A Sediment Trap Study to Determine if the Flux of Silver to the Seafloor is Related to Export Productivity

智力优势：自20世纪80年代初开展工作以来，人们越来越有兴趣提高我们对银粒子通量与海洋出口生产力之间关系的理解。尽管诱人的沉积银和更传统的paleoproxies，如有机碳，蛋白石和生物Ba之间的正相关性，还没有进行全面的研究，以详细评估颗粒银和出口生产力在海洋中的流量之间的关系。如果下沉的银通量可以被证明是可靠的跟踪输出生产力，将在这项研究中进行评估，那么地球化学界将有一个新的示踪剂，提供重要的新的见解和约束过去的变化古生产力。 特别是，该项目将测试的假设，银可用于跟踪从表层海洋输出到沉积物的生物颗粒有机物的流量;此外，该项目将评估银作为过去的生产力变化的代理示踪剂的潜在用途。第二个目标是确定沉积物的氧化还原条件是否影响沉积物中银的积累。这项工作将通过分析从一系列海洋学地点收集的一套存档沉积物捕集器和沉积物样品中的银来完成。从这项研究中获得的数据将有助于开发一个新的古生产力代理（Ag），可用于改善古海洋重建。更广泛的影响：关于更广泛的影响，这项研究将使科学界更好地了解银的地球化学循环，这种元素对海洋生物有毒，以及氧化还原敏感的微量金属的循环。 这项研究将支持一名早期科学家，并为一名研究生和两名本科生提供培训。

Intellectual Merit: Since work conducted in the early 1980's, there has been a growing interest in improving our understanding of the relationship between the particle flux of Ag and export productivity in the ocean. Despite tantalizing positive correlations between sedimentary Ag and more traditional paleoproxies, such as organic carbon, opal and biogenic Ba, there has yet to be a comprehensive study undertaken to evaluate in detail the relationship between the flux of particulate Ag and export productivity in the ocean. If the sinking flux of Ag can be shown to reliably track export productivity, as will be evaluated in this study, then the geochemical community will have a new tracer to provide important new insights and constraints on past changes in paleoproductivity. In particular, this project will test the hypothesis that Ag can be used to trace the flux of biogenic particulate organic matter exported from the surface ocean to the sediments; furthermore, this project will evaluate the potential use of Ag as a proxy tracer of past changes in productivity. A secondary objective is to determine whether sedimentary redox conditions affect the accumulation of Ag in sediments. This work will be accomplished by analysis of Ag in a suite of archived sediment trap and sediment samples collected from a range of oceanographic locations. The data obtained from this research will aid in the development of a new paleoproductivity proxy (Ag) that can be utilized to improve paleoceanographic reconstructions. Broader Impacts: In regards to broader impacts, this research will provide the scientific community with a better understanding of the biogeochemical cycling of Ag, an element that is toxic to marine organisms, as well as the cycling of redox-sensitive trace metals. The study will support an early scientist, and provide training for one graduate student and two undergraduate students.