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The determination of the extractability of selected elements from agricultural soil

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Abstract

Concentrations of Ag, Al, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb, Sr, and Zn—isolated by sequential extraction steps from apple orchard soil—were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy and compared to the total amount of metal in soil determined by XRF. The extractable amount of each metal was calculated by the extraction yields of the four steps. The LODs of the different elements in all extracts ware below 3 μg/L except for Ba (steps 1 and 2), Cu (step 1), Fe (all steps), K (steps 1–3), Mn (step 2), Na (steps 1–3), Ni (step 1), Pb (steps 1 and 4), and Zn (steps 1 and 2). The highest LOD (>10 μg/L) was found for Fe, K, and Na (step 1). The recovery of all metals after four sequential extraction steps was 90–112%. The repeatability (<1.1%), the intermediate precision (<5.3%), the day-to-day reproducibility (<6.2%), and the overall uncertainty of measurement (approximately 4–8.5%) for all analyzed metals supports the choice of the method used.

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Acknowledgments

The authors extend their sincere appreciation to Mr. Ivan Haluga for donating the soil samples from his orchard.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Analytical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, BOKU – University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Muthgasse 18, 1190, Vienna, Austria

    Michaela Zeiner & Gerhard Stingeder

  2. Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Horvatovac 102a, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia

    Iva Juranović Cindrić

  3. Laboratory for Radioecology, Institute R. Boskovic, Bijenicka 54, POB 180, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia

    Ivanka Lovrenčić Mikelić

  4. Institute of Mineralogy and Petrology, Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, Horvatovac 95, 10000, Zagreb, Croatia

    Gordana Medunić, Štefica Kampić & Nenad Tomašić

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  1. Michaela Zeiner
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  2. Iva Juranović Cindrić
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  3. Ivanka Lovrenčić Mikelić
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  4. Gordana Medunić
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  5. Štefica Kampić
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  6. Nenad Tomašić
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  7. Gerhard Stingeder
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Correspondence to Iva Juranović Cindrić.

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Zeiner, M., Cindrić, I.J., Mikelić, I.L. et al. The determination of the extractability of selected elements from agricultural soil. Environ Monit Assess 185, 223–229 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-012-2546-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-012-2546-8

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