حسین پیرخراطی

Contamination of soil and sediments with heavy metals causes the destruction of organisms in ecosystems.The Sources of sediments and soil of Jovein plain from ophiolites. Therefore, it is important due to the existence of geogenic pollutants, especially chromium and nickel . In this study, some indicators of heavy metal pollution in the soil and sediments, were evaluated .The purpose of this research was to evaluate the degree of soil and sediment pollution. 107 surface soil samples were collected from the depth of 0-30 cm and sent to the laboratory for analysis. Soil samples were digested by 4 acid method and the concentration of the heavy metals was measured by the ICP-OES device. Results showed that the metal pollutants could be classified into two groups. The first group includes nickel and chromium, which are 6 and 3 times higher than the average shale values in all samples, respectively. The second group, which includes arsenic, cobalt, copper, lead and zinc, is almost equal to the global average of shale. The western side of the plain has low level ofpollution. Most likely, the cause of environmental geochemistry abnormality can be chromite mines and its processing activities, which are located in this area. The northern area of the ferrochrome factories, the sugar and citric acid factories of Jovein, which are downstream of the above industries, is very high in terms of the possibility of toxicity to heavy metals with a high risk level, and also the percentage of possible toxicity is between 50-75%.

In Recent decades, pollutions of industrial Sources are considered as the main cause of environmental degradation. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the pollution and pathogenicity of lead, zinc, cadmium and arsenic in the dust of Zanjan City, Iran, which is surrounded by smelting and refining industries of heavy metals. Dust samples were taken from 5 areas in center of Zanjan city and after preparing the samples, they were injected into ICP-MS. The results of heavy metal concentrations were evaluated using pollution, ecological risk and carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic indicators. In spring was especially unfavorable in terms of zinc concentration (0.003 mg kg-1) and then lead (4×10-4 mg kg-1) and cadmium (5×10-6 mg kg-1) and in winter, the concentration of arsenic (4×10-5 mg kg-1) was higher. In spring, arsenic (19.6) and zinc (12) showed more enrichment and in general, arsenic enrichment index (annual average of 11.8) showed the highest enrichment. In all seasons, cadmium and lead were moderately enriched. The degree of pollution was high in spring (4.1) and in other seasons was low to moderate. Children at risk of carcinogenicity were (1.4×10-6) more than adults. In particular, the risk of swallowing contaminated particles was higher. The results obtained from the indicators of pollution and health hazards showed that the source of pollution of the studied metals is anthropogenic activities such as industrial activities around the city of Zanjan, traffic, industrial facilities and burning fossil fuels.

One of the significant challenges in mining areas is the pollution of the environment by heavy metals. Therefore, it is crucial to assess the pollution risk associated with mining wastes and take action to mitigate their environmental impact. The current study assessed the risk potential of recently deposited tailings in the Songun copper mining area.

Based on the conditions of tailings, 26 samples were randomly selected from the recently deposited mine wastes. Twenty-two thin and thin polished sections were prepared for lithology and mineralogy studies. Inductively-Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) was employed to analyze all 26 samples, while X-ray diffraction method (XRD) was used to analyze a subset of 10 samples.

Sulfide minerals, as the main source of environmental pollution, remain intact and unaffected in the tailings. However, the majority of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) exhibit higher concentrations in the waste composition than the standard levels, resulting in a total ecological risk index of 49.93. Geochemical indicators highlight significant pollution levels for elements such as lead (Pb), arsenic (As), and copper (Cu). The values of the non-carcinogenic risk index for children (except As and Fe) and adults are lower than 1, indicating a non-significant non-carcinogenic health risk. However, the carcinogenicity index also indicates a significant carcinogenic risk in the case of long exposure to wastes, particularly for children.

Therefore, wastes pose a significant environmental risk potential, and due to this risk, proper management of their storage is necessary to prevent the release of PTEs into the environment.

Urmia Lake, with more than 51,000 Km2 area​​, is one of 6 main Iran’s catchments. Nazluchai, Shaharchai, Bazandozchai, Gadarchi, Mahabadchai and Siminehroud located in west and southwest of Urmia Lake are among the most important rivers supplying the lake. This study aims to evaluate heavy metals health risk including cadmium, lead, nickel, cobalt, arsenic and chromium in surface sediments of western and southwestern rivers of Urmia Lake, for which 22 sediment samples from depth of 0-10 cm was randomly taken and after analyzing by ICP-OES method, non-carcinogenic risk for all studied elements and carcinogenic risk for elements with definite carcinogenicity (cadmium, nickel and chromium) were calculated. According to results, the highest concentrations of nickel, cobalt and chromium were recorded in Baranduzchai and Gadarchai, the highest arsenic concentration was recorded in delta and downstream of Nazluchai and Mahabadchai and the highest cadmium concentration was recorded in Nazluchai delta and downstream of Siminehrood. In mentioned cases, heavy metals concentration is much more than the other parts. Average daily doses of studied heavy metals for children and adults were measured as follows: cadmium <lead <arsenic <cobalt <chromium <nickel. Results also showed that the highest non-carcinogenic risk for children was related to cobalt, chromium and nickel, respectively, while non-carcinogenic risk of cobalt (0.51) and chromium (0.215) is close to the threshold. The overall risk (HI) of all studied heavy metals for children is also close to threshold. Total risk of chromium and cobalt is close to the threshold in 5 and 4 samples, respectively, and in only one sample located in downstream of Baranduzchai, total risk of cobalt has exceeded threshold value. Carcinogenic risk of cadmium and nickel in studied samples does not threaten human health, while carcinogenic risk of chromium is close to threshold and consequently total carcinogenicity risk is close to threshold.

