The chemistry of trace elements in estuaries

Miscellaneous · Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1990

OSTI ID:7197782

Yan, L

Estuarine mixing processes can be generally divided into two stages. In the low-salinity region (<1%), dissolved Fe and organic carbon are likely released from suspended particles. The release of Fe and organic carbon is caused by deflocculation of colloidal aggregates, which differs from the processes operating in the high salinity region. In the high-salinity region, dissolved Al and Fe are generally removed due to flocculation of Fe-colloids. The behavior of other metals such as Cu, Mn, Ni and Zn varies and seems to be controlled by variable factors. Dissolved {sup 226}Ra is removed through adsorption by resuspended particles, and added through desorption from riverine suspended particles and input from the pore water. This is shown by the data collected from the Mullica River estuary. Equilibrium-speciation calculation for estuarine water predict that Al and Cu are complexed largely with organic ligands. The extent of Ni complexes with organic ligands in estuarine water depends largely on the concentration of organic ligands. Dissolved Mn and Zn do not form significant fraction of metal-organic complexes. Complexing of Fe with organics can delay precipitation of Fe-hydroxides in the course of estuarine mixing. Metal concentrations in estuarine sediments of the Mullica River are primarily controlled by physical processes. The dominant processes are resuspension and sedimentation for suspended sediments, and longitudinal mixing for bottom sediments. In suspended particles, Fe, Mn, and Zn are largely associated with amorphous material, which is clearly in contrast to those for bottom sediments in which most metals are associated with clay minerals. The coastal waters of New Jersey receive considerable Cu, Ni Mn and Zn from anthropogenic sources, and these metals are largely added in the high salinity region.

• Research Organization: Princeton Univ., NJ (United States)
• OSTI ID: 7197782
• Resource Relation: Other Information: Thesis (Ph.D.)
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ESTUARIES
WATER CHEMISTRY
METALS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
ALUMINIUM
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
COLLOIDS
COMPLEXES
COPPER
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
IRON
MANGANESE
NICKEL
RADON 226
SALINITY
SEDIMENTS
TRACE AMOUNTS
ZINC
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CHEMISTRY
DATA
DISPERSIONS
ELEMENTS
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
HEAVY NUCLEI
INFORMATION
ISOTOPES
MASS TRANSFER
MINUTES LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
RADIOISOTOPES
RADON ISOTOPES
SURFACE WATERS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
540320* - Environment
Aquatic- Chemicals Monitoring &amp; Transport- (1990-)
540330 - Environment
Aquatic- Radioactive Materials Monitoring &amp; Transport- (1990-)