Efficient Extraction of Past Seawater Pb and Nd Isotope Signatures From Southern Ocean Sediments

Abstract Radiogenic lead (Pb) and neodymium (Nd) isotope compositions extracted from authigenic phases in marine sediments are sensitive tracers to reconstruct past ocean circulation and water mass mixing. Chemical reductive leaching of hydrogenetic ferromanganese oxyhydroxides from bulk sediments i...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: H. Huang, M. Gutjahr, G. Kuhn, Ed C. Hathorne, A. Eisenhauer
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2021-03-01
Series:Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009287
_version_ 1797638033541955584
author H. Huang
M. Gutjahr
G. Kuhn
Ed C. Hathorne
A. Eisenhauer
author_facet H. Huang
M. Gutjahr
G. Kuhn
Ed C. Hathorne
A. Eisenhauer
author_sort H. Huang
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Radiogenic lead (Pb) and neodymium (Nd) isotope compositions extracted from authigenic phases in marine sediments are sensitive tracers to reconstruct past ocean circulation and water mass mixing. Chemical reductive leaching of hydrogenetic ferromanganese oxyhydroxides from bulk sediments is the most practical way to recover past seawater Pb and Nd isotope signatures in the Southern Ocean, due to the scarcity of alternative archives. However, the leached signal could be compromised if substantial quantities of Pb and Nd were released from non‐hydrogenetic sediment fractions during chemical extraction. Here we developed a very short 10‐s leaching method to extract reliable seawater Pb and Nd isotope signals from sediments in the Atlantic sector of Southern Ocean. The effect of a previously recommended MgCl2 pre‐wash, the role of chelate ligands in the leaching solution and length of leaching time were investigated. The results show that 10‐s exposure time of sediments to reductive leaching extracted sufficient and more reliable hydrogenetic Pb and Nd compared with the commonly used 30‐min leaching approaches. The robustness of our improved leaching method was validated via direct comparison of Pb and Nd isotope signatures with actual seawater, porewater, and corresponding sediment leachates from three stations in front of the Antarctic Filchner‐Rønne Ice Shelf. Our findings also indicate that in contrast previously studied sites on the West Antarctic continental shelf, the bottom seawater Nd concentration is less elevated through benthic fluxes in the area of the southern Weddell Sea shelf.
first_indexed 2024-03-11T12:57:52Z
format Article
id doaj.art-bed1f81da7204346b4951654e332cf81
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 1525-2027
language English
last_indexed 2024-03-11T12:57:52Z
publishDate 2021-03-01
publisher Wiley
record_format Article
series Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems
spelling doaj.art-bed1f81da7204346b4951654e332cf812023-11-03T17:00:24ZengWileyGeochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems1525-20272021-03-01223n/an/a10.1029/2020GC009287Efficient Extraction of Past Seawater Pb and Nd Isotope Signatures From Southern Ocean SedimentsH. Huang0M. Gutjahr1G. Kuhn2Ed C. Hathorne3A. Eisenhauer4GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel Kiel GermanyGEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel Kiel GermanyAlfred‐Wegener‐Institut Helmholtz‐Zentrum für Polar‐ und Meeresforschung Bremerhaven GermanyGEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel Kiel GermanyGEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel Kiel GermanyAbstract Radiogenic lead (Pb) and neodymium (Nd) isotope compositions extracted from authigenic phases in marine sediments are sensitive tracers to reconstruct past ocean circulation and water mass mixing. Chemical reductive leaching of hydrogenetic ferromanganese oxyhydroxides from bulk sediments is the most practical way to recover past seawater Pb and Nd isotope signatures in the Southern Ocean, due to the scarcity of alternative archives. However, the leached signal could be compromised if substantial quantities of Pb and Nd were released from non‐hydrogenetic sediment fractions during chemical extraction. Here we developed a very short 10‐s leaching method to extract reliable seawater Pb and Nd isotope signals from sediments in the Atlantic sector of Southern Ocean. The effect of a previously recommended MgCl2 pre‐wash, the role of chelate ligands in the leaching solution and length of leaching time were investigated. The results show that 10‐s exposure time of sediments to reductive leaching extracted sufficient and more reliable hydrogenetic Pb and Nd compared with the commonly used 30‐min leaching approaches. The robustness of our improved leaching method was validated via direct comparison of Pb and Nd isotope signatures with actual seawater, porewater, and corresponding sediment leachates from three stations in front of the Antarctic Filchner‐Rønne Ice Shelf. Our findings also indicate that in contrast previously studied sites on the West Antarctic continental shelf, the bottom seawater Nd concentration is less elevated through benthic fluxes in the area of the southern Weddell Sea shelf.https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009287Fe‐Mn oxyhydroxidesNd isotopesPb isotopesreductive leachingsedimentSouthern Ocean
spellingShingle H. Huang
M. Gutjahr
G. Kuhn
Ed C. Hathorne
A. Eisenhauer
Efficient Extraction of Past Seawater Pb and Nd Isotope Signatures From Southern Ocean Sediments
Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems
Fe‐Mn oxyhydroxides
Nd isotopes
Pb isotopes
reductive leaching
sediment
Southern Ocean
title Efficient Extraction of Past Seawater Pb and Nd Isotope Signatures From Southern Ocean Sediments
title_full Efficient Extraction of Past Seawater Pb and Nd Isotope Signatures From Southern Ocean Sediments
title_fullStr Efficient Extraction of Past Seawater Pb and Nd Isotope Signatures From Southern Ocean Sediments
title_full_unstemmed Efficient Extraction of Past Seawater Pb and Nd Isotope Signatures From Southern Ocean Sediments
title_short Efficient Extraction of Past Seawater Pb and Nd Isotope Signatures From Southern Ocean Sediments
title_sort efficient extraction of past seawater pb and nd isotope signatures from southern ocean sediments
topic Fe‐Mn oxyhydroxides
Nd isotopes
Pb isotopes
reductive leaching
sediment
Southern Ocean
url https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009287
work_keys_str_mv AT hhuang efficientextractionofpastseawaterpbandndisotopesignaturesfromsouthernoceansediments
AT mgutjahr efficientextractionofpastseawaterpbandndisotopesignaturesfromsouthernoceansediments
AT gkuhn efficientextractionofpastseawaterpbandndisotopesignaturesfromsouthernoceansediments
AT edchathorne efficientextractionofpastseawaterpbandndisotopesignaturesfromsouthernoceansediments
AT aeisenhauer efficientextractionofpastseawaterpbandndisotopesignaturesfromsouthernoceansediments