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Effects of Soil Properties on the Transfer of Cadmium from Soil to Wheat in the Yangtze River Delta Region, China—a Typical Industry–Agriculture Transition Area

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Abstract

In order to identify the effects of soil properties on the transfer of Cd from soil to wheat under actual field conditions, 126 pairs of topsoil and wheat samples were collected from the Yangtze River delta region, China. Relevant parameters (Cd, Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Zn, N, P, K, S, pH, total organic carbon, and speciation of soil Cd) in soil and wheat tissues were analyzed, and the results were treated by statistical methods. Soil samples (19.8%) and 14.3% of the wheat grain samples exceeded the relevant maximum permissible Cd concentrations in China for agricultural soil and wheat grain, respectively. The major speciations of Cd in soil were exchangeable, bound to carbonates and fulvic and humic acid fraction, and they were readily affected by soil pH, total Ca, Mg, S and P, DTPA-Fe, Ex-Ca, and Ex-Mg. Cadmium showed a strong correlation with Fe, S, and P present in the grain and the soil, whereas there was no significant correlation in the straw or root. Generally, soil pH, Ca, Mg, Mn, P, and slowly available K restricted Cd transfer from soil to wheat, whereas soil S, N, Zn, DTPA-Fe, and total organic carbon enhance Cd uptake by wheat.

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Abbreviations

Car:

Bound to carbonates

DTPA:

Diethylenetriamine penta-acetic acid

Ex:

Exchangeable

Fe–Mn:

Bound to Fe–Mn oxyhydroxides

HF:

Fulvic and humic acid

OM:

Organic matter

Phyto-Cd:

Soil phytoaccessible Cd

Res:

Residual

TOC:

Total organic carbon

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Acknowledgments

This research was sponsored by a project of China Geological Survey entitled “Evaluation of Regional Geochemical Ecology in the Lower Yangtze River Basin” ([2008] GZTR02-01) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (40625012). Professor XY Yuan in Hohai University, China is gratefully acknowledged for reviewing this paper prior to submission.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Surficial Geochemistry, Ministry of Education, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, 22 Hankou Road, Nanjing, 210093, China

    Cheng Wang, Junfeng Ji & Lingxiao Chen

  2. School of Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing, 100083, China

    Zhongfang Yang

  3. Institute of Earth Sciences and Engineering, University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand

    Patrick Browne

  4. Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Huaqiao University, Xiamen, 361021, China

    Ruilian Yu

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  1. Cheng Wang
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Correspondence to Junfeng Ji.

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Wang, C., Ji, J., Yang, Z. et al. Effects of Soil Properties on the Transfer of Cadmium from Soil to Wheat in the Yangtze River Delta Region, China—a Typical Industry–Agriculture Transition Area. Biol Trace Elem Res 148, 264–274 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-012-9367-z

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