Acid Volatile Sulfide and Simultaneously Extracted Metals in Tidal Flat Sediments of Jiaozhou Bay, China

It is well known that acid-volatile sulfide (AVS) plays an important role in influencing the toxicity of divalent cationic metals within anoxic sediments. In studying sediment core samples collected from tidal flats within the Jiaozhou Bay, China, we found that the AVS concentration gradually increases with depth and decreases from high tidal flat to low tidal flat areas. We evaluated the chemical activity and bioavailability of heavy metals in the tidal flat based on the molar ratio of simultaneously ex- tracted metals (SEM) and AVS. The value of SEM/AVS is generally less than 1 in this area except for the surface layer, which suggests that the heavy metals only have chemical activity in the surface layer. SEM is most highly concentrated at the boundary of the redox layer. SEM have similar depth distributions throughout the tidal flat. The aeration of low tidal flat sediment indicates that SEM gradually move to deeper sites via interstitial water.

Acid volatile sulfide and simultaneously extracted metals in superficial sediments from Baihua Lake, China

The bioavailability of five divalent cationic heavy metals （Pb, Cd, Cu, Zn and Ni） in 10 superficial sediment samples from Baihua Lake was assessed based on the molar ratio of simultaneously extracted metals （SEMs） to acid volatile sulfide （AVS）. Atomic absorption spectrometry （AAS） and X-ray powder diffraction （XRD） were used to determine the heavy metal concentrations and examine the mineralogy of the crystalline phases, respectively. The AVS loadings in sediments from Baihua Lake ranged from 64.30 to 350.08 ~rnol/g （dry weight）. The corresponding SEM levels for the sampling sites varied from 1.770 to 14.660 vrnol/g. The molar ratio of SEMs to AVS ranged from 0.014 to 0.084 with a mean value of 0.034. The XRD analysis also confirmed the presence of some metal sulfides in sediments from Baihua Lake. The SEMs/AVS ratios for all sampling sites were significantly lower than 1.0, indicating that AVS in the sediments was sufficient to bind the five heavy metals; thus, these heavy metals are currently not significantly bioavailable to benthic organisms. Comparing the SEMs results to published guideline values for metal toxicity to benthic organisms in sediments, however, suggests that Zn and Ni pose a risk at some sampling locations in Baihua Lake.

Application of Equilibrium Partitioning Approach to the Derivation of Sediment Quality Guidelines for Metals in Dianchi Lake

For the past 20 years, numerous studies have been carried out on the application of equilibrium partitioning approach （EqPA） for the derivation of sediment quality guidelines （SQGs）. However, for metals, few Equilibrium-partitioning- based numerical SQGs have been developed or are currently available because of the confounding factors mediating the bioavailability of metals. A study was conducted at Dianchi Lake, which is a heavily eutrophicated lake on the Yunnan- Guizhou Plateau, China with the focus on the measurement of partitioning coefficient （Kp） and SQGs derivation and normalization to acid volatile sulfide （AVS）, fine material, and organic carbon. Using new normalization methods, SQGs were formulated for seven metals including copper, zinc, lead, cadmium, chromium, mercury, and arsenic in Dianchi Lake. In Dianchi Lake sediments, the fine material contributed 25.4%-36.0% to the SQG values, with the largest contribution to the SQG value of mercury; AVS contributed 2.9%-75.0% to the SQG values, with the largest contribution to the SQG value of cadmium. This indicated that the fine material and the AVS were the most important controlling factors to the bioavailability of mercury and caximium, respectively. The contribution of total organic carbon （TOC） to the SQG values of copper and leaxi was 3.8% and 7.1%, respectively, indicating that at relatively lower concentrations, the contribution of TOC was not significant. In addition to normalization methods, appropriate procedures for the application of EqPA including sample collection, storage, and analysis are also essential to improve the reliability of SQGs. The normalized Dianchi Lake SQGs were higher than most of the empirically based SQGs developed in North America, but lower than Hong Kong interim SQGs except for cadmium and arsenic. The differences could be attributed to the approaches used for derivation of SQGs and the water quality criteria adopted and the differences in the physical and chemical characteristics of the sediments.

Reduced inorganic sulfur in the sediments of the Yellow Sea and East China Sea

Cold diffusion methods are used to separate and quantify the three reduced inorganic sulfur species into acid volatile sulfide （AVS）, pyrite-S and element sulfur （ES） in the sediments of the Yellow and East China Seas. The results show that up to 25.02 pmol/g of AVS, 113.1 pmol/g of pyrite-S and 44.4 pmol/g of ES are observed in the sediments of the Yellow Sea and East China Sea. Pyrite-S is the predominant sulfide mineral in the sediments, while the concentration of AVS is quite low at most stations in the study area. The amounts and reactivity of organic matter are the primary limited factor for the sulfide formation, while an iron limitation and a sulfate limitation are not observed in the sediments of the Yellow Sea and East China Sea. The irregular profiles of the three reduced inorganic sulfur sediment composition and sedimentation rates. species also reflected the comprehensive influence of

Effects of Urechis unicinctus Juveniles on Chemical Characteristics of Organically Contaminated Coastal Sediment

Biological activities of marine benthos such as burrowing and feeding may change sediment characteristics.We conducted three experiments to examine the potential of using juveniles of a spoon worm Urechis unicinctus to improve the quality of organically contaminated coastal sediment.Sediment samples were collected from a site that was heavily contaminated with organic matter (Seonso) and two sites that were clean (Myo-do,Dolsan-do).Urechis juveniles,obtained by artificial fertilization and cultured in the laboratory,were introduced to the sediment (weight 3 kg,depth 10 cm) at a density of 500 individuals per aquarium (length 50 cm,width 35 cm,height 30 cm) (Experiment 1),or at densities ranging from 100 to 900 individuals per beaker (Experiment 2).To examine how sediment contamination can be modified by the effects of Urechis,500 individuals (per aquarium) were exposed to the Seonso contaminated sediment that had been mixed with 0-100% clean sand (Experiment 3).Each experiment lasted two months and sediment samples were collected every 15 d to determine the several indexes of sediment quality,which included acid volatile sulfide (AVS),chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total ignition loss (TIL).In Experiment 1,the existence of Urechis did not result in significant changes in quality indexes in the sediments collected from Myo-do,Dolsan-do.However,AVS,COD and TIL of the Seonso sediment all decreased significantly after co-incubation with Urechis juveniles for 30 to 45 d.Experiment 2 showed that a density of at least 300 juveniles per beaker was necessary to significantly reduce all three quality indexes,and the magnitude of reduction was positively correlated with juvenile density.Experiment 3 revealed that Urechis juveniles were effective in reducing the AVS,COD and TIL of the Seonso sediment that had been mixed with 60%,80%,and 80% of clean sand,respectively.The results of the present study therefore indicated that juveniles of this spoon worm have the potential to be used to improve the quality of organically contaminated sediment in coastal waters.