마이크로네시아에서 얻어진 산호시료의 중금속 농도에 대한 예비연구

Abstract

The hard coral Porites lutes was collected near Wenno Island, Micronesia, and analyzed to investigate the heavy metal concentrations in the coral skeleton and related oceanographic environmental changes over the past few years. Soft x-ray radiographs showed that the coral had distinct annual bands reflecting environmental changes over the past six years. Large differences in the major and minor element concentrations in the coral skeleton were seen. The interrelationships among the elements clearly showed that some elements are determined by the mechanical replacement of metal ions in the aragonite lattice, while others were determined by secondary environmental factors. The Mg/Ca ratio and the concentrations of Cu and Zn showed cyclic variation, suggesting environmental changes in the surrounding ocean.