Mercury geochemistry of deep-sea sediment cores from the Kuril area, northwest Pacific

Journal Pre-proofs Mercury geochemistry of deep-sea sediment cores from the Kuril area, northwest Pacific Kirill I. Aksentov, Valentina V. Sattarova PII: DOI: Reference:

S0079-6611(19)30415-X https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean.2019.102235 PROOCE 102235

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Progress in Oceanography

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30 April 2019 21 October 2019 30 November 2019

Please cite this article as: Aksentov, K.I., Sattarova, V.V., Mercury geochemistry of deep-sea sediment cores from the Kuril area, northwest Pacific, Progress in Oceanography (2019), doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pocean. 2019.102235

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Mercury geochemistry of deep-sea sediment cores from the Kuril area, northwest Pacific

Kirill I. Aksentov and Valentina V. Sattarova V.I.Il’ichev Pacific Oceanological Institute (POI), Far Eastern Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences (FEB RAS), 43, Baltiyskaya Str., 690041 Vladivostok, Russia

Corresponding

author

e-mail

address:

[email protected]

(K.I.

Aksentov),

[email protected] (V.V. Sattarova)

Abstract In the present study we report mercury data in the sediment cores obtained during a Germany-Russian and Russian-Germany cruises onboard the Vessels Sonne and Akademik M.A. Lavrentyev in Kuril area. This region cover an extensive area of the Northwest Pacific included the trench system and adjacent abyssal plain, ranging zone off the Kuril Islands. Kuril area is characterized by high water biological productivity, intensive volcanic activity, and hydrological features. Mercury concentrations in sediment cores were analyzed using a Zeeman atomic absorption spectrometer with high frequency modulation of light polarization and a pyrolysis attachment to determine its occurrence, distribution, and deposition flux. Mercury concentrations in the sediments ranged between 8‒170 ppb; its minimal concentrations (8‒15 ppb) were detected in sandy turbidites. For the pre-industrial period, Hg flux ranged between 33‒36 µg/m2 year. The maximum Hg flux (44 µg/m2 year) corresponded to the 1980, with decreases of up to 30 µg/m2 year in modern sediments (top-core sediment samples). The Hg outlet temperature in the bottom sediments corresponded to a physically sorbed form of Hg and depends on the Hg content of diatoms (siliceous residues). Hg concentrations were significantly positivly correlated with total organic carbon content but negativly correlated with Al, Fe, Zr, and Sr contents. Thus, two main factors affected Hg burial in bottom sediments; atmospheric deposition of Hg and biological productivity. The effect volcanic activity has not been clearly established in this study.

Keywords: Mercury, Total organic carbon, Kuril Basin, Okhotsk Sea, Kuril-Kamchatka Trench, Pacific Ocean, KuramBio, SokhoBio

1 Introduction

Recently, geochemical studies of mercury (Hg) in bottom sediments have increased worldwide because of the possibility of using Hg as a tool for reconstructing anthropogenic 1

