Partitioning of silver,beryllium and molybdenum among chemical fractions in the sediments from the Labe (Elbe) river in Central Bohemia,Czech Rep.

Sequential extraction of the fine fraction (63 µm) of the bottom sediments of the Labe river in Central Bohemia indicates that the readily reducible sediment fraction is a major reservoir of silver for release into the aqueous phase. Molybdenum is preferentially mobilized by ion-exchange, while beryllium is accumulated in all the chemical fractions of the sediments, especially in the moderately reducible and the organic/sulphidic phases.Contamination of the aquatic system from anthropogenic sources is characterized by the formation of relatively unstable chemical forms and only a small portion of these elements remain in the stable residual fraction.