Distribution of Rare Earth Elements in Sediments of the Marine Lake Mir (Dugi Otok, Croatia)

Abstract

The Lake Mir represents a small, isolated, and shallow marine lake situated in the south-eastern part of the Dugi otok Island, in a karstic landscape of the eastern Adriatic coast. The surrounding karstic background, with occasional occurrences of red soil, characterizes the sediments in the lake as coarse grained and carbonate rich. Previous studies suggested the prevailing influence of the lake bathymetry, that is, the proportion of carbonates and grain size characteristics of the sediments, on the variability of the element composition of the lake sediments. To confirm previous assumptions and obtain a better understanding of the factors influencing sediment composition of this marine lake, the distribution of rare earth elements in sediments of the Lake Mir and the nearby Telašćica Bay, as well as surrounding soils, was investigated. In the lake sediments, the sum of rare earth elements, including Y (hereinafter referred as ΣREY), ranged from 10.6 mg kg−1 to 25.3 mg kg−1; in the Telašćica Bay sediments, ΣREY were higher compared to the lake and ranged from 56.4 mg kg−1 to 85.2 mg kg−1, while the highest ΣREY, from 83.3 mg kg−1 to 227 mg kg−1, were observed in soils surrounding the lake. Despite the difference in the levels of the rare earth elements, the REY normalized patterns and associated fractionation parameters (ΣLREE/ΣHREE, (La/Yb)N, and (Nd/Yb)N) showed similarities between the lake sediments and the surrounding soils, confirming a significant influence of local lithology on the lake composition. The results of the statistical analysis, on the other hand, suggest the contribution of both the carbonate (e.g., calcite) and non-carbonate minerals (i.e., alumosilicates and Al–Fe-hydroxides) on the total REY content in the lake sediments.

Geochemical Equilibrium and Processes in Seawater

“…Fiket et al [11] described the distribution of rare earth elements, including Y (REY), in sediments of the marine lake Mir (Dugi Otok, eastern Adriatic coast, Croatia). A growing number of current or emerging alternative energy technologies and types of digital equipment contain REY-bearing components, such as glass, magnets, metal alloys, catalysts, and phosphors [32,33], causing not only increasing trends in the annual demand for REYs but also leading to the increasing exploitation of rare earth minerals [32,34].…”

“…In order to successfully identify sources that can influence the increase of REY concentration in water systems, it is necessary to know the processes and mechanisms that determine their distribution in the environment. The study of Fiket et al [11] provides an insight into the influence of local soils on the distribution of REY in sediments of the nearby marine lake Mir and suggests the possibility of differentiation between external influence and substrate, which is the main premise when determining the external source of REY in the environment. In addition, the study provides background concentrations for the unique environment of marine lakes situated in the karst environment.…”

“…Each of these papers [7][8][9][10][11] provides an insight into the problem that is ubiquitous in populated areas, but with a unique viewpoint, i.e., taking into account the features of the karst background.…”

Occurrence and Distribution of Technology-critical Elements (TCE) in Recent Freshwater and Marine Pristine Lake Sediments in Croatia: a Case Study

“…It is well known that undisturbed cores of the lake sediments represent natural archives for identi cation of sources of contaminants and reconstruction of the past environmental changes in long-term and recent anthropogenic and atmospheric inputs (Grahn et Croatia has many pristine freshwaters and marine lake water systems of which National Park Plitvice in Central Croatia, National park Krka in the coastal region, Nature Park Telašćica on the island Dugi Otok on the eastern Adriatic, should be especially emphasized. In these systems distribution and contamination with trace metals have been studied (Cukrov et al 2008(Cukrov et al , 2013Mikac et al 2011, Dautović et al 2014Mlakar et al 2015), however, except some data on REE (Fiket et al 2018), occurrence and distribution of TCE have not been studied in these systems.…”

The Origin and Evolution of Late Holocene Tsunamiites in the Doñana National Park (SW Spain): Trace Elements as Geochemical Proxies

“…Concentrations of heavy and other metals permit us to trace marine transgression/regression stages [2], the impact of wastewater discharges and deforestation [3], or to detect historical pollution derived from mining and industrial activities [4,5]. Some elements, such as REE (rare earth elements), LILE (large-ion lithophile elements) and HFSE (high-field-strength elements), can represent (paleo-)environmental markers in the analysis of recent and Holocene littoral sediments [6,7], as well as being indicators of sediment provenance [8,9]. An additional application of geochemistry is the characterization of tsunami deposits (see the review in [10]).…”