Minor elements in carbonaceous sediments of the Baltic Sea

According to the geochemical analysis, the carbonaceous sediments of the Baltic Sea's deep basins containing 3-5% C-org are enriched with some metals such as Cu, Mo, Ni, Pb, Zn, V, and U as compared with the shallow-water facies of the Bay of Finland. These metals are also concentrated (against the background values in the clayey rocks) in ancient carbonaceous shales, where the average Cu and V contents are slightly higher and that of Mo, Pb, and Zn lower than in the deepwater carbonaceous sediments of the Baltic Sea. In addition, the carbonaceous sediments of the last basin are enriched, although less notably than the ancient shales, with Ag, As, Bi, and Cd. These data confirm the previous assumptions that the carbonaceous sediments accumulating now in seas and oceans may be considered as recent analogs of ancient metalliferous shales.