Sunlight-Induced Formation of Dissolved Gaseous Mercury in Lake Waters

Recent Advances in Atmospheric Chemistry of Mercury

“…The photoreduction of Hg II in the presence of dissolved organic matter (DOM) has been widely documented in various natural water systems [86][87][88][89][90] and may also occur in atmospheric droplets and organic aerosols (OA) [91]. Recent model studies by Horowitz et al supported the occurrence of the reduction of Hg II -organic complexes in the atmosphere.…”

High-resolution measurements of elemental mercury in surface water for an improved quantitative understanding of the Baltic Sea as a source of atmospheric mercury

“…Mercury enters the sea by river transport and following wet and dry deposition from the atmosphere. In surface water, it is subjected to light-dependent biotic and abiotic redox processes that transform ionic mercury to volatile Hg 0 (Amyot et al, 1994;Costa and Liss, 2000;Kim and Fitzgerald, 1986;Kuss et al, 2015;Mason et al, 1995), which is subjected to evasion from the sea surface. Mercury emission by the ocean accounts for about one-third of the mercury in the atmosphere (Pirrone et al, 2013;Selin et al, 2008).…”

A synthesis of rates and controls on elemental mercury evasion in the Great Lakes Basin

“…Industrial emissions, mainly from coal combustion, waste incineration, and industrial processes are the primary sources of Hg to the atmosphere (Driscoll et al 2007a). Important natural Hg sources include volcanic activity, soil mineral weathering and forest fires (Rasmussen 1994 (Amyot et al 1994;Ericksen and Gustin 2004;Ericksen et al 2006). …”

“…In lakes, photo-reduction of Hg 2+ appears to be the primary process driving the production of dissolved gaseous mercury (DGM) and its subsequent loss to the atmosphere (e.g., O 'Driscoll et al 2003a;Amyot et al 1994;Lindberg et al 2000). Several proposed mechanisms include direct photolysis of Hg 2+ to Hg o (Amyot et al 1994;Munthe and McElroy 1992) including photosensitizing of Fe 3+ complexes (Ababneh et al 2006;, sulfite complexes Van Loon et al 2000), DOC and humic substances (Nriagu 1994;Xiao et al 1991;Xiao et al 1995) (Dommergue et al 2003;Schroeder et al 1992). …”