An Analysis of the Relationship Between Tumpey 1

An Analysis of the Relationship Between Temperature and Dissolved Oxygen

Kyle Tumpey
Abstract
Temperature and dissolved oxygen are two of the most important water quality
parameters that are monitored in a body of water. Both temperature and dissolved
oxygen have a great effect on numerous water quality parameters, including
salinity, density, pH, and metabolic rates of aquatic organisms. Changes in both
temperature and dissolved oxygen can have catastrophic effects on all aspects of
marine life. Theoretically, temperature and dissolved oxygen should have an
inverse relationship: as the temperature of a body of water increases, the dissolved
oxygen concentration will decrease. In this study, water quality parameters were
collected by Dr. Wnek’s block 2 and 3 oceanography classes at eleven sample sites
along Tuckerton Creek in Tuckerton, New Jersey. The results obtained from this
study show that there was a significant difference between the surface and depth
water temperatures, as well as a significant difference between the surface and
depth dissolved oxygen concentrations. This study also showed that there was a
significant inverse mathematical relationship between water temperature and
dissolved oxygen concentration.

Introduction
Temperature and dissolved oxygen are two of the most important water quality
parameters scientists monitor in a body of water. The temperature of a body of water measure the
average kinetic energy of the water molecules, and is measured in degrees Celsius (̊C).
Temperature has a great effect not only on other water quality parameters but also on the health
of aquatic life. Temperature affects many water quality parameters, including dissolved oxygen,
pH, and the metabolic rates of organisms (“Water temperature,” 2014). As the temperature of a
body of water increases, the amount of dissolved oxygen decreases, meaning that there will be
less available oxygen for aquatic life in a warmer environment. If the temperature of a body of
water becomes too high, organisms will begin to die due to a lack of oxygen (“Water
temperature,” 2014). Temperature also affects the pH of a body of water: as the temperature
increases, the pH decreases, meaning the water becomes more acidic. Even a slight change in pH
can be fatal to sensitive organisms, as most aquatic life can only survive in a small range of pH
values. Lastly, temperature also affects the metabolic rates and biological activity of all aquatic
life. Recent studies have shown that “for most fish, a 10 ̊C increase in water temperature will
approximately double the rate of physiological function.” While some organisms can tolerate
increased metabolic activity, these metabolic rates can be fatal to marine organisms if a higher
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than average temperature is sustained in the environment for an extended period of time
(Perlman, 2016). Therefore, it is extremely important to accurately and continuously monitor
temperature in a marine environment.
Dissolved oxygen is the amount of free molecular oxygen present in a body of water, and
it is measured in milligrams per liter (mg/L). Dissolved oxygen has a great impact on all aquatic
life as, similar to terrestrial animals, aquatic organisms need oxygen to respire (“Dissolved
Oxygen,” 2013). Fish and crustaceans obtain dissolved oxygen through their gills, and plants use
the oxygen to perform respiration. Also, microbes such as bacteria and fungi use dissolved
oxygen to help decompose organic matter at the bottom of a body of water. Like many water
quality parameters, a majority of aquatic organisms have a specific tolerance range for dissolved
oxygen values, and if the dissolved oxygen levels become too extreme, these organisms will die
(“Dissolved oxygen,” 2018). For example, salmon are not even able to reproduce at dissolved
oxygen levels below 6 mg/L. Low dissolved oxygen levels are the main cause for fish kills, and
are also one of the fatal effects of eutrophication. When coastal areas drop below 3.7 mg/L,
coastal fish completely abandon the area, with even more specific species leaving at 3.5 mg/L.
When dissolved oxygen levels are below 2 mg/L, invertebrates leave, and even benthic
organisms cannot survive water with dissolved oxygen levels below 1 mg/L (“Dissolved
Oxygen,” 2013). Dissolved oxygen is a vital water quality parameter to all aquatic organisms,
and therefore must be closely monitored in any body of water.
The main methods for monitoring temperature are through the use of a thermometer or a
multimeter. Both of these methods are an efficient and accurate way to measure temperature. The
main methods for measuring dissolved oxygen are through the use of the Winkler titration
method and a multimeter. Both of these methods are also a quick and efficient way to obtain
accurate results. Theoretically, there is an inverse relationship between the temperature of a body
of water and the amount of dissolved oxygen present. Studies have suggested that as the
temperature of a body of water increases, the amount of dissolved oxygen will decrease
(Perlman, 2017). This study will determine how dissolved oxygen and temperature values
compare at various sampling sites and depths, and if there is a correlation between the
temperature and dissolved oxygen values.
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Methodology
Study Site
From October 17-18, 2018, students from blocks 2 and 3 of Dr. Wnek’s oceanography
class conducted an overnight research trip at the Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research
Reserve in Tuckerton, New Jersey. Students arrived at the Reserve around 1pm on October 17,
and began a kayak sampling trip around 1:30pm along the Tuckerton Creek. Students started
kayaking near Skinner’s Marina and collected water quality parameters at 11 different sites along
the Creek until students reached the Barnegat Bay. The portion of the Creek sampled was largely
developed, often containing houses or marinas on one or both sides of the Creek. The majority of
the Creek was largely unaffected by wind until it reached the Bay. The weather during the
sampling period was cool and sunny with a slight breeze. Later in the evening on October 17,
students collected water quality samples off a dock at Skinner’s Marina. The Marina was located
about a half mile from the Reserve, and it situated along the Tuckerton Creek. Samples were
collected at two different times throughout the evening, and once on the morning of October 18.
A map of the eleven sample sites along Tuckerton Creek can be found in Figure 1.

