SoilPub Date : 2025-05-20DOI: 10.5194/egusphere-2025-1896
David G. Rossiter, Laura Poggio
{"title":"Representing soil landscapes from digital soil mapping products – let the map speak for itself","authors":"David G. Rossiter, Laura Poggio","doi":"10.5194/egusphere-2025-1896","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1896","url":null,"abstract":"<strong>Abstract.</strong> Since the earliest days of soil geography, it has been clear that soils occur in more-or-less clearly mappable bodies, within which soil forming factors have been fairly homogeneous or in a regular pattern, and between which there is usually a clear transition in one or more factors. This has been the basis for polygon-based soil mapping: make a concept map from landscape elements leading to a mental model of the landscape, confirm or modify it with strategically-placed observations, find the transitions, delineate the soil bodies, and characterise them. By contrast, common methods of Digital Soil Mapping (DSM) predict per pixel over a regular grid, from training observations at pedon support. Accuracy assessment of DSM products has been at this “point” support, ignoring the existence of spatial soil bodies and the relations between pixels. Different approaches to DSM – datasets, model forms, analyst choices – result in maps with distinctly different patterns of predicted soil properties or types. Techniques from landscape ecology have been used to characterize spatial patterns of DSM products. The question remains as to how well these products reproduce the actual soil patterns at a given cartographic scale and categorical level of detail. Our approach is to let DSM maps “speak for themselves” to reveal spatial patterns. We do this by grouping pixels, either (1) by aggregation based on property homogeneity using the supercells algorithm, or (2) by segmentation based on within-block property pattern similarity, using the GeoPAT suite of computer programs. Segments can be hierarchically clustered into groups of presumed soil landscape elements. Supercells and segments can be compared to existing soil maps, other land resource maps, and expert judgement. To the extent that presumed soilscape patterns are reproduced, this is evidence that DSM has identified the soil landscape at the chosen scale. Since map users perceive patterns, and most land use decisions are for areas rather than pixels, we propose that DSM products be evaluated by their patterns, as well as by pointwise evaluation statistics.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"40 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144097772","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SoilPub Date : 2025-05-20DOI: 10.5194/soil-11-381-2025
Mike C. Rowley, Jasquelin Pena, Matthew A. Marcus, Rachel Porras, Elaine Pegoraro, Cyrill Zosso, Nicholas O. E. Ofiti, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Michael W. I. Schmidt, Margaret S. Torn, Peter S. Nico
{"title":"Calcium is associated with specific soil organic carbon decomposition products","authors":"Mike C. Rowley, Jasquelin Pena, Matthew A. Marcus, Rachel Porras, Elaine Pegoraro, Cyrill Zosso, Nicholas O. E. Ofiti, Guido L. B. Wiesenberg, Michael W. I. Schmidt, Margaret S. Torn, Peter S. Nico","doi":"10.5194/soil-11-381-2025","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-11-381-2025","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Calcium (Ca) may contribute to the preservation of soil organic carbon (SOC) in more ecosystems than previously thought. Here, we provide evidence that Ca is co-located with SOC compounds that are enriched in aromatic and phenolic groups, across different acidic soil types and locations with different ecosystem properties, differing in terms of climate, parent material, soil type, and vegetation. In turn, this co-localised fraction of Ca–SOC is removed through cation exchange, and the association is then only re-established during decomposition in the presence of Ca (Ca addition incubation). Thus, this highlights a causative link between decomposition and the co-location of Ca with a characteristic fraction of SOC. Decomposition increases the relative proportion of negatively charged functional groups, which can increase the propensity for the association between SOC and Ca; in turn, this association can inhibit dissolved organic carbon export or further decomposition. We propose that this mechanism could be driven by Ca hotspots at the microscale shifting local decomposition processes and thereby explaining the co-location of Ca with SOC of a specific composition across different acidic soil environments. Incorporating this biogeochemical process into Earth system models could improve our understanding, predictions, and management of carbon dynamics in soils, as well as accounting for their response to Ca-rich amendments.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"32 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144097771","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SoilPub Date : 2025-05-14DOI: 10.5194/soil-11-371-2025
