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Distribution of nitrous oxide dissolved in water masses in the eastern subtropical North Pacific and its origin inferred from isotopomer analysis

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Abstract

N2O concentration and its isotopomer ratios were measured over a wide area from San Diego to Honolulu in the eastern subtropical North Pacific (ESNP). Waters in the study area had an N2O maximum (38.2–50.5 nmol kg−1) at 600–1000 m depth, which is similar to the profiles obtained previously in other areas in the North Pacific. We separated the seawater into five water masses (two for the surface layer, two for the middle layer, and one for the deep layer) and deduced N2O production–consumption mechanisms in each water body by use of N2O isotopomer ratios. The results showed that the mechanisms differ slightly among water masses. In the “coastal” surface layer, N2O is produced by nitrification (NH2OH oxidation). In the “open ocean” surface layer, it is produced mainly by nitrifier denitrification and to a lesser extent by nitrification under substrate-limited conditions. In both “upwelling” and “open ocean” middle layers it is produced mainly by denitrification and to a lesser extent by nitrifier denitrification. It is also partly reduced. In the deep layer, it is produced predominantly by denitrification with partial reduction. In this way, isotopomers aid elucidation of production–consumption mechanisms of N2O in the sea even though the mechanisms cannot always be ascertained.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the captain, officers, crew of the R/V Mirai and Marine Works Japan Ltd for their help, and scientists for the kind cooperation in sampling and on-board measurements. One of the authors (AF) deeply appreciates the efforts of Dr N. Boontanon, Dr A. Gilbert, Dr T. Shiozaki, and Mr H. Yamamoto at technical support, and Able Seamen Mr Y. Yamamoto, Mr K. Omote, and Mr K. Yamauchi for their all-around caring support on board. In this work, Fig. 1 was drawn with the software “Ocean Data View” (http://odv.awi.de/). This work was partly supported by KAKENHI (23224013) of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and by Global Environmental Research Fund (A-0904) of the Ministry of the Environment, Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 4259 Nagatsuta, Midori-ku, Yokohama, 226-8502, Japan

    Ayako Fujii, Sakae Toyoda & Naohiro Yoshida

  2. Department of Environmental and Symbiotic Science, College of Agriculture, Food and Environment Sciences, Rakuno Gakuen University, Bunkyodai-Midorimachi 582, Ebetsu, 069-8501, Japan

    Osamu Yoshida

  3. Mutsu Institute for Oceanography, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), 690 Kitasekine, Sekine, Mutsu, 035-0022, Japan

    Shuichi Watanabe & Ken’ichi Sasaki

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  1. Ayako Fujii
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  2. Sakae Toyoda
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  3. Osamu Yoshida
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  4. Shuichi Watanabe
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  5. Ken’ichi Sasaki
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  6. Naohiro Yoshida
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Correspondence to Ayako Fujii.

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Fujii, A., Toyoda, S., Yoshida, O. et al. Distribution of nitrous oxide dissolved in water masses in the eastern subtropical North Pacific and its origin inferred from isotopomer analysis. J Oceanogr 69, 147–157 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10872-012-0162-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10872-012-0162-4

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