Gysian ophiolite is a remnant of the Neotethys, located in the north-west Iran at the intersection of the ophiolite belts of south-eastern Turkey, north-eastern Iraq and north-western Iran. The geochemical comparison of the soils with the average of global rocks and the study area led to determination of the composition group of the region soils. The geochemical evidence of the first group of soil samples with low silica percentage by Harker and triangular diagrams is close to the position of ultramafic rocks of the region (serpentenites) and primary mantle and expresses their compositional similarity. The second group of soils ranges in the area between the earth's crust and basalt, and they show more distribution near basalt. The normalized pattern of REE rare earth elements in this group of soils is similar to the mafic rocks pattern in the region, also in the minor elements chart, they classified in the mafic group. Soils with high percentage of silica in the diagram of major and minor element oxides are located near the positiion of meta-plates rocks in the region, in the range between the earth's crust and global shale. So, this suggests the intermediate composition of their origin. Most likely, the tectonic setting of the three soil groups is based on the oxides of the main elements of the active continental margin.

Background and Due to the importance of soil quality in life and environment, various evaluation methods have been proposed to describe the effect of pollutants such as heavy metals on soil quality. In this study, we evaluated the quality of the soil around Zanjan lead and zinc complex located in Zanjan city by using the mathematical model of the improved weighted index and compared it with the results of Nemerow indices and pollution load index. In this study, the results of 71 soil sampling stations around Zanjan lead and zinc complex, located in the northwest of Iran, by inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometry device for reading the concentration of heavy metals Lead, Zinc, Arsenic, Cadmium, Thallium, Barium, Antimony, Vanadium, Cobalt, Molybdenum, Nickel and Copper were used. Soil acidity was also analyzed. In this approach, during the calculation of the improved weighted index, weights were assigned to different heavy metals using statistical tools, including hierarchical cluster analysis and principal component analysis. The result of the index quantitatively determines the amount of pollution. Based on the improved weight index, 19.9% of the samples were in moderate pollution and 4.2% of the samples were in severe pollution, and the other samples were without pollution or with little pollution. According to the pollution load index, 5.8% of the samples are in moderate pollution and 2.8% are in severe pollution, and according to the pollution index, 19.9% of the samples are in moderate pollution and 42.2% are in severe pollution. Comparing the correlation of the results obtained from the model with the weighted improved index with the pollution load index, the correlation value is 0.907, and with the Nimro index, the correlation value is 0.701, which indicates that it is closer to the pollution load index. The results of the improved weight index showed that the heavy metals Zinc, Lead, Cadmium and Arsenic are of anthropogenic origin and as a result of the industrial activities of Zanjan lead and zinc complex. While heavy metals Barium, Vanadium, Thallium, Molybdenum, Cobalt, Copper, Nickel and Antimony are of earth origin. The results showed that the improved weighted index has a good match with the previous indices and can be used in wide ranges. It also overcomes the shortcomings of the previous indicators and can be used as a new model to evaluate soil pollution and soil ecological risk. This index can be used to identify and determine possible sources of pollution.

In this study, heavy metals in the soil around the Zanjan city, by using indicators of pollution, carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risk and determining the origin by using statistical methods.

In this study, 30 soil samples were taken from a depth of 0-20 cm and analyzed based on the method of acid digestion by induction coupled plasma spectroscopy.

The enrichment factor for zinc and cadmium was in the extreme enrichment category with an average of 42.1 and 34.5, respectively, and the land accumulation index for cadmium was in the high pollution category with an average of 2.8. Spatial changes of the index of pollution load and modified degree of pollution showed that the intensity of pollution increased near the industrial centers and the linear regression between the ecological risk and the median coefficient of the medium effect range (R2=0.903) showed that 76% of the samples They are in the possibility of toxicity. Cadmium had the highest risk in children and adults with an average non-carcinogenic risk index of 2 and 0.5, especially exposed to skin absorption with an average of 0.5. It shows the risk of more cancer diseases. The result of determining the origin and contribution of heavy metals with the help of statistical evaluations showed that lead, zinc and cadmium are the result of human activities and chromium, copper and arsenic are the result of the combination of human and earth-born activities. have gathered in the area

In order to reduce the negative environmental effects of heavy metals in the soil of the study area, measures such as reducing the entry of pollutants into the soil and refining polluted Soil.

