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Inorganic chemical composition of dust deposited on oleander (Nerium oleander L.) leaves

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Abstract

Elemental composition of dust deposited onto leaf surfaces was analysed in this study. Leaves of oleander (Nerium oleander L.) were collected for testing the environmental quality from Tripoli (Libya), Tajura (suburban of Tripoli) and Ghadames (remote area). Elemental analysis was carried out by ICP-OES. Principle component analysis (PCA) and enrichment factors were used for characterizing and estimating the level of the pollution. Samples from Tripoli were found to have higher contents of Pb, Zn, Cu in comparison with suburban (Tajura) and remote (Ghadames) areas. Our results demonstrated that the leaves of Nerium oleander were useful indicator to assessment of atmospheric deposition. Only limited information is available on environmental issues in Libya and the results reported here may contribute significantly to the assessment of the quality of the environment in this country.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, University of Debrecen, Egyetem tér 1, Debrecen, H-4032, Hungary

    Zita Margitai & István Fábián

  2. Department of Ecology, University of Debrecen, Egyetem tér 1, Debrecen, H-4032, Hungary

    Edina Simon

  3. Institute of Nuclear Research of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Herteleni Laboratory of Environmental Studies, Bem tér 18/C, Debrecen, 4026, Hungary

    Mihály Braun

Authors
  1. Zita Margitai
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  2. Edina Simon
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  3. István Fábián
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  4. Mihály Braun
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Edina Simon.

Electronic supplementary material

Table S1

ANOVA of elemental concentration of dust (mg kg−1, dry weight). (DOC 88 kb)

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Margitai, Z., Simon, E., Fábián, I. et al. Inorganic chemical composition of dust deposited on oleander (Nerium oleander L.) leaves. Air Qual Atmos Health 10, 339–347 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11869-016-0416-1

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