Trace element and isotope deposition across the air–sea interface: progress and research needs

Baker, A. R. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8365-8953, Landing, W. M., Bucciarelli, E., Cheize, M., Fietz, S., Hayes, C. T., Kadko, D., Morton, P., Rogan, N., Sarthou, G., Shelley, R. U., Shi, Z., Shiller, A. and van Hulten, M. M. P. (2016) Trace element and isotope deposition across the air–sea interface: progress and research needs. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A, 374 (2081). ISSN 1471-2962

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Abstract

The importance of the atmospheric deposition of biologically essential trace elements, especially iron, is widely recognized, as are the difficulties of accurately quantifying the rates of trace element wet and dry deposition and their fractional solubility. This paper summarizes some of the recent progress in this field, particularly that driven by the GEOTRACES, and other, international research programmes. The utility and limitations of models used to estimate atmospheric deposition flux, for example, from the surface ocean distribution of tracers such as dissolved aluminium, are discussed and a relatively new technique for quantifying atmospheric deposition using the short-lived radionuclide beryllium-7 is highlighted. It is proposed that this field will advance more rapidly by using a multi-tracer approach, and that aerosol deposition models should be ground-truthed against observed aerosol concentration data. It is also important to improve our understanding of the mechanisms and rates that control the fractional solubility of these tracers. Aerosol provenance and chemistry (humidity, acidity and organic ligand characteristics) play important roles in governing tracer solubility. Many of these factors are likely to be influenced by changes in atmospheric composition in the future. Intercalibration exercises for aerosol chemistry and fractional solubility are an essential component of the GEOTRACES programme.

Item Type: Article
Additional Information: Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, which permits unrestricted use, provided the original author and source are credited.
Uncontrolled Keywords: air–sea exchange,atmospheric deposition,trace element solubility,biogeochemical impacts,mineral dust,anthropogenic aerosols
Faculty \ School: Faculty of Science > School of Environmental Sciences
Faculty of Science > School of Natural Sciences
UEA Research Groups: Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Centre for Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences
Depositing User: Pure Connector
Date Deposited: 05 Jul 2016 07:03
Last Modified: 21 Oct 2022 14:34
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/59652
DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2016.0190

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