Hydrophilic Species Are the Most Biodegradable Components of Freshwater Dissolved Organic Matter.

ABSTRACT: Aquatic dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a crucial component of the global carbon cycle, and the extent to which DOM escapes mineralization is important for the transport of organic carbon from the continents to the ocean. DOM persistence strongly depends on its molecular properties, but little is known about which specific properties cause the continuum in reactivity among different dissolved molecules. We investigated how DOM fractions, separated according to their hydrophobicity, differ in biodegradability across three different inland water systems. We found a strong negative relationship between hydrophobicity and biodegradability, consistent for the three systems. The most hydrophilic fraction was poorly recovered by solid-phase extraction (SPE) (3-28% DOC recovery) and was thus sel

SUBMITTER: Grasset C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10501193 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature