Just published: Analyzing solid-phase NOM using laser desorption ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry

Just published: Analyzing solid-phase NOM using laser desorption ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry

Happy to announce the publication of:

Solihat NN, T Acter, D Kim, AF Plante and S Kim. (2019) Analyzing solid-phase natural organic matter using laser desorption ionization ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry. Analytical Chemistry. 91:951-957. doi:10.1021/acs.analchem.8b04032. Collaborators at Kyungpook National University in Daegu, South Korea have been working on laser desorption methods for solid phase high resolution mass spectrometry analysis of natural organic matter. The study represents our first tests of the method using powdered IHSS humic and fulvic acids as well as soil. We demonstrate a proof-of-principle that highly sensitive, direct, molecular level analysis of solid-phase NOM from unprocessed soil samples and minimum sample preparation is possible.

 

Just published: Distinct bioenergetic signatures in particulate versus mineral-associated soil organic matter

Just published: Distinct bioenergetic signatures in particulate versus mineral-associated soil organic matter

Happy to announce the publication of:

Williams EK, ML Fogel, AA Berhe and AF Plante. (2018) Distinct bioenergetic signatures in particulate versus mineral-associated soil organic matter. Geoderma. 330:107-116. doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2018.05.024. This paper was part of Elizabeth Williams’s research program while at the University of Calfornia, Merced, which we expanded on using thermal analysis of the density fractionation samples. We found that light-fraction particulate SOM and heavy-fraction mineral-associated SOM had distinct thermal analysis, and thus bioenergetic, and chemical signatures. These signatures provided further insight into their composition and mechanisms of stabilization in soils from a climosequence from the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California.

 

Just published: Methods assessment for organic and inorganic carbon quantification in calcareous soils of the Mediterranean region

Just published: Methods assessment for organic and inorganic carbon quantification in calcareous soils of the Mediterranean region

Happy to announce the publication of:

Apesteguia, M., Plante, A.F., and I. Virto (2018) Methods assessment for organic and inorganic carbon quantification in calcareous soils of the Mediterranean region. Geoderma Regionaldoi:10.1016/j.geodrs.2017.12.001. This paper was part of Marcos Apesteguia’s PhD dissertation at the Universidad Pública de Navarra in Pamplona, Spain. Marcos visited the last a few years back to run a thermal analyses to determine if we could use the technique to distinguish and quantify organic and inorganic carbon in carbonate-rich soils from Spain. We compared our thermal method to several conventional methods and found it performed very well.

 

New book chapter: Role of Carbonates in the Physical Stabilization of Soil Organic Matter in Agricultural Mediterranean Soils

Pleased to announce the recent publication of:

Virto, I., Anton, R., Apesteguia, M., Plante, A.F., 2018. Role of carbonates in the physical stabilization of soil organic matter in agricultural Mediterranean soils. available here.

This is Chapter 9 (pages 121-136) in the book Soil Management and Climate Change: Effects on Organic Carbon, Nitrogen Dynamics, and Greenhouse Gas Emissions edited by Maria Ángeles Muñoz and Raúl Zornoza and published by Academic Press (ISBN: 978-0-12-812128-3). The book provides a state of the art overview of recent findings and future research challenges regarding physical, chemical and biological processes controlling soil carbon, nitrogen dynamic and greenhouse gas emissions from soils.

Our chapter focuses on the role of carbonates as indirect agents of the physical stabilization of organic C through their impact on soil structure. We describe a series of studies conducted in northern Spain to examine the particularities of carbonate-rich soil horizons in terms of structure development and stabilization. Through a series of studies, we propose a set of hypotheses to explain the relationship between soil mineralogy, soil architecture, and organic matter protection in carbonate-rich soils.

Recently published: 14C mean residence time and its relationship with thermal stability and molecular composition of soil organic matter: A case study of deciduous and coniferous forest types

Recently published: 14C mean residence time and its relationship with thermal stability and molecular composition of soil organic matter: A case study of deciduous and coniferous forest types

Happy to announce the recent publication of:

Ohno T, KA Heckman, AF Plante, IJ Fernandez, TB Parr. 2017. 14C mean residence time and its relationship with thermal stability and molecular composition of soil organic matter: A case study of deciduous and coniferous forest types. Geoderma doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2017.08.023 This collaborative project with Stom Ohno and colleagues from the University of Maine investigated the influence of forest type and soil depth on SOM stability, and found that the mean residence time of soil organic matter was greater for a deciduous forest soil compared with a coniferous forest soil, and speculated that extractable metal (oxy)hydroxide minerals were C-saturated in coniferous, but not deciduous soils.

 

Just published: Iron-mediated mineralogical control of organic matter accumulation in tropical soils

Happy to announce the publication of:

Coward, E.K., Thompson, A.T., and A.F. Plante (2017) Iron-mediated mineralogical control of organic matter accumulation in tropical soils Geoderma doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2017.07.026. This project was part of Elizabeth Coward’s PhD dissertation at the University of Pennsylvania. She used inorganic selective dissolution experiments for direct quantification of Fe-bound C. Results suggest that low-molecular weight complexations dominate Fe-C associations in Luquillo soils, and mass balance analyses suggest Fe-associated pool of C is limited (< 50% total C). The predominance of Fe-C associations as the principal stabilization may thus be overestimated in these soils.