War. Sci. Tech. Vol. 28, No. 3-5, pp. 389-398, 1993.
Printed in Great Britain. All rights reserved.

0273-1223193 $24'00
Copyright © 1993IAWQ

MOBILITY OF SOME HEAVY METALS IN
SOIL-PLANT SYSTEMS STUDIED ON
SOIL MONOLITHS
T. Nemeth*, E. Molnar*, 1. Csillag*, K. Bujtas*,

A. Lukacs*, G. P<irtay*, 1. Feher** andM. Th. van Genuchten**** Research Institute for Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry (RISSAC) of the
HAS, H-/o22, Budapest, Herman O. ut 15. Hungary** Water Resources Research Center (VrrUKI), H-/095, Budapest, Kvassay l.u.l.
Hungary*** U.S. Salinity Laboratory, USDA, ARS. Riverside CA 92501, USA

ABSTRACTThe soil can act as a natural buffer by retaining toxic materials present in municipal and industrial wastes andsewage sludges. Countries of Eastern Europe currently have a limited industrial infrastructure for recycling
wastes. One of the most rational and economic ways for these countries to dispose of their waste waters andsludges is to apply them to agriculturaI fields, thereby utilizing also their nutrient content. A U.S.-Hungarian
research project was recently started with the aim of studying the fate and transport of selected heavy metals
in the soil profile of cropped undisturbed soil monoliths. Preliminary experiments were carried out to study
the adsorption-desorption processes of these chemicals on disturbed soil samples, and to investigate theplant-availability of different metal forms. Concentrations of Zn, Pb, Cr and Cd in the soil solution were
found to decrease with increasing soil moisture content and length of the adsorption period, both showing
hyperbolic relationships. Lower soil moisture contents increased both the solution concentrations and theadsorbed concentrations of the elements. Release of adsorbed Zn and Cd was higher than that of Pb and Cr.
Higher plant-availability of inorganic forms of Ni correlated with a higher phytotoxicity as compared to Ni
applied in sewage sludge.

KEYWORDS

Heavy metals; undisturbed soil monoliths; solute transport; plant-availability; phytotoxicity; time-domainreflectometry (TDR); quadrupole mass spectrometry.
INTRODUCTION
Large amounts of heavy metals such as Cd, Cr, Ni, Pb and Zn are often present in sewage sludges and waste

waters. These metals pose a potential threat to the environment when applied to agricultural lands. Theirrelease to the soil liquid phase may cause leaching through the soil profile to the groundwater table, and also
facilitate plant uptake of the heavy metals. The increased availability of Ni and Zn for plant uptake may leadto phytotoxicity, whereas less phytotoxic elements may accumulate in higher amounts in plants. This latterprocess enhances their transfer into the food-chain, thus posing serious environmental hazards to the
population.

389

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390

T. NEMETH et at.

Once applied to agricultural fields. the availability and uptake of heavy metals by plant roots is determinedby what happens at or near the soil-plant root interface. Hence. reliable information is needed about the mostimportant transport processes and associated soil and plant properties affecting the behavior and transport of
toxic elements in the soil. their uptake by agricultural crops. and their potential movement through thevadose zone to underlying groundwater systems.
A joint U.S.-Hungarian research project involving the U.S. Salinity Laboratory (Riverside.CA) and the
Research Institute for Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry (RISSAC. Budapest) was initiated in 199 1.

with as main objectives:

1. To characterize the plant-availability of selected toxic metals by quantifying their release into the soil
solution of undisturbed soils from element loadings similar to or exceeding their permissible levels in
wastes applied to agricultural lands. and to follow their redistribution in the solid and liquid phases
under different soil moisture conditions.
2. To quantify the transport of these elements to. and their distribution in. different parts of plants as afunction of element loadings.
3. To identify stress situations in plants as indicated by changes in the composition and/or quantity ofdifferent gases (02' CO2, N2' water vapor) generated in plant tissues and the soil as a result of toxic
trace elements loadings; the gases will be measured using a quadrupole mass spectrometer equippedwith microprobes suitable also for in vivo measurements. and
4. Using the experimental data. to develop a theoretical model which predicts the transport and fate of theheavy elements in undisturbed soil profiles. and their uptake by plant roots.

�This paper provides information about the experimental set-up. Prelimi ary results are presented ofadsorption-desorption experiments involving Zn. Pb. Cr and Cd (applied in inorganic form to two soils). as
well as the response of plants to different forms of Ni.
MATERIALS AND METHODS

Experimental set-up for measurements in lar�e undisturbed soil monoliths
Undisturbed 40-cm diameter. IOO-cm long soil monoliths were prepared according to the method ofHomeyer et al.

