Chemical availability of mercury in stream sediments from the Almadén area, Spain

The chemical speciation, fractionation and availability of mercury in sediments from a cinnabar mining area (Almadén, Spain) was studied with different extraction and analytical procedures, in order to determine the degree to which the ecosystem is harmed by this pollutant. Three total extraction procedures, a sequential extraction and the speciation of organo-mercury compounds were performed in nine sediment samples. In the study area, although concentrations of mercury can be extremely high (up to 1,000 mg kg(-1)), no organomercury compounds were detected (< 2 microg kg(-1) and the availability of this element seems restricted. One of the methods for total extraction presented considerably lower recovery in Almadén's sediments, yet the results were controlled with certified reference materials. This disagreement was attributed to the fact that the mercury is in a refractory form. Sequential extraction was able to show that most of the mercury is associated with sulfides (probably as metacinnabar) or in the residual refractory phase (probably as red cinnabar).