Rare earth elements are mobilized, fractionated and precipitated during weathering processes of basaltic rocks of the Lisbon Volcanic Complex. In general there is an increase in the REE contents in the whole samples with increasing weathering and fractionation between LREE and HREE. Cerium is partially oxidized and Ce ~ is retained resulting in negative Ce anomalies in the whole samples of the base and middle profile zones. In the clay fraction there is an increase in the REE contents from the top to the bottom of the profiles, except for Ce, giving rise to positive Ce anomalies in the top and negative anomalies of this element in the middle and bottom of the profiles. Significant positive Ce anomalies occur in the finer fractions of palaeoweathered (Upper Cretaceous/ Lower Eocene) basalts associated with low REE contents relative to the whole samples indicating more intense leaching conditions in the Upper Cretaceous/Lower Eocene than at the present day. However, in both cases no positive Ce anomalies were found in the whole samples. There appears to be a negative correlation between the (La/Yb)ch ratio variation and the clay mineralogy/drainage conditions. The rare earth elements' (REE) behaviour in surface weathering environments has been the subject of numerous works especially in the last two decades, contributing to our understanding of how these elements behave under different conditions of weathering. However, the results obtained so far are sometimes varied and a large number of studies was undertaken to confirm the use of REE for the original parent rock, based only on the REE
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