A Workshop to Synthesize and Interpret Data from an International Iron Analysis Intercomparison

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole MA

Investigators

Abstract

ABSTRACT OCE-0243071 Fifteen scientist who participated in the initial international intercalibration exercise carried out under the auspices of the SCOR Working Group 109 will be invited to participate in a workshop to be held on December 5, 2002 in San Francisco. The objective of the workshop is to analyze and interpret dissolved Fe measurements obtained by about 20 laboratories for a water samples collected in the South Atlantic. Initial evaluation of the data obtained for this sample by the different laboratories shows values ranging from 0.3 nM to 2.0 nM. Given the importance of this element as a micronutrient which can limit primary production, it is imperative that the reasons for the variability in the results be identified. Amongst the possible problems that could be contributing to the variability in the values obtained thus far are the following: (1) contamination in the laboratory where the initial sample was separated into separate aliquots; (2) contamination in the participants laboratory; and (3) different recoveries by the various methods used to obtain the Fe values. It is expected that during this workshop the factors responsible for the observed variability in Fe concentrations for a single sample will be identified, as well as that guidelines for the next intercomparison exercise be established.