Methylmercury Generation in Seawater by Transmethylation Reactions of Organolead and Organotin Compounds With Inorganic Mercury as Monitored by Multinuclear Magnetic-Resonance and Electrochemical Techniques

Abstract

The generation of methylmercury species by reactions between inorganic mercury and methylated forms of lead and tin in seawater and other matrices is described. The reactions were investigated by ¹¹⁹Sn, ¹⁹⁹Hg and ²⁰⁷Pb multinuclear Fourier transform magnetic resonance spectroscopy and by differential pulse polarography and anodic stripping voltammetry. Methylmercury chloride is shown to be produced from mixtures of inorganic mercury with methyltin or methyllead species over the 10^-2-10^-8 M concentration range at ambient temperatures in seawater and artificial seawater.