Biogeochemical Cycle

 the term biogeochemical tells us that Biological, Geological, and Chemical

factors are involved.
Bio = life or living organisms
Geo = earth or physical structures
Chemical = nutrients or chemical substances including carbon, hydrogen,
nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur
 Biogeochemical is the cycling of nutrients (hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, nitrogen,
phosphorus, sulfur) from abiotic components of the ecosystem (water, air, soil,
rock) through the biotic components (plants, animals, fungi, bacteria).
 also known as Nutrient cycle
 Biogeochemical cycles keep essential elements available to plants and other
organisms.The matter that makes up organisms is conserved and recycled.

Energy flows, but matter is recycled

The energy and matter move through ecosystems.
 Energy enters in the form of sunlight, then it is captured in the form of chemical
bonds by producers, and finally it is transferred to consumers. Eventually, the
plants and animals die, and the waste products is released by decomposers.
 In each transfer, some energy is converted to the unusable form of heat and,
eventually, all of the energy is dissipated.
 The atoms that make up the bodies of organisms, in contrast, are not lost.
Although the energy contained in the bonds between atoms may be released as
heat, the atoms themselves remain. They are simply recycled.

5 Major Biogeochemical Cycles

1. Carbon Cycle
2. Water Cycle
3. Nitrogen Cycle
4. Phophorus Cycle
5. Sulfur Cycle

CARBON CYCLE
 Carbon cycle is the process where carbon compounds are interchanged among the
biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the earth.

Nature’s Carbon Sources

 Atmosphere. Animal and plant respiration place carbon into the atmosphere.
When you exhale, you are placing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
 Lithosphere. Carbon found in fossil fuels, such as petroleum (crude oil),
coal,and natural gas. Carbon is also found in soil from dead and decaying animals
and animal waste.
 Biosphere. Carbon is stored in plants and trees. Plants use carbon dioxide from
the atmosphere to make the building blocks of food during photosynthesis.
 Hydrosphere. Carbon is dissolved in ocean water and lakes. Carbon is used by
many organisms to produce shells. Marine plants use carbon for photosynthesis.
The organic matter that is produced becomes food in the aquatic ecosystem.

Process of the carbon cycle:

 1. Carbon present in the atmosphere is absorbed by plants for photosynthesis.
2. These plants are then consumed by animals and carbon gets bioaccumulated
into their bodies.
3. These animals and plants eventually die, and upon decomposing, carbon is
released back into the atmosphere.
4. Some of the carbon that is not released back into the atmosphere eventually
become fossil fuels.
5. These fossil fuels are then used for man-made activities, which pump more
carbon back into the atmosphere.

WATER CYCLE
 Also known as the hydrologic cycle
 A biochemical cycle that described the continuous movement of water, on above
and below the surface of the Earth.
 a set of processes in which water circulates between the earth’s oceans,
atmosphere, and land.

THE 4 DIFFERENT STAGE OF WATER CYCLE

 Evaporation. The transportation of water from liquid to gas phase as it moves
from the ground or bodies of water in to the overlying atmosphere.
 Condensation. The transportation of water vapor to liquid water droplets in the
air, creating clouds and fog.
 Precipitation. The water released from the clouds in the form of rain, freezing
rain, snow, or hail. It is the primary connection in the water cycle that provides
for the delivery of atmospheric water to the Earth.
 The water falls back to earth as precipitation. It may fall back in the ocean, lakes
or rivers or it may end up on land and it will either soak into the earth and
become part of ground water that plants and animal use to drink or it runs over
the soil and collect in the ocean, lakes or rivers where the cycle starts.

NITROGEN CYCLE
 The earth’s atmosphere contains about 78% nitrogen in the gaseous phase. As
Nitrogen is essential for many biological processes as nitrogen is an essential
component of amino acids, enzymes, proteins, and nucleic acids.
 The nitrogen cannot be utilized directly by living organisms such as plants so it is
changed into nitrites and nitrates are termed nitrogen fixation.
 Nitrogen Cycle describes the continuous transformation of atmospheric nitrogen
into usable forms and returns to the atmosphere as nitrogen.

