Abstract
137Cs, 241Am and Pu isotopes were analyzed in seawater, bottom sediments (BS) and suspended particulate matter samples collected in the Baltic Sea during 1997–2011. The particle size distribution and sequential extraction studies were carried out with the aim to better understand the association of radionuclides with particles and their bonding patterns in the BS. δ13Corg was applied for identification of sources of organic matter in the studied area. It has been found that massic activities of 137Cs in BS varied from 2.1 to 588 Bq/kg. High correlation of 137Cs massic activities with total organic carbon (TOC) in BS (r = 0.75) and with clay minerals (r = 0.95) was found. 239,240Pu massic activities in BS varied from 0.03 to 7.5 Bq/kg. High correlation with TOC was found for 239,240Pu (R = 0.98) as well as for 241Am (r = 0.96). δ13Corg in the studied samples ranged from −22.3 to −31.8 ‰.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Povinec PP, Bailly Du, Bois P, Kershaw PJ, Nies H, Scotto P (2003) Temporal and spatial trends in the distribution of 137Cs in surface waters of northern European Seas—a record of 40 years of investigations. Deep-Sea Res II Top Stud Oceanogr 50:2785–2801
Szefer P (2002) Metal pollutants and radionuclides in the Baltic Sea—an overview. Oceanologia 44:129–178
Bradtke K, Burska D, Matciak M, Szymelfenig M (2005) Suspended particulate matter in the Hel upwelling region (the Baltic Sea). Oceanol Hydrobiol Stud 34(Suppl 2):53–73
Almroth-Rosell E, Eilola K, Hordoir R, Meier HEM, Hall POJ (2011) Transport of fresh and resuspended particulate organic material in the Baltic Sea—a model study. J Mar Syst 87:1–12
Jonsson P, Carma R, Wulff F (1990) Laminated sediments in the Baltic—a tool for evaluating nutrient mass balances. Ambio 1:152–158
Galkus A, Joksas K (1997) Sedimentary material in the transitional aquasystem. Institute of Geography, Vilnius
Livingston HD, Povinec PP (2002) A millennium perspective on the contribution of global fallout radionuclides to ocean science. Health Phys 82:656–668
Hirose K, Aoyama M, Povinec PP (2009) 239,240Pu/137Cs ratios in the water column of the North Pacific: a proxy of biogeochemical processes. J Environ Radioact 100:258–262
Middelburg JJ, Nieuwenhuize J (1998) Carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes in suspended matter and sediments from the Schelde Estuary. Mar Chem 60:217–225
Tenzer GE, Meyers PA, Knoop P (1997) Sources and distribution of organic and carbonate carbon in surface sediments of Pyramid Lake, Nevada. J Sedim Res 67:884–890
Benitez-Nelson C (2004) Future application of Thorium-234 in aquatic ecosystems. Eos 85:471–472
Lujanienė G, Jokšas K, Šilobritienė B, Morkūnienė R (2006) Physical and chemical characteristics of 137Cs in the Baltic Sea. Radioact Environ 8:165–179
Lujanienė G, Beneš P, Štamberg K, Jokšas K, Vopalka D, Radžiūtė E, Šilobritienė B, Šapolaitė J (2010) Experimental study and modelling of 137Cs sorption behaviour in the Baltic Sea and the Curonian Lagoon. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 286:361–366
Lujanienė G, Šilobritienė B, Jokšas K (2005) Influence of particle size distribution on the behaviour of 137Cs in the Baltic Sea. In: recent advances in multidisciplinary applied physics. Proceedings of the first international meeting on applied physics (APHYS-2003), Elsevier, London, pp 895–908
Outola I, Inn K, Ford R, Markham S, Outola P (2009) Optimizing standard sequential extraction protocol with lake and ocean sediments. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 282:321–327
Ščiglo T, Lujanienė G, Šapolaitė J, Radžiūtė E (2010) Effect of natural organic substances on Pu and Am migration in the environment. In: Radiation interaction with material and its use in technologies: international conference: program and materials, Kaunas
Lujanienė G, Beneš P, Štamberg K, Ščiglo T (2012) Kinetics of plutonium and americium sorption to natural clay. J Environ Radioact 108:41–49
Garbaras A, Andriejauskienė J, Barisevičiūtė R, Remeikis V (2008) Tracing of atmospheric aerosol sources using stable carbon isotopes. Lit J Phys 48:259–264
Lujanienė G (2011) Determination of Pu, Am and Cm in environmental samples. In: International symposium on isotopes in hydrology, marine ecosystems, and climate change studies, Monaco, March 27–April 1, 2011, Proceedings IAEA (accepted)
Remeikaitė-Nikienė N, Lujanienė G, Garnaga G, Jokšas K, Garbaras A, Skipitytė R, Barisevičiūtė R, Šilobritienė B, Stankevičius A. (2012) Redistribution of trace elements and radionuclides in the Curonian Lagoon and the coastal zone of the Baltic Sea. In: IEEE/OES Baltic 2012 International Symposium “Ocean: past, present and future. Climate change research, ocean observations & advanced technologies for regional sustainability”. http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/conferences.jsp.
Strumińska-Parulska D, Skwarzec B, Pawlukowska M (2012) Plutonium fractionation in southern Baltic Sea sediments. Isotopes Environ Health Stud. doi:10.1080/10256016.2012.683524
Skwarzec B, Jahnz-Bielawska A, Struminska-Parulska D (2011) The inflow of 238Pu and 239, 240Pu from the Vistula River catchment area to the Baltic Sea. J Environ Radioact 102:728–734
Andre C, Choppin GR (2000) Reduction of Pu(V) by humic acid. Radiochim Acta 88:613–616
Lujanienė G, Šapolaitė J, Radžiūtė E, Aninkevičius V (2009) Plutonium oxidation state distribution in natural clay and goethite. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 282:793–797
Lujanienė G, Beneš P, Štamberg K, Šapolaitė J, Vopalka D, Ščiglo T (2010) Effect of natural clay components on sorption of Cs, Pu and Am by the clay. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 286:353–359
Arnarson TS, Keil RG (2001) Organic-mineral inter-actions in marine sediments studied using density fractionation and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Organic Geochem 32:1401–1415
Mayer LM (1994) Surface area control on organic carbon accumulation in continental margin sediments. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 58:1271–1284
Dong H, Jiang H, Lv G, Eber D, Li S, Kim J (2009) The role of clay minerals in the preservation of organic matter in sediments of Qinghai lake, NW China. Clays Clay Miner 57:213–226
Lalonde K, Mucci A, Ouellet A, Gélinas Y (2012) Preservation of organic matter in sediments promoted by iron. Nature 483:198–200
Acknowledgments
The Financial support provided by the Research Council of Lithuania (contract No. MIP-080/2012) is acknowledged. The authors thank students of the Chemical Department of Vilnius University, participating in the experiments, for technical assistance.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Lujanienė, G., Garnaga, G., Remeikaitė-Nikienė, N. et al. Cs, Am and Pu isotopes as tracers of sedimentation processes in the Curonian Lagoon–Baltic Sea system. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 296, 787–792 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-012-2029-y
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-012-2029-y