RESUMO
Hydrogen (H) isotope ratio (δ2 H) analyses of plant organic compounds have been applied to assess ecohydrological processes in the environment despite a large part of the δ2 H variability observed in plant compounds not being fully elucidated. We present a conceptual biochemical model based on empirical H isotope data that we generated in two complementary experiments that clarifies a large part of the unexplained variability in the δ2 H values of plant organic compounds. The experiments demonstrate that information recorded in the δ2 H values of plant organic compounds goes beyond hydrological signals and can also contain important information on the carbon and energy metabolism of plants. Our model explains where 2 H-fractionations occur in the biosynthesis of plant organic compounds and how these 2 H-fractionations are tightly coupled to a plant's carbon and energy metabolism. Our model also provides a mechanistic basis to introduce H isotopes in plant organic compounds as a new metabolic proxy for the carbon and energy metabolism of plants and ecosystems. Such a new metabolic proxy has the potential to be applied in a broad range of disciplines, including plant and ecosystem physiology, biogeochemistry and palaeoecology.
Assuntos
Carboidratos/biossíntese , Fracionamento Químico/métodos , Deutério/metabolismo , Lipídeos/biossíntese , Compostos Orgânicos/metabolismo , Plantas/metabolismo , Carbono/metabolismo , Dióxido de Carbono/metabolismo , Respiração Celular , Hidrogênio/metabolismo , Fotossíntese , Folhas de Planta/metabolismoRESUMO
Methane-derived carbon, incorporated by methane-oxidizing bacteria, has been identified as a significant source of carbon in food webs of many lakes. By measuring the stable carbon isotopic composition (δ13C values) of particulate organic matter, Chironomidae and Daphnia spp. and their resting eggs (ephippia), we show that methane-derived carbon presently plays a relevant role in the food web of hypertrophic Lake De Waay, The Netherlands. Sediment geochemistry, diatom analyses and δ13C measurements of chironomid and Daphnia remains in the lake sediments indicate that oligotrophication and re-eutrophication of the lake during the twentieth century had a strong impact on in-lake oxygen availability. This, in turn, influenced the relevance of methane-derived carbon in the diet of aquatic invertebrates. Our results show that, contrary to expectations, methane-derived relative to photosynthetically produced organic carbon became more relevant for at least some invertebrates during periods with higher nutrient availability for algal growth, indicating a proportionally higher use of methane-derived carbon in the lake's food web during peak eutrophication phases. Contributions of methane-derived carbon to the diet of the investigated invertebrates are estimated to have ranged from 0-11% during the phase with the lowest nutrient availability to 13-20% during the peak eutrophication phase.
Assuntos
Carbono/química , Cadeia Alimentar , Metano/química , Animais , Isótopos de Carbono/análise , Chironomidae , Daphnia , Eutrofização , Lagos , Países BaixosRESUMO
Reconstructions of atmospheric CO(2) concentrations based on Antarctic ice cores reveal significant changes during the Holocene epoch, but the processes responsible for these changes in CO(2) concentrations have not been unambiguously identified. Distinct characteristics in the carbon isotope signatures of the major carbon reservoirs (ocean, biosphere, sediments and atmosphere) constrain variations in the CO(2) fluxes between those reservoirs. Here we present a highly resolved atmospheric delta(13)C record for the past 11,000 years from measurements on atmospheric CO(2) trapped in an Antarctic ice core. From mass-balance inverse model calculations performed with a simplified carbon cycle model, we show that the decrease in atmospheric CO(2) of about 5 parts per million by volume (p.p.m.v.). The increase in delta(13)C of about 0.25 per thousand during the early Holocene is most probably the result of a combination of carbon uptake of about 290 gigatonnes of carbon by the land biosphere and carbon release from the ocean in response to carbonate compensation of the terrestrial uptake during the termination of the last ice age. The 20 p.p.m.v. increase of atmospheric CO(2) and the small decrease in delta(13)C of about 0.05 per thousand during the later Holocene can mostly be explained by contributions from carbonate compensation of earlier land-biosphere uptake and coral reef formation, with only a minor contribution from a small decrease of the land-biosphere carbon inventory.
