Project description
Novel optical sensor analysis of coastal seagrass microclimates
The sensitivity of the marine environment to climate change and human interventions is well attested by scientific studies. In particular, coastal seagrass, which is found at relatively shallow waters and provides valuable services to a variety of marine animals, can serve as an indicator of how environmental changes impact the sea. Existing study methods rely on the analysis of a single metal or compound, a laborious and fragmented process. The SIPODET project will use an optical sensor technique for simultaneous analysis and imaging of several chemicals in coastal seagrass. This novel technology will provide a clearer impression of the chemical microenvironment of the Zostera marina and Zostera noltei seagrasses and the changes stressors bring to this important marine system.
Objective
Coastal seagrass ecosystems provide important services to nature and mankind in form of coastal protection, nursery grounds and carbon sequestration. However, seagrass meadows are affected by global climate change and anthropogenic stressors such as eutrophication and coastal development. Yet, the mechanistic interactions between these ecosystems and environmental change remain unclear due to the complexity of studying the seagrass habitat, which exhibit a multitude of chemical gradients and dynamics. The requirement for high-resolution measurement techniques for resolving the biogeochemical dynamics and microenvironments surrounding seagrasses in their natural habitat has led to the development of a variety of chemical techniques typically quantifying a single analyte at a time, which gives limited insight to the true dynamics of the seagrass-sediment interaction which is central for seagrass fitness and survival under environmental change. The SIPODET project will develop new multi-parameter chemical imaging techniques by combining luminescence-based optical sensor foils (planar optodes) with diffusional equilibrium in thin-film (DET) enabling simultaneous sensing of pO2, iron, phosphate, nitrite/nitrate, ammonium, manganese, pCO2 and pH. This project will encompass expert training of Dr. Cesbron in the use of planar optodes complementing his expertise in 2D DET mapping of chemical species, which will enable the development of a novel combined chemical imaging technology mentored by a world leader in microenvironmental analysis. The novel technology will investigate the dynamic chemical microenvironment in the seagrass rhizosphere and how this is modulated by environmental change and plant stress (e.g. effects of temperature, pH or eutrophication) in Zostera marina and Zostera noltei.
Fields of science
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesmarine biology
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensorsoptical sensors
- natural scienceschemical sciencesinorganic chemistrytransition metals
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesecologyecosystems
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesatmospheric sciencesclimatologyclimatic changes
Keywords
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)Coordinator
1165 Kobenhavn
Denmark