A comparative study of total alkalinity and total inorganic carbon near tropical Atlantic coastal regions

2022

Article référencé dans le Web of Science WOS:000819413000002

Bonou F., Medeiros C., Noriega C., Araujo M., Hounsou-Gbo A., Lefèvre Nathalie

Journal of Coastal Conservation, 2022, 26 (4), 31 [16 p.] ISSN 1400-0350

This paper is based on a comparison of the carbon parameters at the western and eastern borders of the tropical Atlantic using data collected from 55 cruises. Oceanic and coastal data, mainly total alkalinity (TA), total dissolved inorganic carbon (CT), sea surface salinity (SSS) and sea surface temperature (SST), were compiled from different sources. These data were subdivided into three subsets: oceanic data, coastal data and adjacent to the Brazilian (western) and African coastal areas (eastern) data. Significant differences between the TA data (2099.4 ± 286.4 Mu mol kg-1) at the western and eastern edges (2198 ± 141.9 Mu mol kg-1) were observed. Differences in the CT values between the western edge (1779.6 ± 236.4 Mu mol kg-1) and eastern edge (1892.2 ± 94.2 Mu mol kg-1) were also noted. This pattern was due to the different variabilities in the carbon parameters between the eastern and western border coastal areas and to the biogeochemistry that drives these parameters. In the western coastal area, the physical features of the continental carbon and oceanic waters mixing with the freshwater that flows from the Amazon and Orinoco Rivers to the South American coast are different than the physical features of the water that flows from the Congo, Volta and Niger Rivers in the eastern region. Applying the TA empirical relationship to TA with values of SSS?