Influence of pH on soil charge characteristics and cadmium sorption in some noncontaminated soils of Indian subtropics.

Concentrations of total dissolved cadmium (Cd) and activity of its free ions in soil solution are suggested to be influenced by soil pH, organic matter (OM) content, cation exchange capacity (CEC), and clay mineralogy. We investigated the sorption of Cd by taking 25-, 50-, and 100-microM Cd solutions in five noncontaminated soils of West Bengal, India, having differing chemical properties with batch sorption experiments. The charge characteristics and point of zero salt effect (PZSE) of all experimental soils were calculated by the potentiometric titration method measuring the adsorption of H+ and OH- on amphoteric surfaces in solutions of varying ionic strength (I). Sorption of Cd was more pronounced at pH levels greater than PZSE for all experimental soils. The CEC, OM content, clay mineralogy, and specific surface area (SSA) also had a great influence on the sorption of Cd from soil solution to soils. The relationships of Cd with those parameters were found to be consistent and the results concluded that Cd sorption in soils is strongly affected by the soil characteristics.

Role of various extractants in removing group-IIB elements of soils incubated with EDTA.

This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation undertaken to evaluate different extractant solutions viz. HCl, Mg(NO3)2, and DTPA with the range of concentration from 0.001 to 0.1N after incubation with group-IIB metals (Zn, Cd, and Hg) and EDTA to understand the capability to remove Zn, Cd, and Hg from soils. Two noncontaminated soils, one acidic (GHL) and the other alkaline (KAP), in reaction were taken from an agricultural field of West Bengal, India for this investigation. Experiments were conducted on these two soils spiked with ZnII, CdII, and HgII in concentrations of 612, 321, and 215 mg/kg for soil GHL and 778, 298, and 157 mg/kg for soil KAP, respectively, which simulate typical electroplating waste contamination. The removal of Zn, Cd, and Hg in soil GHL within the range of HCl concentrations was 8.2-16.5, 12.2-19.1, and 4.3-6.9 whereas these were 6.5-7.6, 8.5-14.1, and 3.2-5.2 in soil KAP. The removal of Zn, Cd, and Hg in soil GHL within the range of Mg(NO3)2 concentrations were 12.2-28.5, 19.1-24.6, and 18.2-19.1 whereas these were 9.1-12.1, 8.3-12.1, and 10.6-48.1 in soil KAP. For DTPA extractant, the percent removal of metal was found to be significantly higher than the other two extractants, which corroborates that DTPA is a better extractant for soil cleaning.