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The role of biochar, natural iron oxides, and nanomaterials as soil amendments for immobilizing metals in shooting range soil

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Abstract

High concentration of toxic metals in military shooting range soils poses a significant environmental concern due to the potential release of metals, such as Pb, Cu, and Sb, and hence requires remediation. The current study examined the effectiveness of buffalo weed (Ambrosia trifida L.) biomass and its derived biochars at pyrolytic temperatures of 300 and 700 °C, natural iron oxides (NRE), gibbsite, and silver nanoparticles on metal immobilization together with soil quality after 1-year soil incubation. Destructive (e.g., chemical extractions) and non-destructive (e.g., molecular spectroscopy) methods were used to investigate the immobilization efficacy of each amendment on Pb, Cu, and Sb, and to explore the possible immobilization mechanisms. The highest immobilization efficacy was observed with biochar produced at 300 °C, showing the maximum decreases of bioavailability by 94 and 70 % for Pb and Cu, respectively, which were attributed to the abundance of functional groups in the biochar. Biochar significantly increased the soil pH, cation exchange capacity, and P contents. Indeed, the scanning electron microscopic elemental dot mapping and X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopic (EXAFS) studies revealed associations of Pb with P (i.e., the formation of stable chloropyromorphite [Pb5(PO4)3Cl]) in the biomass- or biochar-amended soils. However, no amendment was effective on Sb immobilization.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the Basic Science Research Program, through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (Project No.: 2012R1A1B3001409) (70 %). This study was also partly supported by the “Research Program for Agricultural Science and Technology Development (Project No. PJ009219042014)”, National Academy of Agricultural Science, RDA, Korea.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Korea Biochar Research Center and Department of Biological Environment, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, Republic of Korea

    Anushka Upamali Rajapaksha, Sang Soo Lee & Yong Sik Ok

  2. Chemical and Environmental Systems Modeling Research Group, National Institute of Fundamental Studies, Kandy, Sri Lanka

    Anushka Upamali Rajapaksha & Meththika Vithanage

  3. Soil Sciences Department, College of Food and Agricultural Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2460, Riyadh, 11451, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

    Mahtab Ahmad

  4. Department of Agronomy and Medicinal Plant Resources, Gyeongnam National University of Science and Technology, Jinju, 660-758, Republic of Korea

    Kwon-Rae Kim

  5. Environmental Health Research Division, National Institute of Environmental Research, Ministry of Environment, Incheon, Republic of Korea

    Jun Young Chang

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  1. Anushka Upamali Rajapaksha
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  2. Mahtab Ahmad
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  3. Meththika Vithanage
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Correspondence to Sang Soo Lee or Yong Sik Ok.

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Rajapaksha, A.U., Ahmad, M., Vithanage, M. et al. The role of biochar, natural iron oxides, and nanomaterials as soil amendments for immobilizing metals in shooting range soil. Environ Geochem Health 37, 931–942 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-015-9694-z

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