scholarly journals Carbon isotopes of dissolved inorganic carbon reflect utilization of different carbon sources by microbial communities in two limestone aquifer assemblages

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin E. Nowak ◽  
Valérie F. Schwab ◽  
Cassandre S. Lazar ◽  
Thomas Behrendt ◽  
Bernd Kohlhepp ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Carbon Isotopes ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Carbon Sources ◽  
Oxygen Depletion ◽  
C Isotopes ◽  
Abiotic Controls ◽  
Upper Aquifer

Abstract. Isotopes of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) are used to indicate both transit times and biogeochemical evolution of groundwaters. These signals can be complicated in carbonate aquifers, as both abiotic (i.e. carbonate equilibria) and biotic factors influence δ13C and 14C of DIC. We applied a novel graphical method for tracking changes in δ13C and 14C of DIC in two distinct aquifer complexes identified in the Hainich Critical Zone Exploratory (CZE), a platform to study how water transport links surface and shallow groundwaters in limestone and marlstone rocks in central Germany. For more quantitative estimates of contributions of different biotic and abiotic carbon sources to the DIC pool, we used the geochemical modelling program NETPATH, which accounts for changes in dissolved ions in addition to C isotopes. Although water residence times in the Hainich CZE aquifers based on hydrogeology are relatively short (years or less), DIC isotopes in the shallow, mostly anoxic, aquifer assemblage (HTU) were depleted in 14C compared to a deeper, oxic, aquifer complex (HTL). Carbon isotopes and chemical changes in the deeper HTL wells could be explained by interaction of recharge waters equilibrated with post-bomb 14C sources with carbonates. However, oxygen depletion and δ13C and 14C values of DIC below those expected from the processes of carbonate equilibrium alone indicate dramatically different biogeochemical evolution of waters in the upper aquifer assemblage (HTU wells). Changes of 14C and 13C in the upper aquifer complexes result from a number of biotic and abiotic processes, including oxidation of 14C depleted OM derived from recycled microbial carbon and sedimentary organic matter as well as water rock interactions. The microbial pathways inferred from DIC isotope shifts and changes in water chemistry in the HTU wells were supported by comparison with in situ microbial community structure based on 16S rRNA analyses. Our findings demonstrate the large variation in the importance of biotic as well as abiotic controls on 13C and 14C of DIC in closely related aquifer assemblages. Further, they support the importance of subsurface derived carbon sources like DIC for chemolithoautotrophic microorganisms as well as rock-derived organic matter for supporting heterotrophic groundwater microbial communities and indicate that even shallow aquifers have microbial communities that use a variety of subsurface derived carbon sources.

scholarly journals Carbon isotopes of dissolved inorganic carbon reflect utilization of different carbon sources by microbial communities in two limestone aquifer assemblages

2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (9) ◽  
pp. 4283-4300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin E. Nowak ◽  
Valérie F. Schwab ◽  
Cassandre S. Lazar ◽  
Thomas Behrendt ◽  
Bernd Kohlhepp ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Microbial Communities ◽  
Carbon Isotopes ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Geochemical Modeling ◽  
Carbon Sources ◽  
Oxygen Depletion ◽  
C Isotopes ◽  
Upper Aquifer

