ASSIGNMENT

Topic:
Biogeochemical Cycle

Subject- Ecology & Ecosystem Analysis & Field Ecology

Made By-

Pranav Gupta

M. Arch. – Landscape Architecture

2nd SEM
Biogeochemical cycle
In Earth science, a biogeochemical cycle or substance turnover or cycling of substances is a pathway
by which a chemical substance moves through both the biotic (biosphere) and abiotic (lithosphere,
atmosphere, and hydrosphere) components of Earth. A cycle is a series of change which comes back
to the starting point and which can be repeated. Water, for example, is always recycled through the
water cycle, as shown in the diagram. The water undergoes evaporation, condensation, and
precipitation, falling back to Earth. Elements, chemical compounds, and other forms of matter are
passed from one organism to another and from one part of the biosphere to another through
biogeochemical cycles.

The term "biogeochemical" tells us that biological, geological and chemical factors are all involved.
The circulation of chemical nutrients like carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, and water
etc. through the biological and physical world are known as biogeochemical cycles. In effect, the
element is recycled, although in some cycles there may be places (called reservoirs) where the
element is accumulated or held for a long period of time (such as an ocean or lake for water).

Important cycles

The most well-known and important biogeochemical cycles, for example,

 the carbon cycle,

 the nitrogen cycle,
 the oxygen cycle,
 the phosphorus cycle,
 the sulfur cycle,
 the water cycle,
 and the rock cycle.

1. Nitrogen cycle

The nitrogen cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which nitrogen is converted into various chemical
forms as it circulates among the atmosphere and terrestrial and marine ecosystems. The conversion
of nitrogen can be carried out through both biological and physical processes. Important processes
in the nitrogen cycle include fixation, ammonification, nitrification, and denitrification. The majority
of Earth's atmosphere (78%) is nitrogen, making it the largest source of nitrogen. However,
atmospheric nitrogen has limited availability for biological use, leading to a scarcity of usable
nitrogen in many types of ecosystems. The nitrogen cycle is of particular interest to ecologists
because nitrogen availability can affect the rate of key ecosystem processes, including primary
production and decomposition. Human activities such as fossil fuel combustion, use of artificial
nitrogen fertilizers, and release of nitrogen in wastewater have dramatically altered the global
nitrogen cycle.

Nitrogen is present in the environment in a wide variety of chemical forms including organic
nitrogen, Ammonium (NH+4), nitrite (NO−2), nitrate (NO−3), nitrous oxide (N2O), Nitric oxide (NO)
or inorganic nitrogen gas (N2). Organic nitrogen may be in the form of a living organism, humus or in
the intermediate products of organic matter decomposition. The processes of the nitrogen cycle
transform nitrogen from one form to another. Many of those processes are carried out by microbes,
either in their effort to harvest energy or to
accumulate nitrogen in a form needed for
their growth. For example, the nitrogenous
wastes in animal urine are broken down by
nitrifying bacteria in the soil to be used
anew. The diagram besides shows how
these processes fit together to form the
nitrogen cycle.

2. Carbon cycle

The carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by

which carbon is exchanged among the
biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere,
hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the Earth.
Along with the nitrogen cycle and the water
cycle, the carbon cycle comprises a sequence of
events that are key to make the Earth capable of
sustaining life; it describes the movement of
carbon as it is recycled and reused throughout
the biosphere, including carbon sinks.

The global carbon budget is the balance of the

exchanges (incomes and losses) of carbon
between the carbon reservoirs or between one
specific loop (e.g., atmosphere <-> biosphere) of
the carbon cycle. An examination of the carbon
budget of a pool or reservoir can provide information about whether the pool or reservoir is
functioning as a source or sink for carbon dioxide. The carbon cycle was initially discovered by
Joseph Priestley and Antoine Lavoisier, and popularized by Humphry Davy.

