Geochemistry of trace metals in surface sediments from the continental slope of the states of Sergipe and Alagoas, Northeastern Brazil

Carlos Alexandre Borges Garcia; Adnívia Santos Costa Monteiro; Silvânio Silvério Lopes da Costa; Maria de Lara Palmeira de Macedo Arguelho; Rennan Geovanny Oliveira Araújo; Maria Eulália Rocha Carneiro; José do Patrocínio Hora Alves

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114472

Geochemistry of trace metals in surface sediments from the continental slope of the states of Sergipe and Alagoas, Northeastern Brazil

Mar Pollut Bull. 2023 Jan:186:114472. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114472. Epub 2022 Dec 21.

Authors

Carlos Alexandre Borges Garcia¹, Adnívia Santos Costa Monteiro², Silvânio Silvério Lopes da Costa³, Maria de Lara Palmeira de Macedo Arguelho⁴, Rennan Geovanny Oliveira Araújo⁵, Maria Eulália Rocha Carneiro⁶, José do Patrocínio Hora Alves⁷

Affiliations

¹ Postgraduate Program in Water Resources and Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Sergipe (UFS), Campus São Cristóvão, Av. Marechal Rondon, s/n, Jardim Rosa Elze, 49100-000 São Cristóvão, SE, Brazil. Electronic address: cgarcia@ufs.br.
² Postgraduate Program in Water Resources, Federal University of Sergipe (UFS), Campus São Cristóvão, Av. Marechal Rondon, s/n, Jardim Rosa Elze, 49100-000 São Cristóvão, SE, Brazil. Electronic address: adnivia@academico.ufs.br.
³ Postgraduate Program in Water Resources and Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Sergipe (UFS), Campus São Cristóvão, Av. Marechal Rondon, s/n, Jardim Rosa Elze, 49100-000 São Cristóvão, SE, Brazil.
⁴ Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Sergipe (UFS), Campus São Cristóvão, Av. Marechal Rondon, s/n, Jardim Rosa Elze, 49100-000 São Cristóvão, SE, Brazil.
⁵ Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), R. Barão de Jeremoabo, 147, Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
⁶ Management of Environmental Assessment and Monitoring, Leopoldo Américo Miguez de Mello Research Center (CENPES), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
⁷ Postgraduate Program in Water Resources, Federal University of Sergipe (UFS), Campus São Cristóvão, Av. Marechal Rondon, s/n, Jardim Rosa Elze, 49100-000 São Cristóvão, SE, Brazil.

PMID: 36549239
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114472

Abstract

Geochemical analyses were used to determine the origin and identify the main factors that lead to the metal trace distribution on the surface sediments from the continental slope of Sergipe in Brazil. Sediment samples were collected during the dry and rainy periods, from 36 sampling points distributed at water depths from 400 to 3000 m. In general, no effect of seasonality was observed on the metal concentrations and no significant differences were observed between the depth ranges. The correlation analysis indicated the continental origin as the most predominant, followed by authigenic deposition. Anthropogenic enrichment was not noted, nor was the possibility of adverse aquatic biota effects. The results made it possible to understand the contribution of rivers in the transport and transfer of particulate matter to the coastal region, in addition to providing new information on the content of trace metals in tropical Atlantic sediments.

Keywords: Coastal ecosystems; Enrichment factor; Geochemical composition; Principal component analysis.

MeSH terms

Brazil
Environmental Monitoring / methods
Geologic Sediments / chemistry
Metals / analysis
Metals, Heavy* / analysis
Rivers / chemistry
Trace Elements* / analysis
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / analysis

Substances

Water Pollutants, Chemical
Metals
Trace Elements
Metals, Heavy