A study of oxic/anoxic effects on degradation of sterols at the simulated sediment–water interface of coastal sediments |
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Authors: | M. -Y. Sun S. G. Wakeham |
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Affiliation: | aDepartment of Marine Sciences, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA;bSkidaway Institute of Oceanography, 10 Ocean Science Circle, Savannah, GA 31411, USA |
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Abstract: | Laboratory incubation experiments were conducted to determine the behavior of sterols at the sediment–water interface in oxic and anoxic sediments. Both plankton and 4--cholesterol were used as tracers. Cholesterol was rapidly degraded at the sediment–water interface: 55% of -cholesterol was lost from sediments under anoxic conditions and 78% under oxic conditions over three and one-half months. About 3% of initially-added free radiolabel was incorporated into a bound pool that was released only by saponification of solvent-extracted sediment. Less than 1% of initially-added radiolabel remained in pore waters after three and one-half months. Rate constants for degradation of cholesterol in oxic and anoxic surficial sediments were estimated by tracking variations in radioactivity and sterol concentration as a function of time. We discuss our results in terms of factors affecting sterol degradation in coastal marine sediments, including molecular structure, sediment matrix effect, and redox conditions. |
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Keywords: | Analytical geochemistry Organic compounds Degradation Sediments Reaction kinetics Redox reactions Anoxic effects Sterols Sediment water interface |
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