Trace Metal Speciation of USGS Reference Sample MAG-I

The USGS reference sample marine mud MAG-1 has been subjected to a sequential extraction procedure designed to partition the constituent trace metals into five fractions: I-exchangeable; II- bound to carbonates; III-bound to Fe-Mn oxides; IV- bound to organic matter; V- residual. The analytical approach involved successive chemical extractions and the subsequent determination of trace metal concentrations (Co, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn; Fe, Mn) in the leachates by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The chemical speciation results obtained on four replicate sub-samples demonstrate that the coefficients of variation for metal concentrations in the individual fractions are generally better than + 10%. Comparison with published values for total trace metal concentrations in the MAG-1 sample suggests that the overall accuracy of the chemical extraction procedure is satisfactory.     

水体内藻类的生物地球化学

藻类对水体内生命元素的转化及其分布、迁移的影响．是目前水体内藻类生物地球化学研究的重点内容。藻通过光合作用和生物矿化，控制着C、N、Si、P、S、Ca等元素在水体内的循环；驱动着C和S在水体和大气之间的交换，进而影响大气中的C和S。藻生物积累及其对环境变化的及时反馈，使藻类成为地球化学环境变化的生物指示物。本文对水体内藻类的生物地球化学进行了综述。     

激光原子荧光光谱分析仪及其分析性能

介绍了自行研制的激光激发原子荧光光谱分析系统。该系统采用激光作为激发光源,电热石墨棒作为原子化器。用聚焦透镜将激光光束聚焦于石墨棒上部２ｍｍ处激发该空间的原子,并用一石英透镜在垂直于激光光束的方向上收集该空间的原子荧光。利用原子荧光和原子化器背景光在空间和时间上不同的特点,在荧光收集光路上加一适当的小孔,用时间门技术除去背景发射噪声。该系统对Ｇａ、Ｉｎ、Ａｕ、Ｐｄ和Ｐｂ的检测限为１０－１～１０－４μｇ／Ｌ。     

极地冰下生物地球化学过程研究进展

已有的研究结果表明:极地冰下存在生命活动的证据。生物地球化学过程以其独特的视角,从生物学和地球化学学科交叉的角度,对于诠释冰下环境微生物生存及其对全球气候的影响提供了一条新途径。目前对于冰下生命的研究多集中在温型冰川和多温型冰川,关于冷型冰川冰下环境的生物起源、生存条件、能源转化方式和生物体的空间分布特征及种属关系等研究均还处在起步阶段。在简要阐述冰下化学风化机理发展历程的基础上,对近年应用生物地球化学过程研究极地冰下环境的研究成果进行总结和分析。此外,针对该领域目前研究上的空白和热点,分别对利用生物地球化学过程研究冰下环境微生物生存和繁衍,冰下温室气体释放,重大古气候事件探索及星际生命探索等科学命题进行展望。     

Biogeochemistry of landfill leachate plumes

The literature has been critically reviewed in order to assess the attenuation processes governing contaminants in leachate affected aquifers. Attenuation here refers to dilution, sorption, ion exchange, precipitation, redox reactions and degradation processes. With respect to contaminants, focus is on dissolved organic matter, xenobiotic organic compounds, inorganic macrocomponents as anions and cations, and heavy metals. Laboratory as well as field investigations are included. This review is an up-date of an earlier comprehensive review. The review shows that most leachate contamination plumes are relatively narrow and do not in terms of width exceed the width of the landfill. The concept of redox zones being present in the plume has been confirmed by the reported composition of the leachate contaminated groundwater at several landfills and constitutes an important framework for understanding the behavior of the contaminants in the plume as the leachate migrates away from the landfill. Diverse microbial communities have been identified in leachate plumes and are believed to be responsible for the redox processes. Dissolved organic C in the leachate, although it appears to be only slowly degradable when the volatile organic acids are gone, apparently acts as substrate for the microbial redox processes. Several xenobiotic organic compounds have been found to be degradable in leachate contaminated groundwater, but degradation rates under anaerobic redox conditions have only been determined in a few cases. Apparently, observations in actual plumes indicate more extensive degradation than has been documented in the laboratory. The behavior of cations in leachate plumes is strongly influenced by exchange with the sediment, although the sediment often is very coarse and sandy. Ammonium seems to be subject to anaerobic oxidation, but the mechanisms are not yet understood. Heavy metals do not seem to constitute a significant pollution problem at landfills, partly because the heavy metal concentrations in the leachate often are low, and partly because of strong attenuation by sorption and precipitation. Although complexation of heavy metals with dissolved organic matter is significant, the heavy metals are in most cases still strongly attenuated in leachate-polluted aquifers. The information available on attenuation processes has increased dramatically during the last 15 a, but the number of well-documented full scale leachate plumes are still few and primarily from sandy aquifers. Thus, the diversity of attenuation processes in leachate plumes is probably not yet fully understood. Apparently, the attenuation processes in leachate plumes may for many contaminants provide significant natural remediation, limiting the effects of the leachate on the groundwater to an area usually not exceeding 1000 m from the landfill.     

