Gschwend%20thesis.pdf

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In addition, the Cape, and the Northeast U.S. in general, are heavily
forested. Seasonal variations in the outputs of volatile organic compounds
such as the terpenes (Whitby and Coffey, 1977) and their subsequent trans-
port into coastal seawater may be expected.
All of these seasonal processes, and many others, occur and involve
changes in the introduction of volatile organic compounds to the environ-
ment. It is the intention of this work to attempt to interpret the varia-
tions in volatile compound concentrations of the coastal seawater in
terms of the effects of such processes.
Accordingly, the temporal variations of a diverse group of specific
organic compounds have been studied in coastal seawater. The preliminary
results have been reported by Schwarzenbach et al. (1978; Appendix III) .
In these studies, an inventory of specific organic compounds and their
concentrations was acquired. The changes in the specific compound levels
were compared with variations of other processes (such as algal blooms).
It was then possible to speculate concerning the manner in which environ~
mental processes affect the cycling of these organic compounds. Moreover,
opportunities arose (such as pollution events) to observe the manner and
rate at which the natural system responded to perturbations. These
results have allowed consideration of the environmental chemistry of
these organic materials ,and by extension, the more complex organic matter
to which they bear structural resemblance.
METHODS
Sampling
Samples were obtained biweekly at Chemotaxis Dock (CD) (figure 3-l),
a wooden pier which extends about 10 meters into Vineyard Sound. The
water depth off the end of the dock is between i. 5 and 2.5 meters and