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Updated: Jul 12, 2026

Measuring Carbon-based Contaminant Mineralization Using Combined CO2 Flux and Radiocarbon Analyses
Published on: October 21, 2016
Organic carbon-14 in the Amazon river system.
Amazon River organic matter contains bomb carbon-14, suggesting quick carbon cycling. Differences in carbon-14 levels indicate varying soil retention of carbon pools within the drainage basin.
Area of Science:
- Geochemistry
- Environmental Science
- Radiocarbon Dating
Background:
- The Amazon River transports significant organic carbon from its vast drainage basin.
- Understanding the age and cycling of this organic carbon is crucial for global carbon budget assessments.
- Bomb-produced carbon-14 (¹⁴C) provides a tracer for recent carbon inputs and turnover rates.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the presence and significance of bomb-produced ¹⁴C in various organic carbon fractions of the Amazon River.
- To assess the turnover rates of particulate organic matter and dissolved organic matter.
- To explore how soil processes in the Amazon basin influence the ¹⁴C signature of exported carbon.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of coarse and fine suspended particulate organic matter (POM).
- Analysis of dissolved humic and fulvic acids.
- Radiocarbon (¹⁴C) dating of these separated carbon fractions.
Main Results:
- Bomb-produced ¹⁴C was detected in all analyzed fractions: coarse POM, fine POM, humic acids, and fulvic acids.
- Measurable differences in ¹⁴C content were observed among these coexisting carbon forms.
- The findings suggest a relatively rapid turnover of the parent carbon pools supplying these materials.
Conclusions:
- The Amazon River's organic carbon export is relatively young, influenced by recent atmospheric ¹⁴C.
- Differential ¹⁴C concentrations point to varying degrees of carbon retention and processing within Amazonian soils.
- This study highlights the utility of ¹⁴C in tracing carbon dynamics in large river systems.
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