LAUSR

Knowledge of the fractionation of mercury in soils in the vicinity of abandoned cinnabar mines is essential for assessing the usability of soils for the cultivation of agriculturally important crops. Two different sequential extraction methods and the technique of diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT) were applied and compared for fractionation of mercury in soils from mercury-contaminated sites intended for farming purposes. The mercury found in these soils was primarily in the form of mercury sulphide (58.6 to 83.9 %), followed by 6.7 to 15.4 % of organically bound mercury, and 2.9 to 23.2 % of elemental mercury. Up to 10.3 % of labile mercury species were determined by both sequential extraction methods in these soils. However, only 0.01 to 0.13 % of mercury was determined as a bioavailable fraction using the DGT technique. Both sequential extraction methods tested for the fractionation analysis of mercury in contaminated soils were in excellent agreement. The content of the mobile (labile) mercury determined by the sequential extraction methods was statistically significantly higher (p < 0.0001) than the content of bioavailable mercury determined by the DGT technique. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.