Solute transport into the Jiulong River estuary via pore water exchange and submarine groundwater discharge: New insights from 224Ra/228Th disequilibrium

Total PEX flux of 224Ra (in 1010 dpm d−1) into the Jiulong River estuary was estimated to be 22.3 ± 3.0 and 33.7 ± 5.5 during the winter and summer surveys, respectively. In comparison, total SGD flux of 224Ra (in 1010 dpm d−1) was 11.3 ± 8.6 and 49.5 ± 16.3 in the respective seasons. By multiplying the PEX fluxes of 224Ra by the ratio of the concentration gradients of component/224Ra at the sediment-water interface, we quantified the total PEX fluxes of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and nutrients (NH4+, NO3−, and H4SiO4) into the Jiulong River estuary. In the meantime, net export of DIC and nutrients via SGD were estimated by multiplying the SGD fluxes of 224Ra by the DIC (nutrients)/224Ra ratios in the SGD end-members around this area. Our results revealed that PEX-driven fluxes of solutes rival net SGD input and river input in an estuary. An additional new finding is that water column NO3− in the surface estuary was effectively sequestered due to SGD, probably as a result of intense denitrification occurring in the anoxic subterranean estuary.