Suspended Matter and Hydrocarbons Fluxes in the Kara and Laptev Seas

Abstract

The distribution of suspended particulate matter (SPM) by filtration and the magnitude of its fluxs using sediment traps in the Kara and Laptev Seas (cruise 72 of the R/V Akademik Mstislav Keldysh, August–September 2018) was studied. The composition of the SPM was determined by the material composition using an electron microscope, the organic component (Corg and hydrocarbons) and the inorganic component (amorphous silica and calcium carbonate). It was found that the SPM content in surface waters varied from 0.2 to 5.9 mg/L (on average 0.90 mg/L) with a maximum in the Blagopolychia Bay and aliphatic hydrocarbons from 10 to 49 µg/L (average 22 µg/L) with a maximum in the area of the removals of the river Ob. The SPM flux decreased from the surface to the near-bottom horizon only into the Blagopolychia Bay (from 13,127 to 11,900 mg/m2/day), but in most samples the flux increased in the near-bottom horizon with a maximum of 6920 mg/m2/day in the Ob’s discharge water area and correlated with the maximum of the Corg flux 695 mg/m2/day. In the composition of SPM, as well as in organic compounds, including hydrocarbons, allochthonous basically prevailed over autochthonous.