Limited carbon storage in soil and litter of experimental forest plots under increased atmospheric CO2

The current rise in atmospheric CO2 concentration is thought to be mitigated in part by carbon sequestration within forest ecosystems, where carbon can be stored in vegetation or soils. The storage of carbon in soils is determined by the fraction that is sequestered in persistent organic materials, such as humus. In experimental forest plots of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) exposed to high CO2 concentrations, nearly half of the carbon uptake is allocated to short-lived tissues, largely foliage. These tissues fall to the ground and decompose, normally contributing only a small portion of their carbon content to refractory soil humic materials. Such findings call into question the role of soils as long-term carbon sinks, and show the need for a better understanding of carbon cycling in forest soils. Here we report a significant accumulation of carbon in the litter layer of experimental forest plots after three years of growth at increased CO2 concentrations (565 microl l(-1)). But fast turnover times of organic carbon in the litter layer (of about three years) appear to constrain the potential size of this carbon sink. Given the observation that carbon accumulation in the deeper mineral soil layers was absent, we suggest that significant, long-term net carbon sequestration in forest soils is unlikely.     

森林土壤温室气体通量对森林管理和全球大气变化的响应

森林土壤是温室气体重要的源和汇。探讨不同森林管理和全球大气变化下土壤温室气体通量特征,为有效减少温室气体排放及森林可持续管理等提供参考。笔者从森林土壤温室气体(forest soil green house gases)、森林管理(forest mangement)和全球大气变化(global atmospheric change)3个关键研究点,查阅近年来相关研究成果,归纳森林管理和全球大气变化下土壤温室气体通量的一般性模式。CO₂、CH₄和N₂O是3种重要温室气体,其通量间存在协同、消长和随机型耦合关系。森林管理如火烧、采伐和造林等显著影响土壤温室气体通量。一般情况下,火烧导致土壤N₂O通量降低,CH₄吸收量增加,CO₂通量因火烧类型、火烧强度、生态系统类型不同出现增加、减低和无影响3种结果; 采伐通常导致土壤CO₂、CH₄和N₂O排放增加; 造林可使土壤CO₂排放减少,对N₂O和CH₄通量的影响随生态系统类型、造林树种等而改变。全球大气变化如CO₂浓度升高、氮沉降和气温升高影响森林土壤温室气体通量。通常,CO₂浓度升高导致土壤CO₂和N₂O排放量增加,CH₄吸收量降低; 氮沉降促进土壤N₂O排放、抑制CH₄吸收。气温升高导致土壤CO₂和N₂O排放增加。森林管理和全球大气变化对土壤温室气体通量的综合影响是非叠加的,有效的森林管理可能改变土壤温室气体通量对全球大气变化的响应。     

Analyses of the predicted changes of the global oceans under the increased greenhouse gases scenarios

A new climate model (ECHAM5/MPI-OM1) developed for the fourth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) at Max-Planck Institute for Meteorology is used to study the climate changes under the different increased CO2 scenarios (B1, A1B and A2). Based on the corresponding model results, the sea surface temperature and salinity structure, the variations of the thermohaline circulation (THC) and the changes of sea ice in the northern hemisphere are analyzed. It is concluded that from the year of 2000 to 2100, un- der the B1, A1B and A2 scenarios, the global mean sea surface temperatures (SST) would increase by 2.5℃, 3.5℃ and 4.0℃ respectively, especially in the region of the Arctic, the increase of SST would be even above 10.0℃; the maximal negative value of the variation of the fresh water flux is located in the sub- tropical oceans, while the precipitation in the eastern tropical Pacific increases. The strength of THC de- creases under the B1, A1B and A2 scenarios, and the reductions would be about 20%, 25% and 25.1% of the present THC strength respectively. In the north- ern hemisphere, the area of the sea ice cover would decrease by about 50% under the A1B scenario.     

温室气体减排与CO2资源化宏观研究与探讨

介绍了近一段时间全球温室气体减排的进展及面临的形势,并预测了未来二氧化碳的排放趋势.着重对CO2的资源化问题进行了分析和探讨,从CO2作为再生资源的角度讨论了CO2的回收、利用和处置技术;同时指出资源化问题存在的挑战和负面影响.证明CO2资源化对温室气体减排作用不明显,应大力提倡"无悔"行动.最后从热力学角度分析了CO2问题的本质.     

