{"title":"Sources and dynamics of dissolved black carbon in the Pearl River Estuary and Shelf, Northern South China Sea","authors":"Qinghua Zhang, Junfei Zhou, Ziming Fang, Weifeng Yang, Min Chen, Minfang Zheng","doi":"10.1007/s10872-023-00708-2","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>Estuarine processes regulate the transport of dissolved black carbon (DBC) and associated contaminants to the ocean. However, there is limited understanding of the geochemical behavior of DBC in estuaries. In this study, DBC in the Pearl River Estuary (PRE) and the northern shelf of the South China Sea were examined using the benzene polycarboxylic acid (BPCA) method. DBC, bulk dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) exhibited distinct behaviors during their transport from the PRE to the sea. DOC and CDOM decreased during the initial mixing of river water and seawater but increased at the lower PRE. In contrast, high aromaticity DBC inputs were observed throughout the PRE, likely originating from local terrestrial sources, such as runoff from nearby islands, as indicated by the high <i>R</i><sub>H/L</sub> values (i.e., the ratio of BPCA containing 5 and 6 carboxyl groups to that containing 3 and 4 carboxyl groups; 2.03–2.30). In the Pearl River-plume zone (salinity < 33.0), DOC, CDOM, and DBC showed quasi-conservative behaviors against salinity, indicating that their geochemical behaviors were primarily governed by physical mixing between plume water and seawater. Using a flux model, it was estimated that the discharge of riverine DBC from the Pearl River Delta ranged from 11.2 to 16.3 Gg year<sup>−1</sup>, representing an important source of bio-resistant DOC to the northern South China Sea.</p>","PeriodicalId":16640,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Oceanography","volume":"20 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.3000,"publicationDate":"2023-12-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Oceanography","FirstCategoryId":"89","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10872-023-00708-2","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"OCEANOGRAPHY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Estuarine processes regulate the transport of dissolved black carbon (DBC) and associated contaminants to the ocean. However, there is limited understanding of the geochemical behavior of DBC in estuaries. In this study, DBC in the Pearl River Estuary (PRE) and the northern shelf of the South China Sea were examined using the benzene polycarboxylic acid (BPCA) method. DBC, bulk dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) exhibited distinct behaviors during their transport from the PRE to the sea. DOC and CDOM decreased during the initial mixing of river water and seawater but increased at the lower PRE. In contrast, high aromaticity DBC inputs were observed throughout the PRE, likely originating from local terrestrial sources, such as runoff from nearby islands, as indicated by the high RH/L values (i.e., the ratio of BPCA containing 5 and 6 carboxyl groups to that containing 3 and 4 carboxyl groups; 2.03–2.30). In the Pearl River-plume zone (salinity < 33.0), DOC, CDOM, and DBC showed quasi-conservative behaviors against salinity, indicating that their geochemical behaviors were primarily governed by physical mixing between plume water and seawater. Using a flux model, it was estimated that the discharge of riverine DBC from the Pearl River Delta ranged from 11.2 to 16.3 Gg year−1, representing an important source of bio-resistant DOC to the northern South China Sea.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Oceanography is the official journal of the Oceanographic Society of Japan and open to all oceanographers in the world. The main aim of the journal is to promote understandings of ocean systems from various aspects including physical, chemical, biological, geological oceanography as well as paleoceanography, etc. The journal welcomes research focusing on the western North Pacific and Asian coastal waters, but the study region is not limited to the Asian Pacific. The journal publishes original articles, short contributions, reviews, and correspondence in oceanography and related fields.