Controls on the distribution of rare earth elements in deep-sea sediments in the North Atlantic Ocean |
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| Institution: | 1. Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre Southampton, University of Southampton Waterfront Campus, European Way, Southampton SO14 3ZH, UK;2. National Oceanography Centre, Waterfront Campus, University of Southampton, Southampton SO14 3ZH, UK;1. Saint-Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg 199034, Russia;2. Institute for Geology and Mineral Resources of the Ocean (VNIIOkeangeologia), St. Petersburg 190121, Russia;3. U.S. Geological Survey, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA;4. The Laboratory HERCULES, University of Evora, Évora 7000-809, Portugal;5. Estrutura de Missão para a Extensão da Plataforma Continental, Paçod''Arcos 2770-047, Portugal;6. Universidade de Évora, Instituto de Ciências da Terra, Dep. de Geociências, Évora 7000-671, Portugal;2. Research and Development Center for Submarine Resources, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Yokosuka, Japan;3. Frontier Research Center for Energy and Resources (FRCER), School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Japan;4. Department of Resources and Environmental Engineering, School of Creative Science and Engineering, Waseda University, Shinjyu-ku, Japan;5. Department of Solid Earth Geochemistry, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Yokosuka, Japan |
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| Abstract: | Deep-sea sediments can contain relatively high concentrations of rare earth elements and yttrium (REY), with a growing interest in their exploitation as an alternative to land-based REY resources. To understand the processes that lead to enrichment of the REY in deep-sea sediments, we have undertaken a detailed geochemical study of sediments recovered from the Atlantic Ocean, on a transect along ~ 24°N that includes the deep Nares Abyssal Plain and the Canary and North America Basins.Total REY concentrations (ΣREY) range from 7.99 to 513 ppm, and total concentrations of the heavy REY (Eu - Lu) range from 0.993 to 56.3 ppm. REY concentrations are highest in slowly accumulating pelagic red clays, especially in samples that contain ferromanganese micronodules. Factor analysis reveals that hydrogenous Fe- and Mn-(oxyhydr)oxides are the primary REY carrier phase in the red clays. In situ analysis of individual micronodules confirms that they have high ΣREY (up to 3620 ppm). REY concentrations are higher in micronodules that have a hydrogenous source, characterised by higher Fe/Mn, compared to micronodules that have a diagenetic source.The ΣREY content of North Atlantic deep-sea sediments is ~ 4 times lower than in Pacific deep-sea sediments. We calculate that the area of seafloor required to extract ~ 10% of the global annual REY demand is ~ 100 km2, assuming removal of the upper 1 m of sediment. |
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