Removal of cesium from contaminated soils using EDTA-Na and DTPAchelating agents

Document Type : Original Research Papers

Authors

1 Soil and Water Researches Dept., Nuclear Researches Center, Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority, Egypt.

2 Department Of Soil and Water ,Faculty of Agriculture at Moshtohor, Benha University

3 Soil and Water Department,Faculty of Agriculture , Benha University,Egypt.

Abstract

Soil contamination with Cs possesses a serious environmental threat; and therefore, its remediation is an obligation to ensure environmental safety. The current study aims at evaluating the efficiency of using either EDTA-Na or DTPA as chelating agents for removal of Cs from contaminated soils. Three soil types (one alluvial and two sandy loam soils of different CaCO3 contents) were selected to attain this aim, then artificially contaminated with CsCl at three levels i.e. 50, 100, and 200 mg Cs kg-1. These samples were subjected to sequential extraction pre- and post- leaching to find out Cs redistribution among different soil fractions after soil washing. The implications of soil washing with the investigated chelating agents on decreasing the risk assessment hazards associated with Cs hazards are discussed in this study. Key results indicate that DTPA was more efficient in removal of Cs from contaminated soils than did the EDTA-Na and both decreased considerably soil Cs, particularly from the mobile (water soluble and exchangeable fractions) and carbonate bound fractions. Accordingly, the calculated risk assessment code declined noticeably from “very high risk” levels (more than 50) to “medium risk” levels (ranging from 30 to 50 ) for most spiked soils. In conclusion, DTPA and EDTA-Na are effective chelating agents in reducing the risks associated with Cs contamination in soils.

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