REU: Biogeochemical Cycling in the Organic-Rich Coastal Environment

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The goals of this research are: 1) to identify processes controlling organic acid cycling associated with sulfate reduction and methanogenesis in organic-rich sediments: 2) to understand controls on seasonal and non-steady state variations in these processes; and, 3) to establish quantitative linkages between the electron accepting processes and the input and degradation of specific classes of metabolizable organic compounds. The research is divided into five sections: i) studies of low molecular weight organic acid turnover, ii) use of bacterial lipid ethers as tracers of microbial processes in anoxic sediments, iii) characterization of size classes and composition of dissolved organic carbon, iv) studies of temporal variations in organic matter delivery and degradation processes; and, v) studies of early diagenesis in upper slope sediments. The work will be carried out in nearshore marine, estuarine and upper slope sedimentary environments.