Organic burial

The first evidence for enhanced preservation with high net sediment accumulation rates in oceanic environments was presented in the context of organic burial efficiency—to... 

Organic burial efficiency the accumulation rate of organic matter below the active zone of diagenesis divided by the organic matter flux to surface sediments. 

The hydrocarbons in some altered form migrate from the source beds through other more porous and permeable beds to eventually accumulate in a rock called the reservoir rock. The initially altered (i.e., within the source beds) organic material may continue to alter as the material migrates. The hydrocarbon movement is probably the result of hydrodynamic pressure and gravity forces. As the source beds are compacted by increased burial pressures, the water and altered organic material are expelled. Water movement carries the hydrocarbons from the source beds into the reservoir, where the hydrocarbon establishes a position of equilibrium for the hydrodynamic and structural conditions [26-29]. 

The formation and dissolution of CaCOa in the ocean plays a significant role in all of these effects (34)- CaCOa is produced by marine organisms at a rate several times the supply rate of CaCOa to the sea from rivers. Thus, for the loss of CaCOa to sediments to match the supply from rivers, most of the CaCOa formed must be redissolved. The balance is maintained through changes in the [COa] content of the deep sea. A lowering of the CO2 concentration of the atmosphere and ocean, for example by increased new production, raises the [COa] ion content of sea water. This in turn creates a mismatch between CaCOa burial and CaCOa supply. CaCOa accumulates faster than it is supplied to the sea. This burial of excess CaCOa in marine sediments draws down the [COa] - concentration of sea water toward the value required for balance between CaCOa loss and gain. In this way, the ocean compensates for organic removal. As a consequence of this compensation process, the CO2 content of the atmosphere would rise back toward its initial value. 

Note that this estimate of the annual O2 loss to weathering processes is approximately equal to the estimated annual production of oxygen estimated above. Hence, the weathering of rocks and burial of organic carbon in sediments during their formation are important processes for the oxygen content of the atmosphere. 

To understand the distribution and pathways of organic material in the ocean the key question is "What happens to that 99% of the phytoplankton biomass that is remineralized between photosynthesis and burial "... 

The main mechanism for removal of organic carbon from the ocean is burial in sediments. This flux is equal to the average global sedimentation rate for marine sediments times their weight percent organic carbon. The total sink... 

Transport in solution or aqueous suspension is the major mechanism for metal movement from the land to the oceans and ultimately to burial in ocean sediments. In solution, the hydrated metal ion and inorganic and organic complexes can all account for major portions of the total metal load. Relatively pure metal ores exist in many places, and metals from these ores may enter an aquatic system as a result of weathering. For most metals a more common sequence is for a small amount of the ore to dissolve, for the metal ions to adsorb onto other particulate matter suspended in flowing water, and for the metal to be carried as part of the particulate load of a stream in this fashion. The very insoluble oxides of Fe, Si, and A1 (including clays), and particulate organic matter, are the most important solid adsorbents on which metals are "carried."... 

Soil burial is widely used as the method of testing susceptibility to degradation. It closely mimics the conditions of waste disposal used for plastics but it is often difficult to reproduce results obtained because of absence of control over either the climate at the test site or the variety of micro-organisms involved in the degradation. Soil burial is thus used to provide qualitative indications of biodegradability, with more controlled laboratory work with cultured micro-organisms being used to obtain more quantitative detail. 

Fig. 4.14. Tracing climate change in the Miocene. Shown here are records of ice volume and temperature (based on foraminiferal S 0) and relative organic carbon burial (based on foraminiferal S C), compared with the CO2 estimates of Pagani et al. (1999), and tectonic events that may have affected ocean heat transport. Trends in CO2 are consistent with organic carbon burial and CO2 drawdown during the Monterey Excursion, but cannot explain the Miocene Climatic Optimum (MCO) or expansion of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS).

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