Geochemistry Of Organic Matter In River Sea Systems

One of the basic concepts of ocean biogeochemistry is that of an ocean with extremely active boundary zones and separation boundaries of extensive biochemical interactions. The areas of these zones are characterized by a sharp decrease of element migration intensity and consequently the decrease in their concentrations gave the boundaries for the naming of the geochemical barriers (Perelman, 1972). For the purposes of biogeo chemistry the most important ones are the boundaries of separation between river-sea, ocean-atmosphere, and water-ground (Lisitzin, 1983). The most complicated of them is the river-sea boundary, where the biogeochemical processes are the most active and complicated (Monin and Romankevich, 1979, 1984). The necessity of studying organic matter in rivers, mouth regions and adjoining sea aquatories has been repeatedly pointed out by v.I. Vernadsky (1934, 1960) who noted both the importance of registration of solid and liquid run-off of rivers, coming into the sea, and "the quality and the character of those elements, which are washed-down into the sea", emphasizing that "wash-down of organic substances into the sea is of great value". The interest in studying organic matter in natural waters, including river and sea waters, has grown considerably over the last 30 years. During this period essential material was collected on the content and composition of organic matter in various types of river waters of the USSR, and this was published in papers by B.A Scopintzev, AD. Semenov, M.V.

My work Geochemistry oj organic matter in the ocean first appeared in Russian in 1978. Since then much progress has been made in the exploration of various forms of organic matter in the ocean: dissolved, colloidal, organic matter sus pended in particles and that contained in bottom sediments and in interstitial waters. The appropriate evidence is found in hundreds of articles and several re view works, such as Andersen (1977), Biogeochimie de [a matiere organique a ['interjace eau-sedimentmarine (1980), Duursma and Dawson (1981). A great amount of new information has been obtained in the Soviet Union's scientific institutions on the composition and distribution in natural waters and bottom sediments of organic matter and its separate components playing a crucial role in the formation of the chemical and biological structure of the ocean and its productivity, in the biogeochemistry of the elements and geochemistry of organic matter in the Earth's sedimentary cover. The areas of exploration have expanded over the past four-and-a-half years to embrace many new, little-known regions, including the Arctic seas. In contrast to the three preceeding decades, the research has been focused on investigating the existing forms, the distribution and accumulation of organic matter in near continental oceanic zones between land and sea, and in river estuaries.

"Marine dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a complex mixture of molecules found throughout the world's oceans. It plays a key role in the export, distribution, and sequestration of carbon in the oceanic water column, posited to be a source of atmospheric climate regulation. Biogeochemistry of Marine Dissolved Organic Matter, Second Edition, focuses on the chemical constituents of DOM and its biogeochemical, biological, and ecological significance in the global ocean, and provides a single, unique source for the references, information, and informed judgments of the community of marine biogeochemists. Presented by some of the world's leading scientists, this revised edition reports on the major advances in this area and includes new chapters covering the role of DOM in ancient ocean carbon cycles, the long term stability of marine DOM, the biophysical dynamics of DOM, fluvial DOM qualities and fate, and the Mediterranean Sea. Biogeochemistry of Marine Dissolved Organic Matter, Second Edition, is an extremely useful resource that helps people interested in the largest pool of active carbon on the planet (DOC) get a firm grounding on the general paradigms and many of the relevant references on this topic"--

Sediments from the world's ocean floors and other water body basins hold a wealth of information about organic life as we know it. Organic Matter: Productivity, Accumulation, and Preservation in Recent and Ancient Sediments addresses focusing on the production, accumulation, and preservation of organic matter in marine and lacustrine sediments. Contributors to this important monograph cover a range of geologic ages from recent times back to the Permian Era, as well as temperature and organic matter types. This resource book will be of interest and benefit to petroleum explorationists and researchers, as well as oceanographers, marine and environmental scientists, sedimentologists, geochemists and paleontologists.

The past two or three decades have seen many important advances in our knowledge of the chemistry, physics, geology and biology of the oceans. It has also become apparent that in order to understand the manner in which the oceans work as a 'chemical system', it is necessary to use a framework which takes account of these interdisciplinary advances. Marine geochemistry has been written in response to the need for a single state-of-the-art text that addresses the subject of treating the sea water, sediment and rock reservoirs as a unified system. In taking this approach, a process-orientated framework has been adopted in which the emphasis is placed on identifying key processes operating within the 'unified ocean'. In doing this, particular attention has been paid to making the text accessible to students from all disciplines in such a way that future advances can readily be understood. I would like to express my thanks to those people who have helped with the writing of this volume. In particular, I wish to put on record my sincere appreciation of extremely helpful suggestions made by Professor John Edmond, FRS. In addition, I thank Dr S. Rowlatt for his comments on the sections covering the geochemistry of oceanic sediments, and Dr G. Wolff for his invaluable advice on the organic geochemistry of biota, water and sediments. It is a great pleasure to acknowledge the help of Dr K. J. T.

This book is written as a reference on organic substances in natural waters and as a supplementary text for graduate students in water chemistry. The chapters address five topics: amount, origin, nature, geochemistry, and characterization of organic carbon. Of these topics, the main themes are the amount and nature of dissolved organic carbon in natural waters (mainly fresh water, although seawater is briefly discussed). It is hoped that the reader is familiar with organic chemistry, but it is not necessary. The first part of the book is a general overview of the amount and general nature of dissolved organic carbon. Over the past 10 years there has been an exponential increase in knowledge on organic substances in water, which is the result of money directed toward the research of organic compounds, of new methods of analysis (such as gas chromatography and mass spectrometry), and most importantly, the result of more people working in this field. Because of this exponential increase in knowledge, there is a need to pull together and summarize the data that has accumulated from many disciplines over the last decade.

This book is devoted to the biogeochemical environment of the White Sea, an inland sea in the Northwestern region of Russia. It provides a comprehensive review and discusses the latest research findings on the oceanology, sedimentology and biogeochemistry of the White Sea water column. The topics discussed include the regulation of the physico-geographical conditions in the White Sea basin; dispersed sedimentary substance of the atmosphere and the cryosphere; the geochemical peculiarities of the river discharge into the White Sea; and the phyto- and zooplankton activities in the White Sea. Taking the biggest river in the White Sea basin as an example, the authors closely examine the deposition of suspended particulate matter, the biogeochemical behaviour of dissolved and suspended forms of organic material and the significant group of chemical elements in the river-sea mixing zone of the Severnaya Dvina River. The book ends with a summary of the key conclusions and recommendations. Together with the companion volume Sedimentation Processes in the White Sea: The White Sea Environment Part II, it offers an essential source of information for postgraduate students, researchers and stakeholders alike.