Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 7, 2026

Experimental Column Setup for Studying Anaerobic Biogeochemical Interactions Between Iron (Oxy)Hydroxides, Trace Elements, and Bacteria
Published on: December 19, 2017
Mobility of metals and metalloids in a multi-element contaminated soil 20 years after cessation of the pollution
Rafael Clemente1, Nicholas M Dickinson, Nicholas W Lepp
1School of Biological and Earth Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Byrom Street, Liverpool L3 3AF, UK. r.clemente@ljmu.ac.uk
Abstract:
Knowledge of trace element concentrations and mobility is important in the ecotoxicological assessment of contaminated soils. We analysed soil pore water under field conditions to provide new insights into the mobility of residual contaminants in the surface 50 cm of a highly contaminated woodland soil. Cadmium and Zn were highly mobile in the acidic soil, concentrations increasing with depth in soil pore water, showing considerable downward mobility. High levels of surface organic matter restricted the solubility of Cu, Pb and Sb, with highest concentrations being found close to the surface. Dissolved organic carbon in pore water had a strong influence on mobility of Cu, Zn, Pb and Sb. Elevated As had moved from the organic surface horizons but was largely immobilised in deeper layers and associated with Fe and Al oxides. The measured differential mobility of pollutants in the present study is highly relevant to protection of groundwater and other receptors.
Related Concept Videos
Microbial Bioremediation of Uranium
Microbes and Other Elemental Cycles
The Periodic Table and Organismal Elements
Periodic Table Provides Information...
The Periodic Table and Organismal Elements
Microbial Leaching
Extraction: Advanced Methods

