EESA10H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Mercury Poisoning, Heavy Metals, Yatsushiro Sea
13 Apr 2016
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
They are naturally occurring, extracted from the earth in ore. Some organic molecules can break down, but metals never disappear. Heavy metals spread very quickly (wide environmental dispersion). They have a tendency to accumulate in select tissues. All these characteristics make heavy metals very dangerous. Heavy metals can be divided into three groups based on their toxicology: class (group) a: This group includes all the essential elements: k, na, mg, and ca. these are required in high amounts for survival. Since they are macronutrients (essential for biological processes), they are low in toxicity you can be exposed to high amounts: class (group) b: This group includes the following metals: hg, pb, and ti. These are nonessential elements; not required for biological processes. They tend to be very toxic (form soluble organometallics): borderline. Elements included in this category are: cr, cu, as, co, ni, zn, mn, and fe.
