02.C BIO, HN Cycles of Matter (PART C)

Biogeochemical cycle

Any of the various chemical cycles, which involve biological processes, geological processes, and chemical processes that allow essential elements to pass from one organism to another and among parts of the biosphere through closed loops.

Evaporation

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The change of a substance from a liquid to a gas.

Transpiration

Evaporation of water from the leaves of a plant.

Nutrient

A substance that provides nourishment essential for growth and the maintenance of life (CHNOPS).

Nitrogen fixation

Process by which certain bacteria convert nitrogen gas (N2) to ammonia (NH3).

Denitrification

Process in which fixed nitrogen compounds are converted back into nitrogen gas and returned to the atmosphere.

Primary productivity

Amount of biomass that is created by primary producer

Limiting nutrient

A nutrient required for the growth of an organism but available in a lower quantity than other nutrients.

Algal bloom

An immediate increase in the amount of algae and other producers that results from a large input of a limiting nutrient

Essential elements

Six elements (CHNOPS) that combine to form the building blocks of all known organisms.

Biological processes

All activities performed by living organisms, including eating, breathing, "burning" food, and eliminating waste products.

Geological processes

Include volcanic eruptions, the formation and breakdown of rock, and major movements of matter within and below the surface of the earth.

Chemical and physical processes

Include the formation of clouds and precipitation, the flow of running water, and the action of lightning.

Human Activities Impacting Biogeochemical Cycles

Include the mining and burning of fossil fuels, the clearing of land for building and farming, the burning of forests, and the manufacture and use of fertilizers.

Lithosphere

The solid, outer layer of the Earth that consists of the the crust and the rigid upper part of the mantle. Includes rocks and sediment.

Atmosphere

Layers of different gases that surround the Earth that consists primarily of oxygen (O2), carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen (N2).

Hydrosphere

All the water at and near the surface of the earth, 97% of which is in oceans.

Condensation

Change in state from a gas to a liquid.

Precipitation

Any form of water that falls from clouds and reaches Earth's surface as rain, snow, sleet, or hail.

Runoff

Part of the water cycle where an excess of water runs down and does not sink into the soil and eventually makes it to the rivers, lakes, and oceans.

Infiltration

Process by which precipitation that has fallen on land surfaces enters the ground and becomes groundwater.

Groundwater

Water found in the spaces between soil particles and cracks in rocks underground (located in the saturation zone). Groundwater is a natural resource that is used for drinking, recreation, industry, and growing crops.

Carbon dioxide (CO2)

Colorless, odorless gas found in the atmosphere. Absorbed by plants during photosynthesis and released by all organisms into the atmosphere during cellular respiration. Also formed during the complete combustion of most matter including fossil fuels and biomass leads to additional carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that affects the climate.

Photosynthesis

A process used by plants and other autotrophs to capture light and energy and use it to power chemical reactions that convert carbon dioxide and water into oxygen and energy-rich carbohydrates, such as sugars and starches.

Cellular Respiration

The process by which organisms combine glucose and oxygen to produce energy (ATP), carbon dioxide, and water.

Decomposition

The breakdown of dead organisms results in their conversion under pressure to coal and fossil fuels that store carbon underground and the return of ammonia (NH3) to the soil and N2 to the atmosphere.

Carbon

A major component of all organic compounds, including carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.

Water

Required by all living things to survive. Enter the atmosphere through evaporation and returns as precipitation.

Erosion

The gradual wearing away of soil and rock by wind, glaciers, or water that returns carbon dioxide to the atmosphere and ocean.

Volcanic activity

The eruptions of molten rock, ash or gases from a volcano that returns carbon dioxide to the atmosphere and ocean.

Deposition

Occurs when sediments are laid down on the ground or sink to the bottom of a body of water. This is the final stage of erosional process in which the movement of transported materials slows and they are dropped in another location

N2

Most abundant form of gas found in Earth's atmosphere, only certain types of bacteria that live in the soil and on the roots of plants called legumes can use this form directly.

