Time Trial 1 M HCl extraction data for the Windmill Islands marine sediments

As part of a regional survey of metal contamination associated with Australia's past waste management activities in Antarctica, we wanted to identify an acid type and extraction protocol that would allow a reasonable definition of the anthropogenic bioavailable fraction for a large number of samples. From a kinetic study of the 1 M HCl extraction of two certified Certified Reference Materials (MESS-2 and PACS-2) and two Antarctic marine sediments, we concluded that a 4 hour extraction time allows the equilibrium dissolution of relatively labile metal contaminants, but does not favour the extraction of natural geogenic metals.

In a regional survey of 88 marine samples from the Casey Station area of East Antarctica, the 4 h extraction procedure correlated best with biological data, and most clearly identified those sediments thought to be contaminated by runoff from abandoned waste disposal sites. Most importantly the 4 hour extraction provided better definition of the low to moderately contaminated locations by picking up small differences in anthropogenic metal concentrations.

For the purposes of inter-regional comparison, we recommend a 4 hour 1 M HCl acid extraction as a standard method for assessing metal contamination in Antarctica. The fields in this dataset are Concentration Extraction Time Antimony Arsenic Cadmium Chromium Copper Iron Lead Manganese Nickel Silver Tin Zinc