scholarly journals CO<sub>2</sub> perturbation experiments: similarities and differences between dissolved inorganic carbon and total alkalinity manipulations

2009 ◽  
Vol 6 (10) ◽  
pp. 2145-2153 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. G. Schulz ◽  
J. Barcelos e Ramos ◽  
R. E. Zeebe ◽  
U. Riebesell

Abstract. Increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) through human activities and invasion of anthropogenic CO2 into the surface ocean alters the seawater carbonate chemistry, increasing CO2 and bicarbonate (HCO3−) at the expense of carbonate ion (CO32−) concentrations. This redistribution in the dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) pool decreases pH and carbonate saturation state (Ω). Several components of the carbonate system are considered potential key variables influencing for instance calcium carbonate precipitation in marine calcifiers such as coccolithophores, foraminifera, corals, mollusks and echinoderms. Unravelling the sensitivities of marine organisms and ecosystems to CO2 induced ocean acidification (OA) requires well-controlled experimental setups and accurate carbonate system manipulations. Here we describe and analyse the chemical changes involved in the two basic approaches for carbonate chemistry manipulation, i.e. changing DIC at constant total alkalinity (TA) and changing TA at constant DIC. Furthermore, we briefly introduce several methods to experimentally manipulate DIC and TA. Finally, we examine responses obtained with both approaches using published results for the coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi. We conclude that under most experimental conditions in the context of ocean acidification DIC and TA manipulations yield similar changes in all parameters of the carbonate system, which implies direct comparability of data obtained with the two basic approaches for CO2 perturbation.

2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (3) ◽  
pp. 263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catriona L. Hurd ◽  
John Beardall ◽  
Steeve Comeau ◽  
Christopher E. Cornwall ◽  
Jonathan N Havenhand ◽  
...  

‘Multiple drivers’ (also termed ‘multiple stressors’) is the term used to describe the cumulative effects of multiple environmental factors on organisms or ecosystems. Here, we consider ocean acidification as a multiple driver because many inorganic carbon parameters are changing simultaneously, including total dissolved inorganic carbon, CO2, HCO3–, CO32–, H+ and CaCO3 saturation state. With the rapid expansion of ocean acidification research has come a greater understanding of the complexity and intricacies of how these simultaneous changes to the seawater carbonate system are affecting marine life. We start by clarifying key terms used by chemists and biologists to describe the changing seawater inorganic carbon system. Then, using key groups of non-calcifying (fish, seaweeds, diatoms) and calcifying (coralline algae, coccolithophores, corals, molluscs) organisms, we consider how various physiological processes are affected by different components of the carbonate system.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luke Gregor ◽  
Nicolas Gruber

Abstract. Ocean acidification has altered the ocean's carbonate chemistry profoundly since preindustrial times, with potentially serious consequences for marine life. Yet, no long-term global observation-based data set exists that permits to study changes in ocean acidification for all carbonate system parameters over the last few decades. Here, we fill this gap and present a methodologically consistent global data set of all relevant surface ocean parameters, i.e., dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), total alkalinity (TA), partial pressure of CO2 (pCO2), pH, and the saturation state with respect to mineral CaCO3 (Ω) at monthly resolution over the period 1985 through 2018 at a spatial resolution of 1 × 1°. This data set, named OceanSODA-ETHZ, was created by extrapolating in time and space the surface ocean observations of pCO2 (from the Surface Ocean CO2 ATlas (SOCAT)) and total alkalinity (TA, from the Global Ocean Data Analysis Project (GLODAP)) using the newly developed Geospatial Random Cluster Ensemble Regression (GRaCER) method. This method is based on a two-step (cluster-regression) approach, but extends it by considering an ensemble of such cluster-regressions, leading to higher robustness. Surface ocean DIC, pH, and Ω were then computed from the globally mapped pCO2 and TA using the thermodynamic equations of the carbonate system. For the open ocean, the cluster regression method estimates pCO2 and TA with global near-zero biases and root mean squared errors of 12 µatm and 13 µmol kg−1, respectively. Taking into account also the measurement and representation errors, the total error increases to 14 µatm and 21 µmol kg−1, respectively. We assess the fidelity of the computed parameters by comparing them to direct observations from GLODAP, finding surface ocean pH and DIC global biases of near zero, and root mean squared errors of 0.023 and 16 µmol kg−1, respectively. These errors are very comparable to those expected by propagating the total errors from pCO2 and TA through the thermodynamic computations, indicating a robust and conservative assessment of the errors. We illustrate the potential of this new dataset by analyzing the climatological mean seasonal cycles of the different parameters of the surface ocean carbonate system, highlighting their commonalities and differences. The OceanSODA-ETHZ data can be downloaded from https://doi.org/10.25921/m5wx-ja34 (Gregor and Gruber, 2020).