Biogeochemistry of the Madeira river basin

A biogeochemical characterization of the Madeira river basin has been made to evaluate the local and global effects of possible alterations in the ecosystem caused by recent intensive occupation in Rondonia state. During the period April 1983—January 1986, sampling was made both by land and river along the tributaries and main channel of the Madeira river. The parameters analysed lead to a detailed study of the physicochemical quality of the waters of the basin and their relationship with the local geology, associated with the transport of solid material and the hydrological behavior of the ecosystem.Penman's method adapted to tropical rainforest conditions was used to evaluate the potential evapotranspiration for the basin. Estimated potential evapotranspiration was 1420 mm/y, 77% due to the energy balance. Real evapotranspiration was 94% of the estimated potential and the main residence time of the rain water in the basin was 2 months. The isotopic behavior of Hydrogen and Oxygen in the river waters of the region was typical of great rivers, the values being more positive during the dry season and more negative during the rainy season. An isotopic gradient of ¹⁸O 0.038 ()/100 km, was established from Porto Velho station to the estuary, which was considered low when compared with the value of 0.063 ()/100 km, obtained for the Amazon river.In general, the waters of the tributaries were poor in dissolved ion species when compared with the main channel of the Madeira river. Seasonal variation in the transport of suspended sediment kept the same pattern, greater transport being observed on rising water than during high water. A transport of 2.85 million tons per day was observed in the Madeira river near the mouth.     

Biogeochemistry of Mono Lake,California

Modern sediments of Mono Lake show marked variation in lipid composition with depositional environment. Constituents derived from the drainage basin, characterized by high molecular weight alkane hydrocarbons (C₂₅–C₃₁), and the steroids β-sitosterol and brassicasterol, predominate in near-shore environments. In the deepest part of the lake, sediments exhibit a combination of externally-derived constituents, and lipids derived from the lake biota; the latter characterized by low molecular-weight alkanes and alkenes (C₁₅–C₁₇), phytane, and the steroids ergost-7-en-3β-ol and 24-ethylcholest-7-en-3-β-ol. Steranes, 4-methylsteranes, and the C₁₈ and C₁₉ isoprenoids appear to be forming in the intensely reducing bottom sediments at the present time.The compositions of samples from the Pleistocene succession of Mono Basin suggest that sample-to-sample variation within the same stratum is negligible so long as unweathered samples from the same depositional environment are compared. Sediments having equivalent lithologies may or may not have similar compositions, but sediments having similar fossil contents do show similar lipid compositions. Subaerial weathering of sediments causes a marked decrease in the amount of extractable organic material, as well as distinct changes in its hydrocarbon composition. Specifically, weathered sediments exhibit a decrease in relative content of low molecular weight hydrocarbons and a relative increase in nC₂₂.Organic composition of sediments from the Pleistocene stratigraphie column cannot be correlated with depth of burial. Compositional changes with stratigraphie position are probably related to paleo-ecological factors such as population or productivity rather than depth of burial. Lithology and organic composition provide mutually-corroborating evidence regarding glacial advances in the adjacent Sierra Nevada Mountains. During glaciations, the lake sediments are rich in sandstones, and the organic composition shows a predominance of externally-derived debris, with no evidence for contributions from the lake biota.     

