Pore water characterization of clayey sediments from the Mekong delta (Vietnam)

Abstract

The Vietnamese Mekong Delta provides a particularly relevant natural setting for the

investigation of the role of S cycling on As mobilization.

Arsenic contamination of soils is of particular concern for rice cultivation, since rice

efficiently takes up As from soils and is a dietary staple for approximately half of the

global population. The bioavailability of Arsenic for uptake by rice depends on the

chemical species present in the soil. Therefore, the characterization of the pore water

chemistry of the sediments is crucial to characterize the mechanisms of As transport

and transformation in rice paddy systems.

In this report, the chemical composition of the pore waters was obtained by the

squeezing technique from four clayey sediments obtained by drilling in the Mekong

Delta area.