The carbon exchanges between reservoirs occur as the result of various chemical, physical,
geological, and biological processes. The ocean contains the largest active pool of carbon near the
surface of the Earth. The natural flows of carbon between the atmosphere, ocean, terrestrial
ecosystems, and sediments is fairly balanced, so that carbon levels would be roughly stable without
human influence.
 3. Oxygen cycle

The oxygen cycle is the

biogeochemical cycle of oxygen
within its three main reservoirs: the
atmosphere (air), the total content
of biological matter within the
biosphere (the global sum of all
ecosystems), and the Earth's crust.
Failures in the oxygen cycle within
the hydrosphere (the combined
mass of water found on, under, and
over the surface of planet Earth) can
result in the development of hypoxic
zones. The main driving factor of the oxygen
cycle is photosynthesis, which is responsible for the
modern Earth's atmosphere and life on earth (see the Great Oxygenation Event).

4. Water cycle

The water cycle, also known as the hydrological cycle or the hydrologic cycle, describes the
continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earth. The mass of water on
Earth remains fairly constant over time but the partitioning of the water into the major reservoirs of
ice, fresh water, saline water and atmospheric water is variable depending on a wide range of
climatic variables. The water moves from one reservoir to another, such as from river to ocean, or
from the ocean to the atmosphere, by the physical processes of evaporation, condensation,
precipitation, infiltration, surface runoff, and subsurface flow. In doing so, the water goes through
different forms: liquid, solid (ice) and vapor.

The water cycle involves the exchange of energy, which leads to temperature changes. For instance,
when water evaporates, it takes up energy from its surroundings and cools the environment. When
it condenses, it
releases energy and
warms the
environment. These
heat exchanges
influence climate.

The evaporative
phase of the cycle
purifies water which
then replenishes the
land with
freshwater. The flow
of liquid water and
ice transports
minerals across the
globe. It is also
involved in reshaping the geological features of the Earth, through processes including erosion and
sedimentation. The water cycle is also essential for the maintenance of most life and ecosystems on
the planet.

The sun, which drives the water cycle, heats water in oceans and seas. Water evaporates as water
vapor into the air. Ice and snow can sublimate directly into water vapour. Evapotranspiration is
water transpired from plants and evaporated from the soil. The water vapour molecule H2O has less
density compared to the major components of the atmosphere, nitrogen and oxygen, N2 andO2.
Due to the significant difference in molecular mass, water vapor in gas form gains height in open air
as a result of buoyancy. However, as altitude increases, air pressure decreases and the temperature
drops (see Gas laws). The lowered temperature causes water vapour to condense into a tiny liquid
water droplet which is heavier than the air, such that it falls unless supported by an updraft. A huge
concentration of these droplets over a large space up in the atmosphere become visible as cloud.
Fog is formed if the water vapour condenses near ground level, as a result of moist air and cool air
collision or an abrupt reduction in air pressure. Air currents move water vapour around the globe,
cloud particles collide, grow, and fall out of the upper atmospheric layers as precipitation. Some
precipitation falls as snow or hail, sleet, and can accumulate as ice caps and glaciers, which can store
frozen water for thousands of years. Most water falls back into the oceans or onto land as rain,
where the water flows over the ground as surface runoff. A portion of runoff enters rivers in valleys
in the landscape, with stream flow moving water towards the oceans. Runoff and water emerging
from the ground (groundwater) may be stored as freshwater in lakes. Not all runoff flows into rivers,
much of it soaks into the ground as infiltration. Some water infiltrates deep into the ground and
replenishes aquifers, which can store freshwater for long periods of time. Some infiltration stays
close to the land surface and can seep back into surface-water bodies (and the ocean) as
groundwater discharge. Some groundwater finds openings in the land surface and comes out as
freshwater springs. In river valleys and floodplains, there is often continuous water exchange
between surface water and ground water in the hyporheic zone. Over time, the water returns to the
ocean, to continue the water cycle.