Biogeochemistry of Ethanol and Acetaldehyde in Freshwater Sediments

This study reports the first ethanol and acetaldehyde measurements in sediment porewaters collected at multiple freshwater locations. Ethanol concentrations ranged from 11 to 2535 nM and acetaldehyde concentrations ranged from 6 to 320 nM. A significant positive correlation (p < 0.001) was observed between ethanol concentrations and the percent organic carbon content of sediments (TOC). Porewater depth profiles at two sites within the same lake indicated potential diffusion of ethanol into sediments from the overlying water at a lower TOC site and upwards diffusion from sediment into the water column at a higher TOC site. Diffusion of water column ethanol into sediments was observed at individual sites from October to January, whereas the opposite was true from June to August indicating the seasonal variability of ethanol flux from sediments. Changes in ethanol concentrations during a long-term sediment incubation experiment showed an inverse relation with acetaldehyde concentrations. The lack of a quantitative conversion was likely due to other sources and sinks that control their abundance. Our study provided new information on the biogeochemistry of ethanol in freshwater sediments and shed light on the potential role of ethanol in the global carbon cycle.     

微量金属元素在重建古湖泊氧化还原状态研究中的应用

本文系统介绍了利用微量金属元素重建古湖泊水体氧化还原状态的地球化学原理、多重判别标准以及相关注意事项.在湖泊沉积物中,微量金属元素的自生沉积组分是判别古水体氧化还原环境的有效载体.其中,受碎屑组分影响较小的U、Mo、V以及与有机物质合成密切相关的Ni、Cu、Zn、Cd等氧化还原敏感元素是反演古湖泊水体氧化还原状态的常用指标;而对于受碎屑组分影响较大的氧化还原敏感元素Cr和Co则需谨慎使用.此外,水体中Mn和Fe的循环会对微量金属元素在沉积物中的富集程度产生作用,其主要机理为Mn-Fe(氢)氧化物对特定离子的吸附过程和解吸附过程.在使用微量金属元素含量重建古水体氧化还原状态时,需定量评估和校正碎屑组分、早期成岩作用,以及热液活动等带来的影响.通过综合分析沉积物中微量金属元素的富集程度,我们可有效限定古湖泊氧化还原界面的位置,并进一步制约古水体的氧化还原状态.除此以外,沉积物中微量金属元素含量与总有机碳(TOC)的相关关系、特定微量金属元素的比值(如U/Th、V/Ni、V/Cr,以及Ce/Ce*)也可以作为古湖水氧化还原状态的重要判定依据.     

First Find of Trace Metal Minerals at the Albaza Gold Deposit

Doklady Earth Sciences - The results of mineralogical–geochemical study of the Albaza gold deposit (Khabarovsk Krai) are presented here. The ore mineral assemblage, in addition to already...     

Biogeochemistry of the stable hydrogen isotopes

The fractionation of H isotopes between the water in the growth medium and the organically bonded H from microalgae cultured under conditions, where light intensity and wavelength, temperature, nutrient availability, and the H isotope ratio of the water were controlled, is reproducible and light dependant. All studies were based either on the H isotope ratios of the total organic H or on the lipids, where most of the H is firmly bonded to C. H bonded into other macromolecules, proteins, carbohydrates and nucleic acids, does not exchange with water, when algae are incubated in water enriched with deuterium. Only after the destruction of quaternary H bonds are labile hydrogens in macromolecules free to exchange with water. By growing algae (18 strains), including blue-green algae, green algae and diatoms, in continuous light, the isotope fractionations in photosynthesis were reproducibly ?93 to ?178 %. depending on the organism tested. This fractionation was not temperature dependent. Microalgae grown in total darkness with an organic substrate did not show the isotope fractionation seen in cells grown in light. In both light- and dark-grown algae, however, additional depletion of deuterium (?30 to ?60%.) in cellular organic matter occurs during the metabolism of carbohydrates to form lipids. Plants from several natural populations also fractionated isotopes during photosynthesis by an average of ?90 to ?110%. In addition, the organically bonded H in nonsaponifiable lipids was further fractionated by ?80%. from that in saponifiable lipids, isolated from two geographically distinct populations of marsh plants. This difference between H isotope ratios of these two groups of lipids provides an endogenous isotopic marker.     

