Laboratory study of chemical speciation of mercury in lake sediment and water under aerobic and anaerobic conditions

Journal Article · Fri Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 1991 · Applied and Environmental Microbiology; (United States)

OSTI ID:5382472

Regnell, O; Tunlid, A ^[1]

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1. Univ. of Lund (Sweden)

Chemical speciation and partitioning of radiolabeled HgCl{sub 2} were studied in model aquatic systems consisting of undisturbed eutrophic lake sediment and water in plastic cylinders. The cylinders were either gradually made anaerobic by a gentle flow of N{sub 2}-CO{sub 2} or kept aerobic by air flow. The proportion of methylated {sup 203}Hg was significantly higher, in both water and sediment, in the anaerobic systems than in the aerobic systems. The composition and total concentration of fatty acids originating from bacterial phospholipids, as well as the concentration of vitamin B{sub 12}, including related cobalamins, were similar in sediments from the anaerobic and aerobic systems. Bacterial cell numbers were, on average, 3.6 times higher in the anaerobic water columns than in the aerobic ones. Volatilization of {sup 203}Hg occurred in all systems except in an autoclaved control and was of similar magnitudes in the anaerobic and aerobic systems. Incorporation of {sup 203}Hg into the sediment was significantly faster in the aerobic systems than in the anaerobic systems. These results suggest that episodes of anoxia in bottom waters and sediment cause an increase in net mercury methylation and, hence, an increase in bioavailable mercury.

• OSTI ID: 5382472
• Journal Information: Applied and Environmental Microbiology; (United States), Vol. 57:3; ISSN 0099-2240
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ANOXIA
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
MERCURY
BIOLOGICAL AVAILABILITY
AEROBIC CONDITIONS
ANAEROBIC CONDITIONS
BACTERIA
CARBOXYLIC ACIDS
LAKES
MERCURY 203
MERCURY CHLORIDES
METHYLATION
PHOSPHOLIPIDS
SEDIMENTS
TRACER TECHNIQUES
VITAMIN B-12
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CHLORIDES
CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DRUGS
ELEMENTS
ESTERS
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
HALIDES
HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
HEAVY NUCLEI
HEMATINICS
HEMATOLOGIC AGENTS
ISOTOPE APPLICATIONS
ISOTOPES
LIPIDS
MERCURY COMPOUNDS
MERCURY HALIDES
MERCURY ISOTOPES
METALS
MICROORGANISMS
NUCLEI
ORGANIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC PHOSPHORUS COMPOUNDS
RADIOISOTOPES
SURFACE WATERS
VITAMIN B GROUP
VITAMINS
540311* - Environment
Aquatic- Basic Studies- Radiometric Techniques- (1990-)