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Introduction
Aluminium is a member of group 13 of the
periodic table, which also includes B, Ga, In and
Tl. The element has an atomic number of 13, an
atomic mass of 27, one oxidation state (+3) and
one naturally occurring isotope (27Al). The
geochemical behaviour of Al is very similar to
that of its group neighbour Ga.
Aluminium is a lithophile element and is the
most abundant metal in the lithosphere, forming
several of its own minerals, including sillimanite
Al2SiO5, corundum Al2O3 and kaolinite
Al2Si2O5(OH)4. It is exceeded in abundance only
by oxygen (45.5%) and silicon (25.7%) (Ildefonse
1999). It is a major constituent in many rockforming minerals, such as feldspar, mica,
amphibole, pyroxene and garnet. The weathered
products of primary Al minerals include
secondary clay minerals, e.g., kaolinite and
dioctahedral smectite, and Al-hydroxides, such as
gibbsite, nordstrandite and bayerite, which may
control the equilibrium concentration of Al in soil
solution, groundwater and stream water. In
tropical conditions, weathering may produce the
Al-ore bauxite, a mixture of several secondary
hydroxide/oxide minerals. Aluminium is present
at percent levels in most of the common rock
types, and has an average crustal abundance of
about 8.3% (Ildefonse 1999).
Metamorphic rocks show both the widest
variation, and the highest mean values with
respect to Al2O3 concentration. Average values
typically range from 12 to 24%, although Al2O3
concentrations as low as 1%, and as high as 28%,
have been reported. With the exception of shale,
sedimentary rock types commonly contain very
little Al2O3 with average contents ranging from
<1% to a maximum of 2.5% in carbonates and
~5% to 8% in sandstone. Shale contains much
higher concentrations of Al2O3, typically up to
15%, due to the presence of clay minerals such as
kaolinite.
Concentrations in igneous rocks
generally increase with decreasing Fe and Mn
content; ultramafic rocks such as peridotite
contain as little as 4% Al2O3, whilst mafic rocks
such as basalt can contain up to 16%. Acid
igneous rocks on average have Al2O3
concentrations in the range 15 to 25%, the higher
values corresponding to igneous rocks rich in
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Table 8. Median concentrations of Al in the FOREGS samples and in some reference datasets.
Aluminum
(Al2O3)
Crust1)
Origin Source
Upper continental
Number of
samples
n.a.
Size fraction
mm
n.a.
Extraction
Total
Median
%
15.4
Subsoil
FOREGS
788
<2.0
Total (XRF)
11.7
Topsoil
FOREGS
845
<2.0
Total (XRF)
11.0
World
n.a.
n.a
Total
11.2
FOREGS
807
Filtered <0.45 m
17.7 (g l-1)
World
n.a.
n.a.
160 (g l-1)
Barents region
1364
Filtered <0.45 m
49.1 (g l-1)
2)
Soil
Water (Al)
Stream sediment
FOREGS
850
<0.15
Total (XRF)
10.3
Floodplain sediment
FOREGS
749
<2.0
Total (XRF)
10.4
1)
Rudnick & Gao 2004, 2)Koljonen 1992, 3)Ivanov 1996, 4)Salminen et al. 2004.
Al2O3 in soil
The median Al2O3 content is 11.7% in subsoil
and 11.0% in topsoil, with values ranging from
0.21 to 27.1% in subsoils and 0.37 to 26.7% in
topsoils (Figure 1).
The average ratio
topsoil/subsoil is 0.925 (Table 4).
The Al2O3 subsoil distribution map shows low
values (<7.68%) throughout the sandy plains
extending from the Netherlands over northern
Germany and Denmark to Poland and Lithuania,
as expected because of the glacial sand and loess
cover. Low values also occur in Ireland, the Paris
and Garonne basins in France, central Hungary
and eastern Spain, over mainly calcareous rocks.
High Al2O3 values in subsoil (>14.5%) occur
throughout the western Iberian Peninsula, where
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Al in stream water
in soil (greenstone and deeply weathered bedrock
in the ice divider area) resulting in low aluminium
mobility. Low values
of Al in
central
Sweden are related to elevated pH,
an
influence from Palaeozoic carbonates in western
Scandinavia.
Highest Al values in stream water (>339 g l-1)
are predominantly found throughout central and
southern Fennoscandia and Denmark. These
regions have base-poor buffering capacity because
of their geology, and Al solubility is strongly
controlled by acid pH. Anomalously high isolated
Al values in southern Tuscany and Basilicata
regions of Italy are related to the alkaline volcanic
Roman Province and Vulture volcanoes
respectively. The high Al values in northern
Germany are associated with low pH values and
high DOC, lanthanum, cerium and REEs, but Al
is low in stream sediment. In south-central Spain
a highly anomalous Al value is related to acidic
conditions in the mineralised area of Valle de
Alcudia. High values in Galicia (north-west
Spain) are related to As (Au) mineralisation in or
close to N-S shear structures.
A more detailed description on the chemistry
of Al in stream water is given in Annex 1 of this
volume by Ander et al. (2006), where the thematic
interpretation of stream water chemistry is
discussed (see section on Al and Si speciation and
solubility).
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