Abstract. Isotopes of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) are used to indicate both transit times and biogeochemical evolution of groundwaters. These signals can be complicated in carbonate aquifers, as both abiotic (i.e., carbonate equilibria) and biotic factors influence the δ13C and 14C of DIC. We applied a novel graphical method for tracking changes in the δ13C and 14C of DIC in two distinct aquifer complexes identified in the Hainich Critical Zone Exploratory (CZE), a platform to study how water transport links surface and shallow groundwaters in limestone and marlstone rocks in central Germany. For more quantitative estimates of contributions of different biotic and abiotic carbon sources to the DIC pool, we used the NETPATH geochemical modeling program, which accounts for changes in dissolved ions in addition to C isotopes. Although water residence times in the Hainich CZE aquifers based on hydrogeology are relatively short (years or less), DIC isotopes in the shallow, mostly anoxic, aquifer assemblage (HTU) were depleted in 14C compared to a deeper, oxic, aquifer complex (HTL). Carbon isotopes and chemical changes in the deeper HTL wells could be explained by interaction of recharge waters equilibrated with post-bomb 14C sources with carbonates. However, oxygen depletion and δ13C and 14C values of DIC below those expected from the processes of carbonate equilibrium alone indicate considerably different biogeochemical evolution of waters in the upper aquifer assemblage (HTU wells). Changes in 14C and 13C in the upper aquifer complexes result from a number of biotic and abiotic processes, including oxidation of 14C-depleted OM derived from recycled microbial carbon and sedimentary organic matter as well as water–rock interactions. The microbial pathways inferred from DIC isotope shifts and changes in water chemistry in the HTU wells were supported by comparison with in situ microbial community structure based on 16S rRNA analyses. Our findings demonstrate the large variation in the importance of biotic as well as abiotic controls on 13C and 14C of DIC in closely related aquifer assemblages. Further, they support the importance of subsurface-derived carbon sources like DIC for chemolithoautotrophic microorganisms as well as rock-derived organic matter for supporting heterotrophic groundwater microbial communities and indicate that even shallow aquifers have microbial communities that use a variety of subsurface-derived carbon sources.

Carbon isotopes in dissolved inorganic carbon as tracers of carbon sources in karst waters of the Plitvice Lakes, Croatia

2020 ◽  
pp. SP507-2020-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreja Sironić ◽  
Ines Krajcar Bronić ◽  
Nada Horvatinčić ◽  
Jadranka Barešić ◽  
Damir Borković ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Isotopes ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Carbon Sources ◽  
Karst Waters ◽  
Plitvice Lakes

scholarly journals Radiocarbon Dating of Individual Fatty Acids as a Tool for Refining Antarctic Margin Sediment Chronologies

Radiocarbon ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naohiko Ohkouchi ◽  
Timothy I Eglinton ◽  
John M Hayes
Keyword(s):  
Fatty Acids ◽  
Organic Matter ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Surface Sediments ◽  
Ross Sea ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Accumulation Rate ◽  
Sea Surface

We have measured the radiocarbon contents of individual, solvent-extractable, short-chain (C14, C16, and C18) fatty acids isolated from Ross Sea surface sediments. The corresponding 14C ages are equivalent to that of the post-bomb dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) reservoir. Moreover, molecular 14C variations in surficial (upper 15 cm) sediments indicate that these compounds may prove useful for reconstructing chronologies of Antarctic margin sediments containing uncertain (and potentially variable) quantities of relict organic carbon. A preliminary molecular 14C chronology suggests that the accumulation rate of relict organic matter has not changed during the last 500 14C yr. The focus of this study is to determine the validity of compound-specific 14C analysis as a technique for reconstructing chronologies of Antarctic margin sediments.

scholarly journals Evaluating Dissolved Inorganic Carbon Cycling in a Forested Lake Watershed Using Carbon Isotopes

Radiocarbon ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 636-645 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramon Aravena ◽  
S. L. Schiff ◽  
S. E. Trumbore ◽  
P. J. Dillon ◽  
Richard Elgood
Keyword(s):  
Isotopic Composition ◽  
Carbon Isotopes ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Carbon Isotopic Composition ◽  
Isotopic Fractionation ◽  
Early Spring ◽  
Late Winter ◽  
Isotope Pattern ◽  
Carbon Isotopic

Dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) is the main acid buffer in forested lake watersheds in Canada. We used carbon isotopes (13C, 14C) to evaluate the production and cycling of DIC in an acid-sensitive lake watershed of the Precambrian Shield. Soil CO2, groundwater and stream DIC were characterized chemically and isotopically. Soil CO2 concentration profiles reflect both changes in production and in losses due to diffusion. δ13C soil CO2 profiles (δ13C values of −23‰ in summer, slightly enriched during the fall and −25%‰ during the winter) are a reflection of the isotopic composition of the sources and changes in isotopic fractionation due to diffusion. Carbon isotopic composition (13C, 14C) of the groundwater and stream DIC clearly indicate that weathering of silicates by soil CO2 is the main source of DIC in these watersheds. 14C data show that, in addition to recent groundwater, an older groundwater component with depleted 14C activity is also present in the bedrock. The carbon isotope pattern in the groundwater also implies that, besides the main springtime recharge events, contributions to the groundwater may also occur during late winter/early spring.

