Advanced Journal of Environmental Science and Technology ISSN: 2136-3468 Vol. 5(3), pp. 237-244, March, 2018. © Advanced Scholars Journals

Full length Research paper 

Concentrations and distribution of heavy metals in relations to normal background level in the vicinity of an automobile battery factory

*Okonjibola Ernest, Oluko Destiny and Ogbunagbe Friday

Department of Science Laboratory Technology, Federal College of Animal Health and Production Technology, Moor Plantation, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria.

Accepted 11 February, 2018

Abstract

The levels of heavy metals (Pd, Zn, Cr, Cd, Fe and Cu in mg/kg) in soils were assessed with respect to distance in different directions around an abandoned battery company in Ibadan, Western Nigeria by using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry method. The results generally show a decrease of lead (Pb) concentrations with increase in distance away from the company in all the four different directions (Northwest, Northeast, Southwest and Southeast). The other heavy metals assessed do not show any clear trend with distance away from the factory. The mean concentrations of Pb, Zn, Cr, Cd, Fe and Cu were 59.13±48.9 (range 5.00 - 182.00 mg/kg), 2.68±1.1 (range 0.4 - 5.2 mg/kg), 1.62±2.4 (range ND - 8.7 mg/kg), 0.08±0.09 (range ND - 0.24 mg/kg), 49.44±16.5 (range 12.5 - 70 mg/kg) and 4.94±2.6 mg/kg (range 0.5 - 10.5 mg/kg), respectively. The mean concentration of Pb was far above (four times higher than) the normal crustal average for soils while the other heavy metals were below the normal background level. The concentration of Pb is also the highest at the distance closest to the factory which indicate that Pb is the major heavy metal impacted on soils by the company which elevate the normal background level and thereby contaminate the soils and make it unfit for agricultural purposes as plant take up the leached metals and ultimately find its way into animals and human body through the food chain.

Key words: Food chain, Battery Company, lead pollutant, assessment, agricultural purposes, anthropogenic sources