Combustion iron distribution and deposition

Abstract

Iron is hypothesized to be an important micronutrient for ocean biota, thus modulating carbon dioxide uptake by the ocean biological pump. Studies have assumed that atmospheric deposition of iron to the open ocean is predominantly from mineral aerosols. For the first time we model the source, transport, and deposition of iron from combustion sources. Iron is produced in small quantities during fossil fuel burning, incinerator use, and biomass burning. The sources of combustion iron are concentrated in the industrialized regions and biomass burning regions, largely in the tropics. Model results suggest that combustion iron can represent up to 50% of the total iron deposited, but over open ocean regions it is usually less than 5% of the total iron, with the highest values (<30%) close to the East Asian continent in the North Pacific. For ocean biogeochemistry the bioavailability of the iron is important, and this is often estimated by the fraction which is soluble (Fe(II)). Previous studies have argued that atmospheric processing of the relatively insoluble Fe(III) occurs to make it more soluble (Fe(II)). Modeled estimates of soluble iron amounts based solely on atmospheric processing as simulated here cannot match the variability in daily averaged in situ concentration measurements in Korea, which is located close to both combustion and dust sources. The best match to the observations is that there are substantial direct emissions of soluble iron from combustion processes. If we assume observed soluble Fe/black carbon ratios in Korea are representative of the whole globe, we obtain the result that deposition of soluble iron from combustion contributes 20–100% of the soluble iron deposition over many ocean regions. This implies that more work should be done refining the emissions and deposition of combustion sources of soluble iron globally.