Glacial rock flour increases photosynthesis and biomass of natural phytoplankton communities in subtropical surface waters: a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal
Photosynthesis by phytoplankton reduces partial pressure of CO2 at the surface of the ocean and is therefore a potential means of action for a marine CO2 removal technology. Here we study how glacial rock flour may influence photosynthesis in the open ocean. Glacial rock flour is a fine-grained sili...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2024
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2024.1416421 https://doaj.org/article/4fa262c14d96454a81683e63c390ebd5 |
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:4fa262c14d96454a81683e63c390ebd5 2024-09-30T14:35:59+00:00 Glacial rock flour increases photosynthesis and biomass of natural phytoplankton communities in subtropical surface waters: a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal Jørgen Bendtsen Niels Daugbjerg Jørgen L. S. Hansen 2024-09-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2024.1416421 https://doaj.org/article/4fa262c14d96454a81683e63c390ebd5 EN eng Frontiers Media S.A. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2024.1416421/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-7745 2296-7745 doi:10.3389/fmars.2024.1416421 https://doaj.org/article/4fa262c14d96454a81683e63c390ebd5 Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol 11 (2024) marine CO2 removal glacial rock flour biological pump alkalinization phytoplankton trace metals Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 article 2024 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2024.1416421 2024-09-17T16:00:44Z Photosynthesis by phytoplankton reduces partial pressure of CO2 at the surface of the ocean and is therefore a potential means of action for a marine CO2 removal technology. Here we study how glacial rock flour may influence photosynthesis in the open ocean. Glacial rock flour is a fine-grained silicate mineral from the bedrock grinded by the Greenland Ice Sheet and enters the ocean via fjords and coastal waters. It is therefore a natural source of nutrients and trace metals to the ocean. It is easily accessible in large quantities and could be a suitable source for large-scale CO2 removal. The impact of suspended glacial rock flour was analyzed through 14 incubation experiments with natural phytoplankton communities sampled in the subtropical Atlantic. A significant increase in photosynthesis was found in 12 experiments where variable fluorescence Fv/Fm increased 12% and the average concentration of chlorophyll a increased significantly in comparison with control treatments during a 6-day period. Incubations with glacial rock flour showed a significant uptake of phosphorus whereas the average concentrations of silicate and dissolved inorganic nitrogen increased. Nutrient changes could be explained by increasing phytoplankton and microbial biomass, remineralization of organic matter, and weathering (mobilization) of glacial rock flour. These short time experiments indicated that trace metals from glacial rock flour stimulated phytoplankton growth. Thus, glacial rock flour has the potential to increase photosynthesis and phytoplankton growth, and therefore may be a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal. Article in Journal/Newspaper Greenland Ice Sheet Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Greenland Frontiers in Marine Science 11 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
marine CO2 removal glacial rock flour biological pump alkalinization phytoplankton trace metals Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 |
spellingShingle |
marine CO2 removal glacial rock flour biological pump alkalinization phytoplankton trace metals Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 Jørgen Bendtsen Niels Daugbjerg Jørgen L. S. Hansen Glacial rock flour increases photosynthesis and biomass of natural phytoplankton communities in subtropical surface waters: a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal |
topic_facet |
marine CO2 removal glacial rock flour biological pump alkalinization phytoplankton trace metals Science Q General. Including nature conservation geographical distribution QH1-199.5 |
description |
Photosynthesis by phytoplankton reduces partial pressure of CO2 at the surface of the ocean and is therefore a potential means of action for a marine CO2 removal technology. Here we study how glacial rock flour may influence photosynthesis in the open ocean. Glacial rock flour is a fine-grained silicate mineral from the bedrock grinded by the Greenland Ice Sheet and enters the ocean via fjords and coastal waters. It is therefore a natural source of nutrients and trace metals to the ocean. It is easily accessible in large quantities and could be a suitable source for large-scale CO2 removal. The impact of suspended glacial rock flour was analyzed through 14 incubation experiments with natural phytoplankton communities sampled in the subtropical Atlantic. A significant increase in photosynthesis was found in 12 experiments where variable fluorescence Fv/Fm increased 12% and the average concentration of chlorophyll a increased significantly in comparison with control treatments during a 6-day period. Incubations with glacial rock flour showed a significant uptake of phosphorus whereas the average concentrations of silicate and dissolved inorganic nitrogen increased. Nutrient changes could be explained by increasing phytoplankton and microbial biomass, remineralization of organic matter, and weathering (mobilization) of glacial rock flour. These short time experiments indicated that trace metals from glacial rock flour stimulated phytoplankton growth. Thus, glacial rock flour has the potential to increase photosynthesis and phytoplankton growth, and therefore may be a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Jørgen Bendtsen Niels Daugbjerg Jørgen L. S. Hansen |
author_facet |
Jørgen Bendtsen Niels Daugbjerg Jørgen L. S. Hansen |
author_sort |
Jørgen Bendtsen |
title |
Glacial rock flour increases photosynthesis and biomass of natural phytoplankton communities in subtropical surface waters: a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal |
title_short |
Glacial rock flour increases photosynthesis and biomass of natural phytoplankton communities in subtropical surface waters: a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal |
title_full |
Glacial rock flour increases photosynthesis and biomass of natural phytoplankton communities in subtropical surface waters: a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal |
title_fullStr |
Glacial rock flour increases photosynthesis and biomass of natural phytoplankton communities in subtropical surface waters: a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal |
title_full_unstemmed |
Glacial rock flour increases photosynthesis and biomass of natural phytoplankton communities in subtropical surface waters: a potential means of action for marine CO2 removal |
title_sort |
glacial rock flour increases photosynthesis and biomass of natural phytoplankton communities in subtropical surface waters: a potential means of action for marine co2 removal |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2024.1416421 https://doaj.org/article/4fa262c14d96454a81683e63c390ebd5 |
geographic |
Greenland |
geographic_facet |
Greenland |
genre |
Greenland Ice Sheet |
genre_facet |
Greenland Ice Sheet |
op_source |
Frontiers in Marine Science, Vol 11 (2024) |
op_relation |
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmars.2024.1416421/full https://doaj.org/toc/2296-7745 2296-7745 doi:10.3389/fmars.2024.1416421 https://doaj.org/article/4fa262c14d96454a81683e63c390ebd5 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2024.1416421 |
container_title |
Frontiers in Marine Science |
container_volume |
11 |
_version_ |
1811639180189499392 |