Effect of some heavy metals in the industrial flows on the Shatt Al-Arab River

Abstract

The current study was conducted in three stations (Alsibah, Alnajibiya and Almas-hab marsh) from December 2020 to November 2021 during the course of the Shatt Al-Arab River. A flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (FAAS) was used to measure the quantities of several heavy metals (lead, cadmium, copper and iron) in water. The results revealed a noticeable seasonal variation of heavy metals in the Shatt Al-Arab water. Lead concentration was 3.246 mg/l in Autumn. Cadmium concentrations reached 0.001 mg/l to 0.008 mg/l during Spring and Winter, respectively. Whereas copper ranged between 0.001 mg/l- 0. and 319 mg/l in Spring and Winter, respectively. The iron ranged from 0.703 mg/l - 9.00 mg/l in Winter and Summer, respectively. According to a recent study, the water of Shatt Al-Arab was contaminated with some heavy metals (lead, copper, and iron ) that reached the concentrations of standard Iraqi criteria. In contrast, cadmium concentrations were still within the standard levels. Keywords: Cd, Cu, Fe, Pb, Shatt Al-Arab, Heavy metals, Water contamination