SGER: Microbial Alteration of Basaltic Glass in seawater: Feasibility Study on Loihi Seamount and the Flanks of Hawaii

PI将在海底进行新鲜玄武岩玻璃在海水中的暴露实验，并将结果与在同一地点暴露的天然玄武岩玻璃的行为进行比较，研究微生物群落在玻璃蚀变中的作用。研究环境位于夏威夷海底斜坡上，水深200-2000米，水温从接近冰点到热液温泉温度约为80摄氏度。暴露的岩石表面的年龄从几年到几百年不等，包括Loihi海山、Puna Ridge以及Kohala和Hualalai海底斜坡。在NOAA的NURP计划的其他资金支持下，pi将在2002/2003财年进行16次潜水，以执行该研究的实地部分。该奖项将支持邮轮参与回收先前放置的暴露费用，以及对从潜水中回收的材料进行化学和微生物实验室调查。pi将观察和描述微生物种群和自然微生物变化对明确玻璃表面的物理影响。他们将把一年的暴露实验中的反应速率与几年到近一百万年的自然暴露中玄武岩的变化速率进行比较。化学质量平衡将使pi能够确定海水和玄武岩暴露实验之间的化学交换率。

The PI will carry out exposure experiments of fresh basaltic glass in seawater on the ocean floor, and compare the results to the behavior of natural basalt glass exposed at the same site in terms of the role of microbial communities in the alteration of the glass. Study environments are located on the submarine slopes of Hawaii at water depths ranging from 200-2000m, at water temperatures ranging from near freezing to hydrothermal spring temperatures of approximately 80 degree C. Exposed rock surfaces vary in age from a few years to several 100kyrs and include sites on Loihi Seamount, Puna Ridge and the submarine slopes of Kohala and Hualalai. With other funds from NOAA's NURP program, the PIs will undertake 16 submersible dives in FY's 2002/2003, to carry out the field portion of the study. This award will support cruise participation for the recovery of previously-placed exposure charges, and the chemical, and microbiological laboratory investigations of materials recovered from the dives. The PIs will observe and characterize the microbial populations and physical effects of natural microbial alteration on well defined glass surfaces. They will compare reaction rates in the one-year exposure experiments to the rates of basalt alteration in natural exposure of several years to nearly a million years. Chemical mass balance will allow the PIs to determine the chemical exchange rates between seawater and the basalt exposure experiments.