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Normalized rare earth elements in water, sediments, and wine: identifying sources and environmental redox conditions

October 1, 2013

The concentrations of the rare earth elements (REE) in surface waters and sediments, when normalized on an element-by-element basis to one of several rock standards and plotted versus atomic number, yield curves that reveal their partitioning between different sediment fractions and the sources of those fractions, for example, between terrestrial-derived lithogenous debris and seawater-derived biogenous detritus and hydrogenous metal oxides. The REE of ancient sediments support their partitioning into these same fractions and further contribute to the identification of the redox geochemistry of the sea water in which the sediments accumulated. The normalized curves of the REE that have been examined in several South American wine varietals can be interpreted to reflect the lithology of the bedrock on which the vines may have been grown, suggesting limited fractionation during soil development.

Publication Year 2013
Title Normalized rare earth elements in water, sediments, and wine: identifying sources and environmental redox conditions
DOI 10.4236/ajac.2013.410A1009
Authors David Z. Piper, Michael Bau
Publication Type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Series Title American Journal of Analytical Chemistry
Index ID 70057600
Record Source USGS Publications Warehouse
USGS Organization Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center