Aelis Spiller, Cynthia M. Kallenbach, Melanie S. Burnett, David Olefeldt, Christopher Schulze, Roxane Maranger, Peter M. J. Douglas
{"title":"Gradual drying of permafrost peat decreases carbon dioxide production in drier peat plateaus but not in wetter fens and bogs","authors":"Aelis Spiller, Cynthia M. Kallenbach, Melanie S. Burnett, David Olefeldt, Christopher Schulze, Roxane Maranger, Peter M. J. Douglas","doi":"10.5194/soil-11-371-2025","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-11-371-2025","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Permafrost thawing of northern peatlands can cause the local collapse of peat plateaus into much wetter thermokarst bogs and fens, dominated by Sphagnum mosses and graminoids, respectively. However, permafrost thaw can also improve landscape drainage and, thus, lead to the regional drying of peatlands. How gradual drying of these thawing permafrost peatlands affects the subsequent microbial production of carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O) is uncertain because of landscape heterogeneity in moisture, peat quality, and vegetation. Here, we collected near-surface peat samples (5–20 cm) from Alberta, Canada, across transects representing a thaw gradient from peat plateaus to a fen or bog. We incubated the samples for 2 weeks under either field moisture or under gradual drying to reduce moisture by ∼ 80 %. Only the fen sites, which had high moisture and a high percentage of total N, produced N2O (0.06–6.7 µg N2O-N per gram of dry peat), but N2O production was unaffected by the drying treatments. Peat CO2 production was greatest from the fen and the youngest stage of the thermokarst bog, despite them having the most water-saturated field conditions, likely reflecting their more labile plant inputs and, thus, more decomposable peat. We found that CO2 respiration was enhanced by drying at relatively wet sites like the fens and young bog but was suppressed by drying in relatively drier peat plateaus. Further, gradual drying increased 13C-CO2 respiration, suggesting a possible shift to more decomposed, older C being lost with peat drying. Thus, our study suggests that future peat CO2 and N2O production from peatlands will depend on whether peat plateaus thaw into fens or bogs and on their diverging responses of peat respiration to more moisture-limited conditions.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143945598","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SoilPub Date : 2025-05-13DOI: 10.5194/egusphere-2025-1966
Dave O'Leary, Patrick Tuohy, Owen Fenton, Mark G. Healy, Hilary Pierce, Asaf Shnel, Eve Daly
{"title":"Assessing the impact of rewetting agricultural fen peat soil via open drain damming: an agrogeophysical approach","authors":"Dave O'Leary, Patrick Tuohy, Owen Fenton, Mark G. Healy, Hilary Pierce, Asaf Shnel, Eve Daly","doi":"10.5194/egusphere-2025-1966","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1966","url":null,"abstract":"<strong>Abstract.</strong> Open drainage ditch (i.e. open drain) damming aims to raise the water table in agricultural grassland peat soils thereby reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A current knowledge gap is how to examine the spatial and temporal effectiveness of such an action i.e., assessing the behaviour of the water table in the adjoining field. To address this gap, at a drained agricultural grassland site with shallow fen peat soils (ranging from 0 to 2 m depth), water level in an open drain was raised by installing a dam. Associated changes to the water table depth (WTD) were monitored using two nests of dip wells installed at two locations (Rewetted and Normal areas) in the adjoining field. Soil profile volumetric water content (VWC) data were obtained in these two areas in addition to the temperature, salinity, pH, and electrical conductivity signature of the water in the open drain. These data were integrated with geophysical (electromagnetic induction (EMI)) survey data conducted during summer and winter. Results from the dip wells (located > 20 m from dam) indicated that no measurable change in WTD occurred due to the dam installation, aligning with previous studies suggesting limited spatial influence in agricultural fen peat soils. VWC profiles, while consistent with peat physical properties, showed no deviation attributable to drain damming. The EMI results identified a distinct zone with electrical conductivity values similar to those of open drain water, suggesting localised water infiltration within ~20 m of the dammed drain during summer. This spatial impact was less evident during winter, likely due to increased precipitation and regional groundwater influence. This study demonstrates that EMI surveys, shown here in combination with other high-resolution data capture, can detect rewetting effects when combined with neural network clustering and Multi-Cluster Average Standard Deviation analysis, highlighting its value for rapid site assessment. Moreover, the results underscore the importance of survey timing, as summer measurements provided clearer evidence of drain damming impact than winter measurements.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"3 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143940389","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SoilPub Date : 2025-05-05DOI: 10.5194/soil-11-363-2025