(1973) and modified by Nemeth et al. ( 199 1) for application to a large number of soils

having different textures. The monoliths were excavated and coated with fiber glass cloth impregnated witha synthetic resin. Mter the coatings solidified. the monoliths were lifted from the field site and transported to
the laboratory. The coatings made extremely close contact with the soil surface by imbibing the outermicropores. thus eliminating possible "wall effects" during the transport experiments. The excellent
insulating properties of the coating also eliminated leakage from the monoliths.
Figure 1 shows a block diagram of the experimental set-up. Each soil monolith contained three temperature
sensors. six soil moisture probes attached to a TOR multiplexer. and ten special microprobes formeasurement of the gas composition. The gas microprobes were coupled to a quadrupole mass spectrometer(QMS). In addition. five pairs of measuring points for a soil moisture capacitance meter were attached to thecoatings. Automatic collection and analysis of TOR data from two columns and QMS data from fourcolumns. all operated simultaneously during the experiments. were facilitated by a computer unit. This unit
also controlled the QMS and the ion source and vacuum systems of the mass spectrometer. Column weights .
were recorded using a movable scale.

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391

Soil monoliths

B

***

U

S

�--{lQOI �N lSOQ!U!RR(�EJ*

TESTOTERM SYSTEM**TOR MULTIPLEXER SYSTEM***

a. 300 PC a.UADRUPOLE MASS
SPECTROMETER SYSTEMHAIII VAL SYST£H

2-ndYAL SYST£H

Figure I. Block diagram of the experimental set-up.

Soil moisture contents in the monoliths were regulated by saturating the columns from the bottom through aspecial valve, or by sprinkler irrigation at the soil surface. Water was added on the basis of TOR
measurements and/or weighting.
Measurement of adsorption-desorption of Zn. Ph. Cr and Cd in the soil
Adsorption and desorption experiments were carried out to quantify the heavy metal adsorption capacity ofsoils after applying different loadings of Zn, Pb, Cr and Cd. Aqueous solutions of nitrate salts of theseelements were mixed with air-dried samples of the upper horizons of an acidic brown forest soil (RagaIy)
and a calcareous chemozem (Pusztaszaboics). The main physical and chemical properties of the soils arelisted in Table 1. The metals were applied at rates of I, 10 and 100 times the allowed upper limits as
specified by the Hungarian Standard for deposition of sewage sludges to agricultural lands. These limits are
3000 mg Zn, 1000 mg Pb, 1000 mg Cr and 15 mg Cd per kg sludge dry matter (Hungarian Standard, 1990).
Using these values and assuming that sewage sludge contains 5% dry matter and that 500 tlha sludge wasincorporated in a 20-cm surface soil layer, the permissible amounts of elements per kg soil were calculated.
The amounts obtained in this manner were 25 mg Zn, 8.33 mg Pb, 8.33 mg Cr and 0. 125 mg Cd per kg soil.
These values correspond to 75, 25, 25 and 0.375 kg/ha, respectively, for the specified sludge application. U.
S. Environmental Protection Agency standards are 172, 125, 530, and 18, respectively, under the mostrestrictive conditions of land use (USEPA, 1989; see also Chang et aI., 1992). However, in Hungary, if
sludge application is prolonged over several years, the application rate depends on the duration of thispractice, and the cumulative amount of heavy metals originating from sludge application or any othersources must not exceed the total permitted amount of heavy metals in the soil. This total amount is equal to
250 mg Zn, 100 mg Pb, 100 mg Cr and 2 mg Cd per kg soil (for soils with adsorption capacity of 15-25
mellOO g soil), corresponding to 800 kg Zn, 320 kg Pb, 320 kg Cr and 6.4 kg Cd per ha.

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T. NEMETII et al.

