| |
| author |
Hannah Primiano
| | title |
Nutrient Availability in the Ocean: An analysis of 2-nitrophenol on iron containing mineral dust and the effects of nutrients on phytoplankton distribution in the Southern Ocean
| | abstract |
Mineral dust that enters the atmosphere becomes a major source of iron and other limiting
nutrients that determine phytoplankton growth and distribution in the ocean. Reactions of mineral
dust by trace organic gases found in the atmosphere can affect the amount of soluble and
bioavailable iron. This process is known as atmospheric processing. Understanding the
atmospheric processing of iron rich mineral dusts can help atmospheric and nutrient models
become more accurate. Nutrient availability, which can be affected by mineral dusts, directly
correlates with phytoplankton distribution. In this paper, we will compare the mineral dust
properties and the phytoplankton distribution to increase our understanding of nutrient availability
in global oceans. The first study is between the interactions of 2-nitrophenol (2NP), a known
biomass burning product and pollutant, with nontronite, an iron rich clay. Diffuse Reflectance
Infra-Red Fourier Transform Spectrometry (DRIFTS) identified physiosorbed 2NP to be the main
product. There was no observation of 2NP undergoing photolysis, despite that being an important
gas phase mechanism. We also identified the presence of co-adsorbed water to minimally affect
the concentration of surface adsorbed 2NP. The second study in this work is an analysis of
phytoplankton distribution in the South Indian Sector of the Southern Ocean in relation to nutrient
levels. Our findings show that coccolithophores significantly correlate with silicate levels in the
area. This could point to silicate pathways within coccolithophores that have previously gone
underrepresented. The implications of each of these topics allow us to build on existing models of
mineral dust dissolution and give us a better idea of mechanisms that are affecting nutrient
distribution and uptake.
| | school |
The College of Liberal Arts, Drew University
| | degree |
B.S. (2022)
|
| advisor |
Ryan Hinrichs
|
| full text | HPrimiano.pdf |
| |