In this study, in order to investigate the contamination of surface sediments in west and southwest rivers of Lake Urmia, 20 surface samples were taken from a depth of 0-10 cm. After passing the samples through a 2 mm sieve, the total amount of heavy metals was obtained by ICP-OES. Then the geo-accumulation index (Igeo), enrichment index (EF) and pollution index (PI) of metals was calculated. Based on the results, geo-accumulation indices of nickel, cobalt, chromium, arsenic and cadmium in all sediments are in the risk range of extremely high (1<I_geo<2) or high (I_geo>2). Nickel enrichment coefficient in Barandozchai and Gadarchai sediments is extremely high (EF>40) and in Shahrchai, Mahabadchai, Nazluchai and Simineh rivers in very high pollution range (20<EF<40). Arsenic enrichment coefficient in all sediments shows very high pollution. The enrichment index for cadmium, copper, cobalt and chromium indicates high pollution in almost all rivers and it is moderate to high for zinc. Arsenic shows the highest average for contamination index in Nazluchai deposits. Statistical correlation matrix shows the highest correlation between cobalt and chromium with nickel because of their common geogenic origin and the significant correlation between nickel and sand indicates the natural origin of the element. The correlation between zinc and organic matter and clay is significant and probably due to zinc uptake by clay and organic matter. There is a significant relationship between arsenic and cadmium. Principal component analysis indicates 4 sources for the studied heavy metals, the first 4 components with specific values higher than 1, determine more than 85% of data variance. In the first component, nickel and chromium along with sand have the highest weight. Zinc and copper are in second component along with pH, cadmium and arsenic in third component and organic matter and lead in fourth component have the highest weight.

Proper modeling of groundwater quality is an important planning and decision-making tool in water resources management. In this study, in order to model the changes in groundwater quality variables in Ardabil plain, data from 60 wells in May 2013 were used. The data were chemically analyzed in the University Jihad Laboratory by West Azerbaijan Province. Descriptive statistics of data and the correlation matrix of the studied parameters were obtained using SPSS software. The qualitative parameters studied in this paper are: EC, TDS and TH. After standardization, the data were entered into MATLAB environment and groundwater parameters were predicted using ANFIS-FCM method. In this method, 70% of the data (42 samples) for the training data set and 30% of the data (18 samples) for the test data set were randomly selected. For ANFIS-FCM model training data set, EC values (R2 = 0.9142, MSE = 0.009391), TDS (R2 = 0.9703, MSE = 0.00515), TH (R2 = 0.9741, 0.00388 = MSE values were also obtained for the ANFIS-FCM model test data set (EC = 0.987, R2 = 0.003383, MSE), TDS (R2 = 0.8381, MSE = 0.00510), TH (= 0.625). R2 (MSE = 0.072) was obtained. Using the results obtained from this model, it was found that the estimated groundwater parameters in the study area had very good accuracy and high correlation with the measured values. As a result, the ANFIS-FCM intelligent method is an effective, efficient and accurate method for estimating the physical and chemical parameters of water.

The aim of this study is to evaluate suitability of groundwater for irrigation purposes in Urmia alluvial plain, West Azerbaijan, Iran; where agriculture activities are dependent on groundwater because of increasing drought trend in Lake Urmia. Fifty-nine water samples from groundwater were selected during dry season in 2018 and analyzed for water quality parameters. The present study was carried out to investigate the spatial variability of water quality indices (PI, MAR, SAR, RSC, LSI, KR and %Na) by geo-statistical methods to determine suitable areas for irrigation. Electrical conductivity (EC), pH, calcium, sodium, chloride, sulfate, potassium and TDS concentrations were in permissible limit, while %8.5 and %17 of groundwater wells; in bicarbonate and magnesium, respectively; were higher than acceptable limit within prescribed limits as FAO (1994) for irrigation purpose. The calculated SAR values suggested excellent quality for irrigation. The values of PI and %Na suggest that the groundwater of study area is suitable for irrigation purpose. It shows that concentrations of MAR in %18.6 of wells and RSC values in three of samples, are lower than the permissible limit; Whereas computed values of LSI and KR indicate unsuitable groundwater of study area. The spatial distribution maps of groundwater quality indicated that the central of Urmia plain is the most suitable zone for irrigation purposes.

Kahriz Plain is located in the West Azarbaijan province along Urmia Lake and is part of the Urmia Lake catchment. Given the proximity of this plain to Urmia Lake and changes in groundwater level in this region, this study aimed to investigate the quality of groundwater from the results of 12 sampling stations during three dry periods (September) of 88-89, 91-92 and 95-94 was used for comparison. The results showed that the water type was Calcic-Magnesium-Chlorate in the first period and changed to Calcic-Carbonate-Chlorate type indicating the interaction of water-rock in the region. Groundwater quality for drinking and agriculture showed that due to high salinity and sodium content in all three periods, the northern part and areas leading to Urmia Lake were not of good quality and had limited use. The direction of groundwater flow in the region is from west to Urmia Lake, and thus the amount of electrical conductivity along with the total soluble solids increases from west to lake. The highest correlation was observed between electrical conductivity parameters and total soluble solids (p <0.05 and r = 0.9) and ions were highly correlated and had a common origin. Investigation of indices of sodium percent, sodium uptake ratio, permeability, magnesium risk and Kelly ratio indicate low to moderate limitations in groundwater use in irrigation systems. Groundwater quality based on geochemical ratios is one of the factors controlling the effect of evaporative minerals dissolution, extensive evaporation, and probability of saline water infiltration. In terms of electrical conductivity, 25% of the samples are in poor condition and show high to medium restriction for northern areas including Goltapeh and Jamalabad, Ghushchi and Qolghani areas. Therefore, different methods such as leaching and modification of the cropping pattern are needed.