Elem Sci Anth ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Bianucci ◽  
Wen Long ◽  
Tarang Khangaonkar ◽  
Gregory Pelletier ◽  
Anise Ahmed ◽  
...  

While ocean acidification was first investigated as a global phenomenon, coastal acidification has received significant attention in recent years, as its impacts have been felt by different socio-economic sectors (e.g., high mortality of shellfish larvae in aquaculture farms). As a region that connects land and ocean, the Salish Sea (consisting of Puget Sound and the Straits of Juan de Fuca and Georgia) receives inputs from many different sources (rivers, wastewater treatment plants, industrial waste treatment facilities, etc.), making these coastal waters vulnerable to acidification. Moreover, the lowering of pH in the Northeast Pacific Ocean also affects the Salish Sea, as more acidic waters get transported into the bottom waters of the straits and estuaries. Here, we use a numerical ocean model of the Salish Sea to improve our understanding of the carbonate system in Puget Sound; in particular, we studied the sensitivity of carbonate variables (e.g., dissolved inorganic carbon, total alkalinity, pH, saturation state of aragonite) to ocean and freshwater inputs. The model is an updated version of our FVCOM-ICM framework, with new carbonate-system and sediment modules. Sensitivity experiments altering concentrations at the open boundaries and freshwater sources indicate that not only ocean conditions entering the Strait of Juan de Fuca, but also the dilution of carbonate variables by freshwater sources, are key drivers of the carbonate system in Puget Sound.


2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 6169-6189 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Comeau ◽  
J.-P. Gattuso ◽  
R. Jeffree ◽  
F. Gazeau

Abstract. Although shelled pteropods are expected to be particularly sensitive to ocean acidification, the few available studies have mostly focused on polar species and have not allowed determining which parameter of the carbonate system controls their calcification. Specimens of the temperate Mediterranean species Creseis acicula were maintained under seven different conditions of the carbonate chemistry, obtained by manipulating pH and total alkalinity, with the goal to disentangle the effects of the pH and the saturation state with respect to aragonite (Ωa). Our results tend to show that respiration, excretion as well as rates of net and gross calcification were not directly affected by a decrease in pH but decreased significantly with a decrease in Ωa. Due to the difficulties in maintaining pteropods in the laboratory and the important variability in their abundances in our study site, long-term acclimation as well as replication of the experiment was not possible. However, we strongly believe that these results represent an important step in the mechanistic understanding of the effect of ocean acidification on pteropods physiology.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacoba Mol ◽  
Helmuth Thomas ◽  
Paul G. Myers ◽  
Xianmin Hu ◽  
Alfonso Mucci

Abstract. The Mackenzie Shelf in the southeastern Beaufort Sea is a region that has experienced large changes in the past several decades as warming, sea-ice loss, and increased river discharge have altered carbon cycling. Upwelling and downwelling events are common on the shelf, caused by strong, fluctuating along-shore winds, resulting in cross-shelf Ekman transport, and an alternating estuarine and anti-estuarine circulation. Downwelling carries inorganic carbon and other remineralization products off the shelf and into the deep basin for possible long-term storage in the world oceans. Upwelling carries dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and nutrient-rich waters from the Pacific-origin upper halocline layer (UHL) onto the shelf. Profiles of DIC and total alkalinity (TA) taken in August and September of 2014 are used to investigate the cycling of inorganic carbon on the Mackenzie Shelf. The along-shore transport of water and the cross-shelf transport of inorganic carbon are quantified using velocity field output from a simulation of the Arctic and Northern Hemisphere Atlantic (ANHA4) configuration of the Nucleus of European Modelling of the Ocean (NEMO) framework. A strong upwelling event prior to sampling on the Mackenzie Shelf is analyzed and the resulting influence on the carbonate system, including the saturation state of waters with respect to aragonite and pH, is investigated. TA and the oxygen isotope ratio of water (δ18O) are used to examine water-mass distributions in the study area and to investigate the influence of Pacific Water, Mackenzie River freshwater, and sea-ice melt on carbon dynamics and air-sea fluxes of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the surface mixed layer. Understanding carbon transfer in this seasonally dynamic environment is key to quantify the importance of Arctic shelf regions to the global carbon cycle and provide a basis for understanding how it will respond to the aforementioned climate-induced changes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (3) ◽  
pp. 281 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Vance ◽  
K. I. Currie ◽  
C. S. Law ◽  
J. Murdoch ◽  
J. Zeldis

