The Impact of Particle-Bond Cadmium on Bioavailability and Bioaccumulation: A Pragmatic Approach

The impact of particle-bound cadmium on bioavailbaility and bioaccumulation was investigated. For this work the model was applied to investigate the uptake and accumulation of cadmium by the freshwater oligochaete Lumbriculus variegatus. The results showed that the uptake of the metal depended on the free dissolved Cd(II) species, while the contribution from the particles was negligible. The extent of cadmium bioaccumulated from each test system could be predicted as a function of the rate of absorption of the free dissolved Cd(II) species. These species were calculated either from the particle-water partition coefficients, or using the MINEQL super(+) computer program. The estimated accumulation levels were in good agreement with the experimental results.