Procedure
To collect water temperatures and dissolved oxygen concentrations in the Tuckerton
Creek, a YSI 556 multimeter was used. This device measures a variety of water quality
parameters with a high accuracy. At each of the 11 sites sampled along the creek, water quality
parameters were taken from both the surface and the bottom. To use the YSI meter, students
turned on the meter, took the probe out of its protective case, and put on a different protective
case that would protect the glass probe from hitting the kayak or any rocks or debris in the water.
Then, students placed the probe just below the surface and held it there until the measurements
stopped fluctuating. This process was repeated to collect the bottom measurements. Water
samples were also taken at each of the eleven sites to conduct further water quality tests at the
Jacques Cousteau Research Reserve. To prevent any cross contamination among the sites,
students rinsed the probe with distilled water after each sampling site.
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Statistical Analyses
Two t-Tests were conducted on the water quality parameters. The first t-Test tested for
how the surface water temperatures compare with the depth water temperatures. The second t-
Test tested for how the surface dissolved oxygen levels compare with the depth dissolved oxygen
level. Two regressions were also run on the data collected. The first regression tested for
correlation between the surface water temperatures and surface dissolved oxygen levels. The
second regression tested for correlation between the depth water temperatures and depth
dissolved oxygen levels. An alpha of 0.05 or less was used to determine significance for all tests
conducted.

Results
The water temperatures in the Tuckerton Creek ranged from 16.38 - 18.62 ̊C (Table 1).
The dissolved oxygen levels in the Tuckerton Creek ranged from 1.60 – 9.14 mg/L (Table 1).
The t-Test conducted on the surface and depth water temperatures produced a P-value of 0.0043
(Figure 3). The t-Test conducted on the surface and depth dissolved oxygen levels produced a P-
value of 0.0356 (Figure 4). The regression run on the surface temperatures and surface dissolved
oxygen levels produced an R2 value of 0.5944 and a P-value of 0.0055 (Figure 5). The
regression run on the depth temperatures and depth dissolved oxygen levels produced an R2
value of 0.8719 and a P-value of less than 0.0005 (Figure 6).

Discussion
The t-Test run on the surface water temperatures and depth water temperatures showed
that there was a significant difference between the values. This can be explained due to the wind
speed and the higher salinity at the bottom of the creek. In many of the sampling locations, the
wind speed was 3 or more miles per hour. The wind blowing across the top of the water,
especially a cold wind, can cool the surface water slightly. The more prominent cause for this
difference is the high change in salinity at the bottom of the creek (Perlman, 2017). At the
surface, the salinity is only about 2 ppt, but at the bottom the salinity is about 22 ppt. As the
salinity of a body of water increases, the freezing point of that body of water lowers, making it
more resistant to rapid temperatures changes compared to fresh water. Therefore, it is logical that
there was a significant difference between the values (“Water Temperature,” 2014). The second
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t-Test run on the surface and depth dissolved oxygen levels also showed that there was a
significant difference between the values. This can be explained due to both the temperature and
salinity changes in the Creek. As the temperature of a body of water increases, the solubility of
oxygen decreases, causing the water to become fully saturated at a lower dissolved oxygen level
(“Water Quality Indicators,” 2018). When more salt ions are present in a body of water, the ions
will attract the water molecules in an attempt to solvate the ions. This has a tendency to decrease
the already weak affinity of non-polar oxygen molecules and drives them out of the water
(Perlman, 2017). Therefore, it is logical that the dissolved oxygen concentrations are different at
the bottom compared to the surface.
The regression conducted on the surface water temperatures and the surface dissolved
oxygen levels showed that there was a significant mathematical relationship between the two
parameters. The regression also showed that there was strong negative correlation between the
parameters. This can be explained due to the water temperatures effect on the solubility of
oxygen (“Dissolved Oxygen,” 2018). When a body of water increases in temperature, all the
molecules present in and including the water increase in kinetic energy, meaning the molecules
are moving faster. When oxygen molecules in the water gain kinetic energy, they can more
easily overcome the weak binding forces of the water and escape back into the atmosphere.
Conversely, colder water decreases the kinetic energy of the water molecules, making it easier
for the binding forces of the water to keep the oxygen molecules within the water (Perlman,
2017). This explains why oxygen has a higher solubility in colder water, and explains why there
is a significant inverse relationship between the two parameters. The second regression
conducted on the depth water temperatures and depth dissolved oxygen levels showed that there
was a significant mathematical relationship between the two parameters. The regression also
showed that there was strong negative correlation between the parameters. The same logic that
explained the correlation between the surface parameters also explains why the same situation
occurred at the bottom of the Creek (Perlman, 2017). Also, since the salinity at the bottom of the
Creek was higher, the temperature at the bottom was higher, causing an even greater than normal
decrease in dissolved oxygen than expected just by temperature change.
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Conclusion
On October 17-18, 2018, students collected water quality sampling along the Tuckerton
Creek in Tuckerton, New Jersey. This study clearly shows that there is a significant difference
between the surface and depth water temperatures and dissolved oxygen concentrations. This
study also clearly shows that there is a strong inverse mathematical relationship between water
temperature and dissolved oxygen concentration.

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Dr. Wnek for providing me with the procedures for temperature and
dissolved oxygen testing. I would also like to thank MATES for providing me with the
equipment needed to run all the water quality tests in this study.

References
Dissolved Oxygen. (2013, November 19). Retrieved November 15, 2018, from
https://www.fondriest.com/environmental-measurements/parameters/water-
quality/dissolved-oxygen/
Dissolved Oxygen. (2018). Retrieved November 15, 2018, from
http://omp.gso.uri.edu/ompweb/doee/science/physical/choxy1.htm
Perlman, H. (2016, December 2). Water properties: Temperature. Retrieved November 15, 2018,
from https://water.usgs.gov/edu/temperature.html
Perlman, H. (2017, January 20). Water properties: Dissolved oxygen. Retrieved November 15,
2018, from https://water.usgs.gov/edu/dissolvedoxygen.html
Water Quality Indicators: Temperature and Dissolved Oxygen. (2018). Retrieved November 15,
2018, from http://www.ramp-alberta.org/river/water sediment
quality/chemical/temperature and dissolved oxygen.aspx
Water Temperature. (2014, February 7). Retrieved November 15, 2018, from
https://www.fondriest.com/environmental-measurements/parameters/water-quality/water-
temperature/#watertemp2
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Tables
Table 1: The temperature and dissolved oxygen values collected along the eleven sampling sites
on Tuckerton Creek in Tuckerton, New Jersey. The temperature values range from 16.38 –
̊ , and the dissolved oxygen concentrations range from 1.60 – 9.14 mg/L.
18.62 C

