UNIVERSITY OF ALGARVE

EMMC-CHIR PROGRAM

FINAL ASSIGNMENT

COURSE: ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS AND DETECTION IN THE

ENVIRONMENT

PREPARED BY: DAWIT GEBREMICHAEL GIDEY

DATE SUBMITTED: JUNE 30, 2017

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Table of Contents
1. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................3
1.1. General Objective.........................................................................................................3
1.2. Specific objectives........................................................................................................3
1.4. Why the authors are interested in this work and its importance that the authors claim.4
2. POSITIVE CRITICS ON THE JOURNAL..........................................................................5
2.1. Journal Title..................................................................................................................5
2.2. Abstract of the journal..................................................................................................5
2.3. Introduction of the journal............................................................................................5
2.4. Experimental part.........................................................................................................5
2.5. Results and discussion..................................................................................................6
2.6. Reference......................................................................................................................6
3. NEGATIVE CRITICS ON THE JOURNAL.......................................................................6
3.1. Abstract........................................................................................................................6
3.2. Experimental part.........................................................................................................6
3.3. Results and discussion..................................................................................................6
3.4. Journal Conclusion.......................................................................................................8
4. MY PERSONAL CONCLUSION.......................................................................................8
5. ANSWER TO THE QUESTIONS.......................................................................................9
6. REFERENCES...................................................................................................................10
 1. INTRODUCTION

Nowadays, the expansion of industries and factories is the major source of soils, plants and
natural waters contamination by discharging hazardous waste and causes a significant human
health risk [1]. The release of heavy metals from industrial processes is becoming a current
environmental problem. They cause adverse effect to aquatic and terrestrial organisms. Some
heavy metals are very toxic and can damage several internal body parts like nerves, liver,
kidney and bones, and block functional groups of vital enzymes [2].

Vegetables irrigated on soils receiving industrial wastewater tend to accumulate heavy metals,
which can cause human health problems even in very low concentrations in foods [3, 4]. Many
people could be at risk of adverse health effects from consuming vegetables cultivated in
contaminated soil. Many researchers have shown that some vegetables are capable of
accumulating high levels of metals from the soil. This is an important exposure pathway for
people who consume vegetables grown in metal contaminated soil [5].

The main problem related to these toxic heavy metals is, they are non-biodegradable and can be
accumulated in human vital organs, producing progressive toxic effects [6]. Water and soil are
essential components of environment. Effective management of water resources and control of
pollution are becoming increasingly important for sustainable development and human welfare.
Nevertheless, heavy metals containing wastewater is discharged from industries and get on to
the land and in to surface water.

Heavy metals can enter the human body and disturb biochemical processes leading to fatal
diseases [7, 8]. Besides, it is also reported that people involving in agricultural activity near
factories and industries can be faced to several health risks from inhaling contaminated soils [9].
Many authors also investigated the inhibitory effects of heavy metal compounds on growth and
the performance of photosynthetic apparatus of plants [10].

1.1. General Objective

The aim of the present study is to critically review a scientific paper chosen from Science of the
Total environment entitled “Heavy metals in wheat grain: Assessment of potential health risk
for inhabitants in Kunshan, China”.

1.2. Specific objectives

 Choose one article from Science of the Total environment based on some merits
 Review the experimental part of the chosen paper
 Identify the major findings that the authors are claiming

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  Examine the discussion and conclusion of the chosen paper
 Evaluate based on the course objective so as to identify the weaknesses and state the
improvements

1.3. Why I am interested in this article?

The course Environmental Analysis and Detection in the Environment is about the tools and
methods which we have to employ during environmental assessment as environmental
analytical scientist to monitor environmental pollutants. Hence, one of the most known
pollutants to soils, water and plants such as cereals and vegetables is heavy metals. Therefore, I
have chosen one article from science of the total environment journal which assesses the
concentration of eight heavy metals in soils and wheat near the Kunshan, China.

Moreover, the health risk of each heavy metal and as a group of heavy metals is well
demonstrated. In addition, the article talk about the health risks in urban and country side
society. The authors have made age dependent health risk assessment of heavy metals for both
groups of people. I have an experience in the assessment of heavy metals in soils, wastewater
and vegetables irrigated near textile and tannery industry. During my analysis, I only
determined the content heavy metals in soils, wastewater and vegetables. However, the paper
under criticism deals with the determination of eight heavy metals in soils and wheat. Besides,
the risk of individual heavy metals and aggregate risks for multiple heavy metals is well
investigated. Which make me interested in this paper.

1.4. Why the authors are interested in this work and its importance that the authors
claim
The authors are interested in this assessment of heavy metals in soils and wheat since the
Kunshan city which is found in China is an industrial city. Hence, the soils and agricultural
products in this case wheat may contain higher content of heavy metals than the permissible
limits of Chinese standards due to anthropogenic sources. The basis of this point is heavy metals
are non-biodegradable and toxic even at lower concentration.

