"Heavy metal poisoning" redirects here. For the 1983 Styx song, see Heavy Metal Poisoning.
A 25-foot (7.6 m) wall of coal fly ash contaminated with toxic heavy metals, resulting from the release of 5.4 million cubic yards of coal fly ash slurry into the Emory River, Tennessee, and nearby land and water features, in December 2008.[1] Testing showed significantly elevated levels of arsenic, copper, barium, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, nickel, and thallium in samples of slurry and river water.[2] Cleanup costs may exceed $1.2 billion.[3]
A toxic heavy metal is any relatively dense metal or metalloid that is noted for its potential toxicity, especially in environmental contexts.[4][5] The term has particular application to cadmium, mercury and lead,[6] all of which appear in the World Health Organization's list of 10 chemicals of major public concern. Other examples include manganese, chromium, cobalt, nickel, copper, zinc, silver, antimony and thallium.[7]
Heavy metals are found naturally in the earth. They become concentrated as a result of human caused activities and can enter plant and animal (including human) tissues via inhalation, diet, and manual handling. Then, they can bind to and interfere with the functioning of vital cellular components. The toxic effects of arsenic, mercury, and lead were known to the ancients, but methodical studies of the toxicity of some heavy metals appear to date from only 1868. In humans, heavy metal poisoning is generally treated by the administration of chelating agents. Some elements otherwise regarded as toxic heavy metals are essential, in small quantities, for human health.
Hydrogen
Helium
Lithium
Beryllium
Boron
Carbon
Nitrogen
Oxygen
Fluorine
Neon
Sodium
Magnesium
Aluminium
Silicon
Phosphorus
Sulfur
Chlorine
Argon
Potassium
Calcium
Scandium
Titanium
Vanadium
Chromium
Manganese
Iron
Cobalt
Nickel
Copper
Zinc
Gallium
Germanium
Arsenic
Selenium
Bromine
Krypton
Rubidium
Strontium
Yttrium
Zirconium
Niobium
Molybdenum
Technetium
Ruthenium
Rhodium
Palladium
Silver
Cadmium
Indium
Tin
Antimony
Tellurium
Iodine
Xenon
Caesium
Barium
Lanthanum
Cerium
Praseodymium
Neodymium
Promethium
Samarium
Europium
Gadolinium
Terbium
Dysprosium
Holmium
Erbium
Thulium
Ytterbium
Lutetium
Hafnium
Tantalum
Tungsten
Rhenium
Osmium
Iridium
Platinum
Gold
Mercury (element)
Thallium
Lead
Bismuth
Polonium
Astatine
Radon
Francium
Radium
Actinium
Thorium
Protactinium
Uranium
Neptunium
Plutonium
Americium
Curium
Berkelium
Californium
Einsteinium
Fermium
Mendelevium
Nobelium
Lawrencium
Rutherfordium
Dubnium
Seaborgium
Bohrium
Hassium
Meitnerium
Darmstadtium
Roentgenium
Copernicium
Nihonium
Flerovium
Moscovium
Livermorium
Tennessine
Oganesson
Examples of toxic heavy metals
^Dewan 2008
^Dewan 2009
^Poovey 2001
^Zhang, Hongling; Walker, Tony R.; Davis, Emily; Ma, Guofeng (September 2019). "Ecological risk assessment of metals in small craft harbour sediments in Nova Scotia, Canada". Marine Pollution Bulletin. 146: 466–475. Bibcode:2019MarPB.146..466Z. doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.06.068. PMID 31426182. S2CID 201095843.
^Srivastava & Goyal 2010, p. 2
^Brathwaite & Rabone 1985, p. 363
^"10 chemicals of public health concern". www.who.int. Retrieved 2021-10-09.
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