Assuntos
Dióxido de Carbono/metabolismo , Carbono/análise , Carbono/metabolismo , Camada de Gelo/química , Ar/análise , Animais , Regiões Antárticas , Antozoários/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Antozoários/metabolismo , Atmosfera/química , Dióxido de Carbono/análise , Isótopos de Carbono , Clima , Ecossistema , História Antiga , Fatores de TempoRESUMO
The increasing carbon dioxide (CO2 ) concentration in the atmosphere in combination with climatic changes throughout the last century are likely to have had a profound effect on the physiology of trees: altering the carbon and water fluxes passing through the stomatal pores. However, the magnitude and spatial patterns of such changes in natural forests remain highly uncertain. Here, stable carbon isotope ratios from a network of 35 tree-ring sites located across Europe are investigated to determine the intrinsic water-use efficiency (iWUE), the ratio of photosynthesis to stomatal conductance from 1901 to 2000. The results were compared with simulations of a dynamic vegetation model (LPX-Bern 1.0) that integrates numerous ecosystem and land-atmosphere exchange processes in a theoretical framework. The spatial pattern of tree-ring derived iWUE of the investigated coniferous and deciduous species and the model results agreed significantly with a clear south-to-north gradient, as well as a general increase in iWUE over the 20th century. The magnitude of the iWUE increase was not spatially uniform, with the strongest increase observed and modelled for temperate forests in Central Europe, a region where summer soil-water availability decreased over the last century. We were able to demonstrate that the combined effects of increasing CO2 and climate change leading to soil drying have resulted in an accelerated increase in iWUE. These findings will help to reduce uncertainties in the land surface schemes of global climate models, where vegetation-climate feedbacks are currently still poorly constrained by observational data.
Assuntos
Ciclo do Carbono/fisiologia , Dióxido de Carbono/metabolismo , Mudança Climática , Florestas , Modelos Teóricos , Árvores/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Ciclo Hidrológico/fisiologia , Isótopos de Carbono/análise , Europa (Continente) , Geografia , Fatores de TempoRESUMO
Past atmospheric methane concentrations show strong fluctuations in parallel to rapid glacial climate changes in the Northern Hemisphere superimposed on a glacial-interglacial doubling of methane concentrations. The processes driving the observed fluctuations remain uncertain but can be constrained using methane isotopic information from ice cores. Here we present an ice core record of carbon isotopic ratios in methane over the entire last glacial-interglacial transition. Our data show that the carbon in atmospheric methane was isotopically much heavier in cold climate periods. With the help of a box model constrained by the present data and previously published results, we are able to estimate the magnitude of past individual methane emission sources and the atmospheric lifetime of methane. We find that methane emissions due to biomass burning were about 45 Tg methane per year, and that these remained roughly constant throughout the glacial termination. The atmospheric lifetime of methane is reduced during cold climate periods. We also show that boreal wetlands are an important source of methane during warm events, but their methane emissions are essentially shut down during cold climate conditions.
Assuntos
Biomassa , Incêndios/estatística & dados numéricos , Camada de Gelo , Metano/análise , Metano/química , Temperatura , Árvores/metabolismo , Atmosfera/química , Carbono/análise , Isótopos de Carbono , Clima Frio , Groenlândia , História Antiga , Hidrogênio/análise , Metano/metabolismo , Método de Monte Carlo , Áreas AlagadasRESUMO
Recent experiments have underlined the potential of δ2H in tree-ring cellulose as a physiological indicator of shifts in autotrophic versus heterotrophic processes (i.e., the use of fresh versus stored non-structural carbohydrates). However, the impact of these processes has not yet been quantified under natural conditions. Defoliator outbreaks disrupt tree functioning and carbon assimilation, stimulating remobilization, therefore providing a unique opportunity to improve our understanding of changes in δ2H. By exploring a 700-year tree-ring isotope chronology from Switzerland, we assessed the impact of 79 larch budmoth (LBM, Zeiraphera griseana [Hübner]) outbreaks on the growth of its host tree species, Larix decidua [Mill]. The LBM outbreaks significantly altered the tree-ring isotopic signature, creating a 2H-enrichment and an 18O- and 13C-depletion. Changes in tree physiological functioning in outbreak years are shown by the decoupling of δ2H and δ18O (O-H relationship), in contrast to the positive correlation in non-outbreak years. Across the centuries, the O-H relationship in outbreak years was not significantly affected by temperature, indicating that non-climatic physiological processes dominate over climate in determining δ2H. We conclude that the combination of these isotopic parameters can serve as a metric for assessing changes in physiological mechanisms over time.
