Tephra deposition and bonding with reactive oxides enhances burial of organic carbon in the Bering Sea
Tephra deposition and bonding with reactive oxides enhances burial of organic carbon in the Bering Sea
Preservation of organic carbon (OC) in marine sediments exerts a major control on the cycling of carbon in the Earth system. In these marine environments, OC preservation may be enhanced by diagenetic reactions in locations where deposition of fragmental volcanic material called tephra occurs. While the mechanisms by which this process occurs are well understood, site-specific studies of this process are limited. Here, we report a study of sediments from the Bering Sea (IODP Site U1339D) to investigate the effects of marine tephra deposition on carbon cycling during the Pleistocene and Holocene. Our results suggest that tephra layers are loci of OC burial with distinct δ13C values, and that this process is primarily linked to bonding of OC with reactive metals, accounting for ∼80% of all OC within tephra layers. In addition, distribution of reactive metals from the tephra into non-volcanic sediments above and below the tephra layers enhances OC preservation in these sediments, with ∼33% of OC bound to reactive phases. Importantly, OC-Fe coupling is evident in sediments >700,000 years old. Thus, these interactions may help explain the observed preservation of OC in ancient marine sediments.
Longman, Jack
26a3c4e3-79d6-4102-9708-a5b02b97121d
Gernon, Thomas
658041a0-fdd1-4516-85f4-98895a39235e
Palmer, Martin
d2e60e81-5d6e-4ddb-a243-602537286080
Manners, Hayley
98c78033-549b-4c25-922c-bb080651240c
November 2021
Longman, Jack
26a3c4e3-79d6-4102-9708-a5b02b97121d
Gernon, Thomas
658041a0-fdd1-4516-85f4-98895a39235e
Palmer, Martin
d2e60e81-5d6e-4ddb-a243-602537286080
Manners, Hayley
98c78033-549b-4c25-922c-bb080651240c
Longman, Jack, Gernon, Thomas, Palmer, Martin and Manners, Hayley
(2021)
Tephra deposition and bonding with reactive oxides enhances burial of organic carbon in the Bering Sea.
Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 35 (11), [e2021GB007140].
(doi:10.1029/2021GB007140).
Abstract
Preservation of organic carbon (OC) in marine sediments exerts a major control on the cycling of carbon in the Earth system. In these marine environments, OC preservation may be enhanced by diagenetic reactions in locations where deposition of fragmental volcanic material called tephra occurs. While the mechanisms by which this process occurs are well understood, site-specific studies of this process are limited. Here, we report a study of sediments from the Bering Sea (IODP Site U1339D) to investigate the effects of marine tephra deposition on carbon cycling during the Pleistocene and Holocene. Our results suggest that tephra layers are loci of OC burial with distinct δ13C values, and that this process is primarily linked to bonding of OC with reactive metals, accounting for ∼80% of all OC within tephra layers. In addition, distribution of reactive metals from the tephra into non-volcanic sediments above and below the tephra layers enhances OC preservation in these sediments, with ∼33% of OC bound to reactive phases. Importantly, OC-Fe coupling is evident in sediments >700,000 years old. Thus, these interactions may help explain the observed preservation of OC in ancient marine sediments.
Text
OC Burial Bering_Longman_2021_Edited2_v3
- Accepted Manuscript
Text
2021GB007140
- Version of Record
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Accepted/In Press date: 19 October 2021
e-pub ahead of print date: 25 October 2021
Published date: November 2021
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
This work was funded by a Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) grant, NE/K00543X/1, “The role of marine diagenesis of tephra in the carbon cycle.” T. M. Gernon acknowledges support from NERC grant, NE/R004978/1. We are grateful for the comments of Johan Faust and two anonymous reviewers, and those of the associate editor which greatly improved the manuscript. Open access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.
Funding Information:
This work was funded by a Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) grant, NE/K00543X/1, ?The role of marine diagenesis of tephra in the carbon cycle.? T. M. Gernon acknowledges support from NERC grant, NE/R004978/1. We are grateful for the comments of Johan Faust and two anonymous reviewers, and those of the associate editor which greatly improved the manuscript. Open access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021. The Authors.
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Local EPrints ID: 452313
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/452313
ISSN: 0886-6236
PURE UUID: 6cad81e8-e851-4758-81b3-24fa8249a208
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Date deposited: 07 Dec 2021 17:30
Last modified: 06 Jun 2024 01:48
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Author:
Jack Longman
Author:
Hayley Manners
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