Use of radiotracers for studies of metal sorption behaviour

Radiotracers provide a convenient tool to study the behaviour of metal ions and other contaminants in natural waters. Furthermore, the use of radiotracers in controlled laboratory experiments provides an ideal approach for investigating, in a systematic manner, the role of individual parameters on processes, at mass concentrations found in the environment. A simplistic procedure has been developed to produce a thorium radiotracer (234Th), in a similar chemical form (non-acidic) to that of the aquatic medium under investigation, to determine the kinetics of sorption to marine particulate material. The benefit of this procedure is that the system is likely to be perturbed to a lesser extent by changes in pH and dissolved Th species following tracer addition. Results from filtering different tracer batches through membranes, to determine the sorption characteristics prior to use, indicate that the physico-chemical behaviour of individual batches was extremely variable. Not surprisingly, the amount of uptake immediately following tracer additions to solutions containing marine particulate material was also variable. It is suggested that the role of tracer may be underestimated if added in acid form. Nevertheless, having accounted for the initial sorption, the subsequent uptake between different batches was reasonably reproducible. The usefulness of radiotracers is discussed in the context of these observations.