Jiaozhou Bay National Marine Ecosystem Research Station, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao, 266071, PR China; Laboratory for Marine Ecology and Environmental Science, Pilot National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology (Qingdao), Qingdao, 266237, PR China; Center for Ocean Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao, 266071, PR China.
State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 201100, PR China.
Mar Environ Res. 2022 Jul;179:105699. doi: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2022.105699. Epub 2022 Jul 9.
The role of TEPs in the carbon cycle remains inadequately understood in oligotrophic tropical oceans. This study investigates TEP concentrations, distributions, sinking behavior and fluxes in the oligotrophic South China Sea (SCS) and western tropical North Pacific (WTNP). The results suggested that TEPs levels were relatively low [< 60 μg Xeq. L (μg xanthan gum equivalent per liter)] in both regions, and they were higher in the epipelagic layer than in deeper layers. TEP concentrations correlated significantly positively with Chl a and picophytoplankton biomass, and TEP-associated carbon contributed significantly to particulate organic carbon (POC) pool in the SCS and WTNP. The sinking flux of TEPs constituted a mean of 61% of the total POC flux in the SCS and 46% in the WTNP, highlighting their important role in carbon export in these areas. Generally, this study should provide good insight into the role TEPs play in the carbon cycle in oligotrophic tropical oceans.
在贫营养热带海洋中，TEP 在碳循环中的作用仍未得到充分理解。本研究调查了贫营养的南海（SCS）和西热带北太平洋（WTNP）中 TEP 的浓度、分布、沉降行为和通量。结果表明，这两个地区的 TEP 水平相对较低（<60μgXeq.L[μg 黄原胶当量每升]），并且在表层的浓度比深层的高。TEP 浓度与 Chl a 和微微型浮游植物生物量呈显著正相关，TEP 相关的碳对南海和西热带北太平洋的颗粒有机碳（POC）库有显著贡献。TEP 的沉降通量构成了南海总 POC 通量的 61%，WTNP 为 46%，突出了它们在这些地区碳输出中的重要作用。总的来说，本研究应该能很好地了解 TEP 在贫营养热带海洋碳循环中的作用。
