Palmitic Acid Is Not a Proper Salinity Proxy in Baffin Bay and the Labrador Sea but Reflects the Variability in Organic Matter Sources Modulated by Sea Ice Coverage

Palmitic acid (PA) is ubiquitous in the biosphere and its hydrogen isotopic composition (d(2)H(PA)) was proposed as a potential paleoenvironmental proxy for salinity, with d(2)H(PA) values increasing with salinity. In this study, we analyzed 40 surface sediment samples from Baffin Bay and the Labrador Sea to examine the isotopic composition of PA in relation to local environmental variables, including salinity. In contrast to expectations, our results show a negative relationship between the d(2)H(PA) and sea-surface salinity, raising questions about its pertinence and usefulness as a salinity proxy. Instead, our results suggest that the relative abundance of distinct organisms that employ different metabolisms is the key in determining the hydrogen isotopic fractionations in PA. While we show that PA is mostly produced through photoautotrophic metabolisms by diatoms and dinoflagellates, varying contributions from heterotrophic metabolisms may obscure the stable isotope composition of PA. Surprisingly, we found no correlation between the stable carbon isotopic composition of the sedimentary organic matter (d(13)C(org)) and PA (d(13)C(PA)), implying major differences in either the dominant organisms producing sedimentary PA or in carbon isotope fractionation during lipid biosynthesis. We also found that the presence of extended sea-ice cover leads to enriched carbon and hydrogen isotopic compositions in PA. These enriched values suggest heterotrophic biodegradation in the water column and/or in the sediment as well as an increase in grazing activities. We propose that sea-ice cover and surface water oxygenation modulate the relative impact of phototrophic and heterotrophic metabolisms, and therefore the isotopic composition of marine sedimentary PA.

Automated summary

Palmitic acid is a common substance in the biosphere, and its hydrogen isotopic composition has been proposed as a potential paleoenvironmental proxy for salinity. However, this study found a negative correlation between the isotopic composition of palmitic acid and sea-surface salinity, questioning its reliability as a salinity proxy. The study also suggests that different organisms with different metabolisms play a key role in determining the isotopic fractionations of palmitic acid.