pollution (Amos et al., 2014; Kim et al., 2019; Selin, 2009). However, Hg also enters the environment from natural sources, which are mainly volcanic eruptions and hydrothermal activity. Mercury anomalies can be used as a geochemical indicator of modern seafloor hydrothermal activity. According to Zhao and Yan (1995) and Astakhov et al. (2007), lithochemical Hg dispersion halos in Quaternary sediments were localized along fluidconducting faults. Studies conducted at various points around the world have demonstrated that Hg emissions are associated with the emplacement of large igneous provinces. The two largest volcanic eruptions in recorded history, Krakatau (1883 AD) and Tambora (1815 AD), were reflected in positive Hg peaks in a dated ice-core from the Upper Fremont Glacier (Schuster et al., 2002). Anomalies in sedimentary Hg concentrations have been detected on the boundary of epochs from the Ordovician to Paleogene (Font et al., 2018; Jones et al., 2019; Sial et al., 2014; Thibodeau et al., 2016). A reliable marker of volcanism is considered to be Hg/total organic carbon (TOC) ratios, which removes the influence of the deposition of organic carbon and associated organic Hg complexes (Font et al., 2018; Gong et al., 2017; Grasby et al., 2016; Jones et al., 2019; Percival et al., 2017; Scaife et al., 2017; Sial et al., 2014, 2013; Thibodeau et al., 2016). Volcanic Hg is mainly emitted in the gaseous form of elemental Hg (Witt et al., 2008), and has an atmospheric residence time that is significantly longer than many other volcanic metals (Hinkley et al., 1999). There is, therefore, a greater likelihood of Hg being distributed in the global atmosphere in comparison to most other volcanic trace elements. In modern marine environments, direct atmospheric deposition is the main source of Hg input to the oceans (Mason et al., 2012). Once Hg has entered the ocean, it can be affected by a number of biotic and abiotic processes, which often lead to the formation of organic Hg complexes. Consequently, Hg is usually adsorbed onto organic matter during sedimentation to bottom sediments. In modern settings, this relationship results in a roughly constant Hg/TOC ratio (Benoit et al., 2001; Outridge et al., 2007; Liu et al., 2012; Ruiz and Tomiyasu, 2015). Several studies have indicated that the marine Hg cycle is closely related to biological productivity (Kita et al., 2013; Lamborg et al., 2014; Zaferani et al., 2018). The Hg depth profile in a core from the ocean drilling program (ODP) Hole 1006A off the Great Bahama Bank in the Caribbean Sea was interdependent on the organic carbon content and other paleo-productivity proxies. This has been explained by the roles of surface- and deep-dwelling phytoplankton in the production of Hg-bearing marine organic matter, and the nitrogen and carbon isotopic changes in the mixed layer and stratified photic zone in the Caribbean Sea during 350 ka to 1330 ka (Kita et al., 2013). Other similar work, has demonstrated the possibility of using Hg as an indicator of variability in the Northern Hemisphere ice sheet based on Quaternary sediments over 1.1 Ma 2

from the North Atlantic Ocean. The Hg content of marine sediments increased during glacial periods in association with increases in ice-rafted debris, and is positively correlated with the TOC content and inversely corrected with the absolute abundance of surface-dwelling nanoplankton species (Kita et al., 2016). The Hg content of sediments in the Russian Far Eastern seas has been rarely studied. As a proxy, Hg provides a useful tool for reconstructing the glacial-interglacial variability of the Kuroshio Current, as has been shown for the Okinawa Trough sediments (Lim et al., 2017). The increase in Hg concentrations in sediments during the Holocene might be associated with the development of a deep water circulation and active lateral transport of Hg from hydrothermal sources in the area (Lim et al., 2017). During a scientific cruise in the Russian Far Eastern seas in 2017, atmospheric Hg anomalies were recorded in the Sea of Okhotsk. These anomalies are associated with the volcanic activity of the Kuril Islands at that time (Kalinchuk et al., 2019). The Kuril Basin is in the southern part of the Sea of Okhotsk. Suspended material is input by runoff from the surrounding land, wave erosion of shoreline rocks, and volcanic activity of the Kuril Islands and the Kamchatka Peninsula (Lisitsyn, 1994). Sea ice erosion of the shore and shallow shelf also plays a significant role in modern sedimentation. According to geophysical studies, the basement of the basin is composed of a series of faults and individual protrusions of the base, which are overlapped by sediments and represent buried volcanic structures (Tuezov, 1975). The Kuril-Kamchatka Trench (KKT) is a slightly convex (to the south-east) linear depression of about 2200 km in length, which connects to the Japan Trench in the south-west and to the Aleutian deep-water trench in the north-east. The conditions of sedimentation are determined by morphological features, their position in the peripheral zone of the ocean, nearness to island arcs, and modern active tectonic and volcanic processes. The KKT area is mainly supplied by mineral material coming from the Kuril Islands and from eastern Kamchatka. The water in this area is rich in organisms that dilute and suppress mineral particles. Upper Quaternary volcanoes are located on the islands of the Big Kuril Ridge, which are the peaks of a large mountain structure that is hidden below sea level. Neogene and Quaternary volcanic rocks are also widely developed here. Black ore minerals, various volcanic glasses, feldspars (in the form of crystals with regular outlines, most of which are associated with volcanic emissions or erosion of igneous and sedimentary rocks), pyroxenes, amphibole, zircon and others were found in minerals from the deep-sea trench (Derkachev and Nikolaeva, 2010). The hydrography of the KKT area is complex (Arseniev and Leontieva, 1970) and influenced by several currents (Tyler, 2002). The East Kamchatka Current passes southwestward along the northern Kuril Islands. Some of its water permeates into the Sea of Okhotsk. Inside the deep Kuril Basin in the Sea of 3

