Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Environ Pollut. 2022 Sep 15;309:119717. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.119717. Epub 2022 Jul 7.
Dismantling and recycling e-waste has been recognized as a potential emission source of rare earth elements (REEs). However, the presence of REEs in typical regional soils has yet to be studied. Given the potential health implications of such soil contamination, it is vital to study the characteristics, spatial distribution, and pollution level of REEs caused by e-waste dismantling as well as determine the influencing mechanism. This study focused on Guiyu Town as an example site, which is a typical e-waste dismantling base. From the site, 39 topsoil samples of different types were collected according to grid distribution points. Soil profiles were also collected in the dismantling and non-dismantling areas. The REE characteristic parameters showed that the REE distribution was abnormal and was affected by multiple factors. The results of the integrated pollution index showed that approximately 61.5% of soil samples were considered to be lightly polluted. Spatial distribution and correlation analysis showed that hot spots of REE-polluted soil coincided with known, main pollution sources. Moreover, there was a significant negative correlation (p ≤0.05) between the REE concentration and the distance from the pollution source. E-waste disassembly and recycling greatly affect the physical and chemical properties of the surrounding soil as well as downward migration areas. In the disassembly area, REE accumulated more easily in the surface layer (0-20 cm). Geographical detector results showed that distance factor was the main contribution factor for both light rare earth elements (LREE) and heavy rare earth element (HREE) (q = 34.59% and 53.33%, respectively). REE distribution in soil was nonlinear enhanced by different factors. Taken together, these results showed that e-waste disassembling and recycling not only directly affected the spatial distribution of REEs, but that their distribution was also affected by land use type and soil properties.
电子废物的拆解和回收已被认为是稀土元素（REEs）的潜在排放源。然而，典型区域土壤中REEs 的存在尚未得到研究。鉴于这种土壤污染可能对健康造成的影响，研究电子废物拆解引起的 REE 的特征、空间分布和污染水平以及确定影响机制至关重要。本研究以贵屿镇为例，该镇是一个典型的电子废物拆解基地。从该地区，根据网格分布点收集了 39 个不同类型的表层土壤样本。还在拆解和非拆解区采集了土壤剖面。REE 特征参数表明，REE 分布异常，受到多种因素的影响。综合污染指数的结果表明，约 61.5%的土壤样品被认为是轻度污染。空间分布和相关分析表明，REE 污染土壤的热点与已知的主要污染源相吻合。此外，REE 浓度与污染源距离之间存在显著的负相关（p ≤0.05）。电子废物的拆解和回收极大地影响了周围土壤的理化性质及其向下迁移区域。在拆解区，REE 更容易在表层（0-20 cm）积累。地理探测器结果表明，距离因素是轻稀土元素（LREE）和重稀土元素（HREE）的主要贡献因素（q 值分别为 34.59%和 53.33%）。不同因素对土壤中 REE 分布的非线性增强。综上所述，这些结果表明，电子废物的拆解和回收不仅直接影响 REE 的空间分布，而且其分布还受到土地利用类型和土壤性质的影响。
