Sedimentation of Reduced Sulfur in the Black Sea

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This award focuses on the processes of sedimentation of reduced sulfur compounds in the Black Sea, with particular emphasis on determining whether a significant flux of particulate reduced sulfur and iron compounds is occurring in the present-day anoxic water column. This work is part of the 1987 Black Sea Cruise. The objectives are as follows: 1) Compare the relative sizes of the "reservoirs" of different particulate reduced-sulfur compounds such as pyrite, iron monosulfides, and elemental sulfur; 2) Determine where different sulfur phases occur in the Black Sea--at the oxic- anoxic interface, in the anoxic water column, the sediment- water interface, and in bottom sediments; 3) Compare spatial and temporal changes in sulfur and iron flux to such variation in other sedimentary flux components; 4) Determine whether metal adsorption onto particles such as clays or cellular matter occurs, whether sulfides form on such particles in the anoxic zone, and whether their contribution to the flux is significant; 5) Search for other trace metals or metal sulfides which may form in anoxic water. This work will involve analyses of sediment trap material, sediment cores, and suspended particulate matter from water samples, using techniques developed for determining the kinds and amounts of reduced sulfur and iron compounds present, as well as determining whether these are associated with fluxes of other particulate materials. The results of this study will contribute to understanding the processes of metal sulfide formation, transport and sedimentation in anoxic environments.