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Radon‐222 tracing of sediment‐water chemical transport in an estuarine sediment 1
Author(s) -
Gruebel Karen A.,
Martens Christopher S.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
limnology and oceanography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.7
H-Index - 197
eISSN - 1939-5590
pISSN - 0024-3590
DOI - 10.4319/lo.1984.29.3.0587
Subject(s) - benthic zone , sediment , flux (metallurgy) , estuary , radon , radium , tracer , hydrology (agriculture) , geology , environmental science , mineralogy , oceanography , geomorphology , chemistry , radiochemistry , physics , geotechnical engineering , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics , nuclear physics
In situ benthic chamber flux measurements and 222 Rn deficiency core measurements were made in fine‐grained sediments of the White Oak River estuary during August through October 1980. Benthic chamber flux values ranged from 27 to 60 atoms·m s ‒2 ·s ‒1 ; on a given date triplicate emplacements yielded a range of <30%. Apparent whole sediment diffusivities calculated from the fluxes measured yielded coefficients ranging from 0.35 to 1.6 × 10 ‒5 cm s 2 ·s ‒1 , within the range expected for control of sediment‐water transport by molecular diffusion. Sampling and analytical problems with accurate radon‐radium disequilibrium measurements in small‐diameter cores appear to compromise their usefulness for studying sediment‐water transport at our site. 222 Rn values determined in 17‐cm‐long sectioned cores never reached secular equilibrium activities of 226 Ra.