Perspective Chapter: Rapid Measurement of Potentially Toxic Elements (PTEs) in Petroleum Hydrocarbons Polluted Soils by X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) Spectroscopy

Abstract

Potentially toxic elements (PTEs) contamination in soils threats human wellbeing and ecological health because of their toxicity and bioaccumulation. This research presents a portable Olympus Delta Premium 6000 Series XRF Analyser (Olympus, USA) as a rapid measurement tool (RMT) for PTEs: Cr, Cu, Fe, Pb, Mn, and Zn in contaminated soils in the Niger Delta, Nigeria. A total of 45 crude oil-contaminated soils were collected from three genuinely oil spill sites. The range of measured PTEs concentrations (mg/kg) in the study sites are as follows: Site 1: chromium (Cr) 54–75, copper (Cu) 5.4–16.6, iron (Fe) 14,841–23,404, lead (Pb) 13.5–21.4, manganese (Mn) 158–555, and zinc (Zn) 32.6–47.2; Site 2: (35–66), (5–16.1), (10166–20,967), (12–17.8), (209–440), (17.6–33.6); and Site 3: (32–115), (6.5–20.8), (7538–22,800), (12–135), (98–338), (19.9–177). The trend of PTEs across the three sites follows the same order: Fe > Mn > Cr > Zn > Pb > Cu. The average concentration values of PTEs in all the 3 sites were higher than background concentration values. Thus, crude oil spill spiked the PTEs concentrations. XRF spectroscopy is recommended as a cost-effective and RMT for PTEs in soils.