Landscape-scale controls on trace metals partitioning and mobility in tropical soils affected by legacy lead smelting.

ABSTRACT: The long-term legacy of a decommissioned lead smelter in Santo Amaro, Bahia (Brazil), has produced one of the most metal-contaminated urban areas worldwide. This study investigates the spatial distribution, geochemical partitioning, and potential mobility of trace metals across contrasting landscape units, namely hillslope and floodplain soils. A total of 120 soil samples were analyzed using portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF), scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), and the BCR sequential extraction procedure. XRF results revealed extremely high concentrations of Pb (up to 24,962 mg kg^-1), Zn (up to 8572 mg kg^-1), and Cd (up to 454 mg kg^-1), with strong spatial heterogeneity related to distance from the former smel

SUBMITTER: Victor VB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12904906 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature