[Coral-List] Use of Germanium Oxide to Control Diatom Growth
TDWYATT at aol.com
TDWYATT at aol.com
Mon Apr 25 09:02:33 EDT 2005
In a message dated 04/25/2005 8:32:51 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
osp02a at bangor.ac.uk writes:
> I would be grateful to hear from anybody who has experience of
> using Germanium Dioxide for this purpose, or who can suggest another
> method for reducing diatom growth.
If this is a closed system, the rate-limiting nutrient for diatoms will be
silicon/silicates for their tests. Diatoms with tests formed during periods of
low levels of silicates tend to rupture when they begin to photosynthesize
during periods of light, and the tests will become a source for soluble
silicates, so removal via skimming or mechanical filtration will limit cycling of the
silicon and related hydrates. When making the water change for artificial
seawater and when topping off the system for evaporative replacements to maintain
salinity, use only distilled water or Reverse Osmosis water that has been run
through a deionizing column. Once the diatoms have gone through their initial
bloom, either removal with physical filtration from the water column or
export via siphoning or foam fractionation (skimmer) will stop the problem.
HTH,
Tom
Tom Wyatt
tdwyatt at aol.com
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