Seasonal Variations of Total Gaseous Mercury at a French Coastal Mediterranean Site

Abstract

Total gaseous mercury (TGM) was continuously measured in 2009 and 2012, at a coastal site on the Mediterranean Sea (La Seyne-sur-Mer, France). Air temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, and chemical parameters (O 3 , CO, NO x and PM 10 ) were also measured as tracers of atmospheric pollution. Average TGM concentrations did not differ between the two years, 2.20 ± 0.54 and 2.16 ± 0.60 ng m -3 for 2009 and 2012 respectively. Diurnal variations of TGM were observed for both years and linked to local industrial or urban activities. Furthermore, a clear seasonal trend was observed, with TGM minima in summer and maxima in winter. This seasonality is common to several air pollutants, like the result of the variation in the dispersion of pollutants in the boundary layer and higher photochemical activity in summer. The highest TGM concentrations (> 3 ng m -3 ) were associated with air masses originating over urban and industrial areas of the Rhône Valley and local/regional anthropogenic sources. The influence of polluted air masses from these local/regional sources was confirmed by the significantly positive correlations between TGM and CO, NO x and PM 10 . We demonstrate that polluted air masses from nearby urban and industrial regions are an important source of TGM to Mediterranean coastal areas, rather than volatilization from the sea surface.

The open sea as the main source of methylmercury in the water column of the Gulf of Lions (Northwestern Mediterranean margin)

“…week of pumping at a pumping rate of 14 L min -1 . Total gaseous Hg concentrations in the atmosphere were monitored at the same time (Marusczak et al, 2015). from a rubber boat between Barcarin (Rhône River) and the sea (Fig.1); the locations of the stations are indicated on Table S2a.…”

Influences of Copper(II) Chloride Impregnation on Activated Carbon for Low-Concentration Elemental Mercury Adsorption from Simulated Coal Combustion Flue Gas

“…Mercury (Hg) and its compounds emitted from anthropogenic sources, e.g., coal-fired power plants, industrial boilers, waste incinerators, sinters, and cement plants, have tempted substantial attention due to their high toxicity, bioaccumulability, and global transport behaviors in atmosphere (Kumari et al, 2015;Chen et al, 2016;Marusczak et al, 2016;Wang et al, 2016). Coal-fired power plants were reported as the largest single source in most countries in Hg emissions (Pacyna et al, 2010).…”

Preparation of Cu-Mn and Cu-Mn-Ce Oxide/Mesoporous Silica via Silicate Exfoliation for Removal of NO and Hg0

“…NO x plays a major role in the photochemical reactions in the troposphere and stratosphere, which further cause severe environmental impacts, namely, acid rain and photochemical smog (Roy et al, 2009). Mercury has received great concerns on its influences on both human health and the living environment due to its high toxicity, persistence, and long-distance transport Marusczak et al, 2016;Guo et al, 2017). In CFPPs, mercury mainly exists in three forms in the gas streams: elemental mercury (Hg 0 ), oxidized mercury (Hg 2+ ), and particle-bound mercury (Hg p ) (Galbreath and Zygarlicke, 2000).…”