Okhotsk, the intruding East Kamchatka Current water circulates in a cyclonic gyre. Much of this intruding water moves out of the Sea of Okhotsk through the Bussol Strait, where it joins the rest of the south-westward flowing East Kamchatka Current. The East Kamchatka Current is renamed the Oyashio Current to the south of the Bussol Strait. The water properties of the Oyashio Current are different from those in the upstream East Kamchatka Current because of the intrusion of water from the Sea of Okhotsk ( Qiu, 2001). The Kuril Basin of Sea of the Okhotsk, the KKT, and the adjacent abyssal plain are highly productive areas (Bogdanov, Shaposhnikov, 1970). A special feature of these areas is the proximity to island arcs ‒ belts of active volcanism and seismic activity that contribute to the development of suspension flows and landslides on the trench slopes ‒ as well as the position of these areas in the latitudinal zone of high biological productivity (Zenkevitch, 1956, 1977; Golovan et al., 2019). Although the bottom sediments in this area have been studied over the last 50‒60 years, Hg has not been determined. The Hg contents of surface sediments in the study area have been previously determined by Sattarova and Aksentov (2018), who report a relationship between the Hg content and the organic carbon content and clay fraction. In this study, we examine the concentration, distribution, and fractionation of Hg in deep-sea sediment cores from the Kuril area of the northwest Pacific, and identify potential factors that influence the source-to-accumulation processes of Hg in this region. This research is the first presentation of results of Hg variability in sediment cores in the Kuril area.

2 Materials and method

2.1. Sediment sampling Sampling took place in the northwest Pacific during three cruises with R/V Sonne in 2012 and 2016 and R/V Akademik M.A. Lavrentyev in 2015 using a multiple corer (Muc) and box corer (BC), as supported by the KuramBioII and SokhoBio Projects. We conditionally allocated cores into districts in the form of profiles (Fig. 1): Pacific, Trench, Basin, and Slope. Locations of the cores are shown in Table 1.

2.2. Sample processing All sediment samples were lyophilized. The grain sizes were measured using an “Analysette 22 NanoTec” particle size analyzer (Fritsch, Germany) according to the procedure described in Sattarova and Aksentov (2018). Classification of the fraction sizes was used as <4 µm (clay), 4‒63 µm (silt), and >63 µm (sand). The scale of Shepard (1954) was adopted for grain size classification. 4