A national observing network has been operating over the past 4 years to inform the scientific and economic challenges of ocean acidification (OA) facing New Zealand. The New Zealand Ocean Acidification Observing Network (NZOA-ON) consists of 12 sites across varied coastal ecosystems. These ecosystems range from oligotrophic ocean-dominated systems to eutrophic river-dominated systems, with sites that are pristine or affected by agriculture and urbanisation. Fortnightly measurements of total alkalinity and dissolved inorganic carbon provide the baseline of carbonate chemistry in these varied ecosystems and will facilitate detection of future changes, as well as providing a present-day baseline. The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research and the University of Otago have developed a ‘grass-roots’ sampling program, providing training and equipment that enable sampling partners to collect field samples for analyses at a central laboratory. NZOA-ON leverages existing infrastructure and partnerships to maximise data captured for understanding the drivers of chemical changes associated with OA and ecological responses. NZOA-ON coordinates with and contributes to global initiatives to understand and mitigate the broader impacts of OA. A description of NZOA-ON is presented with preliminary analyses and comparison of data from different sites after the first 4 years of the network.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 2677 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miho Ishizu ◽  
Yasumasa Miyazawa ◽  
Tomohiko Tsunoda ◽  
Xinyu Guo

We developed a biogeochemical and carbon model (JCOPE_EC) coupled with an operational ocean model for the North Western Pacific. JCOPE_EC represents ocean acidification indices on the background of the risks due to ocean acidification and our model experiences. It is an off-line tracer model driven by a high-resolution regional ocean general circulation model (JCOPE2M). The results showed that the model adequately reproduced the general patterns in the observed data, including the seasonal variability of chlorophyll-a, dissolved inorganic nitrogen/phosphorus, dissolved inorganic carbon, and total alkalinity. We provide an overview of this system and the results of the model validation based on the available observed data. Sensitivity analysis using fixed values for temperature, salinity, dissolved inorganic carbon and total alkalinity helped us identify which variables contributed most to seasonal variations in the ocean acidification indices, pH and Ωarg. The seasonal variation in the pHinsitu was governed mainly by balances of the change in temperature and dissolved inorganic carbon. The seasonal increase in Ωarg from winter to summer was governed mainly by dissolved inorganic carbon levels.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Teresa Guerra ◽  
Carlos Rocha

&lt;p&gt;Organic and inorganic whole system metabolism for two Irish coastal areas were compared to evaluate carbonate system resilience to acidification. The two systems are characterized by contrasting watershed input types and composition. Kinvara Bay is fed by Submarine Groundwater Discharge (SGD) derived from a karstic catchment while Killary Harbour is fed by river discharge draining a siliciclastic catchment. Freshwater sources to sea have distinct Total Alkalinity (TA) and Dissolved Inorganic Carbon (DIC) concentrations, higher and lower than the open ocean, respectively, but both evidence seasonally variable low pH, ranging from 6.20 to 7.50. Retention of TA and DIC was calculated for the two areas using LOICZ methodology. In Kinvara bay, annually averaged retention of DIC was greater than for TA (5 &amp;#215; 10&lt;sup&gt;4&lt;/sup&gt; and 1.5 &amp;#215; 10&lt;sup&gt;5&lt;/sup&gt; mol d&lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt;), suggesting the system is acidifying further. Conversely, Killary Harbour shows negative TA and DIC retention, with DIC:TA &lt;1, suggesting an internal buffer against ocean acidification is operating.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Net Community Production (NCP) was calculated for both systems using Dissolved Oxygen data. Subsequently, we estimated Net Community Calcification (NCC) from the ratio between TA and DIC. NCP was always positive in Killary Harbour with an average of 318 mmol O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt; m&lt;sup&gt;-2 &lt;/sup&gt;d&lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; (equivalent to 89 mol C m&lt;sup&gt;-2&lt;/sup&gt; y&lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt;). However, Kinvara Bay shows relatively lower positive NCP in spring and summer (average of 46 mmol O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt; m&lt;sup&gt;-2&lt;/sup&gt; d&lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt;), but negative NCP in autumn and winter. Therefore, Kinvara Bay&amp;#8217;s Total Organic Carbon (TOC) production was low, at ~21 g m&lt;sup&gt;-2&lt;/sup&gt; y&lt;sup&gt;-1&lt;/sup&gt; and not enough to overcome acidification driven by the SGD source composition. These results emphasize the complexity of interactions between the drivers of coastal acidification rate, affecting our ability to accurately assess the resilience of the carbonate system in these areas to ocean acidification pressure in the future.&lt;/p&gt;


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