The main sources of pyrogenic carbon (PyC) to the ocean are rivers and aerosols. The Atlantic Ocean not only receives substantial riverine inputs but also substantial atmospheric PyC inputs from massive grassland wildfires. The Atlantic Ocean thus constitutes an ideal test bench to assess the impact of atmospheric PyC inputs on the dissolved black carbon (DBC) concentration and isotopic composition in open ocean surface waters. Here we show the DBC distribution in surface waters along a latitudinal transect across the Atlantic Ocean. This latitudinal transect includes areas subject to large inputs of atmospheric PyC from Africa. We quantified and characterized the stable carbon isotopic composition of DBC using the benzene polycarboxylic acid (B6CA and B5CA) method and compared the observed results with satellite estimates of PyC to assess the contribution of aeolian inputs to the oceanic DBC.

Primary Presenter: Nina Davtian, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) (nina.davtian@uab.cat)

Authors:

Nina Davtian, Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals (ICTA-UAB)  (nina.davtian@uab.cat)

Nuria Penalva, Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals (ICTA-UAB)  (nuria.penalva@uab.cat)

Oriol Teruel, Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals (ICTA-UAB)  (oriol.teruel@uab.cat)

Pau Comes, Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals (ICTA-UAB)  (pau.comes@uab.cat)

Antoni Rosell-Melé, Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals (ICTA-UAB) and Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA)  ()

Joan Villanueva, Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals (ICTA-UAB)  (juan.villanueva@uab.cat)