Sedimentary Hg concentrations were measured using a mercury Zeeman atomic absorption spectrometer with high frequency modulation of light polarization “RA-915M” (Lumex Ltd, Russia) and a “PYRO-915+” pyrolysis attachment without sample pretreatment. The sediment certified reference materials HISS-1, MESS-4, and PACS-3 from the National Research Council of Canada were used to determine accuracy for Hg analysis. The results of standard sample analyses are presented in Table 2. The equipment was used to detect Hg forms in the thermo-scanning mode (Mashyanov et al., 2017). Before analysis, sediment samples were kept in a desiccator. A sample weighing ~100 g was then placed on a quartz spoon and inserted into the “PYRO-915+ atomizer”. The successive heating temperature was controlled by a thermocouple. The TOC of sediments were measured by a “TOC-VCPN” analyzer (Shimadzu, Japan) with an SSM-5000A attachment for the incineration of solid samples. Other chemical elements (Al, Ba, Fe, Mn, Pb, Rb, Sr, and Zr) were measured by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) using an “ICAP6500 Duo” spectrometer (Thermo Electron Corporation, USA), and by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) using an “Agilent 7500с” quadrupole mass-spectrometer (Agilent Technologies, USA). Analyses were performed at the Common Use Center of the Far East Geological Institute FEB RAS after the dissolution of powdered sediments by a mixture of acids (hydrofluoric, perchloric, and nitric), together with a standard reference material (MAG-1, n = 10). Relative deviations between the measured and certificated values were generally less than 10%, indicating satisfactory recoveries.

2.3 Dating Dating of core LV71-11 was based on 226

Ra, and

210

210

Pb chronology. Measurement of

238

U,

234

Th,

Pb contents were carried out using a high-resolution semiconductor gamma-

spectrometry technique (EGPC-192-P21 cryostat with FP-6300B processor) at the Institute of Geology and Mineralogy, Novosibirsk, Russia (Fedotov et al., 2013, 2012). The depth–age relationship was calculated using the constant initial concentration (CIC) model (Goldberg, 1963) and the constant rate of supply (CRS) model (Appleby and Oldfield, 1978), because the 210

Pb excess distributions in the sediment show an exponential form. Both models showed good

convergence.

2.4 Calculation of Hg flux The total annual Hg flux (µg/m2 year) was calculated by multiplying the sedimentation rate (mm/year), dry bulk density (g/cm3), and Hg concentration (ppb). 5

2.6 Statistical methods The statistical analyses between chemical parameters and Hg concentration were performed using the StatSoft STATISTICA software package (Version 10). Since the initial concentrations have different scales, they were standardized through z-transformation.

3 Results

The sample bottom sediments are very diverse in color. The sediments of the abyssal plain of the Pacific Ocean (Pacific profile) have a surface oxidized layer from light brown to dark brown with a thickness of 20‒30 cm, which smoothly passes towards the core bottom into light green-gray color. These sediments are composed of diatom (siliceous) silt with an admixture of up to 15% of clastic material. Bottom sediments located in the KKT and on its slopes (Trench and Slope profiles) differ in the arrangement of brown layers, not only at the surface, but also in terms of the thickness of the cores, whereas the grain-size classification of the sediment does not change. There are also thin layers of green, dark gray, and yellow colors. In some cores the sandy fraction increases towards the base of the core, while the silt fraction dominates. Two cores LV71-10 and So250-39 from the Slope profile are short (up to 12 cm). In these cores, we note the presence of black sand in the near-surface layer, which can be distinguished as turbidites. The top layers of the cores are brown to gray and have a grain-size from sandy silt to silty sand. These bottom sediments also have diatomaceous material with a clastic material admixture until the point where the turbidite layers predominate. The chemical elemental concentrations are presented in the Supplementary Information (Table S1), and show a wide ranges 1.68–6.65% for Fe (mean 3.53%), 3.52–8.69% for Al (mean 5.98%), 0.03–3.49% for Mn (mean 0.32%), 70–2225 ppm for Ba (mean 780 ppm), 38–105 ppm for Zr (mean 73 ppm), 11–77 ppm for Rb (mean 41 ppm), 120–300 ppm for Sr (mean 200 ppm), 6–27 ppm for Pb (mean 13 ppm), and 0.09–1.93% TOC (mean 0.93%). The maximum Mn content of 3.49% is found in the dark brown layers. These layers are mainly located towards the surface, but are also found in thicker layers in the Pacific and Trench profiles. In the light brown layers, the Mn content is <0.3–1.5% and is 0.05–0.20% in the green and gray layers. The Hg concentrations in the studied sediments range from 8‒170 ppb. Minimal concentrations are detected in sandy sediments (turbidites) where the Hg concentration is from 8‒15 ppb. There is a general increasing trend in the Hg concentration towards the top of the bottom sediments. Nevertheless, in some cores maximum Hg concentration is present in core section of sediments (Table S1). 6

