Abstract
Abstract. Riverine Fe input is the primary Fe source for the ocean. This study is focused on the distribution of Fe along the Lena River freshwater plume in the Laptev Sea using samples from a 600 km long transect in front of the Lena River mouth. Separation of the particulate (>0.22 µm), colloidal (0.22 µm–1 kDa), and truly dissolved (<1 kDa) fractions of Fe was carried out. The total Fe concentrations ranged from 0.2 to 57 µM with Fe dominantly as particulate Fe. The loss of >99 % of particulate Fe and about 90 % of the colloidal Fe was observed across the shelf, while the truly dissolved phase was almost constant across the Laptev Sea. Thus, the truly dissolved Fe could be an important source of bioavailable Fe for plankton in the central Arctic Ocean, together with the colloidal Fe. Fe-isotope analysis showed that the particulate phase and the sediment below the Lena River freshwater plume had negative δ56Fe values (relative to IRMM-14). The colloidal Fe phase showed negative δ56Fe values close to the river mouth (about −0.20 ‰) and positive δ56Fe values in the outermost stations (about +0.10 ‰). We suggest that the shelf zone acts as a sink for Fe particles and colloids with negative δ56Fe values, representing chemically reactive ferrihydrites. The positive δ56Fe values of the colloidal phase within the outer Lena River freshwater plume might represent Fe oxyhydroxides, which remain in the water column, and will be the predominant δ56Fe composition in the Arctic Ocean.
Highlights
The cycling of Fe is a key component for understanding water quality and biogeochemical processes
The average dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration of 410 μM in the surface water of the Lena River freshwater plume has been reported by Alling et al (2010) and is similar to previous studies (Cauwet and Sidorov, 1996: 300–600 μM)
It has been shown that DOC is behaving conservatively during mixing between Lena River water and Arctic Ocean water along the sampling profile (Alling et al, 2010; Opsahl et al, 1999; Pugach et al, 2018)
Summary
The cycling of Fe is a key component for understanding water quality and biogeochemical processes. The concentration in seawater is low compared to riverine input (Martin and Gordon, 1991). The riverine input of Fe is one of the most important contributions to the oceanic Fe budget, as well as aeolian dust, recycled sediment, subglacial and iceberg meltwater, and hydrothermal fluxes (Raiswell and Canfield, 2012). Particulate Fe supplied by rivers to the oceans is 3 orders of magnitude higher than filterable Fe (Martin and Meybeck, 1979). Iron behaves non-conservatively during the mixing of freshwater and seawater and is removed to sediments (Boyle et al, 1977; Eckert and Sholkovitz, 1976; Gustafsson et al, 2000; Sholkovitz, 1978, 1976), since Fe-rich particles and Published by Copernicus Publications on behalf of the European Geosciences Union
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