Gross Primary Production (AQA A Level Biology)

Revision Note

Test yourself
Lára

Author

Lára

Last updated

Gross Primary Production

  • During photosynthesis, primary producers (such as plants and algae) convert light energy to chemical energy stored within biological molecules
  • Gross primary production (GPP) can be defined as the amount of chemical energy stored in the carbohydrates within plants (during photosynthesis)
    • Roughly only 1% of the light falling on a plant is used in photosynthesis to produce glucose
    • 99% of the light either passes through the leaf without hitting chloroplasts, is reflected off of the leaf, or is transferred to heat energy
    • After that 1% is successfully absorbed and used to form glucose, the quantity of energy now stored in glucose is the gross primary production

  • Gross primary production can be expressed in:
    • Units of energy per unit area, for example
      • J m–2 (joules per square metre)
      • kJ km-2 (kilojoules per square kilometre)
      • In this case, ‘area’ refers to the area of land that is being studied (this land contains the primary producer(s) that are producing the biomass - if there are no primary producers present in this area of land, there will be no gross primary production)

    • Units of mass per unit area, for example
      • g m–2 (grams per square metre)
      • kg km-2 (kilograms per square kilometre)

  • In aquatic environments, it may be more suitable to measure gross primary production per unit volume
  • For example, for aquatic algae, gross primary production could be given in:
    • kg m-3 (kilograms per cubic metre)
    • kJ m-3 (kilojoules per cubic metre)

Gross primary productivity

  • The rate at which plants are able to store chemical energy via photosynthesis is referred to as gross primary productivity
  • Gross primary productivity is expressed using units of energy/mass per unit area per unit time
    • Time must be included as it is a rate

  • For example
    • Mj m–2 y-1 (megajoules per square metre per year)
    • kg km-2y-1 (kilograms per square kilometre per year)

Maths Skill: Calculating Gross Primary Production

  • Given the appropriate data, it is possible to calculate gross primary production and to derive the appropriate units
    • Remember that gross primary production is not a rate so does not need to include time

Worked example

The total biomass of the grass that grows in a 200 m2 field is found to be 1,000 kg. Calculate the gross primary production of the grass field. Give appropriate units.

Step 1: Calculate the total yearly biomass of grass in 1 m2 of the field

1,000 ÷ 200 = 5 (kg)

Step 2: Give the appropriate units

5 kg m-2

Worked example

On average, a patch of rainforest covering an area of 1 km2 is estimated to contain 1,500 kg of biomass. Calculate the gross primary production of this rainforest patch. Give your answer in g m-2.

Step 1: Calculate the average biomass of 1 m2 of the rainforest patch (1 km2 = 1,000,000 m2)

1,500 ÷ 1,000,000 = 0.0015 (kg)

Step 2: Convert this into grams

0.0015 × 1,000 = 1.5 g m-2

Worked example

The biomass of aquatic algae in a tank is estimated to contain a total of 5,440 joules of chemical energy. The tank has a volume of 4 m3. Calculate the gross primary production of this aquatic algae. Give appropriate units.

Step 1: Calculate the chemical energy of the biomass of aquatic algae in 1 m3

5,440 ÷ 4 = 1,360 (J)

Step 2: Give the appropriate units

1,360 J m-3 OR 1.36 kJ m-3

Examiner Tip

Be careful what units are being used to describe gross primary production and when answering questions on GPP, make sure you give the appropriate units. GPP can either be expressed in terms of biomass (per unit area) or chemical energy (per unit area). The biomass of an organism is effectively a measure of how much chemical energy is stored within it!

You've read 0 of your 10 free revision notes

Unlock more, it's free!

Join the 100,000+ Students that ❤️ Save My Exams

the (exam) results speak for themselves:

Did this page help you?

Lára

Author: Lára

Expertise: Biology Lead

Lára graduated from Oxford University in Biological Sciences and has now been a science tutor working in the UK for several years. Lára has a particular interest in the area of infectious disease and epidemiology, and enjoys creating original educational materials that develop confidence and facilitate learning.