Biogeochemical Cycling of Dissolved Zinc and Zinc Isotopes in the Arctic Ocean

Authors

• Elise Langer, William Peace University
• Dylan J. Halbeisen, University of South Florida
• Ruifeng Zhang, University of Southern California
• Seth G. John, University of Southern California
• Tim M. Conway, University of South Florida

Document Type

Poster Session

Publication Date

1-8-2026

Abstract

• Dissolved Zinc (dZn) is an essential micronutrient that supports primary productivity in the ocean (Morel & Price, 2003).
• Dissolved zinc isotope ratios (δ⁶⁶Zn) help us understand the sources, sinks, and internal cycling of dZn (Bermin et al. 2006; Conway and John, 2014, Horner et al. 2021).
• The background deep ocean has a largely homogenous δ⁶⁶Zn composition of +0.45‰ (Conway and John, 2014), thus deviations away from +0.45±0.05‰ suggest dZn input, loss, or alteration (Fig. 1).
• We hypothesize that margin sediments and freshwater input deliver isotopically light dZn to the coastal Arctic (Jensen et al. 2019).
• Near the North Pole, We hypothesize that (reversible) scavenging delivers isotopically heavy dZn at depth.

Rights Information

Terms of use for work posted in Scholar Commons.

Scholar Commons Citation

Langer, Elise; Halbeisen, Dylan J.; Zhang, Ruifeng; John, Seth G.; and Conway, Tim M., "Biogeochemical Cycling of Dissolved Zinc and Zinc Isotopes in the Arctic Ocean" (2026). Making Waves REU. 8.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/making-waves_reu/8