Therefore, if their content exceeds the recommended permissible level, possible measures may
be taken like improving their wastewater technologies or other feasible alternative. Besides, it
will enable to involve in the cleanup activities like soil washing or other remediation techniques.
This will create an opportunity for the society to use their land resource to cultivate different
crops without any health risk due to heavy metals.

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 2. POSITIVE CRITICS ON THE JOURNAL

2.1. Journal Title

The title of this scientific paper is short, precise, descriptive and gives direction to the whole
work.

2.2. Abstract of the journal

The abstract contained short description of the objective of the work and some comparison such
as the concentration of heavy metals, health risk of heavy metals to urban versus country people
and adults versus children are well indicated.

2.3. Introduction of the journal

The introduction part clearly indicated the background of the study and pointed out important
information on:-
 The need for assessment of potential health risk due to heavy metals
 Methods employed for determination heavy metals on soils and edible plants
 The aim of the study clearly stated

2.4. Experimental part

The methodology part is clearly written and it can be used by other researchers to get similar
results. If necessary a slight modification on the developed methods may improve the reliability
of the method. Samples were collected from Kunshan city which is the most developed area in
China. Chemical and electrical industries are the main sectors for its development. Agriculture
is also indicated as the main economic sector. Therefore, the pollution of soils and plants due to
heavy elements was indicated as a serious problem. This is the main reason that the authors
made to involve in this particular issue. It has been stated that the environmental pollution and
possible health effects due to heavy metals are becoming more and more serious with the
intensive industrial and agricultural activities.

Soil and water samples were collected from the target area. Besides, sample pretreatment were
made very well. Soil and wheat samples were digested with appropriate optimization with the
correct acid combinations. In both cases, the content of heavy metals was determined using GF-
AAS and ICP-AES. Quality control measures such as certified reference, internal quality
control and blanks were employed to confirm the accuracy of the analytical data.

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 2.5. Results and discussion
Results are indicated in appropriate result reporting format i.e. text, table and figure according
to their importance though one result is not reported in proper manner and it is indicated below
in the negative critics. The outcomes of the study are important for further research work to
involve in similar works.
2.6. Reference
Sufficient scientific references are included and the authors compared their results with some of
these findings.
3. NEGATIVE CRITICS ON THE JOURNAL
3.1. Abstract
The abstract do not contained the methodology and summary of the major findings supported
numerically.

3.2. Experimental part

The authors did not indicate the purity of the chemicals used in the analysis. The sampling
technique was clearly indicated. Besides, the assessment should include a means of comparison
i.e. background concentration of heavy metals which could be collected from unpolluted area
and had to be compared with the results obtained in the target research area.

Moreover, samples like wastewater samples, particulate samples and other two or more plant
samples should be collected. This enables the authors to clearly assess the health risk of heavy
metals on the nearby society. In addition, collecting representative samples is an important task
of an environmental analytical scientist so as to involve in decision making and intervention of
environmental pollution due to anthropogenic sources in this case heavy metals. There are other
highly sensitive and with low detection limit instruments like ICP-MS which is fast and simple
for the determination of all these heavy metals at a time.

Nevertheless, for some cases like determination of Hg, hydride Generator Atomic Absorption
Spectrometer (HG-AAS) is recommended. Most of the time determination of total heavy metals
doesn’t provide more information about the health risk of heavy metals since the toxicity and
bioavailability depends on the different forms of the heavy metal. Therefore, speciation analysis
was better and recommended technique for better understanding of the health effects of these
heavy metals. For instance, in the case of chromium, the Cr(VI) is more toxic and carcinogenic
than Cr(III); and hence determination of these forms separately is an important task of
environmental scientists.

3.3. Results and discussion of the journal

The results and discussion section of a scientific paper is the most important part where we can
find everything relevant about the environmental impact of pollutants in this case heavy metals

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in soils and wheat. Thus, evaluating the results and discussion of this work is important. The
authors determined the amounts of 8 heavy metals i.e. Zn, Cu, Pb, Cr, Ni, As, Cd and Hg in
soils and wheat, and they put the results as median, rather than mean which is a better way to
express the concentration of heavy metals in soils and wheat. Besides, the 40 soil samples had
to be considered independently to clearly understand the impact of the nearby industries to the
society. This enables the environmental researchers to identify the industry which discharges
higher content of heavy metals into the soils and in turn to wheat.