Surface Temp (℃) Depth Temp (℃) Surface DO (mg/L) Depth DO (mg/L)
Site 1 16.38 N/A 8.50 N/A
Site 2 16.83 N/A 7.85 N/A
Site 3 17.24 18.29 8.04 4.32
Site 4 17.50 18.52 7.75 4.00
Site 5 17.58 18.62 7.70 1.60
Site 6 17.80 18.28 8.06 5.09
Site 7 17.42 18.21 8.04 5.04
Site 8 18.05 17.75 7.75 8.03
Site 9 18.23 17.84 7.25 8.20
Site 10 18.05 17.95 7.76 9.14
Site 11 18.06 17.96 7.22 8.61
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Figures

Figure 1: The eleven sampling sites along Tuckerton Creek in Tuckerton, New Jersey. At each of
the eleven sites, various water quality parameters were collected at both the surface and the
bottom of the creek. Water samples were also collected for later testing at the Research Reserve.
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Figure 2: The group of students that conducted the overnight research at the Jacques Cousteau
National Estuarine Research Reserve on October 17-18, 2018, in Tuckerton, New Jersey.
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Surface Temperature vs Depth Temperature

25.00

P-Value: 0.0043
20.00
Temperature (C)

15.00

10.00

5.00

0.00
Site 1 Site 2 Site 3 Site 4 Site 5 Site 6 Site 7 Site 8 Site 9 Site 10 Site 11
Site

Surface Temp (℃) Depth Temp (℃)

Figure 3: The surface and depth water temperature values collected at the eleven sampling sites
along the Tuckerton Creek in Tuckerton, New Jersey (n = 20). The temperature values range
from 16.38 – 18.62 ̊C. The t-test conducted on the temperature values produced a P-value of
0.0043, showing a significant difference between the values. An alpha of 0.05 was used to
determine significance. 5% error bars were used.
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Surface Dissolved Oxygen vs Depth Dissolved Oxygen

12.00
P-Value: 0.0356
10.00
Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L)

8.00

6.00

4.00

2.00

0.00
Site 1 Site 2 Site 3 Site 4 Site 5 Site 6 Site 7 Site 8 Site 9 Site 10 Site 11
Site

Surface DO (mg/L) Depth DO (mg/L)

Figure 4: The surface and depth dissolved oxygen concentration values collected at the eleven
sampling sites along the Tuckerton Creek in Tuckerton, New Jersey (n = 20). The dissolved
oxygen values range from 1.60 – 9.14 mg/L. The t-test conducted on the dissolved oxygen values
produced a P-value of 0.0356, showing a significant difference between the values. An alpha of
0.05 was used to determine significance. 5% error bars were used.
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Surface Temperature vs Surface Dissolved Oxygen

8.60

8.40 R² = 0.5944

8.20
Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L)

8.00

7.80

7.60

7.40

7.20

7.00
16.00 16.50 17.00 17.50 18.00 18.50
Temperature (̊C)

Figure 5: The surface water temperature and dissolved oxygen concentration values collected at
the eleven sampling sites along the Tuckerton Creek in Tuckerton, NJ (n = 22). The surface
temperature values ranged from 16.38 – 18.23 ̊C, and the surface dissolved oxygen
concentrations ranged from 7.22 – 8.50 mg/L. The regression conducted on the parameters
produced an R2 value of 0.5944 and a P-value of 0.0055, showing a significant inverse
mathematical relationship between the parameters. An alpha of 0.05 was used to determine
significance.
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Depth Temperature vs Depth Dissolved Oxygen

10.00

9.00

8.00 R² = 0.8719
Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L)

7.00

6.00

5.00

4.00

3.00

2.00

1.00

0.00
17.70 17.80 17.90 18.00 18.10 18.20 18.30 18.40 18.50 18.60 18.70
Temperature (̊C)

Figure 6: The depth water temperature and dissolved oxygen concentration values collected at
the eleven sampling sites along the Tuckerton Creek in Tuckerton, NJ (n = 18). The depth
temperature values ranged from 17.75 – 18.62 ̊C, and the surface dissolved oxygen
concentrations ranged from 1.60 – 9.14 mg/L. The regression conducted on the parameters
produced an R2 value of 0.8719 and a P-value of less than 0.0005, showing a significant inverse
mathematical relationship between the parameters. An alpha of 0.05 was used to determine
significance.