392

Table I. Some Relevant Properties of the Two Test Soils.
Soil

RagalyPusztaszabolcs

SP

pB(B O)
2

CaC03

org-C

%

%

4.3

0

1.6

55

40.8

20.7

7.8

6.6

2.8

50

35.8

28.3

org-C: organic carbon content;
exchange capacity

SP:

0.02

%

CEC
me/IOO 9 soil

DUn

saturation percentage;

CEC: cation

After incubating the soil samples with the metal solutions for one week in air-tight vessels and mixing themthree times during this period, soil solutions were separated by centrifugation using a rotor speed
corresponding to 1500 kPa pressure, i.e. the wilting point of plants (Csillag et al., 1991). Saturation extracts
and aqueous extracts of different soil:solution ratios were prepared by standard methods in order to study theeffect of soil moisture content changes on heavy metal concentration of the liquid phase over a wide rangeof moisture contents. Concentrations of Zn, Pb, Cr and Cd in the solutions were determined using a Janel
Ash ICP spectrometer.
Adsorbed concentrations of the elements in the soil were calculated from the soil solution and added model
solution concentrations. The time dependence of heavy metal sorption was studied on suspensions of theacidic brown forest soil. The suspensions were shaken for I h with heavy metal solutions ensuring 10 and
100 times loading rates (see Fig. 6.). Similar experiments were carried out on wet soil samples having
similar loading rates and incubated in air-tight vessels for I week, as well as on 10 times loadings involving
air-dried (for appro one month) and subsequently rewetted soil samples. The effect of extract pH on therelease of the heavy metals was studied using the acidic brown forest soil, loaded IO-fold, air-dried for about
one month, and then rewetted to field and maximum water capacity using both distilled water and solutions
having different concentrations of nitric acid.
Plant uptake and phytotoxicity of different Ni fODDS
Phytotoxicity is described as an intoxication of living plants by substances present in the growth medium,
when these substances are taken up and accumulated in plant tissues (Chang et al. 1992). In order to assess
phytotoxicity of different forms of Ni, growth response of plants to NiS04 and Ni applied in the form of Ni­enriched sewage sludge were studied on bush bean plants (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) grown for one month on
inorganic nutrient solutions containing different amounts of Ni in the above forms. Plant response was
evaluated on the basis of fresh and dry weights of the leaves, stems and roots. Plant uptake of Ni and its
accumulation in the plant parts were estimated by measuring Ni concentrations by ICP after wet digestion(H2 S04+H20z) of the air-dried samples of roots, stems, and successive leaves.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Experimental set-up for measurements in laue undisturbed soH monoliths
Four undisturbed soil monoliths were used simultaneously in the experiments. Values of soil temperature,soil moisture content, soil gas composition at several depths, and the reference gas composition of the air,
were recorded to obtain data about the initial status of the undisturbed monoliths. The gas composition(water vapor, 02' N2 ' and CO2) in the top and bottom parts of one of the monoliths are shown in Figures 2
and 3, respectively. Similar reference data for the outside air are presented in Figure 4. Previous results on
the gas composition of soil are given by Plirtay et al. (1992). Thus far, the monoliths have been allowed to
dry very slowly. No water has yet been added to the columns, nor has drainage taken place. A relatively highinitial moisture content measured at approximately 60 cm depth was attributed

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393

Soil monoliths

to the presence of a fine-textured soil layer at this depth as observed in the field during excavation of themonoliths.

INTENSITY YS TIHE 'mini

DISP IHEAS probr. VI
-18

-28

-32

-40

-44

�71

zat5I

DISP IHEAS probr. '"

-51

-18

1.00-09

1.00-09-28

INTENSITY.. TlHE ""in)

-32

-40

-44

18.
51

9.00-109.00-108.00-108.00-107.00-107.00-106.00-106.00-105.00-105.00-104.00-104.00-10

V-

225,.

-51

18

3.00-10....11

28

44

;-

/"

28

3.00-102.00-102.00-1032

1.00-1044.

