Mercury cycle: Difference between revisions

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The mercury cycle is a biogeochemical cycle involving mercury. Mercury is notable for being the only heavy metal which is liquid at room temperature. It is a volatile metal and evaporates easily, going into the atmosphere.^{[citation needed]}

Processes of the mercury cycle

Most natural mercury occurs as cinnabar^{[citation needed]}, Hg S. Here mercury (Hg²⁺) is bound very tightly to sulfur, but weathering releases the mercury to the environment slowly. There are also trace amounts of mercury in coal. Mining mercury or burning coal results in releasing mercury. Volcanoes and forest fires are also sources of mercury.

Chlorine factories, among other sources, release mercury into the atmosphere. This mercury is deposited back onto land and water. Inorganic mercury can be converted by bacteria into the organometallic cation known as methylmercury, MeHg⁺. This accumulates in fish. Over long periods of time, some mercury recombines with sulfur and is buried in sediments. Then, the cycle repeats itself all over again.

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 ==Processes of the mercury cycle==
-Most natural mercury occurs as [[cinnabar]]{{Citation needed|date=February 2011}}, [[mercury (element)|Hg]][[sulfur|S]]. Here mercury (Hg<sup>2+</sup>) is bound very tightly to sulfur, but weathering releases the mercury to the environment slowly. There are also trace amounts of mercury in [[coal]]. Mining mercury or burning coal results in releasing mercury. Volcanoes and forest fires are also sources of mercury. Human activities have at least doubled the amount of mercury around the globe{{Citation needed|date=April 2011}}.
+Most natural mercury occurs as [[cinnabar]]{{Citation needed|date=February 2011}}, [[mercury (element)|Hg]][[sulfur|S]]. Here mercury (Hg<sup>2+</sup>) is bound very tightly to sulfur, but weathering releases the mercury to the environment slowly. There are also trace amounts of mercury in [[coal]]. Mining mercury or burning coal results in releasing mercury. Volcanoes and forest fires are also sources of mercury.
 [[Chlorine]] factories, among other sources, release mercury into the atmosphere. This mercury is deposited back onto land and water. Inorganic mercury can be converted by bacteria into the [[organometallic]] [[cation]] known as [[methylmercury]], MeHg<sup>+</sup>. This accumulates in fish. Over long periods of time, some mercury recombines with sulfur and is buried in sediments. Then, the cycle repeats itself all over again.

v t e Biogeochemical cycles
Cycles	Carbon cycle carbonate–silicate cycle deep carbon cycle oceanic carbon cycle Chlorine cycle Hydrogen cycle Iron cycle Mercury cycle Mineral cycle Nitrogen cycle Nutrient cycle Oxygen cycle ozone Phosphorus cycle Rock cycle Selenium cycle Silica cycle Sulfur cycle Water cycle deep water cycle Marine biogeochemical cycles
Research groups	DAAC GEOTRACES IMBER NOBM SOLAS
Related topics	Biogeochemistry geochemical cycle chemical cycling environmental chemistry Biosequestration carbon sequestration carbon sink soil carbon biological pump viral shunt mycorrhizal fungi Ocean acidification acid rain Methane clathrate clathrate gun hypothesis Arctic methane emissions Human impact on the nitrogen cycle Lichens and nitrogen cycling Nitrification Nitrogen fixation Nitrogen assimilation Phosphorus assimilation Sulfur assimilation Planetary boundaries
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Revision as of 16:16, 17 June 2011

Processes of the mercury cycle

See also