Reduced calcification of marine plankton in response to increased atmospheric CO2

The formation of calcareous skeletons by marine planktonic organisms and their subsequent sinking to depth generates a continuous rain of calcium carbonate to the deep ocean and underlying sediments. This is important in regulating marine carbon cycling and ocean-atmosphere CO2 exchange. The present rise in atmospheric CO2 levels causes significant changes in surface ocean pH and carbonate chemistry. Such changes have been shown to slow down calcification in corals and coralline macroalgae, but the majority of marine calcification occurs in planktonic organisms. Here we report reduced calcite production at increased CO2 concentrations in monospecific cultures of two dominant marine calcifying phytoplankton species, the coccolithophorids Emiliania huxleyi and Gephyrocapsa oceanica. This was accompanied by an increased proportion of malformed coccoliths and incomplete coccospheres. Diminished calcification led to a reduction in the ratio of calcite precipitation to organic matter production. Similar results were obtained in incubations of natural plankton assemblages from the north Pacific ocean when exposed to experimentally elevated CO2 levels. We suggest that the progressive increase in atmospheric CO2 concentrations may therefore slow down the production of calcium carbonate in the surface ocean. As the process of calcification releases CO2 to the atmosphere, the response observed here could potentially act as a negative feedback on atmospheric CO2 levels.     

Non-CO2 greenhouse gases and climate change

Earth's climate is warming as a result of anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide (CO(2)) from fossil fuel combustion. Anthropogenic emissions of non-CO(2) greenhouse gases, such as methane, nitrous oxide and ozone-depleting substances (largely from sources other than fossil fuels), also contribute significantly to warming. Some non-CO(2) greenhouse gases have much shorter lifetimes than CO(2), so reducing their emissions offers an additional opportunity to lessen future climate change. Although it is clear that sustainably reducing the warming influence of greenhouse gases will be possible only with substantial cuts in emissions of CO(2), reducing non-CO(2) greenhouse gas emissions would be a relatively quick way of contributing to this goal.     

Mechanism of the Greenland-Scotland Ridge overflow variation under different atmospheric CO2 scenarios

Baroclinic transport and the barotropic effect are two different viewpoints for understanding the mechanism of the Greenland-Scotland Ridge overflow. The mechanism of this overflow, being an important deep branch of thermohaline circulation, deserves research discussion, especially against the background of global warming. Using the newly developed ECHAM5/MPI-OM, of the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology, which is an advanced atmospheresea iceocean coupled climate model, the mechanism of the Greenland-Scotland Ridge overflow variation under different atmospheric CO2 scenarios is studied. First, a control experiment is forced by a fixed CO2 concentration of 280 ppmv, which is the pre-industrial level before 1860. Three sensitive experiments are carried out under different scenarios of increased atmospheric CO2 concentrations, which are listed in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment report (B1, A1B and A2). In the control run, more water with higher salinity intruding into the Greenland-Icelandic-Norwegian Seas results in greater barotropic transport and greater overflow because of the baroclinic effect. Therefore, the barotropic effect and baroclinic effect on the overflow are unified. Under the atmospheric CO2 scenarios, the strength of overflow across the Faro-Bank Channel is controlled by the baroclinic effect and the increase in Denmark Strait overflow is attributed to the barotropic effect.     

Triassic-Jurassic atmospheric CO2 spike.

I question the claim by Tanner et al. that atmospheric CO2 levels remained constant across the Triassic-Jurassic boundary on the grounds of problems with stratigraphic completeness and contamination with atmospheric methane. Because methanogenic CH4 has a light isotope composition and oxidizes readily to CO2, methane-clathrate dissociation and oxidation events cannot be detected by palaeobarometers that use the carbon-isotope composition of palaeosol carbonate.     

