Role of iron-binding organic ligands in the distribution of dissolved iron in Antarctic sea ice ...

• Main Author: Genovese, C
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: University of Tasmania 2021
• Subjects: Antarctic; Tac; Antarc*; ice algae; Sea ice
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.25959/100.00038067; https://eprints.utas.edu.au/id/eprint/38067

The availability of iron (Fe) is decisive for biochemical reactions involved in marine primary productivity and atmospheric carbon dioxide drawdown. Low Fe solubility and paucity of Fe sources lead to Fe limitation in Antarctic surface waters, which strongly constrains phytoplankton growth. This limitation is seasonally alleviated when sea ice melts, as sea ice is generally enriched in Fe compared to seawater. This natural fertilization event benefits both sympagic ice algae and pelagic phytoplankton. In seawater, the concentration of dissolved Fe (DFe) is controlled by iron-binding organic ligands (L), yet sea-ice environment is comparatively understudied. The first part of this thesis (Chapter 2) aimed to investigate how salinity and temperature may affect the physicochemical detection of L. The experimental design offered a comparison between artificial ligands used in sea-ice samples (1-nitroso-2-naphthol or NN) and in seawater samples (salicylaldoxime or SA, and 2-(2-thiazolylazo)-p-cresol or TAC), in ...