Burial fluxes and sources of organic carbon in sediments of the central Yellow Sea mud area over the past 200 years

Long-term changes of composition,sources and burial fluxes of TOC(total organic carbon) in sediments of the central Yellow Sea mud area and their possible affecting factors are discussed in this paper.Firstly,similarity analysis is employed to confirm that the carbon burial features resulted from two collected cores are typical in the central Yellow Sea mud area where YSWC(Yellow Sea Warm Current) is prevalent.On this basis,the burial flux of TOC here was considered to be 235.5–488.4 μmol/(cm2?a) since the first industrial revolution,accounting for about 70%–90% among burial fluxes of TC(total carbon) in the sediments.Compared TOC/TC ratio in the two cores with that in other marine sediments worldwide,we suggest that the growth of calcareous/non-calcareous organisms and dissolution of IC(inorganic carbon) are important factors controlling the TOC/TC ratio in sediment.Results of two-end mixed model based on δ13C data indicate that marine-derived organic carbon(OCa)is the main part among total burial organic carbon which accounts for a ratio over 85%.Due to the high TOC/TC ratio in the two cores,TC in the sediments also mainly exists as OCa,and the proportion of OCa is about 60%–80%.Away from the shore and relatively high primary production in upper waters are the main reasons that OCa is predominant among all burial OC in sediments of the central Yellow Sea mud area.Burial of OC in this mud area is probably mainly influenced by the human activities.Although the economic development during the late 19 th century caused by the first industrial revolution in China did not obviously increase the TOC burial fluxes in the sediments,the rise of industry and agriculture after the founding of new China has clearly increased the TOC burial flux since 1950 s.Otherwise,we also realize that among TC burial fluxes,TIC account for about 10%–30% in sediments of the central Yellow Sea mud area,so its burial could not be simply ignored here.Distinct from TOC burial,long-term TIC burial fluxes variations relate with climate changes more closely:the East Asian summer monsoon may influence the strength of the Huanghe River(Yellow River) flood,which could further affect the transport of terrestrial IC from land to the central Yellow Sea as well as the burial of these IC in the sediments.     

High inorganic phosphate concentration in coral mucus and its utilization by heterotrophic bacteria in a Malaysian coral reef

Inorganic nutrient contents of mucus released by Acropora corals and its utilization by heterotrophic bacteria at several different hour intervals in the coral mucus were investigated at a coral reef in Malaysia. The dissolved inorganic phosphate (DIP) concentration was 135‐fold higher than in the ambient seawater, probably due to inorganic P release from the coral gut cavity. We experimentally confirmed that heterotrophic bacteria rapidly (within 8 h) consumed ca. 80% of the initial concentration of DIP derived from coral mucus. High DIP concentration in coral mucus may enhance heterotrophic bacterial production and associated carbon flow in the microbial loop of reef ecosystems.     

Electrocoagulation/Electroflotation Process for Removal of Organics and Microplastics in Laundry Wastewater

In the present research, laundry wastewater treatment is studied using the electrocoagulation/electroflotation process. For the optimization of treatment conditions such as electrode type (Al–Al, Al–Fe, Fe–Fe, and Fe–Al), initial pH (5–9), current (0.54–2.16 A), and application time (15–60 min), response surface methodology is used. Removal efficiencies of chemical oxygen demand (COD), color, anionic surfactant, microplastic, and phosphate are studied. It is determined that the most effective removal is obtained with 2.16 A current, pH 9, and 60 min reaction time using Fe–Al electrode. Here, 91%, 94%, 100%, and 98% removal efficiencies are achieved for COD, surfactant, color, and microplastic, respectively. The operating cost of the combined process is calculated as $1.32 m^?3 for the optimum removal parameters. The adsorption kinetics study shows that the removal follows second‐order kinetics. The laboratory‐scale test results indicate that the electrocoagulation/electroflotation process is feasible for the treatment of laundry wastewater.     

Persistent organic pollutants carried by synthetic polymers in the ocean environment

Thermoplastic resin pellets are melted and formed into an enormous number of inexpensive consumer goods, many of which are discarded after a relatively short period of use, dropped haphazardly onto watersheds and then make their way to the ocean where some get ingested by marine life. In 2003 and 2004 pre-production thermoplastic resin pellets and post-consumer plastic fragments were collected and analyzed for contamination for persistent organic pollutants (POPs). Samples were taken from the North Pacific Gyre, and selected sites in California, Hawaii, and from Guadalupe Island, Mexico. The total concentration of PCBs ranged from 27 to 980 ng/g; DDTs from 22 to 7100 ng/g and PAHs from 39 to 1200 ng/g, and aliphatic hydrocarbons from 1.1 to 8600 microg/g. Analytical methods were developed to extract, concentrate and identify POPs that may have accumulated on plastic fragments and plastic pellets. The results of this study confirm that plastic debris is a trap for POPs.     

