Analysis of Singapore marine sediments by PIXE

Abstract

Thirty eight core samples of sediment were collected from seven coastal zones around the Island of Singapore for the purpose of surveying the concentrations of metallic pollutants in the marine sediments. The samples were analyzed by means of the Proton-Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) technique to obtain the concentrations of the trace metals Cr, Mn, Ni, Cu, Zn, As and Pb. Some of them were also analyzed with the X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) technique to determine the concentration of Sn. The survey provided valuable information about the levels of marine pollution in the various coastal zones and shed light on the major source of some of the pollutants. Interesting concentration depth profiles of the metallic pollutants in sediments were also obtained from a number of the core samples collected. The concentration depth profiles of Cu, Zn, Sn and Pb obtained from one of the core samples exhibited a steep decrease at a depth of 10 cm, implying that a sudden increase of these pollutants occurred some 20–33 years ago.