Ocean Acidification:
What is it?
Oceans are becoming more and more
acidic as time goes on.
This is extremely harmful to many
marine organisms, but how is it
happening? The amount of CO2 in our
atmosphere has been increasing since
the industrial revolution because of our
energy use. Fossil fuels such as oil and
coal release CO2 gas into the
atmosphere. This CO2 then dissolves in
the ocean.
11%
Is the growth of CO2
particles in our
atmosphere since 2011.
CO2(aq)+ H2O(l)
CO2(g)+ H2O(l)
This equation shows how CO2 gas in the air makes its way into our oceans, as
it dissolves and becomes an aqueous solution.
CO2 + H2O
H
H2CO3
+
H
-
HCO 3
+
2-
CO 3
This series of equations is the cause of our oceans' disruption. As more CO2 goes
into our waters, this interrupts the system of equilibrium already present, which
leads to imbalanced amounts of each substance.
CO
23
+ Ca
2+
3
CaCO
Finally, this interruption of equilibrium causes a lack of CO in the ocean.
As the equation above shows, CO is crucial in the formation of shells. This means
that the lack of CO will cause many shelled organisms to lose their preexisting
shells, or be unable to produce more.
23
23
23
Le Chatelier's Principle
Le Chatelier's principle is crucial when it comes to ocean acidification. It presents
the idea that when stress is put on an equilibrium system, the system will fight to
neutralize it. The increased CO2 is putting stress on the system, and the principle
shows how this increase in CO2 affects the entire system
Cause of Ocean Acidification
As the equilibrium shifts, we can see that more and more H+ ions are produced as a
result of the CO2 increase. H+ ions are the primary cause of pH change, and they
work in harmony. More H+ ions mean that the solution will be more acidic. As more
CO2 is produced, more H+ ions are produced, which means that the ocean is
becoming more acidic.
EFFECTS OF SHELL EROSION
OTHER NEGATIVE EFFECTS
Shell erosion has been increasing at an
alarming rate since the increase in CO2 in the
atmosphere. Because of this, organisms such
as mussels, clams, and coral can't make their
shells. This means that they are likely to
become endangered populations in their
ecosystems. If these organisms were to
disappear, it would interrupt the food web, as
well as many fishing industries.
Another negative effect of CO2 in the
oceans is its effect on other organisms other
than shelled ones. One of the biggest issues
is CO2's impact on their immune systems.
Excess CO2 causes their immune response
to become weaker. This means that these
organisms are losing their ability to fight
against sickness, which would cause their
population to decline. Again, removing any
of these organisms would cause
catastrophic effects to the food web.
Clearly, ocean acidification is a big problem.
Well, what can we do? The biggest thing is to
decrease CO2 in our atmosphere, and therefore
the ocean. We can do that by reducing our
energy expenditure. But does ocean acidification
really affect us? It actually does, because it will
have huge negative effects on many different
industries. This could cause a lack of jobs, in
addition to many other economic issues.
Resources: climate.nasa.gov