Produção Nacional
Speciation, distribution, and transport of mercury in contaminated soils from Descoberto, Minas Gerais, Brazil
2009; Royal Society of Chemistry; Volume: 11; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1039/b813997k
ISSN1464-0333
AutoresWalter Alves Durão Júnior, Helena Eugênia Leonhardt Palmieri, Mauro Campos Trindade, Otávio Eurico de Aquino Branco, Carlos Alberto Carvalho Filho, Peter Marschall Fleming, José Bento Borba da Silva, Cláudia Carvalhinho Windmöller,
Tópico(s)Heavy Metal Exposure and Toxicity
ResumoThis work describes an investigation of mercury contamination in an abandoned gold mining site in the rural area of Descoberto, Minas Gerais, Brazil, whose inhabitants have reported "silver balls" present in the soil. Different granulometric fractions of soil samples and sedimented material from rainwater retention tanks in this area were analyzed for total mercury, organic matter, and mercury speciation by thermodesorption/atomic absorption spectrometry. The results showed mercury concentrations in the soils in the range of (0.0371–161) mg kg−1, and the occurrence of Hg0 oxidation. Some samples had concentrations as high as 90 mg kg−1 with the majority as Hg2+, which is important information in order to understand the biogeochemical behavior of mercury in contaminated sites and to apply the appropriate remediation technology. The retention boxes and tank samples showed that fine particles with high mercury content (3.3–90) mg kg−1 are leached from the contaminated area, which reveals the need for efficient control of this material to prevent the contamination of stream waters. This study is an example that may be useful for other contaminated sites.
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