Sajjad Raza, Hannah V. Cooper, Nicholas T. Girkin, Matthew S. Kent, Malcolm J. Bennett, Sacha J. Mooney, Tino Colombi
{"title":"Missing the input: the underrepresentation of plant physiology in global soil carbon research","authors":"Sajjad Raza, Hannah V. Cooper, Nicholas T. Girkin, Matthew S. Kent, Malcolm J. Bennett, Sacha J. Mooney, Tino Colombi","doi":"10.5194/soil-11-363-2025","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-11-363-2025","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. Plant processes regulating the quantity and quality of soil organic carbon inputs such as photosynthesis, above- and below-ground plant growth, and root exudation are integral to our understanding of soil carbon dynamics. However, based on a bibliometric analysis including more than 55 000 scientific papers, we found that plant physiology has been severely underrepresented in global soil organic carbon research. Less than 10 % of peer-reviewed soil organic carbon research published in the last century addressed plant physiological processes relevant to soil carbon inputs. Similarly, plant physiology was overlooked by the overwhelming majority (>90 %) of the peer-reviewed literature investigating linkages between soil organic carbon, climate change, and land use and land management. These findings show that our understanding of both soil carbon dynamics and the carbon sequestration potential of terrestrial ecosystems is largely built on research that neglects the fundamental processes underlying organic carbon inputs. We maintain that the active engagement of plant scientists in soil carbon research is imperative for shedding light on this blind spot. Long-term interdisciplinary research will be essential for developing a comprehensive perspective of soil carbon dynamics and informing and designing effective policies that support soil carbon sequestration.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"9 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-05-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143910662","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SoilPub Date : 2025-04-29DOI: 10.5194/egusphere-2025-1546
Dario Püntener, Tatjana Carina Speckert, Yves-Alain Brügger, Guido Lars Bruno Wiesenberg
{"title":"Availability of labile carbon controls the temperature-dependent response of soil organic matter decomposition in alpine soils","authors":"Dario Püntener, Tatjana Carina Speckert, Yves-Alain Brügger, Guido Lars Bruno Wiesenberg","doi":"10.5194/egusphere-2025-1546","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1546","url":null,"abstract":"<strong>Abstract.</strong> Soil organic matter (SOM) decomposition in alpine environments is influenced by multiple factors including temperature and substrate quality. As climate change will have an impact on both factors, it is essential to improve our knowledge, how, e.g., warming will modify carbon cycling in these environments to better prepare soil management for future conditions, even in alpine regions. This study investigates how warming and organic inputs affect SOM decomposition in alpine forest and pasture soils through a one-year laboratory incubation experiment. Soils were exposed to three temperatures (12.5 °C, 16.5 °C and 20.5 °C), with and without the addition of fresh grass litter. While higher temperatures accelerated decomposition, the availability of fresh organic matter played a more decisive role, especially in the lignin-rich forest soil. Without fresh litter, SOM decomposition was limited, suggesting that substrate availability in combination with temperature increase plays a greater role in microbial activity than temperature alone. The forest soil exhibited greater carbon loss than the pasture soil, most likely due to microbial communities that are adapted to lignin decomposition. These results suggest that rising temperatures combined with changes in vegetation and organic inputs could enhance SOM decomposition and potentially transform the alpine soils from carbon sinks to sources.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"221 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143884554","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SoilPub Date : 2025-04-29DOI: 10.5194/soil-11-339-2025
