Interactions Among the Copper Species and Forms in Sea Water/Sediments and Copper Bioaccumulation in Oysters

Abstract

Abstract Earlier papers indicated that the first incident of green discoloration in oysters (Crassostrea gigas) and the mass mortality observed in 1986 along the Taiwan Erhjin Chi coastal area were caused by the higher contents of total copper and copper species (mainly bioavailable and free ion) in sea water. the copper in sea water would be sorbed by suspended matter and transferred to sediments, and the copper in the sediments would also be desorbed to sea water. Processes of copper adsorption and desorption are the major factors influencing the contents of total copper and copper species in sea water and sediments. in this study, the Erhjin Chi sediments were mixed with sea water by a shaker technique. When the mixture was shaken for one hour, analogous to tidal mixing in estuaries, only copper desorption from sediments was observed. If the shaking time is increased for more than 3 hours, the copper released from the sediments was resorbed to the remaining solid phases. the higher the contents of mud (91.71%) and total copper (701 mg kg−1) in sediments, the higher the copper desorption rate (1.86 ppm hr−1) and copper adsorption rate (0.50 ppm hr−1) were observed. in sediments containing lower mud (0.80%) and lower copper (43.5 mg kg−1), the copper desorption and adsorption rates were 0.83 ppm hr−1 and 0.22 ppm hr−1, respectively. the interactions among the total copper and copper species in sea water and sediments, chemical and ecological parameters, and copper bioaccumulation in oysters in the Erhjin Chi estuarine and coastal area are also discussed.