Antimony, Arsenic and Other Toxic Elements in the Topsoil of an Antimony Mine Area

Abstract

Twenty nine topsoil samples were collected from the Xikuangshan antimony mine and analyzed by ICP-MS, ICP-OES and HG-AFS for the following elements: As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Co, Ni, Hg, Pb, Sb and Zn. The objective of this study was to assess the level of topsoil contamination of Xikuangshan’s agricultural land. The concentration ranges (mg·kg⁻¹) of the elements are: As 13∼267, Cd 0.7∼96.8, Cr 81∼315, Cu 23∼261, Ni 29∼86, Pb 27∼423, Sb 10∼2159 and Zn 68∼4217. Average concentrations of As, Cd, Sb and Zn exceeded the limits of agricultural production and human health. The accumulation of Cr, Cu, Ni and Pb in the topsoil of Xikuangshan area were minor than the other four heavy metals; these elements did not exceeded the threshold. Except for the background effect of the soils, anthropogenic factors are the major contributor to the the increased concentrations of heavy metals in soil. Combined with the principal component analysis, it was found that smelters and mining activities were the main sources of soil heavy metals while the lithology background of this area and agricultural practices play important roles in the accumulation of heavy metals.