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Science 1 June 2007:
Vol. 316. no. 5829, pp. 1325 - 1328
DOI: 10.1126/science.1138211
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Reports

Physical Model for the Decay and Preservation of Marine Organic Carbon

Daniel H. Rothman1* and David C. Forney1,2

Degradation of marine organic carbon provides a major source of atmospheric carbon dioxide, whereas preservation in sediments results in accumulation of oxygen. These processes involve the slow decay of chemically recalcitrant compounds and physical protection. To assess the importance of physical protection, we constructed a reaction-diffusion model in which organic matter differs only in its accessibility to microbial degradation but not its intrinsic reactivity. The model predicts that organic matter decays logarithmically with time t and that decay rates decrease approximately as 0.2 x t–1 until burial. Analyses of sediment-core data are consistent with these predictions.

1 Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
2 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: dhr{at}mit.edu

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Comment on "Physical Model for the Decay and Preservation of Marine Organic Carbon".
B. P. Boudreau, C. Arnosti, B. B. Jorgensen, and D. E. Canfield (2008)
Science 319, 1616b
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Response to Comment on "Physical Model for the Decay and Preservation of Marine Organic Carbon".
D. H. Rothman and D. C. Forney (2008)
Science 319, 1616c
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »


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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)