Factors controlling the photochemical degradation of methylmercury in coastal and oceanic waters.

ABSTRACT: Many studies have recognized abiotic photochemical degradation as an important sink of methylmercury (CH₃Hg) in sunlit surface waters, but the rate-controlling factors remain poorly understood. The overall objective of this study was to improve our understanding of the relative importance of photochemical reactions in the degradation of CH₃Hg in surface waters across a variety of marine ecosystems by extending the range of water types studied. Experiments were conducted using surface water collected from coastal sites in Delaware, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Maine, as well as offshore sites on the New England continental shelf break, the equatorial Pacific, and the Arctic Ocean. Filtered water amended with additional CH₃Hg at environmentally relevant conce

SUBMITTER: DiMento BP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5836787 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature