Physicochemical and mineral properties of suspended sediments of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in the Mesopotamian Plain
Identificadores
URI: https://hdl.handle.net/10481/87179Metadatos
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Elsevier
Materia
Clay minerals Non-clay minerals River sediment load
Fecha
2024-01Referencia bibliográfica
AL-SHIHMANI, L., AL-SHAMMARY, A., FERNÁNDEZ-GÁLVEZ, J. & CABALLERO-CALVO, A. (2024). Physicochemical and mineral properties of suspended sediments of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in the Mesopotamian Plain. Science of the Total Environment, 915(2024) 170066. ISSN: 1879-1026 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170066
Resumen
Most of the suspended river load from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers is deposited in the Mesopotamian Plain in
Iraq. This suspended river load comprises sediments consisting of minerals and organic particles generated from
weathering, erosion, transport, and sedimentation. Therefore, it is crucial to analyze, either quantitative or
qualitatively, the types of minerals in the sediment particles transported by the suspended river load, in addition
to the potential value they may add to the agricultural lands irrigated by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Herein,
samples of suspended sediments were collected from both rivers for physical, chemical, and mineral assessments.
The results revealed the predominance of silt particles, followed by clay, and then sand. The presence of clay
particles increased while that of silt and sand decreased with further travel into the rivers. The pH values ranged
from 7.39 to 7.70 and the electrical conductivity ranged from 1.39 to 2.16 ds m����� 1. The values of the total and
active calcium carbonate minerals were 352.87–336.12 and 172.64–194.56 g kg����� 1 for the Tigris and Euphrates
rivers, respectively. The mineral analysis identified the presence of non-clay minerals at a rate of 83 %, including
calcite, quartz, albite, dolomite, and gypsum. Clay minerals, including chlorite, illite, montmorillonite, palygorskite,
vermiculite, and kaolinite, were found at a rate of 17 %. Both rivers exhibited distributions of clay and
non-clay minerals that vary as they move along the rivers.