The results of the soil samples had to be analyzed using important multivariate data analysis
models since it enables to identify the variations among these samples and which heavy metal(s)
found in each soil samples is more predominant. For instance, the authors stated that this
particular area is near to several industries and from the environmental assessment point of view
it has to estimate the impact of each industry on the nearby soils and plants due to heavy metals.
For example; in Table 1 i.e., the original paper Variability (Coefficient of variance, CV is
116%) of Zn concentration in soils were high, showing a remarkable effect of environmental
input on Zn concentration in soil. However, it had to be indicated the particular soil samples that
contain more Zn content and which industry discharge the most content of Zn to the
environment. Not clearly put. Table 1–Concentrations of heavy metals (mg kg−1) in soil and
Table 2–Concentrations of heavy metals (mg kg−1dry wt.) in wheat grain in Kunshan, reported
without uncertainty of measurement.

Most of the time results are indicated in text, figure or table form. However, a result can’t be
indicated using more than one way. The task of the researcher is choosing appropriate result
reporting format which can attract readers and has to convey the intended objective. In this case,
the results for pH, organic matter (OM) and cation exchange capacity (CEC) isn’t written in a
well-organized manner and decreases the interest of a reader. In general, the soil was slightly
acidic (6.6), and pH of the soil ranged from 5.3 to 7.8. Confusing idea since pH 6.6 is mean or
something else? Is n’t mentioned?. “Median concentrations of eight heavy metals in soil were
all lower than permission limits of Chinese standards. However, a few samples presented higher
(Zn, Cr, Ni, Cd and Hg) than the permissible limits of Chinese standards. There were six soil
samples which have higher Hg value than the standard value, and four (Ni), two (Cd and Zn)
and one (Cr).” Confusing idea and needs revision since it includes contracting information. So
to my understanding the mean concentrations of eight heavy metals in soils were all lower than
permissible limits of Chinese standards. Otherwise, all the 40 soil samples should be interpreted
independently and hence which soil samples contain above permissible limits of could be
indicated easily.

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The authors estimated the health risk of consuming wheat grain to children and adults due to
heavy metals. However, it may not only appropriate way to assess the health risk since the
people consume other different foodstuffs. Besides, the content of heavy metals exposure from
inhalation and dermal are not taken in consideration since people who involve in agricultural
activities can be exposed to heavy metals. Therefore, the content of heavy metals in drinking
water and on particulate matter had to be estimated for complete assessment. For instance, the
value of hazard quotient (HQ) in wheat grain was much smaller than that in fish or vegetables as
studied by others.

Besides, they mentioned that “Consequences of HQs of every metal for different exposure
populations were in the same order of: Country children>Country adults>Urban children>Urban
adults”. However, they did not stated why this is so. They have mentioned that “High potential
risk due to As and Cu may be related to waste water released from metallurgy and chemical
plants in Kunshan area”, however, it would have been more clear if they had determined the
content of all eight heavy metals in the wastewaters to judge that these are the main sources.
Besides, the authors suggested that “So diseases related to As and Cu should be paid more
attention in Kunshan”; however, this is not appropriate suggestion since it needs some
additional experimental data to support like determination of Cu and As in the hair, urine or
blood of patients and normal people.

3.4. Journal Conclusion

Although the median concentrations of heavy metals in soil and wheat grain were all lower than
the permissible limits of Chinese standards, there are still a few soil and wheat grain samples
presented high concentrations of heavy metals. It was noticed that 1, 6 and 10 wheat samples
presented higher concentrations of Zn, Pb and Cd than their permissible limits of Chinese
standard, respectively. Which heavy metals were above the permissible limits of Chinese
standards level in soils?

4. MY PERSONAL CONCLUSION

The authors have assessed the potential health risk for inhabitants in Kunshan, China due to
heavy metals from the consumption of wheat grain. They performed sample pretreatment,
sample preparation and detection of the contents of heavy metals in soils and wheat. Performing
all these parameters, analysis of eight heavy metals and interpretation of data obtained for both
soil and wheat samples to extract the relevant information is a big task. Besides, it is indicated
that the assessment has included risk of individual heavy metal and aggregate risks for multiple
heavy metals. Thus, they have contributed their best to the development of science and

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introduced a new technique to the science community so as to involve in the assessment of
heavy metals in other foodstuffs and other sample matrices.
The assessment has showed several importance compared to the common methods like
determination of total heavy metals in soils, water and foodstuffs like vegetables. Nevertheless,
it is incomplete to reach at conclusive points since the main industries which discharge higher
content of heavy metals to the nearby soils and wheat were not identified. Moreover, the
assessment lacks information about the content of heavy metals in drinking water, other
foodstuffs and particulate matters. Overall, as to my level of understating, the paper can be a
nice input to environmental analytical scientists who need to involve in the development of
efficient, simple, less costly and reliable analytical method for the assessment of heavy metals
in different matrices like soils, water, particulate matters and vegetables so as to involve in the
intervention of environmental pollution.

