The role of the solid earth in regulating atmospheric O2 levels

Clicks: 3
ID: 305437
2021
Free PDF
Article Quality & Performance Metrics
Overall Quality
Not rated
Combines reader engagement with the AI quality analysis. This article has not been analysed, so there is no overall score — reader engagement is measured and shown alongside.
AI Quality Assessment
Not analyzed
Readership in this journal
Emerging

Ranked #588 of 8,486 articles by views in american journal of science

Most read Least read

Bar heights use a square-root scale. Only the 120 most-read articles are drawn; the journal has 8,486 in total.

Mint this article as an NFT
Not yet minted

Create a permanent, verifiable on-chain record of this article on the Scimatic Network. The NFT is held in your Journament account, and you can withdraw it to your own wallet at any time.

5 SUSD one-off · no wallet required
Sign in to mint
Abstract
Solid-earth processes act as both sources and sinks for atmospheric O2. They act as sinks by introducing reduced minerals and gases to the earth9s surface that can remove O2 from the atmosphere and ocean. They act as sources by exporting organic carbon and sedimentary pyrite to the mantle via subduction. Here we examine the relative sizes of igneous source and sinks of O2 for the modern earth to determine their magnitudes and if they are in balance today. We find that igneous sinks for O2 remove 1.83×1012 mol O2/yr (±0.43, 1σ) while subduction indirectly releases 1.56×1012 mol/O2 yr (±0.33, 1σ). This indicates that today igneous O2 sinks are balanced by solid earth sources. We propose this balance is achieved by negative feedbacks associated with either low-temperature hydrothermal sinks for O2, which are sensitive to deep-ocean O2 concentrations, or the amount of organic carbon and pyrite buried in sediments and subducted, which are sensitive to dissolved O2 concentrations. We also explore how igneous sinks for O2 may have varied in the Neoproterozoic when atmospheric O2 concentrations are thought to have been lower and the deep ocean anoxic. We find that despite these changes, the igneous O2 sink was essentially the same as today: 1.78×1012 (±0.43, 1σ) mol O2/yr. We explore how this sink would change as the deep ocean accumulated sulfate, became oxygenated, and began oxidizing oceanic crust such that there was an increase in the subduction flux of oxidants to the subarc mantle. We propose that significant changes to the O2 cycle, both in terms of positive and negative feedbacks could occur during these transitions. For example, accumulation of sulfate in the deep ocean would increase the oxidation state of high-temperature hydrothermal fluids, decreasing the size of this O2 sink and thus promoting an increase in atmospheric O2. In contrast, the oxygenation of the deep ocean would have allowed hydrothermally derived H2S to react with and consume O2 instead of being titrated out via reactions with dissolved Fe2+. Additionally, deep-ocean oxygenation would have initiated the oxidation of oceanic crust at low temperatures, creating new sinks for O2. Finally, the oxidation of the subarc mantle via subduction of newly oxidized sediments and altered oceanic crust would have increased the oxygen fugacity of arc volcanic gases, decreasing their overall demand for O2, allowing yet more O2 to accumulate in the atmosphere. We place these changes into a conceptual framework and discuss their potential impact on the history of atmospheric and marine O2 concentrations from the Neoproterozoic to late Paleozoic.
Reference Key
openalex_W3016058723 Use this key to autocite in the manuscript while using SciMatic Manuscript Manager or Thesis Manager
Authors Daniel A. Stolper, John A. Higgins, Louis A. Derry
Journal american journal of science
Year 2021
DOI
10.2475/10.2021.01
URL
https://doi.org/10.2475/10.2021.01
Keywords Keywords not found

Citations

No citations found. To add a citation, contact the admin at info@scimatic.org

Comments

No comments yet. Be the first to comment on this article.