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Redox processes in recent sediments of the river Meuse, The Netherlands

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Abstract

Pore-water concentrations of inorganic solutes were measured at four locations in a recent sedimentation area of the river Meuse in The Netherlands. The pore-water concentration profiles were interpreted using the steady state one-dimensional reaction/transport model STEADYSED1. This model explicitly accounts for the organic matter degradation pathways and secondary redox reactions. Results show that the model reproduces the measured pore-water profiles of redox species reasonably well, although significant divergence is observed for pH. The latter is due to the absence of pH buffering by CaCO3 in the model. At all locations, methanogenesis is the major pathway of organic matter degradation below 3 cm from the sediment-water interface. However, organic matter degradation rates by methanogenesis may be overestimated, because methane ebullition is not included. Differences in profiles of redox-sensitive ions among the four locations are explained by differences in depositional conditions, in particular the sediment accumulation rate and supply of organic matter.

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Author notes

  1. Gerard A. van den Berg

    Present address: Institute for Inland Water Management and Waste Water Treatment (RIZA), Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, Van Leeuwenhoekweg 20, 3316 AV, Dordrecht, The Netherlands)

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geochemistry, Faculty of Earth Sciences, Utrecht University, PO Box 80.021, 3508 TA, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Gerard A. van den Berg & J.P. Gustav Loch

  2. Institute for Inland Water Management and Waste Water Treatment (RIZA), Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, Van Leeuwenhoekweg 20, 3316 AV, Dordrecht, The Netherlands

    Lambertus M. van der Heijdt & John J.G. Zwolsman

Authors
  1. Gerard A. van den Berg
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  2. J.P. Gustav Loch
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  3. Lambertus M. van der Heijdt
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  4. John J.G. Zwolsman
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van den Berg, G.A., Loch, J.G., van der Heijdt, L.M. et al. Redox processes in recent sediments of the river Meuse, The Netherlands. Biogeochemistry 48, 217–235 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006268325889

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