Indium and yttrium in North Atlantic and Mediterranean waters: Comparison to the Pacific data

Vertical profiles of dissolved indium and yttrium were determined in the eastern North Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea to compare with those of the North Pacific reported earlier. The Y concentrations in the surface waters are 120 pmol/kg in the North Atlantic and 205 pmol/kg in the Mediterranean Sea, which are significantly higher than 80 pmol/kg in the North Pacific. The difference may be attributable to the different strength of input of Y to the oceans from fluvial and aeolian sources. In contrast, the deep water concentration of Y increases in the order of North Atlantic < Mediterranean < North Pacific. This trend is similar to that of dissolved Si, suggesting that Y is involved in the biogeochemical regeneration cycle. The vertical profiles of In are far more complex than Y. The In profile shows a systematic increase from 0.6 pmol/kg at the surface to 1.7 pmol/kg at 2100 m in the North Atlantic, whereas it is almost featureless at a mean concentration of 3.8 +/- 0.6 pmol/kg in the Mediterranean Sea. The North Atlantic and Mediterranean In concentrations are considerably higher than those observed in the North Pacific (similar to 0.1 pmol/kg), and such a large interoceanic variation has been reported before only for Al and Ga. Like Al, the deep water In concentration that decreases in the order of Mediterranean > North > North Pacific exhibits an inverse trend of Y and nutrients. Indium is highly particle-reactive (47% association in the Mediterranean Sea), and must have a short mean oceanic residence time. However, the featureless dissolved In profile in the Mediterranean Sea is clearly different from the profiles of dissolved Al, showing increase with depth (Hydes et al., 1988; Measures and Edmond, 1988), suggesting that significant fractionation of the two elements is taking place in the ocean. The interoceanic variations of dissolved In and Al may be ascribed to the different intensities of external input of which aeolian has been considered to be major rather than fluvial. However, the difference of In and Al concentrations in the deep waters of the above oceanic basins are significantly greater than those of other refractory elements, such as Ce, Ti, Hf, and Zr, whose major sources to the ocean are also considered to be aeolian. Furthermore, the In/Al ratios in seawater are about two orders of magnitude greater than the average crustal ratio. Thus, some additional sources, though not yet certain, may be required to explain the high concentrations of In in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean deep waters. Copyright (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd.