Trace Metal Concentrations in Ashes from Various Types of Biomass Species

In this study, toxic metal levels in selected samples of various biomass types—wood, wood bark, fruit shell, mushroom, and lichen—were determined. The samples were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometrically for their toxic metal elements: As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, and Hg. The maximum levels of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, and Hg were 4.118 mg/kg in beech trunk wood ash, 3.926 mg/kg in Cladonia rangiformis, 15.057 mg/kg in Lactarius piperatus, 92.488 mg/kg in Amanita muscaria, 40.832 mg/kg in beech trunk bark ash, and 0.718 mg/kg in Cladonia rangiformis, respectively, in all the samples. The problem of uptake and accumulation of these elements has environmental and toxicological aspects as well. Air toxic emissions during biomass combustion were typically very low and often near or below detection limits.