Abstract
Lithium is a critical element for the modern society due to its uses in various industrial sectors. Despite its unequal distribution in the environment, Li occurrence in Romania was scarcely studied. In this study a versatile measurement method using ICP-MS technique was optimized for the determination of Li from various matrixes. Water, soil, and plant samples were collected from two important karst areas in the Dobrogea and Banat regions, Romania. The Li content was analyzed together with other macro- and microelement contents to find the relationship between the concentration of elements and their effect on the plants’ Li uptake. In Dobrogea region, half of the studied waters had high Li concentration, ranging between 3.00 and 12.2 μg/L in the case of water and between 0.88 and 11.1 mg/kg DW in the case of plants, while the Li content in the soil samples were slightly comparable (from 9.85 to 11.3 mg/kg DW). In the Banat region, the concentration of Li was lower than in Dobrogea (1.40–1.46 μg/L in water, 6.50–9.12 mg/kg DW in soil, and 0.19–0.45 mg/kg DW in plants). Despite the high Li contents in soil, the Li was mostly unavailable for plants uptake and bioaccumulation.
Highlights
Accepted: 14 July 2021Lithium (Li) is one of the most “critical” metals for modern society used in many fields such as manufacturing electronic devices, glass and ceramics, as well in medical and cosmetics products [1]
Groundwater, soil, and plant samples were collected in September 2020 from six sampling points located in: rural areas of Dobrogea region, south-eastern Romania (GWR27, GWR28, GWR29, and GWR30) and a protected area of Banat region, south-western Romania (GN and GWR6)
The equipment (ICP-MS, Elan dynamic reaction cell (DRC) II, Perkin–Elmer) parameters and conditions for the Li determination analytical procedure are given in the Table 2
Summary
Lithium (Li) is one of the most “critical” metals for modern society used in many fields such as manufacturing electronic devices, glass and ceramics, as well in medical and cosmetics products [1]. It is the 30th most abundant element in the upper continent crust with similar abundance to Pb and Cu, naturally occurring in waters, soils, rocks, and minerals (such as lithium micas, amblygonite, petalite, lepidolite, spodumene, eucryptite) [2,3,4]. The biochemical role of Li in the lifecycle of living organisms is unclear, though is considered to have a potential role as a micronutrient [5].
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