Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Acidification of the coastal Bay of Bengal by aerosols deposition

  • Published:
Journal of Earth System Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Polluted aerosol transport from South Asia containing oxides of nitrogen and sulphur and their deposition on surface may acidify coastal waters. To test this hypothesis, we have conducted experiments involving (a) variability in aerosol composition at a coastal station (Visakhapatnam, central east coast of India) during 2013–2014 (monthly) and 2015–2016 (weekly observations), and (b) simultaneous observations of aerosols over land and adjacent coastal water in winter of 2013 and 2016. The annual average composition of aerosols during this study was dominated by SO42− (48%) followed by NO3− (15%). Sulphate (~12 μg m−3) exhibited high concentrations in Fall Intermonsoon (FIM) and winter monsoon (WM), whereas higher nitrate (3–4.5 μg m−3) concentrations were observed during summer monsoon (SM) and FIM. The mean [NO3−/SO42−] ratio of 0.32 suggests that atmospheric aerosol over the study region is contributed by transportation of fossil fuel burning emissions from the subcontinent by high-altitude large-scale wind circulation. The concentrations of NO2 and SO2 varied from 17.2 to 34.3 and 11.5 to 16.4 µg m−3, respectively with mean [SO2/NO2] ratio of 0.57 and [SO42−/SO42−+SO2] ratio of 0.33 indicates coal burning (power plants/industries) and fossil fuel burning may be the major source of atmospheric dust in the study region. Comparison of total cations and anion concentrations indicate aerosols are acidic in FIM and SM and mixed nature (acidic/basic) in WM but near neutral in spring Intermonsoon (SIM). Simultaneous experiments revealed that about 5–45% of the atmospheric aerosols were deposited within 10 km from the coast. The in vitro experiments indicated that the deposition of atmospheric aerosols resulted in a measurable decrease in pH of surface seawater and displayed significant relationship between decrease in pH and concentration of NO3−/SO42−, but it was weaker with NO2/SO2 suggesting former ions contribute significantly in lowering pH of coastal waters than latter. The impact of decrease in pH on acid–base equilibrium, carbonate chemistry and gas exchanges need to be assessed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
Figure 5
Figure 6
Figure 7
Figure 8
Figure 9

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Arimoto R, Duce R A, Savoie D L, Prospero J M, Talbot R, Cullen J D, Tomza U, Lewis N F and Ray B J 1996 Relationships among aerosol constituents from Asia and the North Pacific during Pem-West A; J. Geophys. Res. 101 2011–2023.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bathmanabhan S and Madanayak S N S 2010 Analysis and interpretation of particulate matter–PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 emissions from the heterogeneous traffic near an urban roadway; Atmos. Pollut. Res. 1 184–194.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bikkina P, Bikkina S, Kawamura K, Sudheer A K, Mahesh G and Kushwanth Kumar S 2020 Evidence for brown carbon absorption over the Bay of Bengal during the southwest monsoon season: A possible oceanic source; Environ. Sci. Process. Impcats 8, https://doi.org/10.1039/d0em00111b.

  • Biswas H, Jie J, Li Y, Zhang G, Zhu Z Y, Wu Y, Zhang G L, Li Y W, Liu S M and Zhang J 2015 Response of a natural Phytoplankton community from the Qingdao coast (Yellow Sea, China) to variable CO2 levels over a short-term incubation experiment; Curr. Sci. 108(10) 1901–1909.

    Google Scholar 

  • Das R, Bahareh K, Bijayen S, Subhajit D, Pradip K S, Richard D and Webster X W 2015 Trace element composition of PM2.5 and PM10 from Kolkata – a heavily polluted Indian metropolis; Atmos. Pollut. Res. 6 742–750.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DOE (Department of Energy) 1998 Determination of total alkalinity in sea water; In: Hand Book of Methods for the Analysis of the Various Parameters of the Carbon Dioxide System in Seawater, Version 2 (eds) A G Dickson and C Goyet, Carbon Dioxide Information and Analysis Center, Oak Ridge, TN, ORNL/CDIAC-74, pp. 56–85.

