The effect of humic acid on mercury solubility and complexation

Utilization of mercury in gold mining in the tropics has contributed to large inputs of the metal into the aquatic environment. Although in this activity mercury is utilized in its elemental state, which is relatively immobile and inert, transformations to methylmercury occurring in natural systems lead to mercury contamination of aquatic organisms and the food chain. We investigated the effectiveness and mechanisms involved in the solubilization of mercury in the presence of humic acid, which is an important component of dark river waters in the tropics. Results showed that the solubility of elemental mercury was enhanced due to the presence of humic acid through a solubilization–complexation mechanism, which was attributed to the presence of acid sites on the humic acid molecule, mainly the carboxyl group. Calcium ions in solution prevent humic‐acid‐induced elemental mercury solubility. Although it was demonstrated that the mercury complex formed is more mobile in the presence of humic acid, preliminary results indicated that this mercury complex seem absorbed by fish. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of sorption and bioavailability of different species of mercury on model soil components using XAS techniques and sensor bacteria

The present work studies the adsorption behaviour of mercury species on different soil components (montmorillonite, kaolinite and humic acid) spiked with CH₃HgCl and CH₃HgOH at different pH values, by using XAS techniques and bacterial mercury sensors in order to evaluate the availability of methyl mercury on soil components. The study details and discusses different aspects of the adsorption process, including sample preparation (with analysis of adsorbed methyl mercury by ICP-OES), the various adsorption conditions, and the characterization of spiked samples by XAS techniques performed at two synchrotron facilities (ESRF in Grenoble, France and HASYLAB in Hamburg, Germany), as well as bioavailability studies using mercury-specific sensor bacteria. Results show that XAS is a valuable qualitative technique that can be used to identify the bonding character of the Hg in mercury environment. The amount of methyl in mercury adsorbed to montmorillonite was pH-dependent while for all soil components studied, the bond character was not affected by pH. On the other hand, clays exhibited more ionic bonding character than humic acids did with methyl mercury. This interaction has a higher covalent character and so it is more stable for CH₃HgOH than for CH₃HgCl, due to the higher reactivity of the hydroxyl group arising from the possible formation of hydrogen bonds.The bioavailability of methyl mercury adsorbed to montmorillonite, kaolinite and humic acids was measured using recombinant luminescent sensor bacterium Escherichia coli MC1061 (pmerBR_BSluc). In case of contact exposure (suspension assays), the results showed that the bioavailability was higher than it was for exposure to particle-free extracts prepared from these suspensions. The highest bioavailability of methyl mercury was found in suspensions of montmorillonite (about 50% of the total amount), while the bioavailabilities of kaolinite and humic acids were five times lower (about 10%). The behaviour of methyl mercury in the presence of montmorillonite could be explained by the more ionic bonding character of this system, in contrast to the more covalent bonding character observed for humic acids. Thus, XAS techniques seem to provide promising tools for investigating the mechanisms behind the observed bioavailabilities of metals in various environmental matrices, an important topic in environmental toxicology.     

Aluminium ions at polyelectrolyte interfaces. III. Role in polyacrylic acid/aluminium oxide and humic acid/kaolinite aggregate cohesion

Understanding the formation and breakup of humic acids and clays agglomerates is a difficult challenge owing to their complex nature. Thus, to progress in the study of the stability of such systems, attempts were made to replace the humic acid/kaolinite natural system by the polyacrylic acid/aluminium oxide synthetic system. Since the present investigation was dedicated to determine some characteristics of acidic soils which contain traces of aluminium ions, these ions were added to the adsorbent/polyacid systems as trace constituents. Initial and short-term phenomena related to the adsorption of humic and polyacrylic acids on aluminium oxide and kaolinite clay have been presented elsewhere. Here we present long-term phenomena regarding the formation and cohesion of oxide and clay aggregates formed in the presence of polyacrylic and humic acids, respectively. The results of electrophoretic mobility measurements demonstrated the amphipathic character of polymeric layers adsorbed on aluminium oxide and the amphoteric character of humic acid layers adsorbed on kaolinite. The long-term stability of the two colloidal systems was determined to evolve similarly despite the existence of the these typical characteristics. Received: 24 July 2000 Accepted: 20 December 2000     

The interfacial electrochemistry of goethite (α-FeOOH) especially the effect of CO2 contamination

The surface charge density/pH function of goethite is shown to be very similar to the surface charge density/surface potential functions reported for mercury. This finding differs from all other reports and we attribute the difference to the experimental method. This paper describes a method of titrating oxide suspensions which reduces pH drifts and suspension and stirring effects to negligible values and also a method for effectively removing CO₂ from oxide suspensions. When goethite which had been stored as a suspension in contact with air was titrated in N₂-purged NaI solution the point of zero charge (pzc) was within the range found by previous workers, i.e. pH 8.75 and the σ/pH function did not resemble reported σ/ψ₀ functions of mercury but when goethite from the same preparation was purged with N₂ for 2 months and then titrated in N₂-purged NaI the pzc was pH 9.3 and the σ/pH function did resemble the σ/ψ₀ function of mercury.     

