Sources Analysis and Health Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Street Dust from Urban Core of Zhengzhou, China

Minghao Ren, Yali Deng, Wenshan Ni, Jingjing Su, Yao Tong, Xiao Han, Fange Li, Hongjian Wang, Fei Zhao, Xiaoxiao Huang () and Zhiquan Huang ()
Additional contact information
Minghao Ren: College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Resource and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Yali Deng: College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Resource and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Wenshan Ni: Zhengzhou Institute of Multipurpose Utilization of Mineral Resources, China Geological Survey, Zhengzhou 450006, China
Jingjing Su: College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Resource and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Yao Tong: College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Resource and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Xiao Han: College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Resource and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Fange Li: College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Resource and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Hongjian Wang: College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Resource and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Fei Zhao: College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Resource and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Xiaoxiao Huang: College of Geosciences and Engineering, North China University of Water Resource and Electric Power, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Zhiquan Huang: Luoyang Institute of Science and Technology, Luoyang 471023, China

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 17, 1-20

Abstract: Fifty-one street dust samples were systematically collected from the urban core of Zhengzhou, China, and analyzed for potentially toxic metals. The concentrations of vanadium (V), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), arsenic (As), lead (Pb), and nickel (Ni) in the samples surpassed the background values of the local soil, indicating a notable potential for contamination. Spatially, the traffic area was the most polluted with a total heavy metal concentration of Cu, Zn, As, Pb, and Ni, while the pollution levels were lower in the culture and education area and commercial area with total concentrations of V and Mn. Seasonal variations were discerned in the concentrations of heavy metals, with V, Cu, Zn, and As exhibiting heightened levels during the fall and winter, while Mn, Ni, and Pb reached peaks in the spring season. Zn exhibited the highest mean geo-accumulation index ( I geo ) value at 2.247, followed by Cu at 2.019, Pb at 0.961, As at 0.590, Ni at 0.126, Mn at −0.178, and V at −0.359. The potential ecological risk index (RI) in the traffic-intensive area markedly exceeded other functional areas. Health risk assessments showed that children were more vulnerable to heavy metal exposure than adults, particularly through the ingestion pathway. Correlation analysis, principal component analysis (PCA), and cluster analysis (CA) were applied in conjunction with the spatial–temporal concentration patterns across various functional areas to ascertain the plausible sources of heavy metal pollutants. The results indicated that heavy metals in the urban street dust of Zhengzhou were multifaceted, stemming from natural processes and diverse anthropogenic activities such as coal burning, industrial emissions, traffic, and construction operations.

Keywords: heavy metal pollution; urban street dust; seasonal variations; source identification; health risk assessment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/17/7604/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/17/7604/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:17:p:7604-:d:1469894

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().