Open AccessBias in the paleoceanographic time series: Tests with a numerical model of U, C org , and Al burial
Author(s) -
Donnadieu Y.,
Lecroart P.,
Anschutz P.,
Bertrand P.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
paleoceanography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1944-9186
pISSN - 0883-8305
DOI - 10.1029/2001pa000638
Subject(s) - geology , sedimentary rock , sediment , series (stratigraphy) , flux (metallurgy) , total organic carbon , uranium , component (thermodynamics) , mineralogy , paleontology , ecology , materials science , physics , metallurgy , biology , thermodynamics
We have constructed a nonsteady state numerical model of organic carbon, aluminum, and uranium burial to examine the dynamic response of sediments to variations on thousand years scale. The three components are defined by distinct behaviors in the sedimentary system. The aluminum is a conservative component, the organic carbon is a nonconservative component degraded in superficial sediment, and the uranium is a component affected by redox conditions. By introducing a simultaneous variation of incoming fluxes of C org and Al, geochemical profiles of Al, C org , and U clearly show separate distributions after burial. Each component record the synchronous variation of the incoming fluxes, but the position in the sedimentary pile of the recording differs from a component to another. We show that a minimum of U could be linked to a rapid ascent of the oxic front during an increase in C org flux.