Heavy metal transportation by phytoplankton in tidal waters - development of a mathematical model

The ability to model the association of heavy metals and phytoplankton within an estuarine and coastal water system would further improve the understanding of the heavy metal budgets of such systems and he environmental effects. This report describes the development of a mathematical model to predict heavy metal transport by phytoplankton and follows on from a literature review undertaken during 1985/6. The phytoplankton biomass is the smallest of the three heavy metal reservoirs, sediment and water being the other two. As a preliminary phase it was thought necessary to develop a mathematical model which simulates the growth of one 'representative' phytoplankton species and the uptake and transport of one metal.