers of soil
  • does not leach appreciably into the subsoil and groundwater
23
Q

Environmental effects of lead?

A
  • bioaccumulates in the bodies of water- and soil organisms
  • health effects can take place in low concentrations
  • soil organisms are suffered from lead poisoning
  • plants and animals may bioconcentrate lead
24
Q

Health effects related to lead?

A
  • lead can enter fetus through the placenta of a mother
  • transferred from breast milk -> serious damage to nervous system and brain of unborn child
  • lowered IQ in children
  • behavioral disruptions in childen
25
Q

More health effects related to lead?

A
  • rise in blood pressure
  • kidney damage
  • miscarriages
  • nervous system and brain damages
  • death, with high levels
26
Q

Something about cadmium?

A
  • most toxic in its ionic form (unlike mercury, vapor)
27
Q

Greatest source of cadmium? Greatest application?

A
  • from our food supply-seafood, organ meats, potatoes, rice and other grains
  • greatest application in batteries
28
Q

Environmental effects of cadmium?

A

Longe range transportation when absorbed by sludge
- it pollutes surface waters as well as soils

Strongly adsorbs to organic materials in soils

29
Q

Why cadmium can be extreme dangerous in soils?

A
  • its uptake through food will increase

- low pH enhance cadmium uptake by plants -> accumulated in plants

30
Q

Health effects of cadmium?

A
  • kidney- and lung toxicity
  • skeletal effects
  • osteoporosis and osteomalacia
  • cancer
31
Q

Something about chromium?

A
  • steel-gray solid, high melting point
  • occurs in the environment in two valance states:
  • trivalent chromium (III)
  • hexavalent chromium (IV) more toxic!
32
Q

Difference between chromium III and IV?

A

III:
- in an organic form is an essential micronutrient for life
- shortages cause cause health problems, uptake a bit too
IV:
- powerful epithelial irritant
- carcinogenic
- toxic to many plants, aquatic animals and bacteria

33
Q

Sources if chromium?

A 
- naturally occurs in rocks, plants, animals, soil, and volcano dust and gases
Natural sources of Cr:
- weathering of rock constituents
- wet precipitation
- dry fallout from atmosphere
34
Q

Environmental effects of chromium (pathways)?

A
  • the atmosphere is a major pathway for long-range transfer
  • most of the chromium in the air will settle and end up in waters or soil
  • in water, chromium will absorb on sediment and become immobile
  • in soils chromium strongly attaches to soil particles and as a result it will NOT move towards groundwater
35
Q

Environmental effects of chromium III and IV?

A
  • Cr (III) is generally not transported over great distances because of its low solubility and tendency to be adsorbed by soil particles
  • Cr (IV) most mobile in water and soil
  • Conversion from III to IV increases Cr dislocation from soil to water systems
36
Q

Health effects of chromium?

A
  • chromium (IV) is a danger to human health mainly for people who work in the steel and textile industry
  • smokers have a higher chance of exposure to chromium
  • all other stuff
37
Q

Something about arsenic?

A
  • widespread in the environment, human activity has mobilized it
  • found naturally in the Earth’s crust
  • odor- and colorless
  • organic or inorganic compounds
  • NOT easily water soluble
38
Q

Sources of arsenic?

A 
Atmosphere:
 - volcanoes, burning of fossil fuels
 - commercial or industrial processes
Smelting of metals
Pharmaceutical industry
etc.
39
Q

Environmental effects arsenic?

A
  • runoff through surface- and groundwater
  • accumulates in plants if soil conditions are right
  • bioaccumulates in aquatic ecosystems
40
Q

Health effects on arsenic?

A

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