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Sources, Enrichment, and Geochemical Fractions of Soil Trace Metals in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

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Abstract

Mongolia is a rapidly developing country that has experienced growing industrialization and urbanization in recent decades. This study was conducted to evaluate the enrichment and labile fractions of metals in urban soils of Mongolia and to identify major sources of soil metal pollution. The concentrations and geochemical fractions of Al, Fe, Mn, Cr, Cu, Cd, Co, Zn, V, Mo, As, Sb, and Pb in soils of the city Ulaanbaatar were investigated. The results demonstrate that only Fe, Mn, Co, Mo, and V occur at natural levels with enrichment factors close to unity. The majority of investigated toxic metals, including Cu, Zn, Cr, Sb, As, Cd, and Pb, are serious pollutants in urban soils, with enrichment factors of up to 2.8, 5.1, 2.1, 16, 13, 15, and 11, respectively. Studies of the chemical fractions of metals demonstrate that Zn is mainly found in its labile form and is considered a high risk to humans and biota. Industrial release, household ash, coal combustion, and tire abrasion were identified as key sources of toxic metals entering into the soil of Ulaanbaatar City, which should be controlled effectively to prevent the population as well as pollution distribution over a wider area by long-range atmospheric transport.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support for this work was provided by the Science and Technology Foundation of Mongolia (STF-BS-2017-69), the National University of Mongolia (P2018-3607), and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Science and Sport of Mongolia (HEEDP-No- J11A15). The authors thank Ts. Munkhtuya and E. Tseveendorj  for helps on  sampling and chemical analyses. They gratefully acknowledge Editor Chris D. Metcalfe and three anonymous reviewers for constructive criticism on the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental and Forest Engineering, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, National University of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

    Ulziibat Bilguun, Dashnyam Namkhainyambuu, Batbold Purevsuren, Tseren-Ochir Soyol-Erdene & Enkhdul Tuuguu

  2. Institute of Geography and Geoecology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

    Ulziibat Bilguun

  3. Environmental Section, Energy Resources LLC, Umnugovi, Mongolia

    Batbold Purevsuren

  4. Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, National University of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

    Dorj Daichaa

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  1. Ulziibat Bilguun
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Correspondence to Tseren-Ochir Soyol-Erdene.

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Bilguun, U., Namkhainyambuu, D., Purevsuren, B. et al. Sources, Enrichment, and Geochemical Fractions of Soil Trace Metals in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 79, 219–232 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-020-00748-5

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