New proofs of the recent climate warming over the Tibetan Plateau as a result of the increasing greenhouse gases emissions

The Tibetan Plateau (TP, 75-105oE, 27.5-37.5oN) is the highest and largest highland in the world with a variety of climate and ecosystems. The TP exerts pro- found influences not only on the local climate and en- vironment but also on the global atmospher…     

Responses of plant rhizosphere to atmospheric CO2 enrichment

Plant root growth is generally stimulated under elevated CO₂. This will bring more carbon to the below-ground through root death and exudate. This potential increase in below-ground carbon sink may lead to changes in long-term soil sequestration and relationship between host plants and symbions. On the other hand, changes in litter components due to the changes in plant chemical composition may also affect soil processes, such as litter decomposition, soil organic matter sequestration and hetero-nutritional bacteria activities. These issues are discussed.     

Responses of plant rhizosphere to atmospheric CO2 enrichment

Plant root growth is generally stimulated under elevated CO2. This will bring more carbon to the below-ground through root death and exudate. This potential increase in below-ground carbon sink may lead to changes in long-term soil sequestration and relationship between host plants and symbions. On the other hand, changes in litter components due to the changes in plant chemical composition may also affect soil processes, such as litter decomposition, soil organic matter sequestration and hetero-nutritional bacteria activities. These issues are discussed.     

铁矿烧结工艺中温室气体CO2的排放规律

采用KM9106综合烟气分析仪对烧结工艺过程温室气体Cox排放规律进行研究. 研究结果表明: 在烧结过程中, 温室气体Cox排放变化情况能够很好地反映烧结过程固体燃料焦粉的燃烧状况, 证明烧结过程焦粉的燃烧是以生成CO2的完全燃烧反应为主, 但仍有部分生成CO的未完全燃烧反应存在;烧结烟气中CO2浓度降为零时所对应的点与烧结废气温度为最大值有很好的对应关系, 能很好地用于确定烧结终点;焦粉配比对烧结过程固体燃料燃烧的影响能明确地从温室气体Cox的排放情况表现出来, 而且, 通过判断燃料燃烧状况, 可以推测出烧结矿产质量的优劣, 用于指导烧结生产.     

Effect of iron supply on Southern Ocean CO2 uptake and implications for glacial atmospheric CO2

Photosynthesis by marine phytoplankton in the Southern Ocean, and the associated uptake of carbon, is thought to be currently limited by the availability of iron. One implication of this limitation is that a larger iron supply to the region in glacial times could have stimulated algal photosynthesis, leading to lower concentrations of atmospheric CO2. Similarly, it has been proposed that artificial iron fertilization of the oceans might increase future carbon sequestration. Here we report data from a whole-ecosystem test of the iron-limitation hypothesis in the Southern Ocean, which show that surface uptake of atmospheric CO2 and uptake ratios of silica to carbon by phytoplankton were strongly influenced by nanomolar increases of iron concentration. We use these results to inform a model of global carbon and ocean nutrients, forced with atmospheric iron fluxes to the region derived from the Vostok ice-core dust record. During glacial periods, predicted magnitudes and timings of atmospheric CO2 changes match ice-core records well. At glacial terminations, the model suggests that forcing of Southern Ocean biota by iron caused the initial approximately 40 p.p.m. of glacial-interglacial CO2 change, but other mechanisms must have accounted for the remaining 40 p.p.m. increase. The experiment also confirms that modest sequestration of atmospheric CO2 by artificial additions of iron to the Southern Ocean is in principle possible, although the period and geographical extent over which sequestration would be effective remain poorly known.     

膜气吸收法分离烟气中CO2的实验

采用聚丙烯中空纤维膜接触器,分别用去离子水、单乙醇胺(MEA)及N-甲基二乙醇胺(MDEA)水溶液作为吸收剂,对模拟烟气中的CO2分离进行了试验研究.考察了气体流速、入口气体中CO2体积分数、吸收剂流速、吸收剂浓度以及吸收剂种类等因素对CO2脱除率和总传质速率的影响.实验结果显示:3种吸收剂分离CO2的效率由大到小依次为MEA、MDEA、去离子水;CO2的脱除率和传质通量随吸收剂浓度、流速的提高均增加;CO2的脱除率随气体流速和CO2在入口气体中体积分数的增大而减小,而传质速率却随之增加.系统长时间运行后发现存在膜孔润湿现象,进而影响膜的传质性能.因此,吸收剂浓度须在传质和长时间运行性能之间进行权衡.     

