Search

The main purpose of this study was to identify the concentrations of naturally occurring radionuclides ( 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K) and some metals (Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb and Cd) in tooth samples collected from humans living in the Rize province of Turkey. It was found that the activity concentrations ranged from 8.1 to 114.51 Bq kg -1 for 226 Ra, from 10.44 to 97.3 Bq kg -1 for 232 Th and from 14.53 to 489.27 Bq kg -1 for 40 K. The mean activity concentration values of 226 Ra and 232 Th in tooth samples were higher than the average world values for bones. Furthermore, when the metal concentrations were examined, there was no regular increase or decrease according to age or sex. The results of the metal analysis on the tooth samples were compared with the results of similar studies and were generally found to be consistent.

In the present study, the concentration levels of heavy metals such as Cr, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, As and Pb in soil samples collected from 88 sampling locations around Sinop Province, Turkey were measured using energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (EDXRF). To interpret and to evaluate the pollution status and distribution of heavy metals in soil, metal pollution parameters such as enrichment factor (EF), geo-accumulation index (I geo ), pollution factor (CF) and pollution load index (PLI) and geo-spatial distribution patterns were used. The mean concentrations of Cr, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, and Pb were found to be 194.73, 39,848.57, 85.02, 43.19, 65.10, 5.66, and 17.01 mg/kg, respectively. Results indicated that the mean concentrations of Cr, Ni, As, and Pb exceeded the world crustal average, with the exception of Fe, Cu, and As. Multivariate analysis results showed that Cr, Ni, Zn, As, and Pb levels in the investigated region were highly influenced by anthropogenic inputs such as agricultural practices. According to the health risk assessment model introduced by USEPA to evaluate the human health risks, the non-carcinogenic risk for children was above the threshold level, but low for adults. Total potential carcinogenic health risks for both children and adults in the study area were in acceptable range. Overall, when health risks are evaluated, it shows that children are more susceptible to non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health effects of trace metals compared to adults., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study investigated the contents of Cu, Zn and Pb in seawater, sediment, different shell sizes of mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis) and sea snail (Rapana venosa) samples collected from four different provinces of the Eastern Black Sea Region. With the exception of Zn, all the metal concentration values measured in the sea snail were observed to be higher than those of mussels in all stations. While the correlation between mussels and sea snail according to metal concentrations was found to be positive (p˂0.05), this relation was not observed between the other parameters, such as the shell sizes, salinity and pH (p˃0.05). Although the mean concentration values of Cu, Zn, and Pb for mussel and sea snail are significantly above the tolerable levels, the estimated daily intake values for mussel were below the daily intake recommended., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Seawater, sediment and fish (anchovy) samples consumed in the Rize province of the Eastern Black Sea region of Turkey were collected from five different stations. The radioactivity levels ( 226 Ra, 232 Th, 40 K and 137 Cs) were determined in all the samples using a high-purity germanium detector. While 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K radionuclides were detected in all samples, the radionuclide concentration of 137 Cs, except for the sediment samples (mean activity is 9±1.4Bqkg -1 ), was not detected for the seawater and fish samples. The total annual effective dose rates from the ingestion of these radionuclides for fish were calculated using the measured activity concentrations in radionuclides and their ingested dose conversion factor. Also, the concentrations of some heavy metals in all the samples were determined. The activity and heavy metal concentration values that were determined for the seawater, sediment and fish samples were compared among the locations themselves and with literature values., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)