Reconstructing Ocean pH with Boron Isotopes in Foraminifera

In order to better understand the effect of CO 2 on the Earth system in the future, geologists may look to CO 2 -induced environmental change in Earth's past. Here we describe how CO 2 can be reconstructed using the boron isotopic composition (δ 11 B) of marine calcium carbonate. We review the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annual review of earth and planetary sciences 2016-01, Vol.44 (1), p.207-237
Main Authors: Foster, Gavin L, Rae, James W.B
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acidification
Atmospherics
Boron
Boron isotopes
Calcium carbonate
Carbon dioxide
Carbonates
Earth
Environmental changes
Geologists
Isotopes
Marine
marine carbonates
Mathematical models
Ocean acidification
Oceans
Organisms
Seawater
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Summary:In order to better understand the effect of CO 2 on the Earth system in the future, geologists may look to CO 2 -induced environmental change in Earth's past. Here we describe how CO 2 can be reconstructed using the boron isotopic composition (δ 11 B) of marine calcium carbonate. We review the chemical principles that underlie the proxy, summarize the available calibration data, and detail how boron isotopes can be used to estimate ocean pH and ultimately atmospheric CO 2 in the past. δ 11 B in a variety of marine carbonates shows a coherent relationship with seawater pH, in broad agreement with simple models for this proxy. Offsets between measured and predicted δ 11 B may in part be explained by physiological influences, though the exact mechanisms of boron incorporation into carbonate remain unknown. Despite these uncertainties, we demonstrate that δ 11 B may provide crucial constraints on past ocean acidification and atmospheric CO 2 .
ISSN:0084-6597
1545-4495
DOI:10.1146/annurev-earth-060115-012226