Both age models (CIC and CRS) give an average sedimentation rate of ~1.3 mm/year. In pre-industrial period (pre-1900s) the Hg flux ranged between 33‒36 µg/m2 year. The maximum Hg flux (44 µg/m2year) corresponds to the 1980, after which there is a decrease of up to 30 µg/m2year in modern sediments (upper core) (Fig. 2).

4 Discussion

Lithological characteristics of the bottom sediments in the studied area are mainly associated with the sedimentation of biogenic silica sourced from diatoms complicated by landslide processes on the slopes of the trench, as well as by the hydrodynamics of the straits and possibly hydrothermal processes at the bottom. In comparison to other regions, the observed Hg concentrations were similar to the Hg concentrations reported for other marine sediments. Hg content in Holocene sediments of the Deryugin Basin, Sea of Okhotsk, ranged from 31‒160 ppb, with an anomaly of 800 ppb near the Barite Mounds (Astakhov et al., 2007; Ivanov, 2014). In pelagic sediments of the Sea of Japan (East Sea) concentrations of Hg ranged from 21‒173 ppb (Kot, 2004). In the sediments of the Yangtze River at the estuarine-inner shelf of the East China Sea Hg concentrations are reportedly 10‒92 ppb (Liu et al., 2017). An anthropogenic anomaly in Hg concentrations of 700‒800 ppb in sediments near Vladivostok (Amur Bay, the Sea of Japan) has also been found (Polyakov et al., 2008). However, background concentrations are reportedly 30 ppb for the Early Holocene (Akulichev et al., 2016). When observing the relationships between Hg and other components of bottom sediments (Table S2), the Hg concentrations in all samples show significant positive relationships with organic carbon and Rb. In most profiles Hg was also positively correlated with Ba, Pb, and the silt fraction. Significant negative correlations were determined for Al, Zr, and Sr, and in some cases for Fe. The relationship between Hg and Mn differs between sediment samples. For example, significant positive relationships are found for samples assigned to the Basin profile and for core LV71-7, whereas a negative correlation is found for samples assigned to the Pacific profile. However, no significant correlations were found for samples in other profiles. False links are evident in samples assigned to the Pacific profile, where the Hg concentration increases towards the surface, which may relate to an increase in atmospheric inputs and sorption to diatoms. Overall, for data from all samples, significant positive correlations were observed between Hg and TOC, Rb, Pb, and the silt fraction, but negative correlation were found for Al, Fe, Zr, and Sr, which characterize clastic (terrigenous) sediment components. 7

