Acidity in rainwater and airborne suspended particles in the southwestern coast of the East Sea (Sea of Japan): Their potential impact on seawater total alkalinity

Abstract

Our understanding of the impact of atmospheric acid deposition on marine carbonate system remains limited, largely due to a lack of data regarding acidity present in atmospheric particles and precipitation. Previous research has relied on the electroneutrality-based ion balance method for indirect estimation of atmospheric acidity. In this study, atmospheric samples collected at a coastal site of South Korea were mixed with seawater to measure the change in seawater total alkalinity (ΔTA_APL) associated with atmospheric proton loading. For the precipitation samples, the measured ΔTA_APL and electroneutrality-based estimates showed a significant correlation. However, we did not observe similar results for the atmospheric particle samples. Furthermore, the decrease in oceanic TA due to ΔTA_APL was substantially smaller than that in dissolved inorganic carbon from concurrent nitrogen fertilization. Consequently, the adverse impact of acid deposition on ocean acidification or air-sea exchange of CO₂ appears to be insignificant on a short-term scale.

Keywords: Acid rain; Atmospheric acid deposition; Atmospheric proton loading; East Asian marginal sea; Total alkalinity; Total suspended particle.