Mercury Pollution Reaches the Deep Sea
A study tracking mercury isotopes finds evidence of mercury pollution in deep sea trenches.
Mercury
Maybe it was a science class where you first met mercury. The chemical element with the symbol Hg is fascinating. It’s a liquid, but it doesn’t act like another liquid.
This is because it is the only metallic element that is in the liquid phase under conditions of ‘standard’ pressure and temperature. Since mercury is a metal, the bonds between its atoms are quite strong. This results in a very high surface tension, which explains why mercury doesn't splash like water, but rather rolls and glides across surfaces — mercurial, you might say.
The fact that mercury doesn’t stick to glass but still responds well to temperature fluctuations by changes in volume. Hence, its most well-known application is its use in thermometers.
Still, mercury in thermometers is being phased out. The mercurial element is seriously poisonous, after all.
Most mercury poisoning occurs through exposure to mercury vapor or water-soluble forms such as methylmercury. Mercury binds irreversibly to selenium-dependent enzymes that fulfill a variety of roles in our body, and Hg can also increase the amount of antibodies that…
