Québec-Océan and Takuvik invite you to a presentation by Alice Pradel (Laboratoire CEREGE CNRS / Université Aix Marseille) “New insights into the fate of contaminants at the seawater/sea ice interface.”
Wednesday, October 23rd at 4:00 pm.
In person at VCH-3068 room (ULaval) and online.
Abstract:
« The Arctic Ocean is a fragile ecosystem impacted by rapid global change. Specifically important fluxes of contaminants accumulate in the Arctic Ocean while sea ice becomes younger and thinner due to climate change. Since vast surfaces of seawater freeze and thaw annually it is essential to understand how contaminants are incorporated into this young sea ice and released during its melting. I will present the journey of contaminants into sea ice during its formation, its growth and finally, as it melts. To do so, I have used novel model experimental systems which i) generate environmentally representative sea ice and ii) allow me to quantify the incorporation of contaminants into sea ice. By comparing model contaminants with a range of physicochemical properties (dissolved species, nanoplastic, nanosoot and microplastics with varying densities) I was able to reveal how their dimensions and density impact their transport pathway at the seawater/sea ice. This new insight helps to better predict exposure of polar organisms to contaminants as well as the global fate of contaminants. Finally, the novel methods used offer promising new ways to study sea ice biogeochemistry.”