In this research, suspended sediments of the Roze-Chay River, which were located on west part of Urmia Lake, were used to investigate the influence of ionic strength on sorption of cadmium. Adsorption of cadmium on the suspended sediments was investigated using batch experiments. The studied sediments (40 g l-1) was equilibrated in 6, 12, and 25 mmol l-1 ionic strength at definite pH with different cadmium concentrations (0-350 µmol l-1). The results indicate the more ionic strength; the less cadmium sorption occurs in all the samples. This effect of ionic strength on sorption can be attributed to the increased competition between competitive ions (Ca2+) and Cd2+. Isotherm data were described by using Freundlich, Langmuir, and Van-Huay models and better fitting were introduced Freundlich and Langmuir models. The average maximum adsorption capacity (b) of cadmium onto the suspended sediments was obtained 15.3 µmol g-1. Therefore, the suspended sediments have a very low potential for the sorption and transfer of cadmium. That means, even if cadmium is present in the bed of the river, these suspended sediments have no significant ability to sorb cadmium ions and cannot be considered as a carrier of cadmium in the environment.

Soil pollution by heavy metals is a serious environmental problem that threatens the human health. The present study was carried out to investigate and detect the contamination of heavy metals of arsenic, copper, lead, zinc and iron due to human and natural activities in the sediment of lake bed and the surface soils of the eastern part of Urmia Province, West Azarbaijan Province. A total of 20 soil samples and surface deposition from the depths of 0 to 30 cm were collected randomly from the studied areas. After preparing the samples, extraction was carried out to determine the concentration of the heavy metals in the soil by using hydrochloric acid and nitric acid, and the total concentration of metals was measured using ICP-OES. The results of the calculation of the contamination factor showed that copper, iron, zinc and lead in the class of low and medium pollution and arsenic in 65.5% of the samples were very high in the class. The high concentrations of copper, lead and zinc contamination in the margin of the city and the contamination of arsenic in the lake bed were observed. The analysis of the contamination factor maps and contamination index with land use and geological map showed that copper, lead and zinc were mostly affected by human activities and arsenic influenced by the maternal materials in the region.

Soil is a bed to the accumulation of nutrients and pollutants and plays an important role in environmental sustainability. Among all types of soil pollutants, heavy metals are considered as a major threat to environmental health due to their non-degradability in the environment and their long life span. Heavy metals are naturally present in the earth's crust. Rocks and minerals have a high impact on the concentration of elements in the soil and sometimes increase the concentration of the elements in the soil beyond the permitted level. Besides, human activities such as mining and related processing cause heavy metals propagation in the environment. Angouran Mineral Processing Complex includes Zinc and Lead Concentration Complexes and Zinc Factory is located in Dandi, Mahneshan city, northwest of Zanjan, Iran. Because of industrial activities development, some heavy metal processing has led to increasing their concentration in soil and other environmental media. hence, the purposes of this study were to determine the spatial pattern of Zn, Pb and Cd spreading around Angouran Mineral Processing Complex, to investigate their potential risk using different environmental indices, to identify ecological risk and carcinogenic risk, and to determine the contribution of anthropogenic and geogenic origin.
Angouran Mineral Processing Complex, with the geographical coordinate of 36°34′20 ˝N and 47°37′40 ˝E. The area is located in a metamorphic complex of the Sanandaj-Sirjan microplate in the Zagros orogenic belt affected by the Tertiary to Quaternary volcanic activities as well as the geothermal activities of the Urumieh-Dokhtar zone. It is composed of the present age river banks and alluvial deposits in the center along with conglomerate and red tuffs in the northern part.
Soil sampling was done from 0-20 cm depth in June 2016 (n=74). After the preparation of the samples, they were sent to the Zarazma laboratory for analysis of Zn, Pb, and Cd by ICP-OES. Statistical analysis of the data and index calculations were performed using Excel and SPSS software. Also, PMF 5.0 EPA (Positive Matrix Factorization) software was used to determine the source contribution to metal dispersion. Applied indices include enrichment factor (Ef), Geoaccumulation index (Igeo), pollution load indices (PLI) and modified pollution degree (mCd), ecological risk potential (PERI) and cancer risks (CR).
The soil in the study area is in a poor and serious condition that threats agriculture and animal husbandry, the main activities besides the industrials. Zn had the highest concentration with an average of 1648.1 ppm in the region and fallowed by Pb and Cd with a mean of 467.9 and 9.8 ppm, respectively.
The Igeo mean for Pb, Zn, and Cd were 1.7, 2.0, and 0.4, respectively, which indicated average contamination of Pb and Zn and non-contaminated to intermediate contamination of Cd. Igeo's result showed that the metals accumulation order was Zn> Pb> Cd. The extent of metal contamination was -2.4 to 8.9 for Pb, -0.4 to 8.3 for Zn, and -2.4 to 7.1 in terms of Cd, suggesting negative values for these metals which are in the range of non-polluted soils. High Cd contamination was observed only in 4.9% of the samples while EF showed high Cd enrichment (72/1). The mean Ef calculated for Zn, Pb and Cd were 37.1, 45.7 and 72.1, respectively, suggesting strong enrichment for Zn and Pb, but extremely strong for Cd. Cd is the most mobile metal in the soil and is likely to be absorbed through the plant's roots. The enrichment degree for all three metals in the region is wide. Contamination severity (Ff>10) in total observed for Zn, Pb, and Cd in 29.6%, 25.6% and 59.4% of samples, respectively, which indicates the very high impact of anthropogenic contamination sources. In general, it can be concluded from the Igeo and Ef index that samples collected from this area have enriched and contaminated by the examined heavy metals.
Given the various toxic effects of metals on the human body, the PERI index of metals in the soil varies from 42.8 to 35500.5 and showed a high environmental risk for Cd than for Zn and Pb. Based on the classification, 35% of sampling points showed high ecological risk.
The metal contamination degree in the soil was higher than expected. In the study area, mCd ranged from 0.8 to 723.4 and 60% of the samples showed high contamination. PLI calculation showed that the contamination range is between 0.7 and 627.8. The contamination range calculated by mCd and PLI revealed that 60% and 40% of the area is in very poor and inappropriate conditions, which shows a significant risk in agricultural land use.
CR for adults ranges from 0.2×10-2 to 0.5×10-5 while the mean is 0.1×10-3. Unexpectedly, Zn with an impact of 96.9% had the highest share in the carcinogenic risk of ingested contaminated soil. CR for children varies from 0.4×10-2 to 0.9×10-5 with a mean of 0.2×10-3. Similar to the results obtained from adult CR, Zn with 99.1% had the greatest effect on the carcinogenesis probability due to ingestion. Based on the CR classification, the risk was a middle and upper class for children.
The CR calculation for children and adults showed that the ingestion risk of contaminated soils contain Zn had the greatest effect on the risk of carcinogenicity and health problems. Absorption via skin and respiration of Zn, Pb and Cd were the next highest risk factors. Soil and dust ingestion was a potential source of exposure to environmental chemicals for both adults and children. Children may, in particular, consume large amounts of soil because of their tendency to play on the ground and carry the soil coated objects to their mouths. Due to the wide range of industrial activities in the region, agriculture in the study area poses a greater risk of carcinogenicity for the adult population.
PMF model was used to quantify the contribution of the different sources in Cd, Zn and Pb pollution. Comparing the metals prevalence in each factor and the information obtained from the regional field for the probable source of heavy metals, two factors were considered to the probable source of the heavy metals. Geogenic origin was the first-factor and anthropogenic origin was the second one. According to the results, the concentration of Zn in the second factor was 99% while the first factor was 1%. Therefore, the greatest impact on Zn concentration in the region is due to anthropogenic activities. Pb and Cd the second factor were estimated to be 90.2 and 95.7%.
Therefore, there is a need to reduce the risk of exposure to soil metals in order to maintain the health of the residents 'health and sustainability of the environment and animals in the area, including soil refining.