Characterization of Mercury – Humic Acids Interaction by Potentiometric Titration with a Modified Carbon Paste Mercury Sensor

Stability constant for mercury binding by commercial and natural humic acids (HA) were determined using a new potentiometric mercury(II) sensor based on dithiosalicylic acid modified carbon paste electrode. The sensor present a high selective and sensitive response to mercury(II) ions, and a low detection limit of 1.8×10^?8 M. The potentiometric titrations curves of humic acids against mercury(II) ions were modeled. For 1.00×10^?7 to 3.00×10^?4 M mercury(II) ion concentration levels the results are consistent with the presence of two different binding sites in the humic acid macromolecule. The strongest binding sites (log K₁ ranging from 10.1 to 6.8) are probably due to interaction with carboxylic acid and amine groups in the molecule, whereas weakest binding sites (log K₂ ranging from 8.8 to 4.5) can be associated to phenolic groups.     

Interaction forces between α-alumina fibres in aqueous electrolyte measured with an atomic force microscope

The surface charging properties of polycrystalline α-alumina fibres in aqueous electrolyte solutions have been investigated by direct force and streaming potential measurements. The presence of both Al and Si on the surface of the fibres resulted in a chemically heterogeneous surface. The heterogeneous distribution of Si resulted in large attractive forces between the fibres at moderate to low pH values and a pzc/iep at a pH value of approximately 5.5. The origin of this force was electrostatic in nature as the force profiles were well described by the DLVO theory of colloid stability. The agreement between the direct force and streaming potential measurements was good both in terms of the magnitude of the potentials and the position of the pzc/iep. By acid washing the fibres the chemical heterogeneity of the surface was reduced and the attractive force profiles at lower pH values were not observed. Instead repulsive forces were observed which were well described by DLVO theory at all separation distances greater than 8 nm. At smaller separation distances an additional repulsive force was measured which was attributed to the presence of a Al(OH)₃ like layer on the surface of the alumina. The acid washing treatment also resulted in a shift in the pH at which the pzc/iep occurred to a value of 6.5, presumably due to a lower surface silica concentration.     

Adsorption of polyacrylic acid on hydrophobic and hydrophilic surfaces

In this paper the adsorption of polyacrylic acid (MW=5000) on the hydrophobic mercury surface and on the hydrophilic -Al₂O₃ surface at pH=3–4 in 0.55 M sodium chloride solution was investigated. Measurements of change of the double layer capacitance by phase selective a.c. voltammetry were used for determination of the adsorption of polyacrylic acid on the mercury electrode. The same method was used for the determination of the polyacrylic acid remaining in the solution after the adsorption on hydrophilic particles (-Al₂O₃ particles). The results obtained for adsorption of polyacrylic acid were compared to the results of the adsorption of humic substance of similar molecular weight under similar experimental conditions. The study has shown that polyacrylic acid in acidic solution is strongly adsorbed on the mercury surface, which is comparable to the adsorption of humic substance on the mercury surface. At the same time, the adsorption/deposition of polyacrylic acid on the -Al₂O₃ surface is weaker compared to humic acid, indicating at a smaller degree of interaction of polyacrylic acid with aluminium ions and with hydrophilic surface.     

Pseudopolarography of copper complexes in seawater using a vibrating gold microwire electrode

Copper (Cu) in seawater can be determined by anodic stripping voltammetry using a vibrating gold microwire electrode (VGME) with a much lower limit of detection than using a mercury electrode, enabling detection of labile Cu at trace level. The possibility of pseudopolarography of Cu using the VGME is investigated here and is calibrated against known chelating agents. The sensitivity much (15-fold) improved by application of a desorption step to remove adsorbed organic substances and excess anions. The notorious tendency of solid electrodes to be affected by memory effects was overcome by a conditioning interval between measurements that stabilized the electrode response. Model ligands, including EDTA, humic substances (HS), and glutathione (examples of natural ligands) were analyzed to calibrate the half-wave shift to complex stability. The half-wave shift on the VGME is much greater (~2×) than that on the mercury drop electrode which is attributed to several parameters including a much (5-fold) thinner diffusion layer on the VGME. Experiments showed that the same procedure is suitable for pseudopolarography of zinc. Application of the new method to samples from the Irish Sea showed Cu occurring in several complexes, all strongly bound, and some occurring in the electrochemically reversible region of the pseudopolarogram. The humic substance complex of Cu was also found to occur in the reversible region of the pseudopolarogram. The pseudopolarograms of Cu in seawater were unaffected by sample filtration and did not require purging to remove dissolved oxygen, suggesting that this method can be readily used as part of an in situ measuring system.     