  • Doney S C, Mahowald N, Lima I, Feely R A, Mackenzie F T et al. 2007 Impact of anthropogenic atmospheric nitrogen and sulfur deposition on ocean acidification and the inorganic carbon system; Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA 104 14,580–14,585, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0702218104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guinotte J M and Fabry V J 2008 Ocean acidification and its potential effects on marine ecosystems; Ann. NY Acad. Sci. 1134 320–342, https://doi.org/10.1196/annals.1439.013.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Han L, Zhuang G, Cheng S and Li J 2007 The mineralaerosol and its impact on urban pollution aerosols over Beijing, China; Atmos. Environ. 41 7533–7546.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hazi Y, Heikkinen M S A and Cohen B S 2003 Size distribution of acidic sulfate ions in fine ambient particulate matter and assessment of source region effect; Atmos. Environ. 37 5403–5413.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kothai P, Saradhi I V, Pandit G G, Markwitz A and Puranik V D 2011 Chemical characterization and source identification of particulate matter at an urban site of Navi Mumbai, India; Aerosol Air Qual. Res. 11 560–569.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kumar M D, Naqvi S W A, George M D and Jayakumar D A 1996 A sink for atmospheric carbon dioxide in the northeast Indian Ocean; J. Geophys. Res. 101 18,121–18,125.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kumar R, Rani A, Kumari K M and Srivastava S S 2003 Direct measurements of atmospheric dry deposition to natural surfaces in a semi-arid region of tropical sites; J. Geophys. Res. 105(D20) 4625.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kumar A, Sudheer A K and Sarin M M 2008 Chemical characteristics of aerosols in MABL of Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea during spring inter-monsoon: A comparative study; J. Earth Syst. Sci. 117 325–332.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kumar A, Sarin M M and Srinivas B 2010 Aerosol iron solubility over Bay of Bengal: Role of anthropogenic sources and chemical processing; Mar. Chem. 121(1–4) 167–175, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marchem.2010.04.005.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laskin A, Moffet R C, Gilles M K, Fast J D, Zaveri R A, Wang B, Nigge P and Shutthanandan J 2012 Tropospheric chemistry of internally mixed sea salt and organic particles: Surprising reactivity of NaCl with weak organic acids; J. Geophys. Res. 117, https://doi.org/10.1029/2012JD017743.

  • Madhavan B L, Niranjan K, Sreekanth V, Sarin M M and Sudheer A K 2008 Aerosol characterization during summer monsoon period over a tropical coastal Indian station, Visakhapatnam; J. Geophys. Res. 113 D21208, https://doi.org/10.1029/2008JD010272.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Millero F J, Graham T B, Huang F, Bustos-Serrano H and Perrot D 2006 Dissociation constants of carbonic acid in seawater as a function of salinity and temperature; Mar. Chem. 100 80–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mukhopadhyay S K, Biswas H, De T K, Sen S and Jana T K 2003 Seasonal effects on the air-water carbon dioxide exchange in the Hooghly estuary, NE coast of Bay of Bengal, India; J. Environ. Monit. 4 459–552.

    Google Scholar 

  • Murthy V S N, Sarma Y V B and Rao D P 1996 Variability of the oceanic boundary layer characteristics in the northern Bay of Bengal during MONTBLEX – 90; Proc Indian Acad. Sci. (Earth Planet Sci.) 105 41–61.

    Google Scholar 

  • Naja M, Mallik C, Sarangi T, Sheel V and Lal S 2014 SO2 measurements at a high altitude site in the central Himalayas: Role of regional transport; Atmos. Environ. 99 392–402.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Niranjan K, Madhavan B and Sreekanth V 2007 Micro Pulse LIDAR observation of high altitude aerosol layers at Visakhapatnam located on the east coast of India; Geophys. Res. Lett. 34 L03815, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006GL028199.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Niranjan K, Sreekanth V, Madhavan B L, Anjana Devi T and Spandana B 2008 Temporal characteristics of aerosol physical properties at Visakhapatnam on the east coast of India during ICARB Signatures of transport onto Bay of Bengal; J. Earth Syst. Sci. 117(S1) 421–427.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Niranjan K, Spandana B, Anjana Devi T, Sreekanth V and Madhavan B L 2011 Measurements of aerosol intensive properties over Visakhapatnam, India for 2007; Ann. Geophys. 29 973–985.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ohara T, Akimoto H, Kurokawa J, Horii N, Yamaji K, Yan X and Hayasaka T 2007 An Asian emission inventory of anthropogenic emission sources for the period 1980–2020; Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss. 7 6843–6902.

