Earth’s Cryosphere, 2017, Vol. XXI, No. 2, p. 21-27
BIOGEOCHEMICAL ASPECTS OF MERCURY METHYLATION IN THE ICE OF THE АMUR RIVER
R.A. Kiper1, L.M. Kondratyeva1, E.M. Golubeva2
Institute of Water and Ecological Problems, FEB RAS,
56, Dikopolceva str., Khabarovsk, 680000, Russia; kondratevalm@gmail.com
2 Institute of Tectonics and Geophysics, FEB RAS,
65, Kim-Yu-Chen str., Khabarovsk, 680000, Russia; evg8302@ya.ru
The results of studying the content of heterotrophic bacteria, mercury and volatile organic compounds, including ethyl acetate, in the ice layer of the Amur River and the Pemzenskaya Channel are discussed. The maximum amount of cultivated heterotrophic bacteria participating in biotransformation of organic compounds of different origin was found in the Amur River near the left bank in the 30–40 cm layer of ice containing particles of detritus. Ethyl acetate was established to be the main substance contained in different layers of ice; its maximum concentration (18.2 mg/L) was recorded in the middle of the Amur River in the 40–70 cm layer of ice. In the 20–30 cm ice layer from the Pemzenskaya Channel, the following pollutants were found near the right bank: acetaldehyde (4.1 mg/L), benzene (0.5 mg/L) and styrene (2.0 mg/L). Higher mercury concentrations ranging from 0.13 to 0.14 g/L characterized the upper layers of ice near the right bank of the Amur River and the left bank of the Pemzenskaya Channel. The combination of these components in the ice layer preconditions methylation of mercury.
Methylmercury, ice, volatile organic matter, biotransformation