ABSTRACT

Total and dissolved concentrations of heavy metals—V, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Mo, Cd and Pb—in the Seto Inland Sea and in surface water from the adjacent seas of Japan have been determined. The water samples were collected with a specially designed clean sampler, and particulates were separated by filtration and/or centrifugation in a clean bench on board ship or in a clean room on land. The heavy metals were preconcentrated with a chelating resin column and detected by GFAAS in a clean laboratory on land. All the elements analyzed were divided into three groups in accordance with the ratio of dissolved to total concentrations for the Seto Inland Sea. Fe, Mn and Pb were mostly particulate forms, while Cu, Zn and Co were divided fifty-fifty between dissolved and particulate forms. Cd, Ni, Mo and V were almost dissolved forms. Two different methods for separating particles were compared to determine the characteristics of particulates. The flux of heavy metals from the Inland Sea to the open ocean was estimated, assuming that only the dissolved forms of the metals are transported outward.