Sida Fu, Jie Li, Patrick Rioual, Jingkang Wang, Luo Wang
{"title":"A new method to remove biogenic silica from lake sediments by chemical dissolution coupled with sonication","authors":"Sida Fu, Jie Li, Patrick Rioual, Jingkang Wang, Luo Wang","doi":"10.1007/s10933-023-00305-9","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>The grain-size distribution of lake sediments is a crucial proxy for paleoclimate reconstruction, as it is closely related to the transport dynamics of clastic materials from the surrounding land. However, the presence of biogenic silica, particularly remains of diatom frustules, can significantly bias the grain-size distribution of lake-sediment samples. To remove this component, an alkaline solution, usually consisting of sodium carbonate, is commonly used during sample preparation. However, the efficiency of this method has not been fully verified under the microscope and with statistical tests. This study aims to assess the efficiency of removing diatoms from sediment samples under different concentrations and treatment durations of Na<sub>2</sub>CO<sub>3</sub> solution, and with and without sonication. The removal efficiency was assessed using microscope examination. Two sets of sediment samples from Huguang Maar Lake with high contents of diatoms but different species compositions were used. Results show that increasing sodium carbonate concentration and treatment duration improved the removal efficiency. A treatment with 2 mol L<sup>−1</sup> Na<sub>2</sub>CO<sub>3</sub> solution coupled with ultrasound vibrations for 4 h was found to be the most effective method for removing biogenic silica from the lake-sediment samples that were investigated. Differences in the removal efficiency between the two samples might be due to the different dominant diatom species in the samples. The new method provides a more reliable and effective procedure for removing diatoms from lake-sediment samples.</p>","PeriodicalId":16658,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Paleolimnology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.7000,"publicationDate":"2023-12-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Paleolimnology","FirstCategoryId":"89","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10933-023-00305-9","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The grain-size distribution of lake sediments is a crucial proxy for paleoclimate reconstruction, as it is closely related to the transport dynamics of clastic materials from the surrounding land. However, the presence of biogenic silica, particularly remains of diatom frustules, can significantly bias the grain-size distribution of lake-sediment samples. To remove this component, an alkaline solution, usually consisting of sodium carbonate, is commonly used during sample preparation. However, the efficiency of this method has not been fully verified under the microscope and with statistical tests. This study aims to assess the efficiency of removing diatoms from sediment samples under different concentrations and treatment durations of Na2CO3 solution, and with and without sonication. The removal efficiency was assessed using microscope examination. Two sets of sediment samples from Huguang Maar Lake with high contents of diatoms but different species compositions were used. Results show that increasing sodium carbonate concentration and treatment duration improved the removal efficiency. A treatment with 2 mol L−1 Na2CO3 solution coupled with ultrasound vibrations for 4 h was found to be the most effective method for removing biogenic silica from the lake-sediment samples that were investigated. Differences in the removal efficiency between the two samples might be due to the different dominant diatom species in the samples. The new method provides a more reliable and effective procedure for removing diatoms from lake-sediment samples.
期刊介绍:
The realization that a historical perspective is often useful, if not essential, to the understanding of most limnological processes has resulted in the recent surge of interest in paleolimnology. The main aim of the Journal of Paleolimnology is the provision of a vehicle for the rapid dissemination of original scientific work dealing with the reconstruction of lake histories. Although the majority of papers deal with lakes, paleoenvironmental studies of river, wetland, peatland and estuary systems are also eligible for publication.
The Journal of Paleolimnology, like the subject itself, is multidisciplinary in nature, and papers are published that are concerned with all aspects (e.g. biological, chemical, physical, geological, etc.) of the reconstruction and interpretation of lake histories. Both applied and more theoretical papers are equally encouraged. The Journal of Paleolimnology will continue to be a major repository for papers dealing with climatic change, as well as other pressing topics, such as global environmental change, lake acidification, eutrophication, long-term monitoring, and other aspects of lake ontogeny. Taxonomic and methodological papers are also acceptable provided they are of relatively broad interest. New equipment designs are frequently featured. In addition to original data and ideas, the Journal of Paleolimnology also publishes review articles, commentaries and program announcements. A relevant Book Review Section is also featured.