The quantitative and qualitative decline of groundwater in recent years has needed for proper management of water from these valuable resources. One of the important ways to achieve this goal is to monitoring groundwater quality. In the present study, 12 water quality parameters related to 63 wells in Ardebil plain were measured in June and September (dry and wet season), 2013-2012, then water quality indices were studied. After calculating the indices, the ArcGIS10 software were used to prepare the maps and then calculate some important statistical parameters. The results showed that groundwater in Ardebil Plain with EC and SAR indexes average, 405.17 microseisms per cm and 2.8 in the C3-S1 class, according to Wilcox classification, and had a low to moderate limit Salinity and without any limit in term of penetration in the soil. RSC, KR and PI Indicators, which express the risk of sodium, indicate that there is no sodium constraint and have a good quality. The CR index with 0.8 average also indicated a lack of groundwater corrosion risk. Investigating the Na and Cl also indicates an average limit for water toxicity for the plants cultivated in Ardebil plain. On the other hand, the zoning maps of the studied indices showed that salinity in some parts of the plain has a low to moderate limit, and in eastern and southern parts, it has no limitation. According SAR index most part of plain was unlimited, with only a small portion of the southern plain with moderate constraints. The LSI index showed that in most plain areas, the value of this index is greater than zero, and therefore there will be a risk of droplets.

The presence of chromium in drinking water and the entry of industrial wastewater into groundwater resources endangers human health and the environment. This study was done to investigate the effect of leonardite to remove Cr+6, Cr+3 from aqueous environments. The optimal values of factors were determined by the surface response model and the central composite design. Adsorption data were fitted with the pseudo-first order and pseudo-second order kinetic models. In addition, the effects of interfering cations and anions on chromium adsorption were determined. The results showed that the contact time, amount of leonardite and pH significantly affect chromium sorption. Chromium kinetic data were well fitted (R2=0.995) to the pseudo second order equation. The capacity (qe) and adsorption coefficient (Kads) parameters for Cr3+ were higher than Cr6+. As a large amount of Cr3+ was adsorbed by leonardite in a short time. Fe3+ and SO42- as interfering ions reduced the removal of Cr3+ and Cr6+ by leonardite respectively. It is concluded that Leonardite, as a biodegradable adsorbent, is suitable for remove of chromium from contaminated waters.

