carbon cycle - major processes
- Created by: Luke Mitchell
- Created on: 17-01-13 16:27
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- Carbon cycle - major processes
- Photosynthesis
- 1). captures light energy using pigments e.g. chlorophyll.
- coverts low-energy substances e.g. CO2 and H2O into high-energy carbohydrate that can be stored for later use. (Oxygen is a by-product)
- Respiration
- 1). releases energy from high-energy substances e.g. carbohydrate used to drive metabolic processes
- 2). aerobic respiration breaks down organic compounds more fully to CO2 and release much more energy than anaerobic respiration
- 3). Anaerobic respiration allows some organisms to survive and use food sources in oxygen-deficient environments, releasing methane
- Food chains
- pass organic compounds as food between organisms
- Fossilisation
- 1). involves incomplete decomposition of organisms, often under anaerobic conditions, and can lead to deposition of fossil fuels
- 2). some marine organisms absorb CO2 and store it in their skeletons, which are later laid as sediments of limestone and chalk on seabed
- Volcanoes
- release CO2 from fossil fuels or carbonate rocks in ground
- Combustion
- wood or fossil fuels releases CO2 into atmosphere
- Photosynthesis
- pass organic compounds as food between organisms
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