5. ANSWER TO THE QUESTIONS

A. Concept of environmental background: The concentration of a given chemical species in

a given environmental matrix (water, sediment, air, biota, soil, suspended particulate, biota,
aerosol etc.) not affected by human activities (or before the effect of anthropogenic
activities).
B. Fraction of anthropogenic carbon dioxide: refers to the amount of human activity Carbon
dioxide emissions remaining in the atmosphere after the rest being absorbed by carbon
sinks. Approximately 43% of carbon dioxide emissions stay in the atmosphere with the rest
being absorbed by different carbon sinks such as oceans and terrestrial plant.
C. Environmental Archive: Environmental archives such as peat bogs, sediments, corals,
trees, polar ice, plant material from herbarium collections, and human tissue material have
greatly helped to assess both ancient and recent atmospheric changes and its sources on a
regional and global scale. An ideal climate environmental archive will be of high temporal
resolution, preferably at annual or seasonal scale, be responsive to small changes in one or a
few climate variables be a closed system so as to retain information, record a continuous
time series of variation, be global in distribution, and be accurately and precisely datable.
The current suite of environmental archives includes corals, peat bogs, ice cores, tree rings,
sediments and speleothems, but none meet all of the ideal criteria. Because of this it becomes
necessary to cross correlate both archives/records and proxies, and this increases uncertainty in
interpretation. Corals contain seasonal or sub-seasonal growth rings that incorporate a chemical
record of variables such as sea surface temperature and salinity in their skeletons, but are
generally short in their time span with individual colonies living no more than about 100-150
years.

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Ice cores and tree rings have annual or sub-annual growth patterns, and can persist continuously
for up to several hundred thousand years in the case of the former. But both of these are
restricted in their geographic range, as are corals. More recently the terrestrial palaeoclimate
record has been enhanced by the addition of data from cave deposits which for the most part
show excellent incremental growth patterns and proxy records, but suffer from problems of
being difficult to date accurately. Terrestrial sedimentary deposits, particularly those from lakes,
can contain high-resolution layering, but generally have many hiatuses or other breaks in the
record. Even though there is some limitation, integration of all environment will give very good
information regarding how climate is changing and what happened in the past as well.

6. REFERENCES

1. S.S. Gowd, M.R. Reddy, P.K. Govil, Assessment of heavy metal contamination in soils at
Jajmau (Kanpur) and Unnao industrial areas of the Ganga Plain, Uttar Pradesh, Indian J.
Hazard. Mater. 2010, 174, 113–121
2. . Saifuddin, N.; Raziah, A.Z. Removal of Heavy Metals from Industrial Effluent Using
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae (Baker’sYeast) Immobilised in Chitosan/lingo sulphonate
Matrix. J. Appl. Sci. Research, 2007, 3, 2091-2099.
3. T.Y. Lanre-Iyanda, I.M. Adekunle, Assessment of heavy metals and their estimated daily
intakes from two commonly consumed foods (kulikuli and robo) found in Nigeria, Afr. J.
Food. Agr. Nutr. Dev. 2012, 12, 6156-6169.
4. Y.H. Ibrahim, A.A. Shakour, N.M. Abdel-Latif, N.M. El-Taieb, Assessment of heavy metal
Levels in the Environment, Egypt, J. Am. Sci. 2011, 7, 148-153.
5. Y. Weldegebriel, B.S. Chandravanshi. T. Wondimu, Concentration levels of metals in
vegetables grown in soils irrigated with river water in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Ecotox.
Environ. Safety, 2012, 77, 57–63.
6. E.M. Alissa, G.A. Ferns, Heavy Metal Poisoning and Cardiovascular Disease, Hindawi
Publishing Corporation J. Toxic. 2011, 1-21.
7. Deepali, K. K. Gangwar, Metals Concentration in Textile and Tannery Effluents,
8. Associated Soils and Ground Water. New York Science Journal, 2010, 3, 82-89.
9. R. Kundra, R. Sachdeva, S. Attar, M. Parande, Studies on the removal of heavy metal ions
from industrial waste water by using titanium electrodes. J. Current Chem. Pharm. Sci.
2012, 2, 1-11.
10. J. Wang, K. Ashley, R.K. Eugene, N. Charles, Determination of hexavalent Chromium in
Industrial Hygiene Samples Using Ultrasonic Extraction and Flow Injection Analysis. The
Analyst, 1997, 122, 1307-1312.
11. S. Oancea, N. Foca, A. Airinei, Effects of heavy metals on plant growth and photosynthetic
activity. Scientific Annals of the "Al. I. Cuza "Iasi, 2005, 1, 107-108

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