Biogeochemistry of southern Australian continental slope sediments

Sediment cores from the middle to lower slope of the southern continental margin of Australia between the Great Australian Bight and western Tasmania are compared in terms of marine and terrigenous input signals during the Holocene. The mass accumulation rates of carbonate, organic carbon, biogenic Ba, and Al are corrected for lateral sediment input (focusing), using the inventory of excess ²³⁰Th in the sediment normalised to its known production rate in the water column above each site. The biogenic signal is generally higher in the eastern part of the southern margin probably due to enhanced productivity associated with seasonal upwelling off southeastern South Australia and the proximity of the Subtropical Front, which passes just south of Tasmania. The input of Al, representing the terrigenous signal, is also higher in this region reflecting the close proximity of river runoff from the mountainous catchment of southeastern Australia. The distribution pattern of Mn and authigenic U, together with pore‐water profiles of Mn⁺⁺, indicate diagenetic reactions driven by the oxidation of buried organic carbon in an oxic to suboxic environment. Whereas Mn is reduced at depth and diffuses upwards to become immobilised in a Mn‐rich surface layer, U is derived from seawater and diffuses downward into the sediment, driven by reduction and precipitation at a depth below the reduction zone of Mn. The estimated removal rate of U from seawater by this process is within the range of U removal measured in hemipelagic sediments from other areas, and supports the proposition that hemipelagic sediments are a major sink of U in the global ocean. Unlike Mn, the depth profile of sedimentary Fe appears to be little affected by diagenesis, suggesting that little of the total Fe inventory in the sediment is remobilised and redistributed as soluble Fe.     

9th International Symposium on Environmental Biogeochemistry

Reports

9th International Symposium on Environmental Biogeochemistry     

浙江台州湾潮间带沉积物痕量金属形态及其黄铁矿矿化程度

在浙江椒江口潮间带采集了3个未扰动沉积物柱状样,并采用分级提取方法获得了沉积物各痕量金属的活性态和黄铁矿态分量,同时采用冷扩散法测试了酸可挥发性硫化物(AVS)。结果表明:研究区痕量金属黄铁矿矿化程度(DOP)较低,痕量金属存在较大的活性,容易参与水生系统的生物地球化学循环;但各元素的痕量金属黄铁矿矿化度(DTMP)存在较大差别,即元素As和Hg的DTMP值最大,Cu、Zn、Cd、Cr和Ni中等,Pb和Mn最小。控制黄铁矿矿化程度的因素包括沉积物是否存在大量的有机碳(OrgC)、AVS以及是否存在隔氧的还原系统。     

Biogeochemistry of a River-Dominated Estuary Influenced by Drought and Storms

Increased frequency and severity of droughts, as well as growing human freshwater demands, in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin are expected to lead to a long-term decrease in freshwater discharge to Apalachicola Bay (Florida). To date, no long-term studies have assessed how river discharge variability affects the Bay’s phytoplankton community. Here a 14-year time series was used to assess the influence of hydrologic variability on the biogeochemistry and phytoplankton biomass in Apalachicola Bay. Data were collected at 10 sites in the bay along the salinity gradient and include drought and storm periods. Riverine dissolved inorganic nitrogen and phosphate inputs were correlated to river discharge, but chlorophyll a (Chl a) was similar between periods of drought and average/above-average river discharge in most of the Bay. Results suggest that the potentially negative impact of decreased riverine nutrient input on Bay phytoplankton biomass is mitigated by the nutrient buffering capacity of the estuary. Additionally, increased light availability, longer residence time, and decreased grazing pressures may allow more Chl a biomass to accumulate during drought. In contrast to droughts, tropical cyclones and subsequent increases in river discharge increased flushing and reduced light penetration, leading to reduced Chl a in the Bay. Analysis of the time series revealed that Chl a concentrations in the Bay do not directly mirror the effect of riverine nutrient input, which is masked by multiple interacting mechanisms (i.e., nutrient loading and retention, grazing, flushing, light penetration) that need to be considered when projecting the response of Bay Chl a to changes in freshwater input.     

渗滤液污染物在地下环境中的生物地球化学作用

通过实验室土柱模拟实验,研究垃圾渗滤液污染晕中不同污染物的迁移转化规律和生物地球化学降解作用。实验结果表明:微生物在前28 d的增长速度较快,平均每天增长1.7×105个;TOC在土壤中以“梭形”向前迁移,而且微生物的增长对其衰减具有明显的影响;NH4 -N在土壤中以“活塞式”向前推进,其衰减和微生物的增长在短期内未见明显的关系;TOC在土壤中的迁移速度比NH4 -N的迁移速度快,TOC的迁移速度约为3.0 cm/d,而NH4 -N的迁移速度约为2.4 cm/d。