• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.129-139
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• 2019

This study investigates the spectral response of red lettuce (Lactuca sativa var crispa L.) to Zn concentration. The control group and the experimental groups treated with 1 mM(ZnT1), 5 mM(ZnT2), 10 mM(ZnT3), 50 mM(ZnT4), and 100 mM(ZnT5) were prepared for a pot experiment. Then, Zn concentration and spectral reflectance were measured for the different levels of Zn concentration in red lettuce. The Zn concentration of the control group had the range of 134-181 mg/kg, which was within the normal range of Zn concentration in uncontaminated crops. However, Zn concentration in the experimental group gradually increased with an increase in concentration of Zn injection. The spectral reflectance of red lettuce showed high peak in the red band due to anthocyanin, high reflectance in the infrared band due to the scattering effect of the cell structure, and absorption features associated with water. As Zn concentration in red lettuce leaves increased, the reflectance increased in the green and red bands and the reflectance decreased in the infrared band. The correlation analysis between Zn concentration and spectral reflectance showed that the reflectance of 700-1300 nm had a significant negative correlation with Zn concentration. The spectral band is a wavelength region closely related to the cell structure in the leaf, indicating possible cell destruction of leaf structure due to increased Zn concentration. In particular, 700-800 nm reflectance of the infrared band showed the strongest correlation with the Zn concentration. This study could be used to investigate the heavy metal contamination in soil around mining and agriculture area by spectroscopically recognizing heavy metal pollution of plant.