Environmental variations of trace element concentrations in Egyptian cane sugar and soil samples (Edfu factories)

Multielements, Ag, Au, Ca, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb, Sr, and Zn were estimated in the sugar cane plant (green bagasse or cane stalks and leaves), sugar cane, raw juice, mixed juice, in syrup at the different stages of sugar production (10 stages), in sugar (grades A and B), and in soil samples collected from the immediate vicinity of the cane plant roots at surface, 30 and 60 cm depths. The measurements were undertaken on a Pye Unicam SP 1900 Recording Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The results obtained are within the permissible safety baseline levels and in excellent agreement with the previous work done on the sugar cane plant and on the soil of the same area (Edfu) using INAA, ICP-AES and AAS (Awadallah, R. M., Sherif, M. K., Mohamed, A. E., & Grass, F. (1984). Determination of trace elements in Egyptian cane sugar by neutron activation analysis. Inter. J. Environ. Anal. Chem., 19 (1), 41–54; Awadallah, R. M., Sherif, M. K., Mohamed, A. E., & Grass, F. (1985). Determination of trace elements in Egyptian cane sugar by neutron activation analysis. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem. 92 (1), 7–25; Mohamed, A. E. (1986). Determination of trace elements in sugar cane refuse by instrumental neutron activation analysis. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem., Letters, 107 (2), 121–128; Mohamed, A. E., Awadallah, R. M., & Hassan, A. A. (1989). Determination of trace elements in Egyptian molasses by instrumental neutron activation analysis. J. Radioanal. Nuel. Chem. Articles, 129 (2), 453–457). ©