Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 19 views

    Carbon Cycle

    Uploaded by

    Porco dio
    The document summarizes key aspects of the carbon cycle, including: 1) Carbon is exchanged between the atmosphere, oceans, organisms, and rocks through processes like photosynthesis, respiration, and rock weathering. 2) The carbonate-silicate cycle acts as a long-term feedback mechanism controlling atmospheric CO2 levels. 3) Biological processes like photosynthesis and organic carbon burial impact carbon storage and exchange between Earth's reservoirs.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Carbon Cycle

    Uploaded by

    Porco dio
    19 views12 pages
    The document summarizes key aspects of the carbon cycle, including: 1) Carbon is exchanged between the atmosphere, oceans, organisms, and rocks through processes like photosynthesis, respiration, and rock weathering. 2) The carbonate-silicate cycle acts as a long-term feedback mechanism controlling atmospheric CO2 levels. 3) Biological processes like photosynthesis and organic carbon burial impact carbon storage and exchange between Earth's reservoirs.

    Original Description:

    Carbon Cycle

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    The document summarizes key aspects of the carbon cycle, including: 1) Carbon is exchanged between the atmosphere, oceans, organisms, and rocks through processes like photosynthesis, respiration, and rock weathering. 2) The carbonate-silicate cycle acts as a long-term feedback mechanism controlling atmospheric CO2 levels. 3) Biological processes like photosynthesis and organic carbon burial impact carbon storage and exchange between Earth's reservoirs.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    19 views12 pages

    Carbon Cycle

    Uploaded by

    Porco dio
    The document summarizes key aspects of the carbon cycle, including: 1) Carbon is exchanged between the atmosphere, oceans, organisms, and rocks through processes like photosynthesis, respiration, and rock weathering. 2) The carbonate-silicate cycle acts as a long-term feedback mechanism controlling atmospheric CO2 levels. 3) Biological processes like photosynthesis and organic carbon burial impact carbon storage and exchange between Earth's reservoirs.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 12

    Carbon Cycle

    Review
    - Defining the Earth's temperature

    - What drives the greenhouse effect?


    1. Organic Carbon Burial and weathering - removal of carbon from the system
    2. Tectonics - added CO2 from the mantle
    3. Carbonate-silicate cycle - removal and addition of CO2

    The Carbon Cycle


    - Carbonate-silicate Cycle
    • A long-term feedback, controlling CO2 concentration
    • Driven by the formation of carbonic acid
    𝐶𝑂! + 𝐻! 𝑂 → 𝐻! 𝐶𝑂"
    • Assists in weathering of rocks

    - Rock Weathering
    • Assume two types of rock exist (and approximate their chemical compositions):
    1. Carbonate - CaCO3
    2. Silicate - CaSiO3
    • Carbonate Weathering
    𝐶𝑎𝐶𝑂" + 𝐻! 𝐶𝑂" → 𝐶𝑎!# + 2𝐻𝐶𝑂"$
    ○ Consumes 1 unit of carbonic acid (derived from CO2).
    ○ Produces 2 units of bicarbonate.
    • Silicate Weathering
    𝐶𝑎𝑆𝑖𝑂" + 2𝐻! 𝐶𝑂" → 𝐶𝑎!# + 𝑆𝑖𝑂! + 2𝐻𝐶𝑂"$ + 𝐻! 𝑂
    ○ Consumes 2 units of carbonic acid (derived from CO2).
    ○ Produces 2 units of bicarbonate.

    - What happens next?


    • In the ocean: Biomineralization, SiO2 & CaCO3 (microscopic algae that use the silic
    Learn more with OneNote Tips
    that are found throughout this
    notebook.

    OneNote Tip:
    Insert a star, question mark, to-do
    checkboxes, lightbulbs and more. Go to
    Home -> Tag to find an appropriate tag.

    cate and carbonate to


    " ! " ! " !
    ○ Consumes 2 units of carbonic acid (derived from CO2).
    ○ Produces 2 units of bicarbonate.

    - What happens next?


    • In the ocean: Biomineralization, SiO2 & CaCO3 (microscopic algae that use the silic
    make skeletons)
    𝐶𝑎!# + 2𝐻𝐶𝑂"$ → 𝐶𝑎𝐶𝑂" + 𝐻! 𝐶𝑂" → 𝐻! 𝑂 + 𝐶𝑂! + 𝐶𝑎𝐶𝑂"
    ○ Consumes 1 CO2, produces 1 CO2
    𝐶𝑎!# + 𝑆𝑖𝑂! + 2𝐻𝐶𝑂"$ + 𝐻! 𝑂 → 𝑆𝑖𝑂! + 𝐶𝑎𝐶𝑂" + 𝐻! 𝐶𝑂" → 𝐻! 𝑂 + 𝐶𝑂! + 𝐶𝑎
    ○ Consumes 2 CO2, produces 1 CO2
    Net removal of one CO2
    Net reaction: 𝐶𝑎𝑆𝑖𝑂" + 𝐶𝑂! → 𝐶𝑎𝐶𝑂" + 𝑆𝑖𝑂!
    • CO2 removed at a rate of 0.2 Gt/year from the atmosphere - would deplete from
    20,000 years (yet this doesn't happen cause this CO2 gets returned to the atmosp

    - Long term feedback


    • Higher surface temperature -> Higher humidity -> more rainfall -> higher silicate w
    • Higher silicate weathering rate -> Decrease in atmospheric CO2 concentration ->
    • See class slides for feedback cycle
    • Loop is dominated by negative feedbacks (2 negative, one positive)

    - What happens as the sun warms?


