Mercury Contamination, Removal, and Health Risk Assessment
This community investigates the environmental fate of mercury, particularly its release from gold mining and industrial flue gas, and its subsequent accumulation in food chains and human bodies. The work focuses on quantifying exposure levels, developing methods to remove mercury from air and water, and assessing the resulting health risks.
The research centers on elemental and methylmercury, with a strong emphasis on sources such as artisanal and small-scale gold mining and coal combustion. Recurring themes include the detection of mercury ions using fluorescent probes, the removal of gaseous elemental mercury from flue gas, and the assessment of mercury concentrations in fish, sediments, and human tissues. The work also addresses the methylation of mercury in aquatic environments and the bioaccumulation of heavy metals in marine biota. Applications range from environmental monitoring and risk assessment to the development of adsorbents for mercury capture and the analysis of mercury levels in seafood consumed in various regions.
The largest share of the community's output is found in mercury research, accounting for 37.7% of all mercury research, and 26,145 papers here. Gold research contributes 2,139 papers, representing 2.5% of all gold research, while selenium research accounts for 959 papers, or 2.0% of all selenium research.
This community comprises 37,992 papers, published primarily in Science of The Total Environment, Environmental Science & Technology, and Environmental Pollution.
Recent work continues to focus on the detection of mercury ions using fluorescent sensors and the assessment of heavy metal contamination in seafood and coastal regions. Studies also explore the genomic potential for mercury biotransformation in marine sediments and the atmospheric redox transformations of mercury.