Separation of gallium, indium and thallium by extraction with n-octylaniline in chloroform

Extraction of gallium(III), indium(III) and thallium(III) with n-octylaniline in chloroform at various concentrations of hydrogen halide acids (HCl, HBr, HI) has been studied and a scheme for their separation proposed. The procedure can be successfully applied to the separation and determination of gallium in presence of mercury, bismuth, manganese, zinc and lead; indium in presence of bismuth, antimony, lead, mercury, cadmium and zinc; and thallium in presence of mercury, cadmium, manganese, aluminium, tin and antimony. The advantage of the method is that the reagent can be recovered for reuse. The method is simple, rapid, and effects clear-cut separation.     

A new procedure for the speciation of mercury in water based on the transformation of mercury (II) and methylmercury (II) into stable acetylides followed by HPLC analysis

Conversion of mercury(II) and methylmercury(II) species dissolved in water into di(phenylethynyl)mercury and methyl(phenylethynyl) mercury takes place in satisfactory yield under alkaline conditions by stirring the aqueous solution with phenylacetylene at room temperature. Mercury speciation is simply obtained by HPLC analysis of the two organometallic species. The presence of heavy metals such as copper(II), zinc(II), cadmium(II) and lead(II) in concentrations 10000 times higher than mercury is tolerated, while little interference is displayed by humic acids and cysteine. Seawater samples can also be analysed following a properly adapted procedure.     

Voltammetric Determination of Aluminium in Haemodialysis Concentrates Using the Adsorption of the Al(III)-1,2-Dihydroxyantraquinone-3-sulphonic Acid Complex in Presence of Calcium

Abstract

This paper describes a method for the quantitative determination of aluminium in haemodialysis concentrates, based on the adsorption on a static mercury drop electrode of the Al-1,2 dihydroxyantraquinone-3-sulphonic acid complex. The signal was notably increased in presence of calcium. The electrolysis was carried out at -0.900 V. After 60 sec the aluminium contents were measured by differential pulse voltammetry. In these conditions aluminium can be determined in the range 0.65–38 ng/ml with a detection limit (3[sgrave]) of 0.20 ng/ml. The relative standard deviation was in all instances less than 2.1%.     

Aluminium ions at polyelectrolyte interfaces. II. Role in the surface-area-exclusion chromatography of humic acid

Surface-area-exclusion chromatography using Whatman glass microfibre filters modified by adsorption of aluminium ions as a stationary phase was used to evidence the different interfacial behaviour of aluminium ion complexed (tritium labelled) humic acids. Histograms with adsorption peaks, plateaux and humps on the stationary phase showed the various adsorption characteristics of the modified humic acid. The absence of adsorption for those constituents which were recovered in the effluent showed the very low degrees of complexation by aluminium ions to be responsible for the absence of interaction of the components with the stationary phase. Received: 24 July 2000  Accepted: 20 December 2000     

纳米TiO_2对水中腐殖酸的吸附及光催化降解

研究了水体中腐殖酸 ( HA)在纳米 Ti O2 颗粒上的吸附行为 ,并探讨了其吸附机理 ,还研究了 HA的Ti O2 光催化降解效果 .结果表明 ,Ti O2 对 HA的吸附作用明显依赖于水溶液的 p H,也取决于 Ti O2 的零电荷点 ;HA的光催化降解效果与其在催化剂表面的吸附行为密切相关 ,提高吸附速率 ,HA的去除率也随之提高 ;增加催化剂用量也能改善降解程度     

Effect of pH and ionic strength on the interaction of humic acid with aluminium oxide

The effect of pH and neutral electrolyte on the interaction between humic acid/humate and γ-AlOOH (boehmite) was investigated. The quantitative characterization of surface charging for both partners was performed by means of potentiometric acid–base titration. The intrinsic equilibrium constants for surface charge formation were logK _a,1 ^int=6.7±0.2 and logK _a,2 ^int = 10.6±0.2 and the point of zero charge was 8.7±0.1 for aluminium oxide. The pH-dependent solubility and the speciation of dissolved aluminium was calculated (MINTEQA2). The fitted (FITEQL) pK values for dissociation of acidic groups of humic acid were pK ₁ = 3.7±0.1 and pK ₂ = 6.6±0.1 and the total acidity was 4.56 mmol g⁻¹. The pH range for the adsorption study was limited to between pH 5 and 10, where the amount of the aluminium species in the aqueous phase is negligible (less than 10⁻⁵ mol dm⁻³) and the complicating side equilibria can be neglected. Adsorption isotherms were determined at pH ∼ 5.5, ∼8.5 and ∼9.5, where the surface of adsorbent is positive, neutral and negative, respectively, and at 0.001, 0.1, 0.25 and 0.50 mol dm⁻³ NaNO₃. The isotherms are of the Langmuir type, except that measured at pH ∼ 5.5 in the presence of 0.25 and 0.5 mol dm⁻³ salt. The interaction between humic acid/humate and aluminium oxide is mainly a ligand-exchange reaction with humic macroions with changing conformation under the influence of the charged interface. With increasing ionic strength the surface complexation takes place with more and more compressed humic macroions. The contribution of Coulombic interaction of oppositely charged partners is significant at acidic pH. We suppose heterocoagulation of humic acid and aluminium oxide particles at pH ∼ 5.5 and higher salt content to explain the unusual increase in the apparent amount of humic acid adsorbed. Received: 20 July 1999 /Accepted in revised form: 20 October 1999     

