Composição química e isótopos de estrôncio das águas ao longo do rio Solimões na região entre Manacapuru e Alvarães - Amazonas - Brasil

Abstract

The present study evaluated the physical-chemical aspects of 64 water samples from the Solimões, Purus rivers and their tributaries and Japurá river (29 from the surface, 27 from sediments in suspension and 8 of wells and springs), collected in November 2004 in the state of Amazonas between the cities of Manacapuru and Alvarães as well as Anamã and pirarauara. Chemical analyses of the higher elements, trace-elements, rare earth elements, Sr isotopes, were carried out in addition to mineralogical composition analyses on the sediments in suspension collected according to the rules in Standard Methods for Examination of Water and Wastewater. The studied waters were divided into two groups: black-water and white-water. The former, which includes the Solimões and Purus rivers tributaries presents a higher SiO2, Fe, and Al concentration, whereas the latter portrays the highest concentration in Ca2+, Na+, K+, Mg2+, HCO3-, Mn, Ba, Sr, B, Ce and As. In general, the Solimões river tributaries present higher chemical load than those of Purus river, and white waters more than black waters. The results obtained on the isotopic ratios 87Sr/86Sr showed higher ratios in the Solimões rives white waters whereas its tributaries are less radiogenic than those of the Purus river. Kaolinite is the most abundant mineral in the sediments in suspension, with a higher rate in the Solimões river tributaries tha in the other investigated ones. The suspended material in Ti, Zn, Ba and V, represents 98% of the total chemical composition, since Ge is negligible in all studied waters.