Homepage Barbara Sulzberger

Barbara A. Sulzberger

PD Dr. phil nat.
Senior Scientist
Editor-in-Chief, Aquatic Sciences
Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic
Science and Technology (Eawag)
Ueberlandstrasse 133
CH-8600 Dübendorf
Switzerland

Phone: +41 1 823 54 59
Fax: +41 1 823 50 28
E-mail: sulzberger@eawag.ch
www.eawag.ch

Curriculum vitae (PDF)

Publications

Aquatic Sciences

Research Interests
The focus of my research group is the study of light-induced carbon and metal cycling in aquatic systems.

Background
Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a key nutrient and energy source for aquatic consumers, including heterotrophic bacteria and metazooplankton. Not all chemical forms of DOM are, however, available to these organisms. Light-induced transformations of DOM affect DOM bioavailability, transforming biorecalcitrant into bioavailable compounds and vice-versa. The light-induced increase in DOM bioavailability may enhance microbial respiration of DOM with consumption of O₂ and production of CO₂, thus affecting global climate. In aquatic systems the light-induced carbon cycling is linked to that of metals, which in turn affects metal bioavailability. Light-induced metal and carbon cycling is accompanied by the production and consumption of reactive oxygen species that impact organic and inorganic pollutants as well as aquatic organisms.

Research Themes

Origin and chemical composition of aquatic DOM: Consequences for DOM photo- and bioreactivity
Effects of solar radiation on the chemical composition and bioavailability of DOM
Effects of solar radiation on the chemical speciation of metals (iron, manganese, copper)
Roles or iron in light-induced transformations of organic and inorganic pollutants (atrazine, diuron, EDTA, chromate)

In an ongoing research project (Paul Borer's Ph.D. research) we are studying the roles of siderophores in the light-induced dissolution of colloidal Fe(III) (hydr)oxides. Our approach to the study of light-induced processes in aquatic systems combines laboratory experiments and field studies, using the kinetic and mechanistic insights gained in the laboratory. With mathematical modeling we simulate results obtained from laboratory and field experiments. This approach allows us to identify the key processes driving complex aquatic systems.

Selected Publications

Meunier, L., Laubscher, H.-U., Hug, S. J., and Sulzberger, B. (2005), Effects of size and origin of natural dissolved organic matter compounds on the redox cycling of iron in sunlit surface waters, Aquat. Sci. 67, 292-307 (publication #49).

Borer, P. M., Sulzberger, B., Reichard, P., and Kraemer, S. M. (2005), Effect of siderophores on the light-induced dissolution of colloidal iron(III)(hydr)oxides, Mar. Chem. 93, 179-193 (publication #47).

Buerge-Weirich, D., and Sulzberger, B. (2004), Formation of Cu(I) in estuarine and marine waters: Application of a new solid-phase extraction method to measure Cu(I), Environ. Sci. Technol. 38, 1843-1848 (publication #46).

Kaiser, E., and Sulzberger, B. (2004), Phototransformation of riverine dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the presence of abundant iron: Effect on DOM bioavailability, Limnol. Oceanogr. 49, 540-554 (publication #44).

Kaiser, E., Simpson, A. J., Dria, K. J., Sulzberger, B., and Hatcher, P. G. (2003), Solid-state and multidimensional solution-state NMR of solid phase extracted and ultrafiltered riverine dissolved organic matter, Environ. Sci. Technol. 37, 2929-2935 (publication #43).

Mazellier, P., and Sulzberger, B. (2001), Diuron degradation in irradiated, heterogeneous iron/oxalate systems: The rate-determining step, Environ. Sci. Technol. 35, 3314-3320 (publication #40).

Emmenegger, L., Schönenberger, R., Sigg, L., and Sulzberger, B. (2001), Light-induced redox cycling of iron in circumneutral lakes, Limnol. Oceanogr. 46, 49-61 (publication #39).

Balmer, M. E., and Sulzberger, B. (1999), Atrazine degradation in irradiated iron/oxalate systems: Effects of pH and oxalate, Environ. Sci. Technol. 33, 2418-2424 (publication #37).

Voelker, B. M., Morel, F. M. M., and Sulzberger, B. (1997), Iron redox cycling in surface waters: Effects of humic substances and light, Environ. Sci. Technol. 31, 1004-1011 (publication #32).

Karametaxas, G., Hug, S. J., and Sulzberger, B. (1995), Photodegradation of EDTA in the presence of lepidocrocite, Environ. Sci. Technol. 29, 2992-3000 (publication #30).

Sulzberger, B., and Laubscher, H.-U. (1995), Reactivity of various types of iron(III) (hydr)oxides towards light-induced dissolution, Mar. Chem. 50, 103-115 (publication #29).

Hug, S. J., and Sulzberger, B. (1994), In situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic evidence for the formation of several different surface complexes of oxalate on TiO₂ in the aqueous phase, Langmuir 10, 3587-3597 (publication #27).

Xyla, A. G., Sulzberger, B., Luther, III, G. W., Hering, J. G., Van Cappellen, P., and Stumm, W. (1992), Reductive dissolution of manganese(III,IV) (hydr)oxides by oxalate: The effect of pH and light, Langmuir 8, 95-103 (publication #21).

Stumm, W., and Sulzberger, B. (1992), The cycling of iron in natural environments: Considerations based on laboratory studies of heterogeneous redox processes, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 56, 3233-3257 (publication #19).

Siffert, C., and Sulzberger, B. (1991), Light-induced dissolution of hematite in the presence of oxalate: A case study, Langmuir 7, 1627-1634 (publication #16).

Sulzberger, B., Schnoor, J. L., Giovanoli, R., Hering, J. G., and Zobrist, J. (1990), Biogeochemistry of iron in an acidic lake, Aquat. Sci. 52, 56-74 (publication #13).

Professional Activities

I am a co-adviser of Paul Borer's Ph.D. research on the roles of siderophores in the light-induced dissolution of colloidal Fe(III) (hydr)oxides.

I am the editor-in-chief of the journal Aquatic Sciences.

I am a member of the UNEP Environmental Effects Assessment Panel, which assesses the environmental effects of ozone depletion and the interactions of ozone depletion and climate change.

During summer semesters I teach a course entitled "Environmental Photochemistry" in the Master Programs "Climate Sciences" and "Chemistry and Molecular Sciences" at the University of Bern.

Journal Aquatic Sciences

Aquatic Sciences - Research Across Boundaries (AS) is an international, peer-reviewed journal that publishes original research, overviews, and reviews dealing with aquatic (both freshwater and marine) systems and their boundaries, including the impact of human activities on these systems. AS spans the range from molecular-level mechanistic studies to investigations at the whole ecosystem scale. AS seeks articles presenting research across disciplinary and environmental boundaries, that is (i) studies examining interactions among geological, microbial, biological, chemical, physical, hydrological, and societal processes, and (ii) studies assessing land-water, air-water, benthic-pelagic, river-ocean, lentic-lotic, and groundwater-surface water interactions.

AS is published by the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag) and is printed in 1 volume of 4 issues per year by Birkhäuser Verlag. The annual subscription price is € 468.- for institutions and € 88.- for members of any scientific society (e.g., ASLO). The electronic version of AS can be accessed via the online information service SpringerLink. The full text of articles is accessible to AS subscribers and to "Multiple Users" of SpringerLink. Twelve months after the cover date of the printed issue, the electronic version of AS also is accessible to institutions and individuals that are not subscribers to AS or "Multiple Users" of SpringerLink.

Please consult the web sites below for the following information: