The kaolinite shuttle links the Great Oxidation and Lomagundi events

Weiduo Hao (), Kaarel Mänd, Yuhao Li, Daniel S. Alessi, Peeter Somelar, Mathieu Moussavou, Alexander E. Romashkin, Aivo Lepland, Kalle Kirsimäe, Noah J. Planavsky and Kurt O. Konhauser
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Weiduo Hao: University of Alberta
Kaarel Mänd: University of Alberta
Yuhao Li: University of Alberta
Daniel S. Alessi: University of Alberta
Peeter Somelar: University of Tartu
Mathieu Moussavou: University of Science and Technology of Masuku
Alexander E. Romashkin: Karelian Science Centre
Aivo Lepland: University of Tartu
Kalle Kirsimäe: University of Tartu
Noah J. Planavsky: Yale University
Kurt O. Konhauser: University of Alberta

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-6

Abstract: Abstract The ~2.22–2.06 Ga Lomagundi Event was the longest positive carbon isotope excursion in Earth’s history and is commonly interpreted to reflect perturbations in continental weathering and the phosphorous cycle. Previous models have focused on mechanisms of increasing phosphorous solubilization during weathering without focusing on transport to the oceans and its dispersion in seawater. Building from new experimental results, here we report kaolinite readily absorbs phosphorous under acidic freshwater conditions, but quantitatively releases phosphorous under seawater conditions where it becomes bioavailable to phytoplankton. The strong likelihood of high weathering intensities and associated high kaolinite content in post-Great-Oxidation-Event paleosols suggests there would have been enhanced phosphorus shuttling from the continents into marine environments. A kaolinite phosphorous shuttle introduces the potential for nonlinearity in the fluxes of phosphorous to the oceans with increases in chemical weathering intensity.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23304-8

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