This thesis set out to improve our current understanding specifically of the role of permeability and carbon sources for the metabolic functioning of permeable sands. Sampling of an intertidal sandy sediment in a shallow estuary over a 1-yr period revealed that permeability, being influenced by natural seasonal changes in biology and environmental conditions, varied temporally. More specifically, the extracellular polymeric substances in the sediment were proven to substantially contribute to this temporal variability. Sediment oxygen consumption also demonstrated seasonal variation and could be related to changes in temperature and total organic carbon, but, more importantly, also to permeability. Different carbon (C) sources were shown to influence the time series station but were also identified for other parts of the estuary. A better understanding of the sedimentary C<sub>org</sub> pool and the C<sub>org </sub>undergoing mineralization was furthermore obtained with the novel application of methods developed in the soil sciences comparing the δ<sup>13</sup>C of respired CO<sub>2</sub> to that of available source material and sedimentary C<sub>org</sub>. Overall, the results presented here demonstrate the crucial importance of permeability and carbon sources to metabolic processes and their mediation by biological factors. This thesis highlights the importance of continued research into the complexities of these permeable sands.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:509171 |
| Date | January 2009 |
| Creators | Zetsche, Eva-Maria |
| Publisher | University of Aberdeen |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://digitool.abdn.ac.uk:80/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=59602 |
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