Metal Speciation - General Concepts and Applications

Abstract

Several aspects of metal speciation in sediments are reviewed: (1) Due to the instability of polluted solid materials, sample handling and storage prior to analysis is problematic. In particular, changes from reducing to oxidizing conditions, which involve transformations of sulfides and a shift to more acid conditions, increase the mobility of critical metals. (2) Simple “standard” leaching tests can be used for easily soluble components such as halides or sulfates, but in most cases are not adequate for assessing mobility of trace metals. With sequential extraction procedures rearrangements of specific solid “phases” can be evaluated prior to their actual remobilisation. (3) Estimation of long-term release of metals from solids can be made using a test procedure, which combines data from column experiments applying controlled intensivation of parameters such as pH-value, redox potential and temperature with results from sequential extraction of the contaminated solids before and after exposure. (4) Partitioning studies on materials from core profiles are particularly useful, since they provide information on relative variations of elemental phases irrespective of the method applied, and thereby an insight into diagenetic processes taking place after deposition of the sediment components. (5) The leachable fraction does not necessarily correspond to the amount available to biota. Studies on the prediction of the trace metal levels in benthic organisms have shown, that the prognostic value of sequential extraction data is improved, when the trace metal concentrations are normalized with respect to the iron (hydrous oxide) and/or organic content of the sediments.