1.00-10tt·

0.00.00

32

40

0.00.00a125

226 326427 528 628 729 82t 930 1030 1131

Figure 2. Gas Content of a soil monolith

45

149

249 350

450

551

652

752

853

953 1054 1154

Figure 3. Gas Content of a soil monolithat 90cm depth.
at 10cm depth.
( 18: water vapor, 28: N2, 32:02, 40: Ar, 44: C02, 5 1: molecule fragment of coating).
Figs. 2 and 3 show that the gas composition in the soil monoliths remains relatively constant with time. This
reflects the undisturbed state of the columns. Stress situations caused by the presence of toxic amounts ofheavy metals in the root zone are reflected by changes in composition of gases originating from air-filled
pores and from the soil liquid phase, as well as in the inner gas composition of plants depending on several
interacting metabolic processes. We previously demonstrated such features (Buzas et al., 1987; Partay et al.
1987) for several other stress factors such as having extreme dry or wet soil, temperature changes, salt
effects, and pesticide applications using methods based on quadrupole mass spectrometry for qualitative andquantitative in vivo measurement of the gas composition (Hungarian Patent No. 183.8 10).
Measurement of adsO!:ption-release of Zn Pb. Cr and Cd in the soil
Initial concentrations of Pb, Cr and Cd in the liquid phase of uncontaminated soil samples were found to be
below the detection limit, while those for Zn were negligible. Of the maximum permissible waste loading
applied (the I-time loading), 97- 100 % of the heavy metals were adsorbed by both soils at the field soil
moisture content range. The very small amount entering the liquid phase of the soil may not pose an
immediate environmental hazard. For the forest soil, at the lO-times loading, only the Zn concentration was
not negligible in the liquid phase of the soil, even at the lower soil moisture contents. The strong adsorptionof Zn is likely related to the relatively high clay content ( 14.7%) of this soil.

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T. NEMETH et al.

394
DISP/MEAS pr.be, 1017

1.00-099,00-108.00-10

1.00-106.00-10

5,00-10

-18

-

28

INTENSITY y. TIME Imin)

-32

-40

-44

5<_10

-5 1

--,

__________________

.-

1

II

r
,

4.00-10 +I

3.00-1022:53:30

�--------------------

__

V--

28

'-v

2.00-103__--------------------------�

2

1.00-1040,
0.00.00

�"""'!!:S;;;;==;==;l'�
46

150

250 351

451

552

652

153

853

954 1054 115 5

Figure 4, Gases measured in the aunospbere surrotmding the monqliths.

12 dg/ll
',S

dg/LI

',.

"sl��
o

o

.�

...... -��-=.'I:...,:.-,..� ............. ,.••,.

tGO

8w.-/.

'!2--,-'!2-,S-----:(----,�}�....S,..t -,.,.I' -. �
Zn 0---0
Pb o--aCr y--v
Cd,..
kPI
2S2.·�ll
0.1 :::jS,P" �211;;2,5)C..... ..

8", . ..,.

".

Figure 5. The dependence of beavy metal ion concentrations in the liquid phase of an acidic brown forest soil
moisture content (Pw%)' Loading 100 tintes the allowed upper limit; R:Soillwater ratio; SP: saturation
percentage;.kPa: moisture potential.

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395

Soil monoliths

Figure 5 shows that the concentrations, c, for the lOO-times loading rate increase rapidly with decreasing soil
moisture content (9) in the field soil moisture content range. The c-9 relationships over the complete 9 range
were approximated by hyperbolic equations. Table 2 lists the parameters of the linearized equations. The
slopes, b, of the lines characterize the change of the element concentration in the soil solution with changing
soil moisture content. Except for Cr, the goodness of fit increased significantly if a quadratic member were
included in the regression equations. Similar c-9 hyperbolic relationships were established for different
adsorption periods (1 hour, I week and 1 month) at the lO -times and lOO-times loading rates. Soil solution
concentrations were found to decrease with increasing adsorption time and increasing 9 values.
Table 2. Parameters of the Hyperbolic Relationships.

E

stat.

a

b
d
r2

1 e m e n t s

1

2

1.2x1037.9x104
0282
1.7x10S-6.2x10S

0.909

0.997

1
89

2

1

48

104
2.9x1030

8.0x103_2.7x104

0.920

0.980

4.1x103

cd

Cr

pb

Zn

index

2

1

2

106

S.O

0.7

0

2.7x1031.1x103

0.804

0.801

400

80S

0

-2.8x103

0.992

0.99S

D
a+b{1/(9w-9w')} and (2) c = a+b{1/(9-9w')}+d{1/(9-9w,)} 2 obtained from data ofcentrifuged soil solutions in the potential range of 2S0-0.1 kPa, as well as of(1) csaturation extracts and of aqueous soil extracts having soil to model solution ratiosof 1: 1, 1: 2, 1: 2.S, l: S and 1: 10,(Rag4ly, acidic brown forest soil;

loading 100 times

the allowed upper limit; c = ion concentration (mg/L); 9 • soil moisture content
w
expressed in weight percentage; 9w ' = soil moisture content at lS00 kPa potential.