In some cores, the Al content increases in sandy sediments. To eliminate the influence of clay minerals and organic matter, Hg concentrations were normalized to Al concentrations and organic carbon concentrations, respectively. The depth profiles for Hg/Al and Hg/TOC are almost identical (Fig. 3), and suggest that the effect of clay minerals and organic matter is minimal. However, the sediments were rich in diatoms, and according to a recent study, diatom frustules can intensively adsorb (accumulate) Hg (Zaferani et al., 2018). The Hg/TOC profiles were different from the Hg profiles only in some cores (Fig. 3). In these cores, the minimum content of Hg and TOC are in turbidite sandy layers. After normalization, the Hg/TOC profile is straightened (Fig. 3). The Hg/TOC ratios do not exceed 200 ppb/% and the average ratios range between 50‒80 ppb/%. The exception is the LV71-7 core, which has the Hg/TOC of 200 ppb/% towards the bottom of the core and reaches up to 370 ppb/% (Fig. 4). Such anomalous values are explained by the very low TOC content (0.09‒0.31%) and average Hg concentrations (26‒50 ppb). Considering the physical properties, the bottom layer (the interval from 13.5‒27 cm) is strongly compacted (0.9‒1.0 dry density g/cm3), and the top layer (the interval from 0‒13.5 cm) has the lowest density. These two layers also differed with respect to other geochemical indices (Fig. 4). Artemova et al. (2018) report that the upper layer of the sediment core is enriched with diatoms (50‒70 diatoms 104 per g) relative to the bottom (<10 diatoms 104 per g). Based on this, the upper layer can be attributed to enriched diatomaceous clays (mud) and the lower layer to clastic mud (silt). Thus, the accumulation of Hg in the upper layer of the sediment core is primarily controlled by the supply of diatoms. Whereas Hg in the lower layer of the sediment core is associated with clastogenic components. In the samples assigned to the Basin profile, the diatom content ranged from 20 to 70 (50–70 diatoms 104 per g) (Artemova et al., 2018) and the Hg/TOC ratios in them corresponds to the Hg/TOC ratio in the upper horizon of the LV71-7 core. In addition, thermo-scanning showed a difference in Hg outlet temperatures for the studied cores (Fig. 5). In the top of the LV71-7 core (e.g., the interval at 10-11 cm), which is characterized by diatomaceous sediments, the maximum Hg outlet was at 250‒270°C. Whereas in the lower part of core, which is characterized by clastic silt (e.g., the interval at 22‒23 cm), the Hg outlet was 280‒320°C and the peak sloped more than that of the upper layer. In the deep-sea sediments of the northwestern Pacific the variations were at 250–290°C (Fig. 5). The thermograms of the dated LV71-11 core samples coincided with different intervals of the core and the peak of the Hg outlet was at 280‒300°C. Most chemical compounds of Hg have an outlet temperature of ~200°C, but in environmental samples such as soil, high-temperature mineral forms of Hg have been found (Saniewska and Bełdowska, 2017). High-temperature forms of Hg in association with sulfide mercury have been detected mainly in the bottom sediments of other 8

areas of the Russian Far Eastern seas (Ivanov, 2014). For the study area reported here, the forms of Hg depend on the diatom content since diatoms are a sorbent for Hg, thus our findings agree with Zaferani et al. (2018). It is noteworthy that increasing Hg fluxes can be associated with an increase in fossil fuel consumption, since this led to greater emission of Hg to the atmosphere in the Soviet Union during the developing industrial period. After the political crisis of 1990, industrial production ceased and the influx of pollutants sharply consequently decreased. Our data are also in good agreement with those of Kim et al. (2019) and Zaferani et al. (2018).

5 Conclusions

The results of this study demonstrate that the Hg concentrations in the sediment cores from the Kuril region of the northwest Pacific Ocean vary from 8 ppb to 170 ppb, which are similar to those in global deep-sea sediments. The Hg/TOC ratio in diatomaceous bottom sediments does not exceed 200 ppb/% with average ratios ranging from 50‒80 ppb/%, whereas in terrigenous sediments the Hg/TOC ratio is up to 370 ppb/%. Positive correlations between Hg concentrations and TOC are evident, whereas negative correlations between Hg and Al, Fe, Zr, and Sr indicate the accumulation of biogenic sourced Hg in sediments in study area. According to the thermo-desorption method, the Hg outlet temperature in bottom sediments corresponds to a physically sorbed form of Hg and depends on the content of diatoms (siliceous residues). For the first time, the sedimentation rates and Hg fluxes to the bottom sediments have been determined in the Kuril Basin for sediments relating to the past 120 years. We suggest that two factors affect Hg burial in the bottom sediments of the study area: atmospheric deposition of Hg (including those from anthropogenic emissions) and biological productivity. No clear volcanic effect was established in this study.

