Temporal Variation of Cadmium and Lead in Nile Water, Assiut City, Egypt

Document Type : Novel Research Articles

Abstract

The levels of two heavy metals, lead and cadmium in Nile River at Assiut, Egypt were evaluated in this work. The samples were collected daily and the metals were monitored on a weekly basis over a period of ten months, from October 2016 to July 2017. Samples were analysed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICPOES). It was found that the concentrations of elements differ from season to another as concentration in Autumn > Winter > Summer > Spring. Average concentration range of lead was 2.50 - 9.30 µg/L while that of cadmium was 0.02 - 0.72 µg/L. Lead and Cadmium were found in lower concentration than those recommended by World Health Organization (WHO), European Commission (EC) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules. The quality of Nile Water concerning the levels of cadmium and lead was compared with some international rivers indicating the superior quality of the Nile.     

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