PEFTEC - Abstract

Abstract Information :

International studies have shown the existence of a mercury depletion phenomenon (AMDE) in numerous areas of both the Arctic and Antarctic regions. Usually the AMDE effect is limited by the land area along the sea coast. Beginning in 2001, a mercury analyzer was installed in Amderma (69.45 ° N, 61.39 ° E, 49 m above sea level, Nenets Autonomous District), located on the Yugorsk Peninsula Tekran 2527A, which also registered numerous cases of AMDE in the Russian Arctic. From 2001 to the present time, the location of the mercury analyzer changed three times approaching the coastline of the Kara Sea from 9 km to 200 m. At the same time, the intensity of AMDE depended on the distance to the shoreline.

In the period 2001-2004 the Tekran 2527A analyzer was located at a distance of 8.9 km from the coast of the Kara Sea. The number of AMDEs for this period was 10% of the total number of measurements (6,765 measurements). In the period from 2005-2010 the analyzer was located 2.5 km from the coast of the Kara Sea. This period is characterized by intensive registration of AMDEs, especially in the spring-summer period (which is typical for the polar stations Ny-Allessund (Norway), Alert (Canada), Pallas (Finland) and Andoya (Norway). AMDEs were recorded for the first time for the winter period, the AMDEs intensity for this period was 20% of the total number of measurements (1898 measurements) .In 2010-2013, the analyzer was installed at a distance of 200 m from the coast of the Kara Sea. This distance from the coastline recorded the most intense AMDEs (30% of 6786 measurements).

In 2015-2016 gg. At the polar station of Amderma, a mercury analyzer Lumex RA-915AM was installed for parallel measurement of background concentrations of GEM with a Tekran 2527A analyzer. Verification of the possibility of using Lumex RA-915AM for GEM monitoring for the Russian Act was due to the need to search for a mercury analyzer with a more simplified configuration, installation and maintenance scheme. In addition, at mid-latitudes parallel measurements of Tekran 2527A and Lumex RA-915AM showed good correlation when measuring low concentrations of GEM (R2 = 0.95). The main result of the parallel GEM measurement during the winter and spring periods at the Amderma station was the recording of a different number of AMDEs using Tekran 2527A (about 32% of the total number of measurements), and Lumex RA-915AM (approximately 3% of the total number of measurements).

It can be assumed that the different number of registered AMDEs in the parallel measurement of GEM Tekran 2527A and Lumex RA-915AM analyzers is due to the following reasons:

Blocking sorption sites of pure gold sorbent used in the Tekran 2527A analyzer by high concentrations of halogens (bromides and sulfates) associated with increased content of marine aerosol, which are usually accompanied by AMDEs. As a result, the efficiency of GEM trapping by the gold sorbent can be reduced.

Sorption competition of GEM with products of catalytic conversion of organic substances on the surface of a gold sorbent (as known, a gold sorbent can serve as a catalyst for various chemical processes).

The results raise the issue of the problem of registration of AMDEs in the Arctic. For the first time, as a result of parallel measurements of GEM by the Tekran 2527A and Lumex RA-915AM analyzers, the difference in the number of registered cases of AMDEs was revealed. Lumex RA-915AM uses a direct GEM registration system in the ambient air, while Tekran 2527A uses an additional sorption concentrating phase. The observed effect requires confirmation and further parallel measurements of GEM in other polar regions using mercury analyzers of various recording systems.