The calcareous chemozem soil adsorbed practically all toxic metals, even at the lOO-times loading. Only Zn
was detectablein the soil solution, but only at the lower moisture contents. For metal adsorption on theacidic brown forest soil we found that smaller amounts of Zn and Cd were adsorbed as compared to Pb and

Cr. This is in accordance with literature data (Kabata-Pendias and Pendias, 1992). Lower soil moisture
contents increased both the adsorbed and solution concentrations of the heavy metals. This feature may be
explained by the fact that it was necessary to apply solutions with higher metal concentrations at the lower
moisture contents to ensure the same total metal loading at each value of 9. The relative adsorption capacity
increased with decreasing soil moisture content for Zn, Pb and Cd, but not for Cr. This increase was more
pronounced at the higher loadings. The adsorption % of all four metals decreased substantially when theloading increased. Longer adsorption periods also increased the amount adsorbed as shown in Fig. 6 for Zn.
Release of heavy metals from soil samples loaded previously at field capacity with metal solutions at a rate

10 times the allowed limit, then dried for I month and rewetted again, was about 30-50% of the heavy metal
release from soil samples incubated for I week under relatively moist conditions (Table 3). If O .OO l n, O . l n
an d l .5n HN03 solutions were applied for rewetting the metal-loaded soil, the element concentrations i n theextract increased with increasing acidity and, with the exception of Cr, were higher at field capacity than at
the maximum water content. Recovery of the more mobile Zn and Cd elements (expressed as percentage ofthe added amounts) was higher than the recovery of Pb and Cr. These last two elements desorbed only withstrong acid as shown by the data in Table 4. We note that the effects of wetting and drying are important torelease of the heavy metals as previously shown by Bartlett and James (1980). Chromium mobility inparticular is dependent on the soil aeration status since Cr(VI) is more toxic and mobile than Cr(lII) (Bartlett
and Kimble, 1976). Fresh field soils may readily oxidize Cr(lII) to Cr(VI) (Bartlett and James, 1979).

JIll! 28:3/5-AA

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T. NEMETH et al.

396

Table 3. Concentrations (mgll) in the Liquid Phase of a Contaminated Brown Forest Soil After Rewetting toField Capacity.

Treatment

1:
21

Zn

1

371.3

2

158.5

·

Pb

cr

Cd

2.68

3.43

1.65

1.56

1.13

0.59

aoil wetted with heavy metal aalt aolution for 1 week
aoil wetted with heavy metal aalt aolution, air-driedfor 1 month, rewetted with distilled w ater for 1 week

100

%

eo

(f..:.�_�_ ;-.-:-_._._;._._- -_._._ _ _-_ ---'-'
-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

- -

- -

0

_

•

_0""

-:

.
.

60

11

�O

20 f...-...

hour}l.,0X.

.A.--.oI.

week• -. -e.- ...

1 month

0- -0

.

.

'

.

}l.,00X
100
25020 -��"1,I1 I "2.I5----,-1,51 ---�---'-,,1I0 R___.
.
-.. -._._._._ _.;;._ . ._._._ _. . _._._.

9",,-/.

kP.

JJO,I..J

Figure 6. Effect of adsorption time, loading (L) and gmvimetric soil moisture content (Ow) on the adsorption ofheavy metals in an acidic brown forest soil (Raglily). Adsorption is expressed as % of the added elements: % = (cmc.)I00/cm• where c. and cm are element concentrations (mgIL) in the soil solution and in the model solution.
respectively; R is soil:water mtio; kPa is moisture potential.

From the above adsorption-desorption experiments we conclude that the amounts of Zn. Pb. Cr and Cd
entering the liquid phase of the two soils used in this study was relatively small upon application of only one(maximum) loading. However, repeated applications can quickly raise the concentrations of these metals inthe soil solution. This. in tum. will increase their availability for plant uptake. as well as promote theirdownward leaching to the groundwater table. The soil moisture content was found to affect the amount ofmetal entering the soil solution. At constant loading more metal adsorption occurred at the lower soil
moisture contents; however, as expected. the increase was not enough to decrease metal concentrations in
the liquid phase.

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397

Soil monoliths

TABLE 4. Heavy Metal Ion Concentration in the Liquid Phase of a Contaminated Brown Forest Soil,
Treated with Nitric Acid Solutions, and Recovery of the Elements.

