Evaluation of Geoaccumulation Index, Contamination Factor, and Principal Component Analysis for Estimating Soil Contamination

Background and Soil contamination resulted from either natural or anthropogenic factors reduces environmental quality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the geoaccumulation, contamination factor, and principal component analysis indices to estimate topsoil contamination in Aran-Bidgol town. 135 topsoil samples were collected from Aran-Bidgol town and the metal concentrations of Cd, Pb, Ni, Cu, and Zn in each sample were determined. The index of geoaccumulation (Igeo), contamination factor (CF), and principal component analysis (PCA) techniques were applied to determine the status and trends of soil contamination in this region. The inverse distance weighting (IDW) was then used to map these soil contamination indices. The research found that the means concentrations of Cd, Pb, Ni, Zn, and Cu were 0.72, 11.41, 29.87, 48.59, and 14.82 mg/kg respectively all exceeded the background values. Mean Igeo and CF of elements followed the order: Cu> Cd> Ni> Zn≈ Pb. The Igeo and CF maps showed higher values of Cd, Pb, and Zn in areas near industrial estates, brick kilns, and urban areas whereas higher levels of Cu and Ni occurred in urban and agricultural areas. According to the PCA index, two principal components were identified that Cu, Ni and Zn were highly loaded in PC1 and Cd and Pb occurred in PC2. Results indicated that the concentration of Pb and Cd are mostly affected by human activities, whereas Ni, Zn, and Cu contents are controlled by both anthropogenic and natural sources.