Pyrogenic Carbon Lacks Long-Term Persistence in Temperate Arable Soils
Pyrogenic organic carbon (PyOC) derived from incomplete burning of biomass is considered the most persistent fraction of soil organic carbon (SOC), being expected to remain in soil for centuries. However, PyOC persistence has seldom been evaluated under field conditions. Based on a unique set of soi...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2017-11-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Earth Science |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/feart.2017.00096/full |
| _version_ | 1818562401792950272 |
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| author | Suzanne Lutfalla Suzanne Lutfalla Samuel Abiven Pierre Barré Daniel B. Wiedemeier Bent T. Christensen Sabine Houot Thomas Kätterer Andy J. Macdonald Folkert van Oort Claire Chenu |
| author_facet | Suzanne Lutfalla Suzanne Lutfalla Samuel Abiven Pierre Barré Daniel B. Wiedemeier Bent T. Christensen Sabine Houot Thomas Kätterer Andy J. Macdonald Folkert van Oort Claire Chenu |
| author_sort | Suzanne Lutfalla |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Pyrogenic organic carbon (PyOC) derived from incomplete burning of biomass is considered the most persistent fraction of soil organic carbon (SOC), being expected to remain in soil for centuries. However, PyOC persistence has seldom been evaluated under field conditions. Based on a unique set of soils from five European long-term bare fallows (LTBF), i.e., vegetation-free field experiments, we provide the first direct comparison between PyOC and SOC persistence in temperate arable soils. We found that soil PyOC contents decreased more rapidly than expected from current concepts, the mean residence time (MRT) of native PyOC being just 1.6 times longer than that of SOC. At the oldest experimental site, 55% of the initial PyOC remained after 80 years of bare fallow. Our results suggest that while the potential for long-term C storage exists, the persistence of PyOC in soil may currently be overestimated. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T01:03:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8f6304cd75954a7b999c7a409a47ca68 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-6463 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T01:03:16Z |
| publishDate | 2017-11-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Earth Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-8f6304cd75954a7b999c7a409a47ca682022-12-21T23:23:06ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Earth Science2296-64632017-11-01510.3389/feart.2017.00096296220Pyrogenic Carbon Lacks Long-Term Persistence in Temperate Arable SoilsSuzanne Lutfalla0Suzanne Lutfalla1Samuel Abiven2Pierre Barré3Daniel B. Wiedemeier4Bent T. Christensen5Sabine Houot6Thomas Kätterer7Andy J. Macdonald8Folkert van Oort9Claire Chenu10AgroParisTech, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, UMR 1402 ECOSYS, Thiverval Grignon, FranceLaboratoire de Géologie de l'ENS-PSL Research University–Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UMR8538, Paris, FranceDepartment of Geography, University of Zurich, Zurich, SwitzerlandLaboratoire de Géologie de l'ENS-PSL Research University–Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique UMR8538, Paris, FranceDepartment of Geography, University of Zurich, Zurich, SwitzerlandDepartment of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Aarhus, DenmarkAgroParisTech, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, UMR 1402 ECOSYS, Thiverval Grignon, FranceDepartment of Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, SwedenDepartment of Sustainable Soils and Grassland Systems, Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, United KingdomAgroParisTech, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, UMR 1402 ECOSYS, Thiverval Grignon, FranceAgroParisTech, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, UMR 1402 ECOSYS, Thiverval Grignon, FrancePyrogenic organic carbon (PyOC) derived from incomplete burning of biomass is considered the most persistent fraction of soil organic carbon (SOC), being expected to remain in soil for centuries. However, PyOC persistence has seldom been evaluated under field conditions. Based on a unique set of soils from five European long-term bare fallows (LTBF), i.e., vegetation-free field experiments, we provide the first direct comparison between PyOC and SOC persistence in temperate arable soils. We found that soil PyOC contents decreased more rapidly than expected from current concepts, the mean residence time (MRT) of native PyOC being just 1.6 times longer than that of SOC. At the oldest experimental site, 55% of the initial PyOC remained after 80 years of bare fallow. Our results suggest that while the potential for long-term C storage exists, the persistence of PyOC in soil may currently be overestimated.http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/feart.2017.00096/fullsoil organic matter persistencesoil carbon sequestrationcarbon cyclepyrogenic carbonclimate change mitigationlong term bare fallows |
| spellingShingle | Suzanne Lutfalla Suzanne Lutfalla Samuel Abiven Pierre Barré Daniel B. Wiedemeier Bent T. Christensen Sabine Houot Thomas Kätterer Andy J. Macdonald Folkert van Oort Claire Chenu Pyrogenic Carbon Lacks Long-Term Persistence in Temperate Arable Soils Frontiers in Earth Science soil organic matter persistence soil carbon sequestration carbon cycle pyrogenic carbon climate change mitigation long term bare fallows |
| title | Pyrogenic Carbon Lacks Long-Term Persistence in Temperate Arable Soils |
| title_full | Pyrogenic Carbon Lacks Long-Term Persistence in Temperate Arable Soils |
| title_fullStr | Pyrogenic Carbon Lacks Long-Term Persistence in Temperate Arable Soils |
| title_full_unstemmed | Pyrogenic Carbon Lacks Long-Term Persistence in Temperate Arable Soils |
| title_short | Pyrogenic Carbon Lacks Long-Term Persistence in Temperate Arable Soils |
| title_sort | pyrogenic carbon lacks long term persistence in temperate arable soils |
| topic | soil organic matter persistence soil carbon sequestration carbon cycle pyrogenic carbon climate change mitigation long term bare fallows |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/feart.2017.00096/full |
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