Project group: Oxygen depletion dynamics
(OXDYN)
Duration: 2003-2007
Funding Institution: IOW / DFG
Coordinator: Dr. B. Schneider
Oxygen depletion and the formation of hydrogen sulphide occurring in stagnant
deep waters and below the seasonal thermocline may have serious ecological consequences.
The control-ling processes are the limited water exchange and the mineralization
of organic matter pro-duced in the surface water. Long lasting time series of
the oxygen and hydrogen sulphide concentrations are available in particular
for the deep water of the central basins. However, it is still difficult to
quantify separately the effects of the hydrographic and biogeochemical processes
and thus to relate the formation of anoxic conditions to eutrophication. Moreover,
it is still unclear how much the lateral near-bottom transport contributes to
the input of particu-late organic matter into the deep basins. Although coupled
hydrodynamical/biogeochemical models (e.g. ERGOM) resolve the different processes,
they are not yet able to simulate satis-factorily the temporal development of
the oxygen depletion.
Based on these conclusions, OXDYN is aiming at improved parameterizations of
the biogeo-chemical processes and at the further development of the modelling
of the water exchange.
This will be achieved by field studies, evaluation of time series data and
1D model studies within the following subprojects:
1.) Oxygen depletion and vertical particle transport (D. Schulz-Bull, F. Pollehne)
2.) Oxygen consumption/C mineralization in the water column (B. Schneider, G.
Nausch)
3.) Lateral POM transport (T. Leipe)
4.) Degradation in sediments (F. Pollehne)
5.) Numerical process studies of the oxygen consumption in the deep basins
(H. Burchardt)
6.) Modelling of the oxygen depletion by a 3D model (T. Neumann)
Current
activities and projects 
