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Mercury volatilization from a floodplain soil during a simulated flooding event

  • SOILS, SEC 3 • REMEDIATION AND MANAGEMENT OF CONTAMINATED OR DEGRADED LANDS • RESEARCH ARTICLE
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Abstract

Purpose

Middle-European floodplain soils are often contaminated with mercury (Hg) and periodically flooded. In this study, the influence of a flooding event and subsequent dewatering on the volatilization of elemental Hg and methylated species was investigated in a laboratory experiment.

Material and methods

Undisturbed soil cores were taken from a topsoil (12.1 ± 0.75 mg kg−1 Hg) at the Elbe River in Lower Saxony, Germany. Soil columns were incubated at 20 °C with varying soil moisture (water-saturated for 2 weeks, 95 and 90 % water content for 1 week each), and the redox potential (EH) was recorded. The gaseous Hg that accumulated in the headspace of the flux chamber of the columns was pumped over cooled traps filled with adsorber material and analyzed by gas chromatography/inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry for the various Hg species.

Results and discussion

The watering of the soil resulted in a rapid decrease in the EH and the achievement of strongly reducing conditions (EH < −100 mV). Mercury concentrations of the pore waters decreased continuously from 68.3 μg L−1 Hg at the beginning to 5.78 μg L−1 Hg at the end of the experiment. Species analyses revealed that exclusively elemental Hg volatilized. The volatilization rate was between 1.73 and 824 ng m−2 h−1 Hg, which is consistent with other studies at the Elbe River.

Conclusions

Even when flooded for a longer period of time, floodplain soils should show neither emission of methylated Hg nor exceptionally high volatilization of elemental Hg.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) under the contract no. Ma 2143/9-1 and the RheinEnergieStiftung under the contract no. W-09-2-018.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geosciences, Soil Geography/Soil Science, University of Cologne, 50923, Köln, Germany

    Iris Hindersmann & Tim Mansfeldt

  2. Faculty of Chemistry, Applied Analytical Chemistry, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45141, Essen, Germany

    Jörg Hippler

  3. Faculty of Chemistry, Institute of Environmental Analytical Chemistry, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45141, Essen, Germany

    Alfred V. Hirner

Authors
  1. Iris Hindersmann
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  2. Jörg Hippler
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  3. Alfred V. Hirner
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  4. Tim Mansfeldt
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Correspondence to Tim Mansfeldt.

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Responsible editor: Jianming Xu

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Hindersmann, I., Hippler, J., Hirner, A.V. et al. Mercury volatilization from a floodplain soil during a simulated flooding event. J Soils Sediments 14, 1549–1558 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-014-0908-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-014-0908-2

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