TEP and coagulation during a mesocosm experiment

Transparent exo-polymeric particles (TEP) have been associated with the aggregation of diatoms. Comparisons of TEP concentrations to those of conventionally-determined particles during a mesocosm experiment show that particles larger than about 30 μm had concentrations very similar to, if not the same as, those of conventionally-determined particles. Smaller TEP were present mostly at concentrations less than those of non-TEP. Furthermore, their relative concentrations decreased over the course of the experiment. These comparisons suggest that the dominant interaction of TEP with algae in marine snow formation is to affect general particle stickiness rather than to aggregate by themselves.