Title: A Five-stage Evolution of Earth's Phosphorus Cycle
Author: JIAO Liangxuan*， Matthew S.DODD， Thomas J.ALGEO， LI Chao*
Journal: Acta Geologica Sinica (English Edition)
Year of Publication: 2023
Volume: 97(5)
DOI: 10.1111/1755-6724.15116
Abstract：Phosphorus（P） is a key biological nutrient and probably the ultimate limiter of marine productivity during Earth history.In recent years,a wealth of new knowledge has revolutionized our understanding of the global P cycle,yet its longterm evolution remains incompletely documented.In this paper,we review the effects of three major controlling factors on the long-term evolution of the global P cycle,i.e.,tectonics,marine redox conditions,and bio-evolution,on the basis of which a five-stage model is proposed:Stage Ⅰ（＞～2.4 Ga）,tectonic-lithogenic-controlled P cycling;Stage Ⅱ（～2.4 Ga to 635Ma）,low-efficiency biotic P cycling;Stage Ⅲ（～635 Ma to 380 Ma）,transitional biotic P cycling;Stage Ⅳ（～380 Ma to near-modern）,high-efficiency biotic P cycling;and Stage V（Anthropocene）,human-influenced P cycling.This model implies that the earlier-proposed Ediacaran reorganization of the marine P cycle may represent only the start of a-250-Myr-long transition of the Earth’s P cycle（Stage Ⅲ） between the low-efficiency biotic mode of the Proterozoic（Stage Ⅱ） and the high-efficiency biotic mode of the Phanerozoic（Stage Ⅳ）.The development of biologically-driven,high-efficiency P cycling may have been a key factor for the increasing frequency and volume of phosphorite deposits since the late Neoproterozoic.
Key Words: tectonics, marine redox, life evolution, phosphorite, Ediacaran, Anthropocene