The investigation into water resources of hard rocks and limestone, is very important because of their quality and role in the supply of the portable water. More than 10 percent of Iran is covered with hard rocks formations which increases up to 25% in the northwest of Iran. Because of the high quality of hard rock and karstic aquifers and their suitable location for supplying the drinking water of rural areas, the exploration and exploitation of groundwater from these formations are of interest. In quantitative terms, while the frequency of springs in hard rocks is normally more than that of karstic aquifers, the discharge of karstic springs is normally higher. The hydrochemistry of groundwater in hard rocks and limestone is influenced by aquifer body material, groundwater flow velocity, and residential time of water in aquifer. The study area was located in the west of Urmia City, northwest of Iran as a part of Lake Urmia watershed. The geological units is mainly carbonate rocks (limestone and dolomite).
In order to investigate the quality of groundwater resources, 15 samples of springs were collected and analyzed for the major ions (HCO3, CL, SO4, Mg, Ca, Na, K). Other parameters such as TDS, PH and EC were also measured. Various diagrams and techniques like Durov and Gibbs diagrams, saturation index, and ion ratios were employed to determine the water type and faces and the source of ions. Also some diagrams were used to check water quality for agricultural and drinking usages. Pie diagrams of SO4, Na, and EC showed that the basin area located in young alluviums bearing gypsum caused an increase in SO4 and EC. Marls of Miocene formation in the area also had increased the concentration of Na in some water samples
Based on the samples position in the Piper, Durov, and Gibbs diagrams, most types of groundwater was bicarbonate and calcic types.
The main factors which controled the groundwater chemistry were processes such as ion exchange (due to the presence of clay minerals), weathering, and dissolution of limestone and dolomite formations. It was also found that the watersheds of the large number of springs were located in Permian limestone and detrital Miocene units.
Wilcox diagram showed that most of the samples were in the class C2-S1, which indicated their low salinity and their appropriateness for agriculture. Schoeller diagram also showed that the groundwater region had good and acceptable quality for drinking. Saturation index survey showed a highest value of unsaturity related to dolomites for the samples which is influenced by Silvana dolomitic formation. Under saturity of samples related to gypsum, halite, and anhydrate was expected because of the absence of saline gypsiferous formations in the area. The results of this research showed that the groundwater of the study area has a water with calcic and bicarbonate types with a high hydrochemical quality, which is appropriate for agriculture and drinking uses. It was also found that lithology has a major role in the hydrochemistry and quality of the groundwater. Weathering and solution of Routeh and Tertiary limestone karstic formations, and Silvana dolomitic formation have more impact on the groundwater quality of the study area. However, alluvial gypsiferous and Miocene formations with marl beds have a little impact on the quality of groundwater in the north, center and east of the area.

The nature of heavy metals and their solubility in soil is important in the transition of these hazardous materials into plants, water resources and such compounds pose a serious threat to human health. Water, soil and air pollution are important component of industrial activities and directly exposed to the environment. Lead is one of the most important environmental pollutants and can from different ways contaminate soil and water resources. Since phosphate ions for stable complexes with cations such as Pb and Cd, so cause decrease the solubility and mobility of heavy metal in soil. Liming is the most widely used treatment, and leads to the precipitation of metal as metal–carbonates and significantly decreases the exchangeable fraction of metals in contaminated soil. Temperature is also an important factor in stabilization of heavy metal. Heat causes loss of water and hydrated around cations move them to empty spaces clay part of soil. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of heat and lime, phosphate application on the immobilization of Pb in contaminated soil.

Soil sample was collected from waste mining of Angorane in Zanjan region and their physicochemical properties of soil were determined using standard methods. For stabilization mean, two levels of lime 0, 5% and 0, 2.5% phosphate fertilizer and mixed of lime (0, 5%), phosphate fertilizer (0, 2.5%) were added and mixed with 300 gr soil. Treatments as six different temperatures 25, 200, 400, 600, 700 and 800C were heated with electrical oven (Shimiran f.47) and loaded in distilled water for a different times (7, 30, 60 days), so samples were shaken every day 15 minutes. Samples were centrifuged at 2500 rpm for 5 minutes and passed through a filter paper. Pb concentration was measured in the supernatant using atomic absorption model (Shimadzu 6600). All analysis of variance and mean comparison were performed using SPSS and MSTATC software.

Physicochemical properties of soil sample showed in table 1. The soil was acidic and saline due to the existence of salts Cd and Pb. Ionic strength of soil increases as a high amount of salts and affected adsorption and desorption processing. Also due to the absence of carbonate in the soil (0%), these salts are available as sulfate of Cd and Pb probably. The soil sample contains 23% clay and has a silty loam texture class. The XRD result showed that the illite was the dominant mineral of soil. Total Pb concentration was 18000 mgkg-1 and indicates the severity of soil contamination. Based on the America's environmental protection agency (EPA) standards the allowable limit for the existence of Pb in soil is 100 (mg kg-1). Therefore, concentration of the metal in the soil was too standard and introduced as a contaminated soil.
Statistical analysis: Analysis of variance showed independent effects of heat and treatments during the total periods were significant. The interactions of factors at 7 and 30 days were significant (Table 2).
-no significant (ns), significant on the 0.1 (***), significant on the 0.05 (*)
The results showed that lead release was a function of temperature variation and increased Pb release in all treatments except for 200 °C. High temperatures break the crystalline silicate minerals of the soil and Pb release was significant at a temperature up to 600 ° C, but no significant difference was found between 600 and 800 ° C. Also, the temperature increase reduces the soil's specific surface and increases the release of Pb (Figure 1). It seems that the heat treatment causes structural changes in the structure of clay minerals and different minerals. The increase of phosphate causes the change direction effect of heat at stabilized Pb.
Figure 1. The main effect of heat and treatment in desorption of pb
The lime application was significantly on lead stabilization compared to the blank on first stage and the highest desorption was observed at 700 ° C. The soil pH and EC are main parameters controlling the solubility and mobility of heavy metals in soils. Therefore soil sample was acidic (pH