scholarly journals Sources of Carbon to Deep-Sea Corals

Radiocarbon ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 31 (03) ◽  
pp. 533-543 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheila Griffin ◽  
Ellen R M Druffel
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Organic Matter ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Growth Rings ◽  
Time Histories ◽  
Visible Growth ◽  
Deep Sea Corals

Radiocarbon measurements in deep-sea corals from the Little Bahama Bank were used to determine the source of carbon to the skeletal matrices. Specimens of Lophelia, Gerardia, Paragorgia johnsoni and Corallium noibe were sectioned according to visible growth rings and/or stem diameter. We determined that the source of carbon to the corals accreting organic matter was primarily from surface-derived sources. Those corals that accrete a calcerous skeleton were found to obtain their carbon solely from dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in sea water from the depth at which the corals grew. These results, in conjunction with growth-rate studies using short-lived radioisotopes, support the use of deep-sea corals to reconstruct time histories of transient and non-transient tracers at depth in the oceans.

scholarly journals Presentation, calibration and validation of the low-order, DCESS Earth System Model (Version 1)

2008 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Shaffer ◽  
S. Malskær Olsen ◽  
J. O. Pepke Pedersen
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Oxygen ◽  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Inorganic Carbon ◽  
System Model ◽  
Earth System ◽  
Weathering Rates ◽  
Ocean Sediment ◽  
System Data

Abstract. A new, low-order Earth System Model is described, calibrated and tested against Earth system data. The model features modules for the atmosphere, ocean, ocean sediment, land biosphere and lithosphere and has been designed to simulate global change on time scales of years to millions of years. The atmosphere module considers radiation balance, meridional transport of heat and water vapor between low-mid latitude and high latitude zones, heat and gas exchange with the ocean and sea ice and snow cover. Gases considered are carbon dioxide and methane for all three carbon isotopes, nitrous oxide and oxygen. The ocean module has 100 m vertical resolution, carbonate chemistry and prescribed circulation and mixing. Ocean biogeochemical tracers are phosphate, dissolved oxygen, dissolved inorganic carbon for all three carbon isotopes and alkalinity. Biogenic production of particulate organic matter in the ocean surface layer depends on phosphate availability but with lower efficiency in the high latitude zone, as determined by model fit to ocean data. The calcite to organic carbon rain ratio depends on surface layer temperature. The semi-analytical, ocean sediment module considers calcium carbonate dissolution and oxic and anoxic organic matter remineralisation. The sediment is composed of calcite, non-calcite mineral and reactive organic matter. Sediment porosity profiles are related to sediment composition and a bioturbated layer of 0.1 m thickness is assumed. A sediment segment is ascribed to each ocean layer and segment area stems from observed ocean depth distributions. Sediment burial is calculated from sedimentation velocities at the base of the bioturbated layer. Bioturbation rates and oxic and anoxic remineralisation rates depend on organic carbon rain rates and dissolved oxygen concentrations. The land biosphere module considers leaves, wood, litter and soil. Net primary production depends on atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration and remineralization rates in the litter and soil are related to mean atmospheric temperatures. Methane production is a small fraction of the soil remineralization. The lithosphere module considers outgassing, weathering of carbonate and silicate rocks and weathering of rocks containing old organic carbon and phosphorus. Weathering rates are related to mean atmospheric temperatures. A pre-industrial, steady state calibration to Earth system data is carried out. Ocean observations of temperature, carbon 14, phosphate, dissolved oxygen, dissolved inorganic carbon and alkalinity constrain air-sea exchange and ocean circulation, mixing and biogeochemical parameters. Observed calcite and organic carbon distributions and inventories in the ocean sediment help constrain sediment module parameters. Carbon isotopic data and carbonate vs. silicate weathering fractions are used to estimate initial lithosphere outgassing and rock weathering rates. Model performance is tested by simulating atmospheric greenhouse gas increases, global warming and model tracer evolution for the period 1765 to 2000, as forced by prescribed anthropogenic greenhouse gas inputs and other anthropogenic and natural forcing. Long term, transient model behavior is studied with a set of 100 000 year simulations, forced by a slow, 5000 Gt C input of CO2 to the atmosphere, and with a 1.5 million year simulation, forced by a doubling of lithosphere CO2 outgassing.

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