Could benzalkonium chloride be a suitable alternative to mercuric chloride for preservation of seawater samples?

Gloël, J, Robinson, C, Tilstone, GH, Tarran, GA and Kaiser, J 2015 Could benzalkonium chloride be a suitable alternative to mercuric chloride for preservation of seawater samples?. Ocean Sciences, 11. 947-952. https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-947-2015

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Abstract/Summary

Instrumental equipment unsuitable or unavailable for fieldwork as well as lack of ship space can necessitate the preservation of seawater samples prior to analysis in a shore-based laboratory. Mercuric chloride (HgCl2/ is routinely used for such preservation, but its handling and subsequent disposal incur environmental risks and significant expense. There is therefore a strong motivation to find less hazardous alternatives. Benzalkonium chloride (BAC) has been used previously as microbial inhibitor for freshwater samples. Here, we assess the use of BAC for marine samples prior to the measurement of oxygen-to-argon (O2 = Ar) ratios, as used for the determination of biological net community production. BAC at a concentration of 50 mg dm-3 inhibited microbial activity for at least 3 days in samples tested with chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentrations up to 1 mgm-3. BAC concentrations of 100 and 200 mg dm

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Additional Keywords:	Respiration, sample preservation, environmental risk, phytoplankton
Subjects:	Biology Chemistry Marine Sciences Oceanography
Divisions:	Plymouth Marine Laboratory > Science Areas > Earth Observation Science and Applications
Depositing User:	Gavin Tilstone
Date made live:	28 Jan 2016 10:03
Last Modified:	25 Apr 2020 09:57
URI:	https://plymsea.ac.uk/id/eprint/6719

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