Ocean Acidification: Increasing Level Of Carbon Dioxide In The Ocean

Ocean acidification is a term that describes significant changes to the chemistry of the ocean. It happens when carbon dioxide gas is absorbed by the ocean and reacts with seawater to produce acid. This mechanism is happening in the ocean that over time will affect the coral species.

Ocean acidification is where the ocean water becomes more acidic due to the amount of carbon dioxide in the water. Humans use fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas that release large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Oceans absorb about one quarter of the carbon dioxide released each year, and since the amount of carbon dioxide in the water increases, it becomes more acidic (Ocean Acidification, NOAA). More acid in the water means that it will be lower on the pH scale and will release more hydrogen ions. This is in comparison to having more base in the water, where it will be higher on the pH scale and will release more hydroxyl ions. The pH scale rates the concentration of hydrogen in water, and acidic water releases more hydrogen ions than basic water. The scale goes from zero to fourteen, where a pH of seven is neutral, a pH less than seven is acidic, and a pH greater than seven is basic. Oceans have an average pH of 8.16, but that number is predicted to decrease

Ocean acidification is known as a significant and destructive issue of a substantial amount of carbon dioxide that enters the atmosphere and settles in the ocean. Humans are not able to see or feel this happening based on the fact its process only occurs underwater. Each day the ocean consumes twenty two million tons of carbon dioxide, which originates from burning fossil fuels and destruction of park trees. Carbon dioxide fuses with water, which then generates it to become

Ocean Acidification is an ongoing process that changes the chemistry of the ocean by a decrease of pH

Ocean acidification can be explained by a series of simple chemical reactions (Doney et al. 2008):

Ocean Acidification is the process of Carbon Dioxide entering the Ocean causing it to change its chemical structure. This leads to it become more acidic, affecting Marine and other living organisms negatively. The cause of this Global phenomenon are Power Plants who are producing 10 billion tons of CO2 every year, according to Science Daily. However, the impact of acidification does not stop there, organisms with Calcium Carbonate shells including crabs and mollusks have the potential to go extinct due to their shells being dissolved. But, the reality is that this does not just affect animals, humans can also be in great danger as well because of the Food Chain. These small organisms provide for fish which is a stable protein in many third

Ocean Acidification (OA) is a term used to describe significant changes to the chemistry of the ocean.It occurs when carbon dioxide gas (or CO2) is absorbed by the ocean and reacts with seawater to produce acid. Although CO2 gas naturally moves between the atmosphere and the oceans, the increased amounts of CO2 gas emitted into the atmosphere, mainly as a result of human activities (e.g. burning fossil fuels), has been increasing the amount of CO2 absorbed by the ocean, which results in seawater that is more acidic.This is a major problem to humans and marine life, this is a problem because when the carbon dioxide levels rise the wildlife in the ocean

For many years people have thought that ocean acidification is really not that serious of an issue to our climate. They have claimed that releasing CO2 into the atmosphere is harmless and cannot acidify the ocean. However, scientists have refuted this claim and state that ocean acidification threatens the entire marine ecosystem.

Ocean acidification refers to the increase of CO2 (carbon dioxide) within the atmosphere, which triggers a reaction which in turn increases the acidity of the ocean.

Ocean acidification is caused by carbon dioxide emissions. It threatens the health of our oceans and living things under the water. Shell-organism like crab, just like what we had for the investigation, are formed primarily of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). Calcium carbonate is formed when calcium ion binds with carbonate molecules. Most CO2 is produced when possible fuels are burned, and once it gets to the air, CO2 is absorbed into the ocean through wave action. Once it gets absorbed, CO2 combines with water to form carbonic acid. Carbonic acid breaks down easily into bicarbonate molecules and hydrogen ions. Calcium and bicarbonate cannot bind together to form shells. Carbonate that usually form shells binds more easily with the hydrogen ions,

The world we live in is so vast and exciting. Seventy percent of our world is liquid water we call the ocean. In the ocean there are many creatures that each are unique in their own way. However, it is possible that in our lifetime, many marine organisms will become endangered or possibly extinct. The loss of these mejestic marine creatures will be caused mainly because of human advancements in which fossil fuels are used to produce energy. Biodiversity is greatly affected by this increase in acidity. As the ocean acidifies, multiple social and economic issues arise. As humans, we rely on the ocean for almost everything. Much of our food, clothing, cleaning products and cosmetics come from the ocean. With the loss of

Ocean acidification is the ongoing decrease in the pH levels of the Earth’s oceans, caused by the uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere that goes on for a long period of time. This happens as the ocean and atmosphere interact. They interact in many ways, in exchanges of heat, salt, water and momentum. When wind blows over the ocean, energy is transferred from wind which then drives ocean currents. However, not only natural things are happening to acidify the ocean, we play a part in it too. Fossil fuels and deforestation. Climate Interpreter’s website report how are humans causing ocean acidification? (Last updated December 18th 2013) states that “Fossil fuel emissions are the gases that are spewed out of most cars, airplanes, power plants, and factories that are burning fossil fuels (coal, oil or gas). Since the industrial revolution, fossil fuel consumption has risen exponentially to create many climate change-related issues, including ocean acidification. Deforestation is a two-fold issue. Burning down forests is similar to burning fossil fuels, it emits a lot of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Forests are important because large expanses of plant life (even in the ocean) are known to be carbon sinks, taking in carbon dioxide for photosynthesis. The CO2 being produced was in turn being absorbed. Deforestation not only creates more CO2, but it also destroys one of the very things that helps absorb it! Atmospheric CO2 is increasing so the ocean

Labeled as one of the top environmental issues today, ocean acidification has been found to be linked to a decrease in ocean pH levels, negative impacts on calcifying species of marine organisms, and the rise in temperature of the ocean. Furthermore, ocean acidification occurs when the carbon dioxide found naturally within the environment, as well as anthropogenically released, is absorbed into the ocean and then chemically reacts to the saltwater to create carbonic acid (H2CO3) which also leads to a decrease in carbonate ions. Learning more, it has been found that approximately 30% of the carbon dioxide that is released into the atmosphere is absorbed by the ocean and as more carbon dioxide is released by anthropogenic sources, such as burning of fossil fuels and industrial activities, the levels of carbon dioxide found absorbed within the ocean increases(NOAA, 2012). In the ocean, carbonate ions and calcium carbonate minerals are found to be the building blocks for an exoskeleton for most marine organisms and with a lack of these ions the marine life will begin to literally deteriorate. For example, shells of mollusks such as snails, clams, and oysters all have three basic layers that comprise of calcium carbonate and then approximately 2% of protein is left (Horne, n.d.). With the decrease of carbonate ions and an increase in hydrogen ions that have nothing to bond to, the shells will deteriorate and lead to more energy being spent on creating new shells (Ocean

CO2 ocean acidification has become a big problem. This problem started increasing around the industrial revolution. Since the industrial revolution the ocean has become more acidic by 30%. Industrial and agricultural activities have released more and more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Studies show that a quarter of all carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere is absorbed into the ocean. As the CO2 levels rise in the atmosphere, the CO2 levels also rise in the ocean. The CO2 that is absorbed into the ocean changes the chemistry of the ocean making the water more acidic. This process is called ocean acidification. [1]

There are many negative effects that come with climate change. The impact of ocean acidification is quite detrimental when it comes to ocean life. With ocean acidification only increasing, it is becoming a major threat to the ecosystems of the oceans starting with the organisms at the beginning of the food chain for example phytoplankton. These organisms are adapting these protective shells that are very thin. Due to the ocean’s acidity, the shells are slowly wasting away making it harder for them to eat and move. This slowly leads to the death of the organism