Paleoredox reconstruction over the last 40,000 years from metal concentrations in long cores from the Santos Bifurcation, southern Brazil

• Grant number: 25/10574-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2025
• End date: September 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Oceanography - Chemical Oceanography
• Principal Investigator: Rubens Cesar Lopes Figueira
• Grantee: Maria Luisa Nogueira Maia
• Host Institution: Instituto Oceanográfico (IO). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 20/14356-5 - The Santos Bifurcation: present and past, AP.PFPMCG.TEM

Abstract

The main objective of this project is to interpret the concentration of metals in sediment cores collected from the Santos Bifurcation region for a paleoredox reconstruction. To this end, a total digestion of sediment samples from long cores will be carried out, followed by metal determination using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Based on these analyses, the metal concentrations will be interpreted using metal/metal ratios (proxies) with the aim of assessing the depositional environment and environmental changes within a geochronological context for the Santos Bifurcation.