The Steps Involved in Nitrogen Cycle:

1. Nitrogen Fixation
2. Assimilation
3. Ammonification
4. Nitrification
5. Denitrification
Nitrogen fixation
 During the process of Nitrogen fixation, the inert form of nitrogen gas is
deposited into soils from the atmosphere and surface waters, mainly through
precipitation.
 occur either by:
a. Atmospheric fixation - which involves lightening
b. Industrial fixation - manufacturing ammonia under high temperature and
pressure conditions.
c. Through man - made processes, primarily industrial processes that create
ammonia and nitrogen-rich fertilizers.

Assimilation
 The nitrates and nitrites are absorbed by green plants to produce the organic
compounds of nitrogen. The nitrates are reduced to ammonia that combines with
organic acids to form amino acids, proteins, and nucleic acids

Ammonification
 The decomposition of proteins of dead animals and plants to ammonia in the
presence of ammonifying bacteria

Nitrification
 The process that converts ammonia into nitrites and nitrates in the presence of
nitrifying bacteria
 The ammonia is first oxidized into Nitrite in the presence of Nitrosomonas
bacteria and this nitrite is further oxidized to Nitrate in the presence of
Nitrobacter bacteria .

Denitrification
 The process of conversion of nitrates and nitrites into molecular nitrogen in the
presence of denitrifying bacteria

PHOSPHORUS CYCLE
 Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for animals and plants. Animals absorb
phosphates by eating plants or plant-eating animals.
 Phosphate compounds are found in sedimentary rocks, and as the rocks weather
—wear down over long time periods—the phosphorus they contain slowly
leaches into surface water and soils.

Phosphorus Cycle Steps

1. Weathering
2. Absorption by plants
3. Absorption by Animals
4. . Return to the Environment through Decomposition

Weathering
 Phosphorus is found in the rocks in abundance
 This is why the phosphorus cycle starts in the earths crust
 The phosphate salts are broken down from the rocks
 These salts are washed away into the ground when they mix in the soil
Absorption by plants
 The phosphate salts dissolved in the water absorbed by the plants
 The amount of phosphorus present in the soil is very less
 That is why the farmers apply phosphate fertilizers on agricultural land
 The aquatic plants absorb inorganic phosphorus from lower layers of water
bodies
 Phosphate salts do not dissolve in water properly, they affect plants growth in an
ecosystem.

Absorption by animals
 The animals absorb phosphorus from the plants or by consuming plant- eating
animals
 Return to the environment through decompose
 When the plants and animals die they are decomposed by microorganisms during
this process the organic form of phosphorus is converted into the inorganic form,
which is recycled to soil and water
 Soil and water will end up in sediments and rocks, which will again release
phosphorus by weathering

 Thus, the phosphorus cycle starts over

SULFUR CYCLE
 Sulfur cycle is the process by which sulfur moves through the Earth's atmosphere,
soil, and living organisms.

The sulphur cycle steps majorly involve the:

1. Atmosphere
2. Biosphere
3. Uptake by living organisms
4. Release

Atmosphere.
Atmospheric sulfur is found in the form of sulfur dioxide (SO2), which enters
the atmosphere in three ways: first, from the decomposition of organic molecules;
second, from volcanic activities; and, third, from the burning of fossil fuels by
humans.

Biosphere
Sulfur present in the atmosphere aids in the formation of clouds by increasing
the count of cloud droplets as well as increasing the size of the droplet. Sulfur thus
dissolves in the rainwater forming weak sulfuric acid droplets and reaches the
biosphere. Aerosols or sulfur particles also fall out into the biosphere from the
atmosphere.

Uptake by living organisms

Sulfur becomes available for consumption by microorganisms, animals, and
plants. Sulfur is taken up by the green sulfur bacteria that utilize it as a form of
energy. Plants absorb sulfur from the soil by means of their roots. And animals
including human beings end up consuming sulfur indirectly as they consume plants.

Release
Sulfur which is present in the biosphere travels through the food chain by
means of consumers feeding on producers and then ultimately reaching the
decomposers. This sulfur through the process of decomposition gets converted into
sulfides from the sulfate form and is released back.

CONCLUSION
Biogeochemical cycles demonstrate the way in which the energy is used. Through the
ecosystem, these cycles move the essential elements for life to sustain. They are vital
as they recycle elements and store them too, and regulate the vital elements through
the physical facets. These cycles depict the association between living and non-living
things in the ecosystems and enable the continuous survival of ecosystems.a
REFERENCES

 Emsley, J. (1980). The Phosphorus Cycle. The Natural Environment and the
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