Ghosh, Rupam, Itai, Takaaki, Takahashi, Yoshio and Chi Fru, Ernest  ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2673-0565
2027.
Fluctuating nickel, cobalt, and zinc concentrations in the Hadean to early Archean (>3 Ga) ocean.
Gondwana Research
161
, pp. 298-313.
10.1016/j.gr.2026.09.007
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Abstract
Chemical evolution of seawater composition is thought to have exerted considerable influence on biological evolution throughout Earth’s history. However, the chemical structure and dynamics of the early ocean (>3.0 Ga) are poorly understood. Here, we experimentally studied trace metal (TM) scavenging by greenalite and Fe-(oxy)hydroxide minerals precipitated under simulated early Precambrian conditions, alongside in-situ TM compositions of magnetite and grunerite in 4.2 and 3.2 Ga banded iron formations (BIFs). Our geochemical experiments mimicking early Precambrian seawater conditions show that both primary greenalite and Fe-(oxy)hydroxide TM sinks influenced the overall concentrations of dissolved Ni, Co, and Zn in the early seawater column. Reconstructed TM values from BIF minerals using experimentally determined distribution coefficients indicate fluctuating Ni, Co and Zn levels in the ambient seawater. Our results suggest that processes like deep-water hydrothermalism, sequential greenalite and Fe-(oxy)hydroxides formation due to a vertical transportation delay of hydrothermal components to surface water, dilution of hydrothermal components, and a microbial physiological resuscitation lag likely regulated the abundance and distribution of TMs in the Hadean to early Archean seawater. Using the ratios of Ni/Zn or Co/Zn bound to greenalite and Fe-(oxy)hydroxides as a model, our data indicate quantitative removal of Zn—first by greenalite, followed by Fe-(oxy)hydroxide sinks. The resultant high Ni/Zn ratios in the Hadean to early Archean seawater column after each periodic Fe mineral formation cohere with the dependence of early marine biogenic methanogenesis on Ni enzymes and a low requirement for Zn enzymes by primordial life.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Date Type: | Publication |
| Status: | Published |
| Schools: | Schools > Earth and Environmental Sciences Schools > Physical, Chemical & Environmental Sciences |
| Publisher: | Elsevier |
| ISSN: | 1342-937X |
| Date of First Compliant Deposit: | 13 October 2026 |
| Date of Acceptance: | 9 September 2026 |
| Last Modified: | 14 Oct 2026 08:02 |
| URI: | https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/190181 |
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