Temperature induced decoupling of enzymatic hydrolysis and carbon remineralization in long-term incubations of Arctic and temperate sediments     

Alberto Robador  Volker Brüchert  Carol Arnosti 《Geochimica et cosmochimica acta》2010,74(8):2316-2326

Extracellular enzymatic hydrolysis of high-molecular weight organic matter is the initial step in sedimentary organic carbon degradation and is often regarded as the rate-limiting step. Temperature effects on enzyme activities may therefore exert an indirect control on carbon mineralization. We explored the temperature sensitivity of enzymatic hydrolysis and its connection to subsequent steps in anoxic organic carbon degradation in long-term incubations of sediments from the Arctic and the North Sea. These sediments were incubated under anaerobic conditions for 24 months at temperatures of 0, 10, and 20 °C. The short-term temperature response of the active microbial community was tested in temperature gradient block incubations. The temperature optimum of extracellular enzymatic hydrolysis, as measured with a polysaccharide (chondroitin sulfate), differed between Arctic and temperate habitats by about 8-13 °C in fresh sediments and in sediments incubated for 24 months. In both Arctic and temperate sediments, the temperature response of chondroitin sulfate hydrolysis was initially similar to that of sulfate reduction. After 24 months, however, hydrolysis outpaced sulfate reduction rates, as demonstrated by increased concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and total dissolved carbohydrates. This effect was stronger at higher incubation temperatures, particularly in the Arctic sediments. In all experiments, concentrations of volatile fatty acids (VFA) were low, indicating tight coupling between VFA production and consumption. Together, these data indicate that long-term incubation at elevated temperatures led to increased decoupling of hydrolytic DOC production relative to fermentation. Temperature increases in marine sedimentary environments may thus significantly affect the downstream carbon mineralization and lead to the increased formation of refractory DOC.  相似文献   

Deep-sea coral aragonite as a recorder for the neodymium isotopic composition of seawater     

Tina van de Flierdt  Laura F. Robinson 《Geochimica et cosmochimica acta》2010,74(21):6014-6032

Deep-sea corals have been shown to be useful archives of rapid changes in ocean chemistry during the last glacial cycle. Their aragonitic skeleton can be absolutely dated by U-Th data, freeing radiocarbon to be used as a water-mass proxy. For certain species of deep-sea corals, the growth rate allows time resolution that is comparable to ice cores. An additional proxy is needed to exploit this opportunity and turn radiocarbon data into rates of ocean overturning in the past.Neodymium isotopes in seawater can serve as a quasi-conservative water-mass tracer and initial results indicate that deep-sea corals may be reliable archives of seawater Nd isotopes. Here we present a systematic study exploring Nd isotopes as a water-mass proxy in deep-sea coral aragonite. We investigated five different genera of modern deep-sea corals (Caryophyllia, Desmophyllum, Enallopsamia, Flabellum, Lophelia), from global locations covering a large potential range of Nd isotopic compositions. Comparison with ambient seawater measurements yields excellent agreement and suggests that deep-sea corals are reliable archives for seawater Nd isotopes.A parallel study of Nd concentrations in these corals yields distribution coefficients for Nd between seawater and coral aragonite of 1-10, omitting one particular genus (Enallopsamia). The corals and seawater did however not come from exactly the same location, and further investigations are needed to reach robust conclusions on the incorporation of Nd into deep-sea coral aragonite.Lastly, we studied the viability of extracting the Nd isotope signal from fossil deep-sea corals by carrying out stepwise cleaning experiments. Our results show that physical removal of the ferromanganese coating and chemical pre-cleaning have the highest impact on Nd concentrations, but that oxidative/reductive cleaning is also needed to acquire a seawater Nd isotope signal.  相似文献   

Three-dimensional benchmark for variable-density flow and transport simulation: matching semi-analytic stability modes for steady unstable convection in an inclined porous box     

Clifford I. Voss  Craig T. Simmons  Neville I. Robinson 《Hydrogeology Journal》2010,18(1):5-23

This benchmark for three-dimensional (3D) numerical simulators of variable-density groundwater flow and solute or energy transport consists of matching simulation results with the semi-analytical solution for the transition from one steady-state convective mode to another in a porous box. Previous experimental and analytical studies of natural convective flow in an inclined porous layer have shown that there are a variety of convective modes possible depending on system parameters, geometry and inclination. In particular, there is a well-defined transition from the helicoidal mode consisting of downslope longitudinal rolls superimposed upon an upslope unicellular roll to a mode consisting of purely an upslope unicellular roll. Three-dimensional benchmarks for variable-density simulators are currently (2009) lacking and comparison of simulation results with this transition locus provides an unambiguous means to test the ability of such simulators to represent steady-state unstable 3D variable-density physics.  相似文献   

Spatial and Temporal Variability of Benthic Oxygen Demand and Nutrient Regeneration in an Anthropogenically Impacted New England Estuary     

Robinson W. Fulweiler  Scott W. Nixon  Betty A. Buckley 《Estuaries and Coasts》2010,33(6):1377-1390

Strong benthic–pelagic coupling is an important characteristic of shallow coastal marine ecosystems. Building upon a rich history of benthic metabolism data, we measured oxygen uptake and nutrient fluxes across the sediment–water interface along a gradient of water column primary production in Narragansett Bay, RI (USA). Despite the strong gradients seen in water column production, sediment oxygen demand (SOD) and benthic nutrient fluxes did not exhibit a clear spatial pattern. Some of our sites had been studied in the 1970s and 1980s and thus allowed historical comparison. At these sites, we found that SOD and benthic fluxes have not changed uniformly throughout Narragansett Bay. In the uppermost portion of the bay, the Providence River Estuary, we observed a significant decrease in dissolved inorganic phosphorus fluxes which we attribute to management interventions. At another upper bay site, we observed significant declines in SOD and dissolved inorganic nitrogen fluxes which may be linked to climate-induced decreases in water column primary production and shifts in bloom phenology. In the 1970s, benthic nutrient regeneration supplied 50% to over 200% of the N and P needed to support primary production by phytoplankton. Summer nutrient regeneration in the Providence River Estuary and Upper bay now may only supply some 5–30% of the N and 3–20% of the P phytoplankton demand.  相似文献   

