REU: Biogeochemical Cycling in the Organic-Rich Coastal Environment

本研究的目标是：1)确定富有机质沉积物中与硫酸盐还原和甲烷生成相关的有机酸循环的控制过程；2)了解这些过程的季节性和非稳态变化的控制；3)建立电子接受过程与特定类别的可代谢有机化合物的输入和降解之间的定量联系。该研究分为五个部分：1)低分子量有机酸周转的研究，2)细菌脂醚作为缺氧沉积物中微生物过程的示踪剂的使用，3)溶解有机碳的大小类别和组成的表征，4)有机物质输送和降解过程的时间变化研究。5)上斜坡沉积早期成岩作用研究。工作将在近岸海相、河口和上斜坡沉积环境中进行。

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.