Study of the uptake of inorganic ions and organic acids at theα-alumina-electrolyte interface in a colloidal system by radiochemical techniques and microelectrophoresis

The interactions of the alumina-electrolyte in the presence of inorganic ions (copper, selenium) and/or organic acids (benzoic acid, glutamic acid, phenol) have been studied. The acid-based properties of-alumina have been determined in NaCl media (pzc=8.5±0.3). Three types of hydroxy groups with different acidity constants have been found. The adsorption of copper and selenium have been described by the formation of the surface complexes: (=Al¹–OH, CuCl) and (=Al¹, SeO₃)^–. The interaction of copper with the surface oxygen atoms is strong and so is the interaction of selenium with the surface aluminium atoms, which involves a shift of the iep of alumina. For the three organic acids studied (HX), the adsorption equilibrium is:=Alⁱ–OH+HX(=Alⁱ, X)+H₂O. The interaction of the X^– group and the aluminium atoms is strong following the order: glutamic acid > benzoic acid > phenol. The uptake of selenium is uninfluenced by the presence of organic acids with carboxylic, amino-acidic and phenolic groups. The uptake of copper is highly increased by the presence of organic acids but it is not influenced by the presence of the phenolic groups. Both of these behaviours can be extrapolated to inorganic ions of the same chemical structure.     

Comparison of physicochemical speciation procedures with metal toxicity to chlorella pyrenoidosa

Metal speciation as measured by anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV), adsorption on a resin with adsorbed hydrated aluminium oxide, and dialysis with receiving resins is compared with the toxicity of the metals to the freshwater green alga Chlorella pyrenoidosa Chick. In the presence of natural and synthetic ligands, similar labile fractions of metals were obtained for ASV at three electrodes (hanging mercury drop electrode, mercury film electrode and Nafion-coated mercury film electrode). The toxic fractions determined by ASV and bioassay were in reasonable agreement for zinc, cadmium and copper, and alteration of the analytical conditions provided some measure of agreement for lead. The resin with adsorbed hydrated aluminium oxide correlated well with bioassay for copper, but over-estimated lead toxicity and under-estimated cadmium toxicity. Dialysis with receiving resins under-estimated metal bioaccumulation in the presence of ligands. Metal speciation analysis for water samples gave higher toxic fractions for metals in samples of polluted river water and road runoff samples than those found in pristine river water.     

The determination of magnesium in the presence of large amounts of zinc: A spectrophotometric method

The spectrophotometric determination of magnesium in the presence of large amounts of zinc is described. Zinc as well as some other interfering metals are removed by mercury cathode electrolysis and aluminium is removed by a chloroform extraction with 8-hydroxyquinoline.     

Kinetic aspects of the reduction of mercury ions by humic substances

A combination of a computer controlled titration device with a cold vapour atomic absorption spectrometer was set up to examine the kinetics of the reaction between humic substances and Hg(II). Subsequent injections of Hg(II) into an excess of humic acid produce data about short and long term changes in the reaction velocity of humic substances. This experimental design is suitable for the examination of the effects of pH, reaction time, light and interfering substances like chloride on the formation of elemental mercury. The obtained data agree with data from the literature. With the accumulation of the produced elemental mercury on a gold net it is possible to enhance the sensitivity of the method. This enables examinations at environmental concentrations.     

Kinetic aspects of the reduction of mercury ions by humic substances

A combination of a computer controlled titration device with a cold vapour atomic absorption spectrometer was set up to examine the kinetics of the reaction between humic substances and Hg(II). Subsequent injections of Hg(II) into an excess of humic acid produce data about short and long term changes in the reaction velocity of humic substances. This experimental design is suitable for the examination of the effects of pH, reaction time, light and interfering substances like chloride on the formation of elemental mercury. The obtained data agree with data from the literature. With the accumulation of the produced elemental mercury on a gold net it is possible to enhance the sensitivity of the method. This enables examinations at environmental concentrations.