Concentrations of three rare elements in the hydrological cycle and soil of a mountainous fir forest

Abstract

In this work, the concentrations of three rare trace elements, antimony (Sb), selenium (Se), and vanadium (V) were determined in the hydrological cycle and soil of a mountain fir forest. The three elements were significantly enriched in throughfall compared to the bulk deposition. Dry deposits, either in particles or vapor form, are probably the cause of this. It was found that for the enrichment of rain with Sb and Se long range transport played a more important role compared to V. The latter had a significant relation with marine derived ions, a rather unexpected finding. Apart from dry deposition coming from long distances, all elements were enriched with continental material. The concentrations of the three elements in soils were close to the average values reported in literature. In addition, their concentrations in the streamflow water were far below the tolerable drinking water limits set up by the World Health Organization and national authorities.