    • Solar luminosity increase decreases the concentration of CO2

    - Runway Greenhouse Effect


    • Happened on Venus
    • Over long time periods, carbonate rocks are incredibly important to the carbon cy

    - Carbonate Rocks
    • Gigantic reservoir of carbon
    • Small flux
    • Long residence time - about 200 million years
    • Accounts for about 80% of carbon removal over long amouts of time
    • Only oxidized carbon

    - Chemistry of Carbon
    Most Oxidized Most Reduced
    CO2 CO CH2Cl2 CH3Cl2 CH4
    Carbonates
    Organic Compounds

    - What effect does biology have on the carbon cycle?


    • Conversion of CO2 to organic carbon (reduction)
    • Decay of organic compounds can give you the production of CO2 from organic car
    cate and carbonate to
    OneNote Tip:
    Keep track of important information by
    highlighting it. Go to Home -> Basic Text ->
    𝑎𝐶𝑂" + 𝑆𝑖𝑂! Choose you color.

    the atmosphere in about


    phere with plate tectonics)

    weathering rate

    ycle

    OneNote Tip:
    Insert a table. Go to Insert -> Table ->
    Choose your columns and rows.
    Create tables with color borders and to
    highlight important information.
    Download the free OneNote desktop app
    to and Insert -> Table -> Layout ->
    Shading.

    rbon
    - What effect does biology have on the carbon cycle?
    • Conversion of CO2 to organic carbon (reduction)
    • Decay of organic compounds can give you the production of CO2 from organic car
    • Transport CO2 to soils/enhanced weathering
    • Transport organic carbon to deep water

    - Carbon fixation = autotrophy


    𝐶𝑂! + 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑠 → 𝐶𝐻! 𝑂
    • Where to the electrons come from?
    1. A chemical (e.g. H2S) - chemoautotrphy
    2. A reaction between a chemical and light (e.g. H2O) - photoautotrophy
    • NPP = Net Primary Productivity

    - Photosynthetic Organisms
    • Anoxygenic Photosynthesis
    ○ Green and purple (sulfur and non-sulfur) bacteria and heliobacteria
    • Oxygenic Photosynthesis
    ○ Cyanobacteria

    - Pigments
    • Light harvesting pigments
    ○ Bacteriochlorophyll (bchl) for anoxygenic photosynthesis
    ○ Chlorophyll for oxygenic photosynthesis
    ○ Different varieties that can absorb light at different wavelengths

    - Connections to the O2 cycle


    • Event in earth history called the "great oxidation event" - about 2.5 billion years a
    O2 concentration went up in a step function-like way

    - Carbon Fixation
    1. Generate a high-energy electron (from chemicals or light)
    2. Donate that electron to CO2 through a pathway

    - Carbon fixation pathways


    • Calvin cycle - most widely known
    • rTCA cycle
    • Acetyl-coA pathway
    • Important globally. More detail when we get to isotopes

    - Organic carbon oxidation = heterotrophy


    𝐶𝐻! 𝑂 + 𝑇𝐸𝐴 → 𝐶𝑂! + 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑠
    TEA = Terminal Electron Acceptor

    - "Removing" carbon from the system by burial


    • 80% carbonates
    Download the free OneNote desktop app
    to and Insert -> Table -> Layout ->
    Shading.

    rbon

    ago, when the atmosphere Other tips you might


    find useful:

    OneNote Tip:
    You can also insert file attachments like
    PDFs, Word, PowerPoint and Excel
    documents etc. Go to Insert -> File
    Attachment.

    OneNote Tip:
    Insert a Sway by copying and pasting the
    Sway URL link anywhere on a page.
    - Organic carbon oxidation = heterotrophy
    𝐶𝐻! 𝑂 + 𝑇𝐸𝐴 → 𝐶𝑂! + 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑠
    TEA = Terminal Electron Acceptor

    - "Removing" carbon from the system by burial


    • 80% carbonates
    • 20% organic carbon

    - Proterozoic Era
    • Large increase of flux of organic carbon into sediments
    • More oxygen goes into the atmosphere and creates another step function change

    - Carbon cycle linked to O2 cycle


    • Surface Ocean Processes: Photosynthesis, fecal-pellet production, oxygen produc
    𝐶𝑂! + 𝐻! 𝑂 → 𝐶𝐻! 𝑂 + 𝑂!
    • Deep Ocean Processes: Decomposition, nutrient release, oxygen consumption
    𝐶𝐻! 𝑂 + 𝑂! → 𝐶𝑂! + 𝐻! 𝑂

    - O2 cycle feedbacks
    • Positive coupling between carbon burial and oxygen accumulation
    • Negative coupling between oxygen accumulation and carbon oxidation
    • Overall negative feedback loop
    Sway URL link anywhere on a page.

    ction

    You might also like