Trace Metal Composition of Bulk Precipitation in Selected Locations of Kandy District, Sri Lanka
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Trace Metal Composition of Bulk Precipitation in Selected Locations of Kandy District, Sri Lanka I. M. S. K. Rathnayaka & T. N. Dharmapriya & A. B. Liyandeniya & M. P. Deeyamulla & N. Priyantha
Received: 28 April 2020 / Accepted: 20 August 2020 # Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Abstract Atmospheric precipitation in Sri Lanka occurs mainly through rain whose terrestrial composition significantly varies based on the location as the regional geography and anthropogenic factors can largely affect environmental pollutants that are added to the atmosphere. It is therefore very important to have baseline data on the chemical composition of the atmosphere to take regulatory measures to control atmospheric pollution although very limited data available in Sri Lanka. The main objective of this study was thus to quantitatively determine selected trace metals (Al, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Zn) in bulk precipitation samples collected weekly in three sampling locations, namely the University of Peradeniya (UoP), Polgolla, and Kandy City Central (KCC), for a period of 1 year from March 2018 to March 2019. Trace metals determined using atomic emission spectrophotometry indicated that the KCC site showed the highest contamination following the sequence (with respective volume-weighted mean
(VWM) concentration values) of Al (79.7 μg L−1) > Fe (42.8 μg L−1) > Zn (39.3 μg L−1) > Mn (13.9 μg L−1) > Cu (9.8 μg L−1) > Cr (2.4 μg L−1). The corresponding values of the Polgolla site showed the sequence Zn (64.3 μg L−1) > Al (52.1 μg L−1) > Fe (17.9 μg L−1) > Mn (11.1 μg L−1) > Cu (5.4 μg L−1) > Cr (1.8 μg L−1). Due to less industrialization and less traffic congestion, the UoP site showed low trace metal levels in the order Zn (29.8 μg L−1) > Al (21.3 μg L−1) > Fe (14.2 μg L−1) > Cu (7.4 μg L−1) > Mn (4.3 μg L−1) > Cr (0.9 μg L−1). Principal component analysis indicated that Cu, Mn, and Zn originated mainly from anthropogenic activities, such as combustion of fossil fuel and burning of municipal waste, while Al and Fe mainly originated from natural sources.
I. M. S. K. Rathnayaka : T. N. Dharmapriya : A. B. Liyandeniya : N. Priyantha Department of Chemistry, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka
1 Introduction
A. B. Liyandeniya : N. Priyantha (*) Postgraduate Institute of Science, Univesity of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka e-mail: [email protected] M. P. Deeyamulla Department of Chemistry, University of Kelaniya, Kelaniya, Sri Lanka
Keywords Bulk deposition . Trace metals . Atmospheric pollution . Principal component analysis
Atmospheric deposition, which occurs as wet and dry precipitation, or bulk precipitation in combined form, is the primary mechanism of transporting water from the atmosphere to the surface of the earth. It is the major scavenging process of removing pollutants from the atmosphere (Zhang et al. 2007; Huang et al. 2008; Tositti et al. 2018). Wet deposition delivers atmospheric compounds present in cloud and precipitation droplets to the earth’s surface by rain, hail, or snow. Although wet-
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