Extrac-

8

tant
dist.
w aterw.,

kPa

Concentrations (mg/L)

pb

Zn

Cr

Recovery (')

Cd

Zn

pb

Cr

cd

37.0

1.0

112.4

0.43

1.15

0.42

16.2

0.17

0.49

10.9

26.3

28.2

158.5

1.56

1.13

0.59

17.0

0.45

0.34

11.1

O.OOln

3 8.9

0.25

106.2

0.27

1.10

0.38

15.3

0.11

0.46

BN0
3

9.9

26.1

28.2

147.1

1.56

1.11

0.55

15.8

0.45

0.33

10.2

O.ln

37.4

0.8

2 83. 8

3.39

4.87

1.29

40.8

1.39

2.05

33.9

HN0

20.9

22.4

309.2

2.41

3.27

1.35

33.2

0.69

0.98

25.2

3

1.5n

40.4

0.1

339.0

124.8

94.4

2.15

48.8

51.2

39.9

BN0
3

17.8

421.3

130.8

81.9

2.45

45.3

37.4

56.4

27.8

24.5

45.8

8w , gravimetric moisture content.
kPa r moisture potential
Recovery expressed as a percentage of added elements: , - c xlOO/cwhere c and c
are element concentrations (mg/L) in the soi
sOlut ons
�and in the solution added to the soil, respectively.

tfTreatments: wetting the soil with heavy metal salt solutions tomoisture conteLt at 20 kPa suction, then air-drying

and rewetting itwith the extractants shown.
separation of soil solution: by centrifugationof the wet soils witha rotor speed corresponding to 1500 kPa.

Plant Uptake and phytotoxicity of different Ni forms (see Table 5)
We have shown earlier for Ni that different phytotoxic actions are possible depending upon the chemicalfonn of the heavy metal. We used bush bean as an indicator plant because of its sensitivity to Ni. Plant
growth as measured by fresh and dry weight of shoots and roots decreased much more when Ni was appliedin the form of sulfate salt than as Ni-spiked sewage sludge at the same total Ni concentration. At the sametime, Ni accumulation in the shoots of the plants was 5 to lO-fold higher from the inorganic salt form ascompared to sludge, i.e. the plant-availability of Ni from inorganic Ni-salt was much higher than of Ni
derived from the sludge. The higher Ni-content correlated with a higher phytotoxicity of the inorganic Ni.
These results seem to be in contrast to findings by Chang et aL (1992) which indicate that even higher
loadings of Ni (100 -425 mglkg) from sludge may not increase Ni levels in plant tissues of corn. Also,
Hinesly et al. (1979) demonstrated that Zn and Cd levels in corn decreased upon the addition of digested
sewage sludge containing 112 mg Zn and 71 mg Cd per kg. We conclude by emphasizing that our uptake
and phytotoxicity experiments were not carried out in soil but in nutrient solutions in order to obtain more
direct information on the susceptibility of plants to different Ni forms. Adsorption processes in the naturalsoils will likely alter the activity, and hence phytotoxicity, of the different forms of heavy metals in the soil
solution. Actual metal uptake under field conditions will probably be lower than that obtained in nutrient or
greenhouse pot experiments (Chang et aL, 1992).

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T. NEMETH et al.

398

TABLE 5. Growth Response and Ni Content of Bean Shoots Supplied with Different Fonns of Ni.

Ni
ppm

Chemical
Form

0
8
16

SludgeNiS04
SludgeNiS04
SludgeFresh WeightNi
Weight
[ppm]
[mg]
1930
1718
335
10 23
398
937

0.1
1. 2
100.8
10.4
141.9
34. 2

Dry Weight
Weight
Ni
[ppm]
[mg]
145
135
55
90
49
108

2.8
15.8
99 2.4
1 23. 2
1 21 2.1
297.4

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This research is supported under Grant No. DHR-5600-G-OO- 1056-00, Program in Science and Technology
Cooperation, Office of the Science Advisor, U.S. Agency for International Development.
REFERENCES
Bartlett, R. J. and James, B. (1979). Bebavior of chromium in soils, III. Oxidation. J. Environ. Qual.S, 31-35.
Bartlett, R. J. and James, B. (1980). Studying dried soil samples - Some pitfalls. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 44, 721-724.
Bartlett, R. J. and Kimble, J. M. (1976). Bebavior of chromium in soils, II. Hexavalent forms. J. Environ. Qual. S, 383-386.
Buz3s, I., Panay, G., PAtkay, T. and LukAcs, A. (1987). Quadrupole mass spectrometer and microsonde studies on the NOT
poisoning of maize. Joint Conference on Protection of Water Quality from Harmful Emissions with Special Regard to
Nitrate and Heavy Metals, 1-4 September, 1987, BaJatonfiired, Hungary. Proceedings, pp. 361-364.
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