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| Evaluation of heavy metals pollution in surface sediments using an improved geo-accumulation index method |
| Received:February 10, 2019 |
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| KeyWord:sediment;heavy metal;pollution evaluation;improved geo-accumulation index method;equivalent ecotoxicity index |
| Author Name | Affiliation | E-mail | | LIU Zi-he | School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China | | | MENG Rui-hong | School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China | | | DAI Hui-xiang | School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China | | | HONG Qing-yang | School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China | | | YAN Qiu-he | School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China | | | LIU Yan-ting | School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China | | | WANG Hong-tao | School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China | htwang@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn | | CHEN Tan | College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing 100081, China | chentan05@tsinghua.org.cn |
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| Abstract: |
| The geo-accumulation index method (GAI)is a commonly used approach for the quantitative assessment of heavy metal pollution in sediments. However, it can hardly be adapted to conduct an integrated evaluation of multi-heavy metals pollution in an entire river basin as it focuses only on a specific heavy metal in individual sampling locations. This investigation presents a novel approach in which pollution of multi-heavy metals sampled from different locations in a basin can be systematically assessed. Two indicators of both maximum and average concentrations were embedded into the GAI method through the Nemerow index method. The concept of "Equivalent Eco-Toxicity Index" was proposed considering the integrated effects on environment as different heavy metals have different eco-toxicities and different concentrations. This improved approach used the maximum concentration of heavy metals that plays a key role in the assessment, as well as the eco-toxicity of all metals presented. Therefore, a more integrated assessment result was obtained. The improved Geo-Accumulation Index (IGAI)approach was employed and validated for evaluating heavy metal pollution in the sediments of the Chaobei river catchment (a river branch of Danjiangkou reservoir basin). That IGAI approach avoided the problem of averaging the heavy pollution points used by conventional GAI. It could effectively express the serious pollution condition of Hg at individual points. The results of the pollution ranking sequence of different heavy metals could systematically reflect the pollution status at the catchment. In assessing the composite pollution of heavy metals, the IGAI approach produced similar results as the Potential Eco-Hazard Index method, but with much less deviation caused by using uncorrected heavy metal toxicity coefficients as in the previous study. |
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