Margot Vanheukelom, Nina Haenen, Talal Almahayni, Lieve Sweeck, Nancy Weyns, May Van Hees, Erik Smolders
{"title":"The clay mineralogy rather than the clay content determines radiocaesium adsorption in soils on a global scale","authors":"Margot Vanheukelom, Nina Haenen, Talal Almahayni, Lieve Sweeck, Nancy Weyns, May Van Hees, Erik Smolders","doi":"10.5194/soil-11-339-2025","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-11-339-2025","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. The transfer of radiocaesium (137Cs) from soil to crops is the main long-term radiation risk after nuclear accidents. The prevailing concept is that 137Cs sorption in soil – and, hence, its bioavailability – is controlled by soil clay content (0–2 µm). This study tested this assumption using 24 soils collected worldwide. The radiocaesium interception potential (RIP), i.e., 137Cs adsorption, was measured for the bulk soils and for their clay and silt fractions. The RIP varied by a factor of 438 among soils and was unrelated to the clay content (p > 0.05). The RIP in the clay fractions was lowest for young volcanic soils with allophane and mica and for highly weathered tropical soils with kaolinite. In contrast, RIP values about 2 orders of magnitude higher were found in intermediate-weathered temperate soils dominated by illite. Soil RIP was, hence, related to soil illite content (R2= 0.50; p < 0.001). A significant fraction of soil RIP originated from clay minerals embedded in the silt fraction. The sum of RIP in clay and silt fractions overestimated the soil RIP by, on average, a factor of 2, indicating that the isolation of clay opens selective 137Cs sorption sites inaccessible in intact soils. Soil mineralogy, not just clay content, governs soil RIP. In terms of validity, existing 137Cs bioavailability models require recalibration for use on a global scale.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"272 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143884387","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SoilPub Date : 2025-04-28DOI: 10.5194/soil-11-323-2025
Huan Niu, Can Wang, Xia Luo, Peihan Li, Hang Qiu, Liyue Jiang, Subati Maimaitiaili, Minghui Wu, Fei Xu, Heng Xu
{"title":"Cr(VI) reduction, electricity production, and microbial resistance variation in paddy soil under microbial fuel cell operation","authors":"Huan Niu, Can Wang, Xia Luo, Peihan Li, Hang Qiu, Liyue Jiang, Subati Maimaitiaili, Minghui Wu, Fei Xu, Heng Xu","doi":"10.5194/soil-11-323-2025","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-11-323-2025","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract. The microbial fuel cell (MFC) is an efficient in situ approach to combat pollutants and generate electricity. This study constructed a soil MFC (SMFC) to reduce Cr(VI) in paddy soil and to investigate its influence on microbial community and microbial resistance characteristics. Ferroferric oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles, as the cathodic catalyst, effectively boosted power generation (0.97 V, 102.00 mW m−2), with the porous structure and reducibility also contributing to chromium (Cr) reduction and immobilization. After 30 d, 93.67 % of Cr(VI) was eliminated. The bioavailable Cr decreased by 97.44 %, while the residual form increased by 88.89 %. SMFC operations greatly changed soil enzymatic activity and microbial structure, with exoelectrogens like Desulfotomaculum (3.32 % in the anode) and Cr(VI)-reducing bacteria like Hydrogenophaga (2.07 % in the cathode) in more than 1000 folds of soil. In particular, SMFC operations significantly enhanced heavy-metal resistance gene (HRG) abundance. Among them, chrA, chrB, and chrR increased by 99.54 %–3314.34 % in SMFC anodes, probably attributable to the enrichment of potential tolerators like Acinetobacter, Limnohabitans, and Desulfotomaculum. These key taxa were positively correlated with HRGs but were negatively correlated with pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and Cr(VI), which could have driven Cr(VI) reduction. This study provided novel evidence for bio-electrochemical system applications in contaminated paddy soil, which could be a potential approach for environmental remediation and detoxification.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"90 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143880788","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SoilPub Date : 2025-04-24DOI: 10.5194/egusphere-2025-1711
Alejandro Carrascosa, Gerardo Moreno, M. Francesca Cotrufo, Cristina Frade, Sara Rodrigo, Víctor Rolo
