Chemical Oceanography Unit – Members
Alberto Vieira Borges, FNRS Research associate
Biogeochemistry of aquatic systems
Bruno Delille, BSP Researcher
Carbon cycle in the Southern Ocean and climatic feedbacks
Willy Champenois, PhD student
Carbon cycle in the Posidonia oceanica meadows
Nicolas-Xavier Geilfus, PhD student
Sea ice CO2 dynamics
Yefanlan José Mathieu Koné, PhD student
Carbon cycle in tropical coastal ecosystems
Kim Suykens, PhD student
Carbon cycle in the Gulf of Biscay and climatic feedbacks
Marc-Vincent Commarieu, technician
Laboratory analysis and field work
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Study Sites
The Chemical Oceanography Unit carries out research on the
greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) in several environments :
- Estuaries, lagoons and mangroves
- Posidonia seagrass meadows
- Southern Ocean
- Arctic and Antarctic sea-ice
- African lakes
To better constrain the absorption of CO2 by aquatic systems.
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Methods
• Two experimental approaches :
- « Manned » field work
- Autonomous systems (Belgica, Scheldt and Corsica)
• Scaling of data from Remote Sensing images
• Collaboration with several modelling groups
“Classical”
oceanographic
cruises
Adapted for
“extreme” and
minimal
conditions
Automated
system on board
the Belgica
Mesocosm
experiments
Automated
system on a fixed
station in the
Scheldt
O2 and CO2
mooring in
Corsica (Calvi)
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Scheldt
EU IP CARBOOCEAN (http://www.carboocean.org/) & FNRS FRFC
Monitoring of pCO2 in the Upper Scheldt (Antwerpen – Ste Anna station)
Determine the long-term changes of pCO2 related to nutrient and
organic carbon input regulation policies and initiatives
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Belgian Coastal Zone
EU IP CARBOOCEAN (http://www.carboocean.org/)
Monitoring of pCO2 in the Belgian Coastal Zone (automated system on
the Belgica since September 2000)
Determine inter-annual variability of pCO2 dynamics
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Belgian Coastal Zone
Belspo BELCOLOUR-2 (http://www.mumm.ac.be/BELCOLOUR/EN/)
Derivation of pCO2 fields in the Belgian Coastal Zone from remote
sensing imagery (Chla, SST) and modelling (SSS)
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Gulf of Biscay
Belspo PEACE (http://www.co2.ulg.ac.be/peace/)
Carbon cycling in coccolithophorid blooms in the frame of ocean
acidification
52 °N
Ir
Celtic Sea
2006/06/01
a
2006/06/01
UK
Goban Spur
50 °N
40
00
m
20
0
a
0m
8
13 °W
4
5 1
6
2
311 °W
2006/06/05
8 7
4
5 1
6
2
3
b
Channel
8 7
48 °N
15 °W
20
0m
10
00
m
Armorican
7
6
5 4
1
Meriadzek Terr.
32
La Chapelle Bank
9 °W
F
8 7
Shelf
7 °W
4
5 1
6
2
35 °W
b
2006/06/05
8 7
4
5 1
6
2
3
c
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Calvi mooring
MIS FNRS (http://www.co2.ulg.ac.be/posidonia.htm)
Monitoring of O2 and pCO2 in Posidonia meadow (Calvi) since 2006
Determine long term changes of productivity (Gross Primary production
(GPP) and Community Respiration (CR))
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Mediterranean Sea
EU IP SESAME (http://www.sesame-ip.eu/)
Evaluation of air-sea CO2 fluxes in the Mediterranean and Black Seas in
the frame of EU IP SESAME
Underway measurements
SW
Black Sea
Straits &
Marmara Sea
Central
Aegean Sea
Central
Black Sea
Eastern
Aegean Sea
Cilician
Basin
Bilim
RV Aegaio
Ionian Sea
Levantin
Basin
CTD casts
NE
Black Sea
Adriatic
Sea
Western
Med.
Strait of
Gibraltar
& Gulf of
Cadiz
Straits &
Marmara Sea
Central
Black Sea
Alboran
Sea
Central
Aegean Sea
Bilim
Akvanavt
Urania (CNR-ISMAR)
Regina Maris
Urania (UNIV-PERP)
RV Aegaio (2008)
Cilician
Basin
Ionian Sea
Levantin
Basin
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Southern Ocean
Belspo BELCANTO-III (http://www.co2.ulg.ac.be/belcanto/index.htm)
Assement of airsea CO2 fluxes in
the Southern
Ocean (scaled
from RS images)
Assement of
the penetration
of
anthropogenic
CO2 in the
Southern
Ocean
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Sea-ice Dynamics
Belspo BELCANTO-III (http://www.co2.ulg.ac.be/belcanto/index.htm)
Sea-ice biogeochemistry in Arctic and Antarctic sea-ice (atmospheric
fluxes of climatologicaly active gazes (CO2, DMS)).
Antarctic sea ice in spring and summer acts as a sink for atmospheric
CO2 of about 0.025 PgC yr-1
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Lake Kivu
FNRS FRFC CAKI (http://www.co2.ulg.ac.be/kivu.htm)
Carbon cycling in a meromictic « killer » lake
Surface waters are net autotrophic but a source of CO2 due to
geothermal (magmatic) inputs
6.9
atmosphere
DIC fluxes
in mmol m-2 d-1
2.2
rivers
epilimnion
hypolimnion
POC flux = 10.3 (closing term) 59.6
44.6
Ruzizi
Chemical Oceanography Unit – Modelling
Modelling of Carbon and CO2 cycles in collaboration with several groups :
- Bay of Calvi (M. Grégoire)
- Ligurian Sea - Dyfamed (M. Grégoire)
- Black Sea (M. Grégoire & J.-M. Beckers)
- Southern Bight of the North Sea Past 50 years (N. Gypens & C. Lancelot)
- Southern Bight of the North Sea present 3-D (N. Gypens & G. Lacroix)
- Scheldt (N. Gypens & C. Lancelot ; E. Dellhez & E. Deleersnijder)
- Southern Ocean & Antarctic sea-ice (C. Lancelot & H. Goosse)