CO2减排新途径--土壤中CO2固定的试验研究

采用土柱淋溶模拟试验,研究长效碳铵及普通碳铵在土壤中的分解特性,以考察长效碳铵固碳的实际可能性.试验表明:在施用长效碳铵和普通碳铵后的1个星期左右,两者在土壤中的HCO-3,CO2-3离子质量浓度基本相同,且主要集中在土壤表层.2个星期后,施用长效碳铵的土壤中HCO-3,CO2-3离子质量浓度都明显高于相应的普通碳铵.结果可知在土壤固碳方面长效碳铵要优于普通碳铵.     

城市温室气体排放空间特征及分区

作为地表受人类活动影响最深刻的区域,城市系统成为能源消耗和碳排放的集中地.由于不同功能区的空间分布差异,城市系统中存在碳流动过程的特异性及温室气体排放的空间异质性等问题.在分析城市空间形态与温室气体排放的关系的基础上,从城市碳流动特征出发,构建基于温室气体排放的城市空间分区体系,即根据人类社会经济活动类型结合城市碳流动三要素进行一级分类;其次,基于现有的城市用地类型,根据一级分类结果对城市不同功能区用地进行二级分类.通过分区,可实现城市温室气体排放的定量化、空间化和可视化,为相关研究和管理提供参考和借鉴.     

Evidence against dust-mediated control of glacial-interglacial changes in atmospheric CO2

The low concentration of atmospheric CO2 inferred to have been present during glacial periods is thought to have been partly caused by an increased supply of iron-bearing dust to the ocean surface. This is supported by a recent model that attributes half of the CO2 reduction during past glacial stages to iron-stimulated uptake of CO2 by phytoplankton in the Southern Ocean. But atmospheric dust fluxes to the Southern Ocean, even in glacial periods, are thought to be relatively low and therefore it has been proposed that Southern Ocean productivity might be influenced by iron deposited elsewhere-for example, in the Northern Hemisphere-which is then transported south via ocean circulation (similar to the distal supply of iron to the equatorial Pacific Ocean). Here we examine the timing of dust fluxes to the North Atlantic Ocean, in relation to climate records from the Vostok ice core in Antarctica around the time of the penultimate deglaciation (about 130 kyr ago). Two main dust peaks occurred 155 kyr and 130 kyr ago, but neither was associated with the CO2 rise recorded in the Vostok ice core. This mismatch, together with the low dust flux supplied to the Southern Ocean, suggests that dust-mediated iron fertilization of the Southern Ocean did not significantly influence atmospheric CO2 at the termination of the penultimate glaciation.     

Rapid Cenozoic glaciation of Antarctica induced by declining atmospheric CO2

The sudden, widespread glaciation of Antarctica and the associated shift towards colder temperatures at the Eocene/Oligocene boundary (approximately 34 million years ago) (refs 1-4) is one of the most fundamental reorganizations of global climate known in the geologic record. The glaciation of Antarctica has hitherto been thought to result from the tectonic opening of Southern Ocean gateways, which enabled the formation of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current and the subsequent thermal isolation of the Antarctic continent. Here we simulate the glacial inception and early growth of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet using a general circulation model with coupled components for atmosphere, ocean, ice sheet and sediment, and which incorporates palaeogeography, greenhouse gas, changing orbital parameters, and varying ocean heat transport. In our model, declining Cenozoic CO2 first leads to the formation of small, highly dynamic ice caps on high Antarctic plateaux. At a later time, a CO2 threshold is crossed, initiating ice-sheet height/mass-balance feedbacks that cause the ice caps to expand rapidly with large orbital variations, eventually coalescing into a continental-scale East Antarctic Ice Sheet. According to our simulation the opening of Southern Ocean gateways plays a secondary role in this transition, relative to CO2 concentration.