What we do
We are interested in the physical, chemical, and biological processes that move and transform organic molecules in Earth’s surface reservoirs, with a focus on our oceans. This is important because variations in the chemical composition of Earth’s surface control its energy balance and habitability, and provide clues as to how its “machinery” works. Thus, a greater understanding of Earth’s chemical composition today, the processes that led to it, and the timescales over which those processes happen, will help us understand our planet in the past, present, and future. We examine the chemical kinetics, radiocarbon (14C) ages, and stable carbon (13C) distributions of complex mixtures, and develop novel methods to make our observations with new perspectives at the highest achievable precision.
We are currently investigating the fates of the longest-lived organic molecules found in the sea, collectively known as refractory dissolved organic matter (RDOM). Globally, this material is both the largest and oldest collection of organic carbon atoms in the ocean. Measurements suggest that it can survive for an average of ~6,000 14C years. Despite decades of progress, oceanographers still do not know precisely how this material is ultimately removed from the sea or how quickly those processes can proceed. We are actively investigating three processes that stand out as the most promising: 1) photochemical degradation by sunlight, 2) transfer to the atmosphere with aerosol that is produced when waves break, and 3) microbiological processes that either directly remove organic carbon atoms or alter their reactivities.
Dr. Steven R. Beaupré, Associate Professor
School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences
Stony Brook University
Stony Brook, NY 11794-5000
e-mail: steven.beaupre@stonybrook.edu
Phone: 631.632.3748
ORCID: 0000-0001-6964-1058
Former Members
Dr. Xi Lu – PhD 2021, School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences
now Postdoctoral researcher, Peking University
Matthew Boyer
now Doctoral student at the University of Helsinki