Comment on “Speciation and fate of toxic cadmium in contaminated paddy soils and rice using XANES/EXAFS spectroscopy”

Abstract

Kunene et al. recently published a paper in the Journal of Hazardous Materials 383 (2020) 121167 on the speciation of cadmium in contaminated paddy soils and rice using XANES/EXAFS spectroscopy. This paper included experimental procedures and data processing steps that were partly erroneous, especially in regard to the synchrotron speciation measurements. We address these issues in this comment and provide the reader with a brief overview of the paper to avoid future misconceptions. Highlights The soil studied cannot be considered as contaminated based on its Cd concentration. The reported interatomic distances for Cd in soils and rice kernels are unrealistic.

Source Identification of Cd and Pb in Typical Farmland Topsoil in the Southwest of China: A Case Study

“…The toxicity and bioavailability of potential toxic metals (such as Cd and Pb) in soils have recently attracted increasing levels of public attention [1][2][3]. Cadmium (Cd) is a harmful heavy metal that ranks seventh among all heavy metals in terms of harm to animals and plants [4].…”