Determination of Metals in Natural Waters, Sediments and Soils provides analytic labs with a comprehensive overview of the various methods available for analysis of metals and serves as a manual to determine metal concentrations in different media such as natural waters, waste waters, sediments and soils. The book begins with a discussion of sampling techniques and preservation and then covers metals in rivers, surface ground and mineral waters and metals in aqueous precipitation. It concludes with detailed information on analysis of metals in sediments. Determination of Metals in Natural Waters, Sediments and Soils provides a foundation for informed action by environmental interest groups and regulators and a starting point for further study by graduate students, professionals, and researchers. - Includes all of the methods currently available to assess metals in water, sediments and soils - Covers metals in surface ground and mineral waters - Summarizes the strengths, weakness and precautions of different methods and provides a table summarizing the methods with reference citations

The potential health hazards that might arise from the presence of metals in natural waters, soils and sediments are a matter of increasing concern to the water industry, environmentalists, and the general public alike. This comprehensive reference volume draws together and systematises the vast body of information available in the global scientific literature on the determination of metals in waters, soils & sediments. Sediments in rivers have the property of adsorbing dissolved metals present in the overlying water so that the concentration in the sediment is appreciably greater than that in the water by factors between 100-60,000. The concentration of metals in sediments is a measure of its concentration in water over a period of time and is therefore a useful measure of water quality. Determination of Metals in Natural Waters, Soils & Sediments provides comprehensive information on this subject. Methods are provided in broad outline, with guidance on their applicability, their comparative advantages and disadvantages, possible interferences, sensitivity & detection limits. The book is an essential reference for analytical chemists working in industry, water utilities, government & non government organisations and regulatory agencies, environmental and analytical consultants, sedimentologists, fisheries, public health and special interest groups.

The particular behavior of trace metals in the environment is determined by their specific physico-chemical form rather than by their total concentration. The introduction of atomic absorption spectrometry has lead to a plethora of scientific papers and reports in which metal concentrations in the environment are only reported as total concentrations. Only recently has the need for improved knowledge on the various forms and bioavailability of metals been realised. Considerable research effort is now devoted to measuring the concentrations of trace metals in surface waters. Efforts are made to couple chemical analytical techniques to process-related biological problems. The proceedings of the workshop on The Speciation of Metals in Water, Sediment and Soil Systems held in Sunne, Sweden, comprise these efforts and show aspects for further cooperation between analytical chemists and biologists.

Determination of Toxic Organic Chemicals in Natural Waters, Sediments and Soils: Determination and Analysis reviews the latest techniques for the determination and assessment of both current and emerging organic compounds in a range of important environmental contexts. A wide range of organic compounds in non-saline waters are discussed in the opening chapters, including hydrocarbons, surface active agents and volatile organic compounds. This is followed by multiorganics, pesticides and organometallic compounds in non-saline waters. Organic compounds in aqueous precipitation are then explored before the book goes on to discuss compounds in soils, including extraction techniques, insecticides, herbicides and fungicides, and organometallic compounds. Finally, the concluding chapters focus on compounds in sediments, providing readers with the latest information in the field and supporting them as they address the important issue surrounding organic material throughout ecosystems. - Highlights the latest methods for analyzing a wide range of organic compounds - Supports researchers by providing detailed information across a range of ecosystems - Includes detailed guidance for assessing complex mixtures of organic compounds in the environment

Determination of Metals and Anions in Soils, Sediments and Sludges is the first volume which comprehensively discusses the range of methods currently available for the analysis of metals and anions in soils, river and marine sediments and industrial sludges. There are specialist chapters on sampling, pollutant accumulation in sediments and bioaccumulation from soils to crops. A particular feature of this volume is its coverage of solid sewage, which is increasingly being applied to land as a fertilizer. An essential reference for chemists and toxicologists involved in water resource management, agrochemistry, fisheries and public health.

Aquatic chemistry is becoming both a rewarding and substantial area of inquiry and is drawing many prominent scientists to its fold. Its literature has changed from a compilation of compositional tables to studies of the chemical reactions occurring within the aquatic environments. But more than this is the recognition that human society in part is determining the nature of aquatic systems. Since rivers deliver to the world ocean most of its dissolved and particulate components, the interactions of these two sets of waters determine the vitality of our coastal waters. This significant vol ume provides not only an introduction to the dynamics of aquatic chem istries but also identifies those materials that jeopardize the resources of both the marine and fluvial domains. Its very title provides its emphasis but clearly not its breadth in considering natural processes. The book will be of great value to those environmental scientists who are dedicated to keeping the resources of the hydrosphere renewable. As the size of the world population becomes larger in the near future and as the uses of materials and energy show parallel increases, the rivers and oceans must be considered as a resource to accept some of the wastes of society. The ability of these waters and the sediments below them to accommodate wastes must be assessed continually. The key questions relate to the capacities of aqueous systems to carry one or more pollutants.