Acknowledgments The authors are extremely grateful to Dr. M. Malyutina and Prof. A. Brandt for organizing and leading the expeditions with the financial support of the BMBF grant No. 03G0250A to Prof. Angelika Brandt, University of Hamburg, now Senckenberg Museum, Frankfurt, Germany. We thank the Captain and crew of the R/V Akademik M.A. Lavrentyev and R/V Sonne for their help with the sampling. We would also like to thank Dr. Mikhail S. Melgunov from the Institute of Geology and Mineralogy, Novosibirsk, Russia for providing dating data for the core. Special thanks go to the Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry at the Far East Geological Institute for their help with the chemical analyses. The analysis and 9

interpretation were financially supported by a research grant from the Russian Science Foundation (grant No. 18-77-10017). We are also very grateful to anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions, which greatly improved the manuscript. The English has been checked by the Elsevier Language Editing Services. This is KuramBio publication No. 57.

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Table Captions Table 1. Locations of the samples of sediment cores Table 2. The results of the determine of mercury in standards of bottom sediments

Figure Captions Fig. 1. Location study area. Insert – Мар from (Rella and Uchida, 2015). Cold (blue arrows) and warm (red arrows) surface currents. DSW - dense shelf waters; OSMW - outflow of Okhotsk Sea Mode Water; MWR - mixed water region Fig. 2. Distributions geochemical and physical parameters in core LV71-11 Fig. 3. Distributions Hg, Hg/TOC and Hg/Al in sediments cores Fig. 4. Distributions geochemical and physical parameters in core LV71-7 Fig. 5. Mercury thermospectra of the deferent type sediment samples

Appendix A. Supplementary material Table Captions Table S1. The content of the grain-size fraction, mercury, major and trace elements in the sediment cores Table S2. Correlation matrix for the sediment cores

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Fig 1

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65

Click here to download Figure Fig 1.jpg

Fig 3

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65

Click here to download Figure Fig 3.jpg

Fig 4

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49

Click here to download Figure Fig 4.jpg

Fig 5

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65

Click here to download Figure Fig 5.jpg

Fig 2

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49

Click here to download Figure Fig 2.jpg

Table 1 Locations of the samples of sediment cores Station no. Kuril Basin Sea of Okhotsk LV71-1 LV71-2 LV71-3 LV71-7 LV71-11 KurilKamchatka Trench and abyssal plain LV71-10 So223-1(A1) So223-4(B1) So223-6(C2) So223-10(D2) So250-15(A1) So250-62(A3) So250-51(A4) So250-39(A5) So250-26(A6) So250-79(A7) So250-74(A9) So250-101(А11)

Location Lat N

Long E

46°08.80' 46°41.08' 46°38.00' 46°57.02' 45°36.30'

146°00.00' 147°27.99' 148°59.99' 151°05.01' 146°23.10'

46°07.87' 43°58.19' 46°58.00' 42°29.00' 41°11.98' 45°50.88' 45°10.00' 45°28.75' 45°38.61' 45°55.23' 45°12.94' 44°39.88' 44°12.39'

152°12.18' 157°19.80' 154°32.70' 153°59.91' 150°05.62' 153°47.98' 153°45.43' 153°11.64' 152°55.92' 152°47.47' 152°42.82' 151°28.11' 150°36.02'

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Table 2

The results of the determine of mercury in standards of bottom sediments

Standards HISS-1 PACS-3 MESS-4 *

Content of mercury, ppb ± ∆* Measure Certified d 10 ± 3 9 ± 1.2 3000 ± 3080 ± 500 280 80 ± 6 85 ± 13

– absolute error (ppb), with confidence probability 0.95

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Highlights * Hg concentrations in the sediment cores from the Kuril region are similar to those in global deep-sea sediments. * Hg accumulates in diatom sediments are physically sorbed form. * The sedimentation rates and Hg fluxes have been determined in the Kuril Basin for sediments relating to the past 120 years.

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Mercury geochemistry of deep-sea sediment cores from the Kuril area, northwest Pacific Kirill I. Aksentov and Valentina V. Sattarova This is KuramBio publication No. 57. We confirm that this work is original and has not been published elsewhere, nor is it currently under consideration for publication elsewhere. We have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

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