Concentrations of Poorly Studied Technology-Critical Elements Ge, Zr, Mo, Sn, Sb, Hf, Ta, W and Ti in the Sediments of Three Northern Egyptian Lakes

Abstract

Thirty five Sediment samples were collected from three Northern Egyptian Lakes namely El Burullus, El Manzala and El Bardawil to evaluate for the first time the concentrations of poorly studied technology-critical elements, namely Ge, Zr, Mo, Sn, Sb, Hf, Ta, W and Ti, and how that may be linked to local water quality parameters and other geochemical factors. Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) was used to determine element’s concentration. The results were compared with Upper Continental Crust (UCC) and Nile sediment (ANS). Lake sediments generally have relatively low contents of most elements. The average concentration of Zr, Hf, Ta and W are lower than UCC and ANS in three Lakes. El Bardawil Lake attained the lowest average concentration for all elements except Mo. Correlation analysis revealed that water quality and geochemical properties did not play any important role affecting the metal distribution and the studied metals are generally not affected by the complex lacustrine system of these lakes and their spatial distribution still not affected by the different anthropogenic activates.