The speciation and bioavailability of mercury in sediments of Haihe River, China.
Twenty-one sediment samples in 11 sites along the Haihe River and Dagu Drainage River, Tianjin, China, were analyzed to investigate the pollution status and bioavailability of mercury (Hg). The results showed that the Haihe River was slightly polluted with Hg when flowing through Tianjin city. On the contrary, the sediments collected from Dagu Drainage River, an important drainage river in Tianjin, were found to have very high Hg concentrations and the highest concentration reached 8779.1 ng g(-1) (dry weight). The methylmercury (MeHg) concentrations accounted for 0.1-2.4% (average: 0.9%) of total mercury (HgT) and were strongly influenced by HgT (r=0.91, p=0.99, n=20) and total organic carbon (TOC; r=0.76, p=0.99, n=20) contents in sediments. Moreover, a five-step sequential selective extraction (SSE) procedure was used to study the bioavailability of Hg in sediments. The mercury in sediments existed mainly as element Hg and mercury sulfide, which accounted for 46.5% and 39.0% of HgT, respectively. The percentage of exchangeable Hg (defined as water soluble Hg plus 'human stomach acid' soluble Hg) was only 0.1-4.6%. The distribution of exchangeable Hg showed an obvious difference to that of HgT, indicating that the HgT concentrations were absolutely insufficient to evaluate the risk of Hg in sediments.
Shi
Jian-Bo
JB
Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 2871, Beijing 100085, China.
Liang
Li-Na
LN
Jiang
Gui-Bin
GB
Jin
Xing-Long
XL
D001682:Biological Availability; D002681:China; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry*; D008628:Mercury / Q000032:analysis* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D045483:Rivers; D012995:Solubility; D014873:Water Pollutants / Q000032:analysis* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*
D014873:Water Pollutants; D008628:Mercury