International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

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Dear Colleagues,

With the development of industry and agriculture, various heavy metals (i.e., Hg, Cd, Pb, Cr and As) and organic chemicals are released into atmosphere, hydrosphere, pedosphere and biosphere. Heavy metals can be accumulated in organisms and consequently enriched through the food chain. Organic chemicals can thus cause severe health problems in the population. A series of mathematical models, such as Monte Carlo, RBCA and Csoil, are applied to heavy metal health risk assessment. In addition, different methods including coagulation flocculation, precipitation filtration, solvent extraction, reverse osmosis, adsorption and biotreatment have been developed to remove heavy metals and organic chemicals. However, exploring the dose–effect relationship as well as establishing the models with the functions of prediction and early warning are the research frontier. The development trend of health risk assessment models should be one of simplicity, strong promotion ability, adaptability to different time and space scales and high reliability. As for heavy metals/organic chemicals pollution control, developing cost-efficient technologies with weak second pollution is promising, in which the removal mechanisms from the molecular interaction viewpoint need to be revealed. This journal aims to promote technological innovation and progress in controlling heavy metals/organic chemicals pollution economically and efficiently.

Dr. Chunli Zheng
Prof. Dr. Aidi Huo
Prof. Dr. Bo Bai
Guest Editors

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Keywords

environmental behavior
health risk assessment
dose–effect relationship
GIS
expose assessment model
heavy metal removal
organic chemicals treatment
functional materials synthesis

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 8771 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effects of Aging on Adsorption of Tetracycline Hydrochloride by Humin

by Hongbo Hou, Guoliang Xu, Fei He and Hua Pan

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(4), 2901; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20042901 - 07 Feb 2023

Viewed by 1042

Abstract

To explore the effects of “aging”, an environmental factor, on adsorption of tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) by humin (HM), this paper coats HM surface with ferric hydroxide precipitate to simulate the aging process. The research findings indicate that compared with fresh HM, aged HM (HM-Fe) displays an accelerated adsorption rate and higher adsorption capacity on TC. With an initial concentration of 20 mg·L⁻¹, TC’s equilibrium adsorption capacity on HM and HM-Fe is 4.6 and 5.3 mg·g⁻¹, respectively, whereas the corresponding initial adsorption rate is 0.036 and 0.132 mg·g⁻¹·min⁻¹. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model and Freundlich adsorption isotherm model could adequately simulate the adsorption process of TC by HM and HM-Fe, suggesting the occurrence of chemical adsorption and multimolecular layer adsorption between TC and HM and HM-Fe. Based on ΔAbs deduced from Job’s calculation, it can be assumed a complex reaction occurs between the iron element on the HM-Fe surface and TC, which acts as a sort of bridge in strengthening the adsorption of TC by HM-Fe. The aforesaid findings may provide subsequent further study on environmental behaviors of TC in the soil with both fundamental theories and a scientific basis. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heavy Metal/Organic Chemicals Risk Assessment and Pollution Control)

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12 pages, 1860 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Risk Assessment of Heavy Metal Pollution in Farmland Soils at the Northern Foot of the Qinling Mountains, China

by Aidi Huo, Xing Wang, Zhixin Zhao, Luying Yang, Fangqian Zhong, Chunli Zheng and Ningbo Gao

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(22), 14962; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192214962 - 14 Nov 2022

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 1996

Abstract

To provide scientific basis for the prevention and control of heavy metal pollution, a field investigation, sample collection and analysis of the heavy metal content in farmland soils at the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains were conducted. Based on the comparative analysis of the single pollution index method, the Nemerow comprehensive pollution index method, the geological accumulation index method, the potential ecological hazard index method, and the geological accumulation index method were used to comprehensively analyze and evaluate the risk of soil heavy metal pollution. The results showed that the heavy metal pollution of farmland soil at the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains was severe, among which Hg and Cr pollution was relatively obvious. Taking the soil screening values of agricultural land as the standard, the quantity of element Hg in agricultural soils at the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains was higher than the relevant screening value. In the two sample sites investigated, the intensity of the heavy metal accumulation index in Baoqizhai Village was Hg > Cr > Cu > As > Pb, and in Dayangyu Village it was Cr > Cu > As > Pb. Among them, in Baoqizhai Village it shows the heavy pollution caused by Hg (

I_{g e o} =

3.42) and the light pollution caused by Cr (

I_{g e o}

< 1) in the two areas. Hg is mostly affected by mining activities and its atmospheric subsidence. At the same time, Cr is mainly derived from the weathering of rock parent material and is also affected by anthropogenic factors to a certain extent. The accumulation of heavy metals in the farmland soil around the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains was relatively high, posing a threat to the surrounding soil environment. Therefore, it is urgent to control farmland soil environmental pollution. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Heavy Metal/Organic Chemicals Risk Assessment and Pollution Control)

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