Chemical composition of Tillandsia recurvata L. samples from an active air quality biomonitoring in the urban area of Cienfuegos (Cuba), 2021

This dataset reflect the elemental composition determined in Tillandsia recurvata L. samples after an active air quality biomonitoring campaign in the urban area of Cienfuegos (Cuba) conducted in 2021. Plant samples of similar ages were collected from a rural area distant from the city and free from potential anthropogenic influences (Hanabanilla Hotel area in the mountains). These samples were subdivided into several randomly selected subsamples, which were placed across a network of 33 points distributed throughout the city of Cienfuegos and its periphery.
At each point, the subsamples were attached on trees at a height of 2 to 3 m above ground level to minimize the resuspension of soil particles. Initial sampling and transplantation took place between February 17 and 18, 2021. Subsequently, the subsamples were collected after 88 days of exposure to the urban environment, on May 17, 2021.
In the laboratory, the samples were dried at 45°C to constant weight, ground, and sieved through a 250-micron mesh. The fraction smaller than 250 microns was analyzed using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) to determine the concentration of the studied chemical elements.
The reported uncertainty is the analytical uncertainty for a coverage factor k=2.