Ammonia

NH3 is returned to the soil by decomposers and can then be taken up by plants to make proteins and nucleic acids. However, ammonia is more difficult for plants to absorb than nitrates so in many cases ammonia is converted to nitrates by nitrifying bacteria and then absorbed by plants.

Nitrate ion

NO3- can most easily be used by producers to make proteins and nucleic acids.

Nitrite ion

NO2- can be used by producers to make proteins and nucleic acids.

Nitrogen

Essential element required by all living organisms to make proteins and nucleic acids. Found in the forms of nitrogen (N2) in the atmosphere, ammonia (NH3) as wastes, and nitrates (NO3-) and nitrites (NO2-) in the soil and water.

Bacterial nitrogen fixation

Process by which certain bacteria convert nitrogen gas (N2) to ammonia (NH3).

Soil bacteria

Convert ammonia (NH3) into nitrites (NO2-) and eventually nitrates (NO3-).

Atmospheric lightning nitrogen fixation

A process in which nitrogen (N2) in the atmosphere is converted into forms utilizable by living organisms: ammonia (NH3) or nitrate (NO3-) when lightning strikes the nitrogen molecules found in the atmosphere (N2).

Industrial nitrogen fixation

A process in which atmospheric nitrogen (N2) is converted into fertilizer that contains ammonia (NH3) that can applied to the soil to help plants grow.

Excretion

Waste products produced by organisms contain ammonia (NH3) which is returned to the environment when wastes are produced.

Phosphorus

An essential element that is needed by organisms to make nucleic acids, including DNA, RNA and ATP.

Inorganic phosphate (PO4-3)

A common form of phosphorus released into the soil and water as sediments wear down.

Micronutrients

Nutrients found in small amounts like calcium, magnesium, sulfur, iron, and manganese that are required by living things.

Limiting nutrient

A single nutrient that either is scarce or cycles very slowly, limiting the growth of organisms in an ecosystem. In the ocean and other saltwater environments, nitrogen is often the limiting nutrient. In streams, lakes, and freshwater environments, phosphorus is typically the limiting nutrient.

Algal bloom

Excessive growth of algae in bodies of water because of high levels of nutrients, usually from fertilizer in runoff.

Use of fertilizers, planting more legumes and burning fossil fuels.

Human activities that speed up the rate of nitrogen fixation resulting in acid rain, mineral deficiencies in the soil and algal bloom (water pollution).

Use of detergents and fertilizers and an increase in the number of livestock eliminating wastes.

Human activities that accelerate the phosphorus cycle which can lead to algal bloom and damage to mines.

Assimilation

The process by which producers absorb the nitrates and/or ammonia and use them to make proteins and nucleic acids.

Denitrification

The process by which bacteria convert nitrates (NO3-) back into nitrogen gas (N2) that is released back into the atmosphere.

Nitrification

The process in which soil bacteria convert ammonia (NH3) into first nitrites (NO2-) and then nitrates (NO3-) which is a form of nitrogen most easily used by plants.

Ammonification

The process in which decomposers (bacteria/fungi) convert the nitrogen compounds found within dead organisms into ammonia (NH3) that can then be used by the producers.

Nitrifying bacteria

Bacteria that convert ammonia (NH3) into nitrates (NO3-) and nitrites (NO2-).

Denitrifying bacteria

Bacteria that convert the nitrates (NO3-) and nitrites (NO2-) found in soil or water to gaseous nitrogen (N2) and release it back into the atmosphere.

Rhizobium

A symbiotic bacterium that lives in the nodules on roots of specific legumes and that incorporates nitrogen gas (N2) from the air into ammonia (NH3), a form of nitrogen the plant can use.

Legume

A type of plant that has nodules on their roots where symbiotic bacteria called Rhizobium can live and fix nitrogen. Examples include - alfalfa, soybeans, chickpeas, peas, beans, lentils, and peanuts.

Mining, cutting and burning forests, and burning fossil fuels

Human activities that increase the amount of carbon in the carbon cycle.