Trace Metal Availability in Soils Amended with Metal-Fixing Inorganic Materials

Immobilization of metals by two materials (zeolite, AZ, and a synthetic, carbonate-rich material, “slovakite”, SL) was tested in a pot experiment with two soils from urban areas of Sevilla and two soils affected by a mine spill. Barley (Hordeum vulgare L. Hispanic) was grown in the pots, and metal contents were measured after 31 days in shoots and roots. Available metal was estimated by extraction with CaCl₂ (readily soluble), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA; plant available), a mixture of organic acids (soluble by root exudates), and glycine (bioaccessible by ingestion). Neither treatment caused significant differences on plant growth or metal contents of shoots, whereas roots contained more Cu in the SL treatments. Root Zn uptake was reduced in all cases, but reduction of Pb in roots was observed only in AZ treatments of the mine-spill soils. The effects on metal availability were often method-dependent. Decrease of CaCl₂ data were observed only in the mine-spill soils. EDTA-soluble metals were clearly decreased by both materials. Bioaccessible Zn were decreased by either material in several cases (but not in the most heavily polluted soil), whereas Cu or Pb data were less conclusive.