Defining concentration of some elements in relation with sediment grain size in Lake Hazar

The present study aimed to evaluate As, Hg, Mo, Ba, U, Sn, Ti, La concentrations in deep sediment samples in Lake Hazar (Elazığ). In addition, concentrations of heavy metals studied were analyzed according to sediment grain size. The mean metal concentrations in deep sediment samples obtained in this study decreased in the following order; Ti˃Ba˃As˃La˃Mo˃U˃Sn˃Hg for Lake Hazar. Be concentrations could not be determined since it was below the measurement sensitivity of the device. Of all heavy metals studied, only As showed a positive moderate association with its sediment grain size such that As concentration increases as its sediment grain size gets larger. There was no significant relationship between sediment concentration and sediment grain size in other heavy metals. When correlations among heavy metal were analyzed, there were positive strong correlations between Sn and U, between Sn and Ti, and between La and U. There were also positive very strong correlations between La and Sn, and between La and Ti.