Fractioning of elements for their study in the environment

The mobility and bioavailability of elements in the environment is governed by physico-chemical parameters such as pH, dissolved organic carbon concentration, redox potential, particle size and ionic charge, etc. The study of the environmental behavior of elements is difficult, if not impossible, to address through conventional chemical analysis. The study of the environmental behavior of elements is difficult, if not impossible, to approach by means of conventional chemical analyses, and fractionation techniques simulating the conditions governing element mobility in sediments and soils have thus been developed since the early 1980s. In the same vein, leaching tests were developed to assess the mobility of inorganic pollutants in a variety of situations, e.g. for the analysis of waste, building materials, plastics, etc.

This dossier presents various fractionation approaches and their applications, and discusses the issues surrounding their use.