Spatio-temporal variations of sea surface halocarbon concentrations and fluxes from southern Yellow Sea

Abstract

Temporal and spatial distributions of five volatile halogenated organic compounds (VHOC), including chloroform (CHCl3), trichloroethylene (C2HCl3), bromodichloromethane (CHBrCl2), chlorodibromomethane (CHBr2Cl), and bromoform (CHBr3), were determined in the southern Yellow Sea (SYS) during four cruises from July 2008 to May 2009. The five VHOC distributed in the study area were affected by river inputs, anthropogenic activities, circulation system, and biological processes. In this study, CHCl3, CHBrCl2, CHBr2Cl, and CHBr3 concentrations showed significant differences between summer 2008 and spring 2009. The sea-to-air fluxes calculated using the equation of Liss and Merlivat (In: Buat-Menard P (ed) The role of air-sea exchange in geochemical cycling, 1986) indicated that the SYS was a source of CHCl3 and C2HCl3 to the atmosphere during the investigation period.