Release Model of the Chemical Substance from Harbor Sediments

Abstract

Chemical substances, such as a tributyltin compounds and dioxins, are being accumulated in harbor sediments. We are concerned about their adverse effects on ecosystem by their release to seawater through pore water. Sediment-water partition coefficient Kd had the strong correlation with amount of organic matter in sediment particles expressed in terms of TOC. In this study, a chemical substance release model was developed, which can simulate the changes of release flux of TBT from sediment with the passage of time. The actual concentration of TBT and the actual perpendicular distribution of TOC in the sediment in the Nagoya Harbor were used as input data for the model developed in this study. The simulated results indicated that the release flux to sea water could be controlled by installing capping.