The results showed that lime and ion phosphate behavior were differed in non-removing Pb of contaminated soils, so that phosphate ion reduces the solubility and transfer of lead in contaminated soils. But limestone application was not suitable for the stabilization of Pb in highly polluted soils. Heat changed the structure of clay minerals and increased the release of elements. Also, the heat increase led to a change in the direction of the effect of phosphate on the stabilization of lead. So , the use of phosphate sources was found to be suitable for the stabilization of lead in acidic soils and saltines contaminated with elements.

The mobility of heavy metals plays an important role in soil and groundwater contamination. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of leonardite on distribution of chemical forms of cadmium (Cd) in the compacted soil of Urmia landfill. For this purpose, soil samples were collected from the landfill and physico-chemical properties and clay mineralogy was determined. The rate of leonardite (0, 2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10 %) were added to soils and then treatment soils compacted in the columns. Cadmium solution (100 mg/l) poured to the soils and then soil samples collected from three depths of column (surface, middle and subsurface) after 72 days for determine chemical forms of Cd in soils. The studied soil contain 43.9% clay and illite (49%), montmorillonite (21%) kaolinite (20.5%) and chlorite 9.5% were dominate clay in soil. Compaction reduced the infiltration rete and concentration of Cd in the middle and subsurface layers but application of leonardite increased the Cd concentration in supernatant more than 10 times compared to control. Also, geochemical forms of Cd (Fe-Mn oxides, exchangeable and carbonate forms) decreased in the surface layer (P

In this study, seepage of heavy metals, As and Hg due to activities such as mining, ore transportation, gold refining that lead enter into ground and surface waters in Zarshoran area of Takab (south of west Azerbaijan province in Iran) were investigated. The sampling sites (n=16) selected around three different gold extraction factories and also out of industrial areas. Water samples were collected from wells, rivers and springs in polyethylene bottles according to standard methods in the mid of every season (2015). Samples of Hg acidified with 5ml Nitric acid and As samples acidified with 5ml Hcl and kept at 40c and transferred to laboratory. As and Hg analysis respectively determined by using atomic absorption spectrophotometer at hydride generation mode and cold vapor analyzer. Studies on gold ore deposits in Zarshoran area of Takab indicate that As and Hg exist in minerals of studied area. The obtained results show that the concentration of As in the studied area is higher than the standard level allowed for drinking water by world health organization and it is related to the geochemical composition of the soil in studied area. Also it was found that, the concentrations of Hg in surface waters decreases with distance from the industrial area so it means that, the gold ore processing had positive effect on solubility of the toxic heavy metals.

Water quality is considered as one the most important factors in development of the civilizations and sustainability of human activities. Water quality can be evaluated by comparing the each of the chemical properties in water samples with their reference values. The single parameter comparison method has limitation and a comprehensive evaluation of the water quality is not possible with this method. Thus, water quality indices has been developed during the last 3 decades. The aim of this study was to comprehensively evaluate the water quality in Ardabil aquifer with a newly proposed drinking water quality index (DWQIProposed). The DWQIProposed was also were compared with the conventional water quality indices including DWQIA and DWQIG. Water samples were collected from 60 wells in Ardabil aquifer during the September 2014 and analyzed for 21 different physical, chemical, and biological properties. DWQIProposed were computed in four steps including parameter selection, parameter categorization, development of sub-index with regression statistics, and aggregating the sub indices. Results indicated that, although there was a quantitative difference between the DWQIProposed and DWQIG, but their probability distribution functions reflect a similar pattern. DWQIProposed and DWQIA have similar values for samples with excellent water quality. ANOVA results indicated that the mean difference between three indices is significant (P

Groundwater is one of the most important resources of water supply for various uses in many regions all over the globe including Iran. Different contaminants severely affect these resources and might render groundwater unsuitable for consumption. Groundwater contamination by nitrate is a well known globally growing problem due to the population growth and increase of demand for food supplies. This study was conducted to evaluate the nitrate concentration in water resources of Ardabil aquifer using Geographical Information System. Water samples were collected from 63 wells in Ardabil aquifer during the September 2014 and analyzed for nitrate concentration. The average nitrate concentration from the wells was 39.18 mgl-1. Based on the variography analysis, nitrate concentration showed a good spatial structure which may lead to the high performance of the ordinary kriging (R2=0.508) in predicting the groundwater nitrate spatial pattern. Nitrate concentration was very high at the western parts of the aquifer where the Ardabil city and its agricultural lands is located. These results clearly indicates that the anthropogenic sources from human activities and agricultural development are the main reasons of the nitrate pollution in this part of the aquifer.