Lipid biomarkers in suspended particles from a subtropical estuary: assessment of seasonal changes in sources and transport of organic matter

Temporal and spatial variations in the composition of particulate organic matter (POM) from Florida Bay, USA were examined. The predominance of short-chain homologues for n-alkanes, n-alcohols and n-fatty acids as well as relatively high abundance of C(27) and C(28) sterols suggested that an autochthonous/marine source of OM was dominant bay-wide. Several biomarker proxies such as P(aq) [(C(23)+C(25))/(C(23)+C(25)+C(29)+C(31)) n-alkanes], short/long chain n-alkanes, (C(29)+C(31)) n-alkanes and taraxerol indicated a spatial shift in OM sources, where terrestrial OM rapidly decreased while seagrass and microbial OM markedly increased along a northeastern to southwestern transect. Regarding seasonal variations, POM collected during the dry season was enriched in terrestrial constituents relative to the wet season, likely as a result of reduced primary productivity of planktonic species and seagrasses during the dry season. Principal component analysis (PCA) classified the sample set into sub-groups based on PC1 which seemed to be spatially controlled by OM origin (terrestrial-mangrove vs. marine-planktonic/seagrass). The PC2 seemed to be more seasonally controlled suggesting that hydrological fluctuations and seasonal primary productivity are the drivers controlling the POM composition in Florida Bay.     

The role of organic matter in the sorption capacity of marine sediments

Past studies have suggested that desiccation enhances hydrophobicity of salt marsh sediment, and that drying and rewetting sediment can be used to investigate sorption mechanisms of amino acids and other organic compounds [Liu, Z., Lee, C., 2006. Drying effects on sorption capacity of coastal sediment: The importance of architecture and polarity of organic matter. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 70, 3313–3324]. Here we further develop this technique to study sorption of hydrophobic and hydrophilic organic compounds in a wide range of marine sediments. Our results show that hydrophilic compounds sorb strongly to wet coastal sediments; in dried sediments, sorption of hydrophilic compounds decreases, while sorption of hydrophobic compounds is greatly enhanced. Small compounds with aromatic rings sorb more in dried than wet coastal sediments, suggesting that aromatic groups have a stronger effect on sorption than polar groups like amino and carboxyl moieties. Sorption of lysine, glutamic acid and putrescine decreases greatly when sediment is pretreated with KCl, indicating the importance of cation ion exchange. However, α-amino acids sorb much more than corresponding β- or γ-amino acids, and l-alanine sorbs more than d-alanine, suggesting that amino group location and chiral selectivity play an important role in sorption. Comparison of lysine and tyrosine sorption in different sediments indicates that source and diagenetic state of organic matter are important factors determining sorption capacity. Lysine sorbs much more to organic detritus from salt marsh sediment than to fresh Spartina root materials, marine particles, lignin or humic acids, indicating the importance of structural integrity in sorption. Desorption hysteresis of glutamic acid, putrescine and lysine (in dried sediment) suggests the presence of enzyme-type sorption sites of high sorption energy or multiple binding mechanisms. Taken together, these findings suggest that organic matter plays the major role in amino acid sorption in organic-rich sediments.     

珠江三角洲地区SO2浓度卫星遥感长时间序列监测

利用卫星OMI(Ozone Monitoring Instrument)数据获得的长时间序列SO₂浓度,分析广州亚运会从申办到成功举办期间珠江三角洲地区近地面SO₂浓度的变化过程,以及亚运会举办期间珠江三角洲SO₂浓度分布状况。结果表明OMI能够反映近地表的SO₂浓度变化趋势,广州亚运会从申办到成功举办期间珠江三角洲地区近地面SO₂浓度表现出明显的季节变化,且亚运会期间该地区近地面SO₂浓度比以往年同期要低,说明珠江三角洲地区联动的空气质量保障措施明显降低了该地区近地面的SO₂浓度。     

长白山圆池泥炭沼泽演变及环境信息记录

通过分析长白山圆池泥炭剖面总有机碳含量、总正构烷烃含量、奇偶优势指数、(C23+C25)含量和2C31/(C27+C29)比值,讨论了泥炭发育不同时期植物输入情况,同时结合210Pb测年建立的年代序列来探讨该区的气候变化规律.研究结果显示,约1400年前,气候干冷,圆池尚没有出现沼泽化;1400年开始,气候稍暖,少量植物输入,圆池开始沼泽化;约从1860年至今,气候逐步转暖,大量植物输入,圆池沼泽化速度加快.     

Chemical Characteristics of Carbonaceous Aerosols During Dust Storms over Xi'an in China

Characterization of carbonaceous aerosols including CC （carbonate carbon）, OC （organic carbon）, and EC （elemental carbon） were investigated at Xi＇an, China, near Asian dust source regions in spring 2002. OC varied between 8.2 and 63.7μgm^- 3, while EC ranged between 2.4 and 17.2 μ m^-3 during the observation period. OC variations followed a similar pattern to EC and the correlation coefficient between OC and EC is 0.89 （n=31）. The average percentage of total carbon （TC, sum of CC, OC, and EC） in PM2.5 during dust storm （DS） events was 13.6%, which is lower than that during non-dust storm （NDS） periods （22.7%）. CC, OC, and EC accounted for 12.9%, 70.7%, and 16.4% of TC during DS events, respectively. The average ratio of OC/EC was 5.0 in DS events and 3.3 in NDS periods. The OC-EC correlation （R^2=0.76, n=6） was good in DS events, while it was stronger （R^2=0.90, n=25） in NDS periods. The percentage of watersoluble OC （WSOC） in TC accounted for 15.7%, and varied between 13.3% and 22.3% during DS events. The distribution of eight carbon fractions indicated that local emissions such as motor vehicle exhaust were the dominant contributors to carbonaceous particles. During DS events, soil dust dominated the chemical composition, contributing 69% to the PM2.5 mass, followed by organic matter （12.8%）, sulfate （4%）, EC （2.2%）, and chloride （1.6%）. Consequently, CC was mainly entrained by Asian dust. However, even in the atmosphere near Asian dust source regions, OC and EC in atmospheric dust were controlled by local emission rather titan the transport of Asian dust.