Heavy Metal Accumulation and Distribution in Oil Crops

Abstract

To ascertain the level of pollution and the way the heavy metals enter oil crops, soil, and plant samples were taken at different distances from the source of pollution, the Non-Ferrous-Metal Works (NFMW) near Plovdiv (0.5 and 15 km). The contents of the heavy metals in the plant material (roots, stems, leaves, seeds, fruit shell) and sunflower oil and rapeseed oil were determined. The quantitative measurements were carried out with inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometer. Peanuts (Arachis hypogaea L.) were the crop with the highest uptake of heavy metals from the soil, followed by rapeseed (Brassica napus L. a napus), sesame (Sesamum indicum L.), ORDER REPRINTS and sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.). The distribution of the heavy metals in the organs of the crops had a selective character that in peanuts decreased in the following order: roots > stems > leaves > fruit shell > seeds, in sunflower-leaves > roots > stems > seeds > fruit shell, and in sesame and rapeseedleaves > stems > roots > fruit shell > seeds. A clearly distinguished tendency toward a decrease of the contents of heavy metals in oil crops was observed with increasing of the distance away from the NFMW. The quantities of lead (Pb), copper (Cu), and cadmium (Cd) in the rapeseed oil, obtained from rapeseed, grown 0.5 km away from the NFMW, were higher than the accepted maximum permissible concentrations. In the oil from sunflower, grown in the region of the NFMW, the contents of Pb and Cu exceeded about two times the maximum permissible concentration and could be hazardous for the people to consume it. Sunflower and rapeseed could be grown in industrially polluted regions until stage ''blossoming'' and be used for fodder for the animals.

Stability of Enhanced Yield and Metal Uptake by Sunflower Mutants for Improved Phytoremediation

“…Cadmium, Cu, and Pb distribution in individual sunflower organs has also been studied by Angelova, Ivanova, and Ivanov (2004). They showed the following metal distribution in sunflowers tested on a metal contaminated field: leaves > roots > stem > seeds > fruit shell.…”

Uptake and allocation of plant nutrients and Cd in maize, sunflower and tobacco growing on contaminated soil and the effect of soil conditioners under field conditions

“…Studies have shown that the accumulation of contaminants or nutrients by plants varies greatly among crops and cultivars and also differs between different parts of a plant (Kurz et al 1999;Liu et al 2007). Seeds and fruits generally accumulate metals at lower concentrations than leaves or roots (McLaughlin et al 1996(McLaughlin et al , 1999Wenger et al 2002a;Angelova et al 2004;Liu et al 2007). For example, maize seed produced on contaminated land may be suitable for animal feed (Wenger et al 2002a), while the stems and leaves could be used for non-food purposes such as bioenergy production (Meher et al 1995;Licht and Isebrands 2005;Amon et al 2007).…”

Macro‐ and microelements in pumpkin seed oils: Effect of processing, crop season, and country of origin

“…Some of these elements, such as rare earth elements, derive from the underlying rock and are therefore related to the geographical origin (Bandoniene, Zettl, Meisel, & Maneiko, ). On the other hand, environmental conditions, that is, air and soil pollution can significantly influence the content of elements, especially heavy metals in the edible oils (Angelova, Ivanova, & Ivanov, ).…”