Boron isotopic fractionation during seawater evaporation

Laboratory experiments were undertaken to investigate the behaviour of boron at the seawater–air interface during seawater evaporation. Seawaters adjusted to different pH values were heated to 27, 33 and 40 °C inside a quartz evaporator. The vapor was collected with a quartz condenser using a cold trap. A natural seawater–vapor process in quiet air conditions and excluding the sea-spray component was realized using this arrangement. The results indicate an enrichment of 11B in the condensate. This implies that in the natural environment, rainfall with δ11B values lower than that of seawater has been affected either by continental boron sources or by the boron extracted from seawater under airflow conditions. While the net flux of boron carried away from the ocean by air masses due to seawater evaporation is significant compared to other fractionation-associated processes removing boron from the ocean, the effect of isotopic fractionation as boron enters the vapor phase on the isotopic composition of boron in the ocean over time is small.