2015 GSA Annual Meeting in Baltimore, Maryland, USA (1-4 November 2015)

Paper No. 180-4
Presentation Time: 9:15 AM

SURFACE ADSORPTION AND ENZYMATIC HYDROLYSIS OF POLYPHOSPHATES – IMPLICATIONS FOR UNDERSTANDING THE BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLING POLYPHOSPHATE


HUANG, Rixiang, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, 311 Ferst Dr., Atlanta, GA 30332 and TANG, Yuanzhi, School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, 311 Ferst Drive, Atlanta, GA 30332-0340, rixiang.huang@eas.gatech.edu

Synthesized and accumulated by a vast variety of bacteria and planktons, polyphosphates (polyP) constitute a significant portion of phosphorus (P) in dissolved phase, sinking particulates and sediments in aquatic environment, making them a key player in global P cycling. Despite their environmental significance, little is known about their transport and fate. This work investigated the mineral adsorption, enzymatic hydrolysis and transformation of linear polyP with different chain lengths. The adsorption of these polyP onto iron and aluminum oxide minerals was studied by quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-D) and 31P solid state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR). Results suggested that polyP were irreversibly adsorbed with a “side-on” configuration on the minerals, and the adsorption amount was dependent on chain length and pH. The polyP can be catalytically hydrolyzed by alkaline phosphatase, and most likely through the terminals, as supported by 31P liquid NMR. In the presence of Ca2+, calcium phosphate precipitate formed and was identified to be amorphous, as suggested by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy with X-ray microanalysis. Results from this study provide a mechanistic understanding of reactions governing the mobility and transformation of polyp in aquatic environment, therefore, improves our understanding of the P cycle.