Abstract
The major objective of this study was to carry out sequential chemical extractions for the partitioning of particulate trace metals in sediment samples, collected from False Bay. Eight metals, Cd, Cu, Cr, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn, were examined in each of 65 samples. Three chemical fractions of the sediments were separated and the concentrations of the trace metals were determined in each, by atomic absorption techniques. The three different leaches used were hydroxylamine hydrochloride-acetic acid, hydrogen peroxide, and nitricperchloric acids. Fe and Pb were concentrated mainly in the fraction extracted by nitric-perchloric acid, while Cu, Zn and Ni were found mainly in the peroxide fraction. Most of the metals in the peroxide phase were found in the finer sediments in the central area of the bay, where the concentration of organic meterial was high. The metal concentrations (except for Pb) correlated well with the organic content of the sediments.
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