Accumulation of Heavy Metals in Plants Developed in Northern Sinaloa for Phytoremediation Purposes

Abstract

In recent years, phytoremoving has been presented as a suitable strategy for removing heavy metals in contaminated soils. In this work, the extraction capacity of Lead (Pb) and Copper (Cu), which contains three varieties of plants that develop in the northern region of the state of Sinaloa, is evaluated: Manso herb (Anemopsis californica), Moringa (Moringa oleifera) and Junquillo (Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani). The study was carried out in a controlled way, adding Pb and Cu solutions, in the soil where each of the varieties under study is planted. In the treatments, 100 ml of lead nitrate and copper nitrate solution with a concentration of 2000 ppm were added daily for 70 days, in previously characterized soils. In parallel there were witnesses, which were watered throughout the period exclusively with water. After the treatment period, the concentrations of Pb and Cu in the plants and in the soils were determined by means of an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Of the plants analyzed, Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani is the one with the highest accumulation of Cu (accumulation coefficient of 192.12), while Moringa accumulates the highest concentration of Pb (accumulation coefficient of 45.77).