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On the Ratio of Nitrogen to Phosphorus in the Sea

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 May 2009

L. H. N. Cooper
L. H. N. Cooper
Affiliation:
Assistant Chemist at the Plymouth Laboratory
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Extract

Data are presented confirming the belief of Harvey and of Redfield that, in broad outline, the ratio of nitrate-nitrogen and of phosphate-phosphorus in the sea and of nitrogen and phosphorus in marine plankton lies within fairly narrow limits. The ratio approaches twenty to one when expressed in terms of milligram-atoms or nine to one by weight. There are however deviations from this broad generalization, but they do not provide a reason for discarding the concept but rather suggest close examination of the causes of the variations.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 22 , Issue 1 , November 1937 , pp. 177 - 182
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 1937

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References

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