    Google Scholar 

  • Paytan A et al. 2009 Toxicity of atmospheric aerosols on marine phytoplankton; Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. 106(12) 4601–4605.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reddy M S and Venkataraman C 2002 Inventory of aerosol and sulphur dioxide emissions from India: I. Fossil fuel combustion; Atmos. Environ. 36 677–697.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Renuka K, Gadhavi Harish, Jayaraman A, Bhaskara Rao S V and Lal S 2020 Study of mixing ratios of SO2 in a tropical rural environment in south India; J. Earth Syst. Sci. 129 104, https://doi.org/10.1007/s12040-020-1366-4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Safai P D, Budhavant K B, Rao P S P, Ali K and Sinha A 2010 Source characterization for aerosol constituents and changing roles of calcium and ammonium aerosols in the neutralization of aerosol acidity at a semi-urban site in SW India; Atmos. Res. 98 78–88.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sarma V V S S, Krishna M S, Rao V D, Viswanadham R, Kumar N A, Kumari V R et al. 2012a Sources and sinks of CO2 in the west coast of Bay of Bengal; Tellus B 64 10961, https://doi.org/10.3402/tellusb.v64i0.10961.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sarma V V S S, Viswanadham R, Rao G D, Kumar B S K, Prasad V R, Naidu S A et al. 2012b Carbon dioxide emissions from Indian monsoonal Estuaries; Geophys. Res. Lett. 39, https://doi.org/10.1029/2011GL050709.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sarma V V S S, Krishna K S, Viswanadham R, Rao G D, Rao V D, Sridevi B, Kumar B S K, Prasad V R, Subbaiah Ch V, Acharyya T and Bandopadhyay D 2013 Intensified oxygen minimum zone on the western shelf of Bay of Bengal during summer monsoon: Inluence of river discharge; J. Oceanogr. 69 45–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sarma V V S S, Krishna M S, Paul Y S and Murthy V S N 2015 Observed changes in ocean acidity and carbon dioxide exchange in the coastal Bay of Bengal – A link to air pollution; Tellus B 67 24638.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Satsangi G S, Lakhani A, Khare P, Singh S P, Kumari K M and Srivastava S S 1998 Composition of rainwater at a semi-arid rural site; Atmos. Environ. 32 3783–3793.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Satsangi A, Pachauri T, Singla V, Lakhani A and Kumari K M 2013 Water soluble ionic species in atmospheric aerosols: Concentrations and sources at Agra in the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP); Aerosol. Air Qual. Res. 13 1877–1889.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saylor R D, Butt K M and Peters L K 1992 Chemical characterization of precipitation from a monitoring network in the Lower Ohio River Valley; Atmos. Environ. 26A 1147–1156.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Soman M K and Kumar K K 1990 Some aspects of daily rainfall distribution over India during the southwest monsoon season; Int. J. Clim. 19 299–311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Srinivas B, Sarin M M and Sarma V V S S 2011 Atmospheric dry deposition of inorganic and organic nitrogen to the Bay of Bengal: Impact of continental outflow; Mar. Chem. 127 170–179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Srinivas B and Sarin M M 2013 Atmospheric dry-deposition of mineral dust and anthropogenic trace metals to the Bay of Bengal; J. Mar. Syst. 126 56–68.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Srinivas B, Sarin M M and Sarma V V S S 2015 Atmospheric outflow of nutrients to the Bay of Bengal: Impact of anthropogenic sources; J. Mar. Syst. 141 34–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Unger D, Ittekkot V, Schafer P, Tiemann J and Reschke S 2003 Seasonality and interannual variability of particle fluxes to the deep Bay of Bengal: Influence of riverine input and oceanographic processes; Deep-Sea Res. II 50 897–923.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Varkey M J, Murthy V S N and Suryanarayana A 1996 Physical oceanography of the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea; In: Oceanography and marine biology: An annual review (eds) A D Ansell, R N Gibson and Margaret Barnes, 34 1–70.

  • WMO (World Meteorological Organization) 1994 Report of the workshop on precipitation chemistry laboratory techniques; WMO TD 658 14–15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yadav K, Sarma V V S S, Rao D B and Kumar M D 2016 Influence of atmospheric dry deposition of inorganic nutrients on phytoplankton biomass in the coastal Bay of Bengal; Mar. Chem. 187 25–34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang J and Reid J S 2010 A decadal regional and global trend analysis of the aerosol optical depth using a data-assimilation grade over-water MODIS and Level 2 MISR aerosol products; Atmos. Chem. Phys. 10 10,949–10,963.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Director and Scientist-in-Charge for their support and encouragement. We would like to thank Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for funding. The author VRK is thankful to UGC for funding. We would like to thank the anonymous reviewer for his/her suggestions and comments to improve the presentation of our results. This is NIO contribution number 6760.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography, Regional Centre, 176 Lawsons Bay Colony, Visakhapatnam, India

    V R Kumari, K Yadav, V V S S Sarma & M Dileep Kumar

Authors
  1. V R Kumari
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. K Yadav
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. V V S S Sarma
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. M Dileep Kumar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

V R Kumari: Collection of aerosol sampling, conducting experiments, graphical representation of data, and preparation of the draft of manuscript. K Yadav: Collection and processing of aerosol sampling. V V S S Sarma: Conceptulization, obtaining funds, editing and finalization of the manuscript. M D Kumar: Discussion, editing and finalization of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to V R Kumari.

Additional information

Communicated by Suresh Babu

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kumari, V.R., Yadav, K., Sarma, V.V.S.S. et al. Acidification of the coastal Bay of Bengal by aerosols deposition. J Earth Syst Sci 130, 223 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12040-021-01723-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12040-021-01723-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation