The presence of the heavy metal nickel in plants growing in soils treated with sewage sludge can be a restraining factor for using this waste in agriculture. The aim of this paper was to evaluate nickel availability and absorption by sorghum plants in soil treated with sewage sludge contaminated with increasing doses of nickel. The experiment was carried out in a greenhouse, in pots, using samples of a Typic Haplustox. Soil samples were collected 0 and 128 days after the experiment was established. The statistical design adopted was completely randomized, with five treatments (four doses of nickel in the sewage sludge and one control without sewage sludge and only with mineral manure) with four replicates. The application of sewage sludge contaminated with increasing doses of nickel resulted in proportional increasing contents of "total" and available nickel in soil. Mehlich-1 and Mehlich-3 extracted the highest concentrations of nickel in this soil. Mehlich-3 was the extractant that obtained the highest correlation with the concentrations of nickel in sorghum plants. With the increasing concentrations of nickel in the soil occurred an increase in the absorption of this heavy metal by 39.93; 101.16; 152.58 e 171.38 %, by sorghum plants.
Sorghum bicolor L.; heavy metal; biosolid; contamination and extractor