{"title":"Improved management increases soil mineral-protected organic carbon storage via plant-microbial-nutrient mediation in semi-arid grasslands","authors":"Alejandro Carrascosa, Gerardo Moreno, M. Francesca Cotrufo, Cristina Frade, Sara Rodrigo, Víctor Rolo","doi":"10.5194/egusphere-2025-1711","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1711","url":null,"abstract":"<strong>Abstract.</strong> Soil organic carbon (SOC) storage in semi-arid grasslands is threatened by both climate change and land degradation, impacting food production and climate regulation. Improved management has been proposed to increase SOC stocks and overcome these challenges. However, the benefits of improved management practices in semi-arid regions are in question. Little is known about the effects of management on the functional components of SOC, particulate (POC) and mineral-associated organic carbon (MAOC), which are expected to respond differently, and about the pathways that mediate these responses, such as changes in vegetation and soil microbial communities. This work analyses the effect of rotational grazing, legumes sowing and grazing exclusion on topsoil SOC, POC and MAOC stocks in Mediterranean wooded grasslands compared to continuous conventional grazing. Changes in plant diversity and morpho-chemical traits, soil fertility and microbial composition were also evaluated. A total of 188 plots were sampled in 9 farms across a wide environmental gradient. More resource-acquisitive, nitrogen-rich and less lignified plant community, higher soil microbial biomass with lower Gram+/Gram- ratio, and higher soil fertility were associated with higher SOC storage, with similar impacts on POC and MAOC. Rotational grazing increased MAOC and total SOC stocks by 11 % compared to continuous grazing. This effect was mediated by an increase in soil fertility in the rotationally grazed paddocks. On the other hand, grazing exclusion reduced POC stocks by 12 % compared to continuous grazing. This depletion was mainly due to a reduction in microbial biomass and an increase in the C/N ratio of vegetation in non-grazed paddocks. Both POC and MAOC stocks tended to be lower at the warmer sites. We conclude that rotational grazing can enhance long-term SOC storage in semi-arid grasslands, thereby increasing their resilience and climate mitigation capacity, whereas abandoning grazing could lead to SOC losses.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"70 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143866397","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
SoilPub Date : 2025-04-15DOI: 10.5194/egusphere-2025-1667
Arthur Vienne, Patrick Frings, Jet Rijnders, Tim Jesper Suhrhoff, Tom Reershemius, Reinaldy P. Poetra, Jens Hartmann, Harun Niron, Miguel Portillo Estrada, Laura Steinwidder, Lucilla Boito, Sara Vicca
{"title":"Weathering without inorganic CDR revealed through cation tracing","authors":"Arthur Vienne, Patrick Frings, Jet Rijnders, Tim Jesper Suhrhoff, Tom Reershemius, Reinaldy P. Poetra, Jens Hartmann, Harun Niron, Miguel Portillo Estrada, Laura Steinwidder, Lucilla Boito, Sara Vicca","doi":"10.5194/egusphere-2025-1667","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1667","url":null,"abstract":"<strong>Abstract.</strong> Enhanced Weathering using basalt rock dust is a scalable carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technique, but quantifying rock weathering and CDR rates poses a critical challenge. Here, we investigated inorganic CDR and weathering rates by treating mesocosms planted with corn with basalt (0, 10, 30, 50, 75, 100, 150 and 200 t ha⁻¹) and monitoring them for 101 days. Surprisingly, we observed no significant inorganic CDR, as leaching of dissolved inorganic carbon did not increase, and soil carbonate content even declined over time. To gain insights into the weathering processes, we analyzed the mass balance of base cations, which can be linked with anions (including HCO<sub>3</sub><sup>-</sup>) through charge balance. This mass balance showed that most base cation charges were retained as (hydr)oxides in the reducible pool of the top soil, while increases in the exchangeable pool were about a factor 10 smaller. Soil base cation scavenging exceeded plant scavenging by approximately two orders of magnitude. From the base cations in all pools (soil, soil water and plants), we quantified log weathering rates of -11 mol TA m<sup>-2</sup> basalt s<sup>-1 </sup>and a maximum CO<sub>2 </sub>removal potential of the weathered base cations (i.e., CDR potential) of 18 kg CO<sub>2</sub> t⁻¹ basalt. For climate change mitigation, not only the amount of CDR potential is important, but also the timescale at which that CDR would be realized. Our data suggests that the lag time for realization of inorganic CDR may be larger than commonly assumed. In conclusion, we observed that inorganic CDR was not directly linked to rock weathering in the short-term. Still, the observed increases in secondary minerals and base cation exchange may provide valuable benefits for soil fertility and organic matter stabilization in the long-term.","PeriodicalId":48610,"journal":{"name":"Soil","volume":"234 1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143832511","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}