MEA 200 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Ocean Acidification, Foraminifera, Mollusca
30 Mar 2017
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Acids: add lots of h+ ions to water = increase acidity of h2o. Bases: add lots of oh ions to water = decrease acidity of h2o ph ph scale measures h+ concentration in a solution. All acids & bases have neutralized each other. Ph scale is logarithmic: ph inc by 0. 1 is a 30% inc in acidity. The burning of fossil fuels releases 11 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year. Carbon dioxide dissolves in the ocean, where it causes a potentially more serious problem ocean acidification. Ocean acidification poses a threat to shell-forming organisms like corals and calcifying plankton. If you"re a coral, phytoplankton, shellfish, foram, mollusc, etc. then you prefer around 8. 2. At present rates, surface ph is expected to be ~7. 8 by 2100. Carbonic acid reduces ocean ph co2+h2o = h2co3. Shell-building organisms need co3 2- ions for their caco3 shells:
