Selenium mobilization during Rain-Soil Interaction at Etna volcano

Humans are attracted by the fertile properties of volcanic soils. Currently around 10% of the world population lives within active volcanic areas. Volcanoes emit enormous amounts of potentially toxic elements, even in the absence of obvious volcanic activity. Selenium is particularly interesting due to it geochemical similarities with sulphur, a major compound in volcanic gasses. Although selenium (Se) is an essential element for humans, ingestion of an excess amount of Se can produce adverse effects. Mt. Etna, the biggest volcano in Europe, is persistently active for the last 200,000 years. It is one of the most intensely monitored volcanoes. In the area, volcanic gasses, rainwater and gro…

Volcanic soil-rainwater interaction at Mount Etna, Sicily. Preliminary Results

Geogenic element behaviour in soil-rainwater interaction at Mt Etna, Sicily: preliminary results

Active volcanoes emit considerable amounts of contaminants such as As, Se and V. Previous studies have shown that the volcanic activity at Mt Etna (Sicily) has a strong influence on local rainwater compositions. However to date, the behaviour of trace elements in the soils around Mt Etna is poorly understood. 4-hr batch experiments have been performed with 1:5 soil solutions of air-dried soil (fraction <2 mm) and synthetic (acid) rainwater (using either deionized water with a pH of ~6 or a ~500 ppm of sulphuric acid solution with a pH of ~2). In general trace element concentrations are more enriched in soil solutions with low pH (e.g. enrichment factor (EF) acid compared to neutral soil sol…

Rainwater-induced leaching of selenium, arsenic and vanadium from Etnean volcanic soils

Active volcanoes emit considerable amounts of contaminants such as As, Se and V. Mount Etna is the biggest volcano of Europe and an excellent geochemical site to study water-soil processes. Due to its volcanic activity, the rainwater has a strong compositional gradient, both in time and space. At present, the behaviour of trace elements in the soils around Mt Etna is poorly understood. To determine the influence of the rainwater pH on the potential mobilization of geogenic pollutants, batch experiments have been performed with synthetic rainwater for 25 soils collected along the flanks of the volcano. Our results show that: i) The maximum concentrations in the leaching solutions are higher …

Selenium around Etna Volcano, Italy

Humans are attracted by the fertile properties of volcanic soils and currently around 10% of the world population lives within active volcanic areas. Volcanoes emit significantly amounts of potentially toxic elements such as selenium (Se), even in the absence of obvious volcanic activity. Although Se is an essential element for humans, ingestion of an excess amount of Se can produce adverse effects. Mt. Etna, the biggest volcano in Europe, is persistently active for the last 200,000 years and one of the most intensely monitored volcanoes. We have studied selenium in rainwater and soils from Mt Etna volcano. Bulk depositions were collected from April 2006 to December 2007, using a network of…

Volcanic signature of volatile trace elements on atmospheric deposition at Mt. Etna, Italy

Volcanic volatiles and aerosol emitted into the atmosphere ultimately fall on the Earth’s surface as wet or dry deposition, and they can influence the environment and the ecosystems at local and regional scales. Therefore, atmospheric deposition plays a key-role in the geochemical cycles, redistributing volcanogenic elements to the ground. For this reason, estimating the volcanogenic trace element fluxes from the atmosphere to the surface is necessary for a better knowledge of the environmental impact of the volcanic emissions. Nevertheless, from a literature review, we have recognized the scarcity of investigation on trace element deposition in the surroundings of active volcanoes. Here, w…