Preprint
Article

XRF Quick-Scan Mapping for Heavy Metal Pollutants in SuDS: A Methodological Approach

This version is not peer-reviewed.

Submitted:

24 November 2019

Posted:

30 January 2020

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Abstract
Sustainable urban drainage systems (SuDS) such as swales are designed to collect, store and infiltrate a large amount of surface runoff water during heavy rainfall. Stormwater is known to transport pollutants, such as particle-bound heavy metals, which are known to often accumulate in the topsoil. In this study, a portable XRF instrument is used to provide in situ spatial characterization of soil pollutants. The method uses portable XRF measurements of heavy metals along profiles with set intervals (1 meter) to cover the swale with cross-sections, across the inlet, the deepest point and the outlet. Soil samples are collected, and the In-Situ measurements are verified by the results from laboratory analyses. Stormwater is here shown to be the transporting media for the pollutants, so it is of importance to investigate areas most prone to flooding and infiltration. This quick scan method is time and cost-efficient, easy to execute and the results are comparable to any known (inter)national threshold criteria for polluted soils. The results are of great importance for all stakeholders in cities that are involved in climate adaptation and implementing green infrastructure in urban areas. However, too little is still known about the long-term functioning of the soil-based SuDS facilities.
Keywords: 
portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (XRF); heavy metals; lead (Pb); zinc (Zn); copper (Cu); topsoil; sustainable urban drainage systems; SuDS; LID; BMPs; WSUD; GI; SCMs
Subject: 
Environmental and Earth Sciences  -   Water Science and Technology
Copyright: This open access article is published under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, which permit the free download, distribution, and reuse, provided that the author and preprint are cited in any reuse.

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