Mahabad reservoir dam is the main drinking water source for Mahabad town and its downstream villages. To investigation of water quality, the physicochemical parameters including pH, Eh, EC, TDS, total hardness (TH), total alkalinity (TA), temperature, salinity, concentrations of main cations and anions (for 5 samples) and some of the heavy metals (for 11 samples) were measured in water sampling stations. According to the chemical analysis results and compare to the international standards, main cations and anions concentrations and physicochemical parameters values (exception total hardness) of the water samples are located in permissible ranges and suitable for drinking water. Compare to the world health organization (WHO) standards, all of the water samples indicate Cd and Pb pollution, point of view of drinking water. In KDT3 sampling station, the concentration of Cd and Pb are 26 times and 3.5 times of permissible values, respectively. Also, the water of Mahabad reservoir dam and upstream tributaries are polluted regarding to Cd for livestock and poultry requirements. These pollution can be related to geogenic source (mineralization) and anthropogenic source (wastewater derived from upstream villages). But for irrigiation, the water of Mahabad reservoir dam and upstream tributaries have low salinity (C2S1 class) and suitable for agricultural uses. Piper diagram revealed bicarbonate type and calcic facies for water of Mahabad reservoir dam. The surface water of the study area, for the reason of high total hardness, needs to softening prior to use for different industries.

Heavy metals are the most toxic pollutants in aquatic ecosystems. This contamination can result from the release of heavy metal elements during alteration and weathering of ultramafic and mafic rocks (ophiolite zones). Among the important metals and pollutants in the ophiolite; chromium، cobalt، nickel، iron، magnesium، manganese، zinc and copper could be noted. Basically، a mass of serpentine consists of serpentine، amphibole، talc، chlorite، magnetite، and the remainder of olivine، pyroxene and spinel (Kil et al.، 2010). In such areas، the prevailing cold climate، during the serpentinization، chloritization and epidotiization، the activity of the solvent، such as chloride، fluoride، carbonates، sulfide، sulfosalt would be able to import the elements such as magnesium and iron، copper and zinc into the soil and groundwater. The study area is located in northwestern Iran. This area is located in the northwest of the city of Khoy. Because of the proximity to the north and northwest Khoy plains with ophiolite rocks، the soil of this region could possibly show the potential of contamination with heavy metals. Due to the toxicity and disease of unauthorized grades of these elements in groundwater in the study area، this study is focused on the more contaminated groundwater of the areas.

In this study، over a period of 5 days، sampling from 42 water sources، including fountains، aqueducts، wells، piezometers and wells in operation، was performed. The container was washed with acid and then rinsed 3 times with the water sample. The pH and temperature of the water in the samples was measured in the field. Then to each of the samples was taken from 2 to 5 ml of concentrated nitric acid (This causes that the metal elements would not adsorbed or precipitated by these particles) and pH of the samples was measured with litmus paper to reach level 2. This was done to ensure the consolidation of the water samples. Analysis of samples carried out in the chemistry laboratory of the University of Urmia. All water sampling procedures were performed based on standard protocols (SMEWW، 2010). The maximum concentration of heavy metal contamination of drinking water with EPA، WHO and national standards were compared. In this study، the chemical analysis of heavy metals، were used by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (at ppb) for the elements Cu، Mg، Fe and Zn. Concentration of the heavy metals in acidified water samples (pH value of 2)، using a flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer were analyzed.

There are enormous amounts of Fe and magnesium in groundwater from the north and northwest Khoy plain، and the amount of Cu and zinc are in the normal range in water resources. The source of iron and magnesium in the groundwater of the study area is ultramafic and mafic rocks of the Khoy ophiolite complex. Weathering of ultramafic and mafic igneous rocks such as peridotite، olivine basalt، gabbro and pillow lava and then soil formation، high concentrations of the elements Mg and Fe were transferred to soil. Ferromagnesian olivine is formed Mg2+ and Fe2+ ions and tetrahedral silicon. If sufficient amount of Mg2+ and Fe3+ ions combine with silicon and oxygen، silicon into the soil، forms silicic acid (H4SiO4)، or magnesium or iron smectite (clay minerals) (Alexander et al.، 2007). Several types of pyroxene are more stable than olivine. Orthopyroxene during weathering decompose into talc and smectite. Magnesite (MgCO3) is present in some serpentine soils. With respect to the empirical relationship (Kierczak et al.، 2007) and based on temperature and rainfall، the study area with a drought index of 12. 48 places in the category of semi-arid-cold climate between 10 and 19. 9. Temperature changes in the condition cause weathering and leaching of serpentine soils، and subsequently can remove large amounts of magnesium. Weathering and leaching serpentine soils، releases immediately magnesium and its concentration in soil decreases. As a result، the concentration of the element in the water increases.

Based on the charts and maps of iron، magnesium، zinc and copper contaminations، it is found that the concentrations of Fe and Mg in the north and northwest Khoy plain are higher than the permissible limit for drinking water. In some parts of the sample، the concentrations of Cu and Zn are exceeded WHO. However، based on EPA standard، the amount of copper is less than the limit. On the basis of three criteria: EPA، WHO and national standards، except for the village Ghez Ghaleh، zinc concentration is below the standard. According to the geological map of Khoy، the Khoy ophiolite complex containing mafic rocks and ultramafic is a source of iron and magnesium in groundwater. Acknowledgements: Editor of the Journal of Economic Geology، Professor Mohammad Hassan Karimpour and reviewers of this article are acknowledged for their unwavering assistance. Also، the authors thank Deputy of Research of the University of Urmia for the support required for this study.