Microscale carbon distribution around pores and particulate organic matter varies with soil moisture regime

Steffen Schlüter (), Frederic Leuther, Lukas Albrecht, Carmen Hoeschen, Rüdiger Kilian, Ronny Surey, Robert Mikutta, Klaus Kaiser, Carsten W. Mueller and Hans-Jörg Vogel
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Steffen Schlüter: Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research UFZ
Frederic Leuther: Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research UFZ
Lukas Albrecht: Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research UFZ
Carmen Hoeschen: Chair of Soil Science, TUM School of Life Sciences, TU Munich
Rüdiger Kilian: Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg
Ronny Surey: Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg
Robert Mikutta: Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg
Klaus Kaiser: Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg
Carsten W. Mueller: Chair of Soil Science, TUM School of Life Sciences, TU Munich
Hans-Jörg Vogel: Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research UFZ

Nature Communications, 2022, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-14

Abstract: Abstract Soil carbon sequestration arises from the interplay of carbon input and stabilization, which vary in space and time. Assessing the resulting microscale carbon distribution in an intact pore space, however, has so far eluded methodological accessibility. Here, we explore the role of soil moisture regimes in shaping microscale carbon gradients by a novel mapping protocol for particulate organic matter and carbon in the soil matrix based on a combination of Osmium staining, X-ray computed tomography, and machine learning. With three different soil types we show that the moisture regime governs C losses from particulate organic matter and the microscale carbon redistribution and stabilization patterns in the soil matrix. Carbon depletion around pores (aperture > 10 µm) occurs in a much larger soil volume (19–74%) than carbon enrichment around particulate organic matter (1%). Thus, interacting microscale processes shaped by the moisture regime are a decisive factor for overall soil carbon persistence.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29605-w

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