Challenges in Using 0.45 μm Filters to Assess Potentially Bioavailable Trace Elements in the Dissolved Fraction of river and peat bog waters of the Boreal Zone

Abstract

Passing through a 0.45 μm filter can significantly alter the concentrations of dissolved trace elements (TEs) in organic-rich waters of the Boreal Zone. However, little evidence has been provided about the impacts of filtration on the size distribution of dissolved TEs. This limitation hinders our comprehension of how filtration affects the assessment of the potentially bioavailable forms of dissolved TEs (i.e. ions and small molecules). Using AF4-UV-ICP-MS, this study systematically investigates such artefacts and their influence on the concentrations of dissolved, primarily ionic, and colloid-associated TEs in river waters and peat bog waters of the Boreal Zone. In river waters (circumneutral pH), membrane filtration had a significant impact on TEs that are associated with inorganic colloids such as Al, Mn, Fe, As, the rare earth elements, Pb, and Th. Approximately 20–80% of primarily ionic TEs (< 0.5 kDa) and 100% of large inorganic (ca. 40–300 nm) TEs were excluded from the filtrates under clogged conditions. In contrast, little impact of filtration was observed for bog waters (pH 4). Similarly, cartridge filtration of river waters also led to a decrease in concentrations and size distributions of dissolved TEs. However, cartridge filtration demonstrated a higher efficiency in allowing the passage of ions and excluding colloids than membrane filtration. On average, the ratio of the dissolved concentrations between a cartridge and a membrane filtrate was 1.0 ± 0.2. For primarily ionic species, the average ratio was 1.4 ± 0.4, while for colloidal species, it was 0.4 ± 0.1. Therefore, despite having similar dissolved concentrations, filtration methods with the same nominal pore size can yield different concentrations of bioavailable forms of TEs. These findings may be important for studies of the environmental relevance of dissolved TEs in surface waters of the Boreal Zone, and organic-rich waters elsewhere.