The human-landscape system: challenges for geomorphologists     

Carol P. Harden 《自然地理学》2014,35(1):76-89

Deliberately or indirectly, most of the terrestrial surface has been affected by the actions of human beings. For that reason, geomorphologists have needed to broaden their scope of inquiry to encompass the human-landscape system. Four themes related to human actions emerge in recent research in geomorphology: (1) human impacts on geomorphic systems, (2) human-landscape feedbacks, (3) geomorphic hazards and (4) stratigraphic markers of anthropogenic origin. The importance of humans as geomorphic agents challenges geomorphologists and their collaborators to move beyond unidirectional cause-and-effect (human impacts), and develop new research frameworks that better integrate the ongoing interactions between people and landscapes.  相似文献   

Physical geography: interactions with and implications for humanity     

Carol P. Harden 《自然地理学》2014,35(1):1-2

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Bio-electricity and land use in the Future Agricultural Resources Model (FARM)     

Ronald D. Sands  Hannah Förster  Carol A. Jones  Katja Schumacher 《Climatic change》2014,123(3-4):719-730

Bio-electricity is an important technology for Energy Modeling Forum (EMF-27) mitigation scenarios, especially with the possibility of negative carbon dioxide emissions when combined with carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS). With a strong economic foundation, and broad coverage of economic activity, computable general equilibrium models have proven useful for analysis of alternative climate change policies. However, embedding energy technologies in a general equilibrium model is a challenge, especially for a negative emissions technology with joint products of electricity and carbon dioxide storage. We provide a careful implementation of bio-electricity with CCS in a general equilibrium context, and apply it to selected EMF-27 mitigation scenarios through 2100. Representing bio-electricity and its land requirements requires consideration of competing land uses, including crops, pasture, and forests. Land requirements for bio-electricity start at 200 kilohectares per terawatt-hour declining to approximately 70 kilohectares per terwatt-hour by year 2100 in scenarios with high bioenergy potential.  相似文献   

Optical growth of highly viscous organic/sulfate particles     

C. B. Robinson  G. P. Schill  M. A. Tolbert 《Journal of Atmospheric Chemistry》2014,71(2):145-156

Light extinction by atmospheric particles is strongly dependent on their chemical composition and water content. Since light extinction directly impacts climate, optical measurements of atmospherically relevant aerosols at varying relative humidities (RH) are needed. Recent studies have highlighted the possibility that some atmospheric aerosols are glassy under ambient conditions. Here, the particle optical growth factor, fRH_ext, was measured for liquid and glassy particles using cavity ring-down aerosol extinction spectroscopy. The particles were composed of ammonium sulfate (AS), 1,2,6-hexanetriol, sucrose, raffinose, and mixed particles containing AS and either sucrose or raffinose. Both sucrose and raffinose can be glassy at room temperature. For the pure organics, the highly viscous sucrose and raffinose particles have similar optical growth curves to the liquid 1,2,6 hexanetriol particles. However, for particles composed of sucrose or raffinose mixed with AS, optical growth depends on the AS weight-percent, which in turn controls the phase state of the AS and ultimately the water uptake.  相似文献   

Understanding processes of sediment bleaching in glacial settings using a portable OSL reader     

Georgina E. King  David C. W. Sanderson  Ruth A. J. Robinson  Adrian A. Finch 《Boreas: An International Journal of Quaternary Research》2014,43(4):955-972

Analysis of a high‐resolution suite of modern glacial sediments from Jostedalen, southern Norway, using a portable optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) reader, provides insights into the processes of sediment bleaching in glacial environments at the catchment scale. High‐magnitude, low‐frequency processes result in the least effective sediment bleaching, whereas low‐magnitude, high‐frequency events provide greater bleaching opportunities. Changes in sediment bleaching can also be identified at the scale of individual bar features: tails of braid‐bars and side‐attached bar deposits have the lowest portable reader signal intensities, as well as the smallest conventional OSL residual doses. In addition to improving our understanding of the processes of sediment bleaching, portable reader investigations can also facilitate more rapid and comprehensive modern analogue investigations, which are commonly used to confirm that the OSL signals of modern glacial sediments are well bleached.  相似文献   

The AMADEUS dextrous subsea hand: design, modeling, and sensorprocessing     

Lane  D.M. Davies  J.B.C. Robinson  G. O'Brien  D.J. Sneddon  J. Seaton  E. Elfstrom  A. 《Oceanic Engineering, IEEE Journal of》1999,24(1):96-111

This paper describes the mechanical design, finger modeling, and sensor signal processing for a dextrous subsea robot hand incorporating force and slip contact sensing. The hand uses a fluid-filled tentacle for each finger, which has inherent passive compliance, and no moving parts. Force sensing uses strain gauges mounted in the fingertip, potted within a silicon elastomer. Slip sensing uses a piezoelectric strip to detect vibration, embedded 1 mm below the elastomer surface. Static models of finger motion are presented and validated based on bending moments and hydraulic pressure. The design of a stochastic estimator is also described for sensor fusion of contact force magnitude and direction data, obtained using redundant strain gauges in the fingertip. Finally, linear dynamic models of the finger dynamics in contact with a rigid surface are obtained using least squares and recursive least squares parameter estimation, as a precursor to closed-loop force control during grasping  相似文献