Isotopic and Elemental Content of Deep-Sea Sediments from the Black Sea. Preliminary Results

Abstract

The unraveling of the geological processes, which are recorded in the chemical and isotopic fingerprinting of the deep-sea sediments, demands the introduction of a sensitive parameter over time. The aim of this study is to analyze the deep-sea sediments from the Black Sea, using the stable isotopic and elemental content. For this purpose, 41 sediment samples were taken from five cores, having lengths between 2.66 and 4.24 m using a gravitational core. Additional nine samples were taken from three cores using a multicore equipment. All samples were collected during a two weeks marine expedition, in the beginning of September 2018, in the western part of the Black Sea. The isotopic values (δ¹³C; δ¹⁸O) and elemental concentrations (macro-, micro-elements, and heavy metals) were determined in the sediments samples, along with δ¹⁸O and δ²H in extracted water from sediments. Preliminary results obtained from sediments show that δ¹³C values of the bulk organic component range between -27.9 ‰ and -22.3 ‰ with a mean value of -25.3 ‰, while for inorganic component, the δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O values range between -4.3 ‰ and 1.5 ‰ for δ¹³C, and from -10.6 ‰ to -0.07 ‰ for δ¹⁸O, respectively, with a mean of -0.32 for δ¹³C and -5.74 ‰ for δ¹⁸O, versus Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite (VPDB) international standard. In the extracted water, the δ¹⁸O variation range was between -3.5 and 1.6 ‰, with a mean of -1.7 ‰, while the δ²H values range between -32.4 ‰ and -16.5 ‰ with a mean of -23.1 ‰. The results of this research will be the basis of the new paleoclimatic reconstruction using stable isotopes in the deep-sea sediments from the Black Sea.

Keywords:

• Black Sea
• δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O in sediments
• elemental content
• heavy metals

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by a grant of the Romanian Ministery of Research and Innovation, CCCDI - UEFISCDI, project number PN-III-P1-1.2-PCCDI-2017-0178/ 24PCCDI / 2018, within PNCDI III.