Assuntos
Larix , Mariposas , Animais , Árvores , Suíça , Isótopos de Oxigênio/análise , Mariposas/fisiologia , Larix/fisiologia , Isótopos de Carbono/análiseRESUMO
Lagrangian particle dispersion models (LPDMs) are frequently used for regional-scale inversions of greenhouse gas emissions. However, the turbulence parameterizations used in these models were developed for coarse resolution grids, hence, when moving to the kilometre-scale the validity of these descriptions should be questioned. Here, we analyze the influence of the turbulence parameterization employed in the LPDM FLEXPART-COSMO model. Comparisons of the turbulence kinetic energy between the turbulence schemes of FLEXPART-COSMO and the underlying Eulerian model COSMO suggest that the dispersion in FLEXPART-COSMO suffers from a double-counting of turbulent elements when run at a high resolution of 1 × 1 km 2 . Such turbulent elements are represented in both COSMO, by the resolved grid-scale winds, and FLEXPART, by its stochastic parameterizations. Therefore, we developed a new parametrization for the variations of the winds and the Lagrangian time scales in FLEXPART in order to harmonize the amount of turbulence present in both models. In a case study for a power plant plume, the new scheme results in improved plume representation when compared with in situ flight observations and with a tracer transported in COSMO. Further in-depth validation of the LPDM against methane observations at a tall tower site in Switzerland shows that the model's ability to predict the observed tracer variability and concentration at different heights above ground is considerably enhanced using the updated turbulence description. The high-resolution simulations result in a more realistic and pronounced diurnal cycle of the tracer concentration peaks and overall improved correlation with observations when compared to previously used coarser resolution simulations (at 7 km × 7 km). Our results indicate that the stochastic turbulence schemes of LPDMs, developed in the past for coarse resolution models, should be revisited to include a resolution dependency and resolve only the part of the turbulence spectrum that is a subgrid process at each different mesh size. Although our new scheme is specific to COSMO simulations at 1 × 1 km 2 resolution, the methodology for deriving the scheme can easily be applied to different resolutions and other regional models. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10546-022-00728-3.
RESUMO
Stable isotope approaches are widely applied in plant science and many improvements made in the field focus on the analysis of specific components of plant tissues. Although technical developments have been very beneficial, sample collection and preparation are still very time and labor-consuming. The main objective of this study was to create a qualitative dataset of alpha-cellulose content of leaf tissues of arboreal species. We extracted alpha-cellulose from twelve species: Abies alba Mill., Acer pseudoplatanus L., Fagus sylvatica L., Larix decidua Mill., Picea abies (L.) Karst., Pinus sylvestris L., Quercus cerris L., Quercus petrea (Matt.) Liebl., Quercus pubescens Wild., Quercus robur L., Tilia platyphyllos Scop. and Ulmus glabra Huds. While these species show an increase in cellulose yield from bud break to full leaf development, the rates of increase in cellulose content and the duration of the juvenile phase vary greatly. Moreover, the veins display significantly higher alpha-cellulose content (4 to 11%) compared to blade tissues, which reflects their different structural and biochemical functions. A guide for the mass of sample material required to yield sufficient alpha-cellulose for a standard stable isotope analysis is presented. The additional benefits of the assessment of the mass of required sample material are reduced sample preparation time and its usefulness in preparing samples of limited availability (e.g., herbarium material, fossil samples).
RESUMO
Measurements of carbon and oxygen isotopes of CO(2) by continuous flow isotope ratio mass spectrometry are widely used in environmental studies and climate change research. Yet, there are remaining problems associated with the reproducibility of measurements, in particular when high precision is required and/or the amount of sample material is limited. Isotopic fractionations in open splits and nonlinear effects occurring in the mass spectrometer due to different sample amounts alter the results. In this study, we discuss the influence and the origin of these two effects and propose procedures for preventing their impact. Fractionation in the open split can be related to diffusion of CO(2) and can lead to shifted delta-values when measuring a sample gas against a reference gas injected via different open splits. We present a method, where such fractionations can be minimized by adjusting either the position of the capillaries or the flow rates involved or both. The nonlinear peak area dependence of delta(13)C measurements for small sample sizes can be explained by adsorption/desorption processes in the ionization chamber or its vicinity. For constant amplitudes, the magnitude of the nonlinearity only depends on the amount of CO(2) entering the ion source. This nonlinearity can be eliminated by a small additional flux of a conditioning gas fed to the mass spectrometer. The best results were obtained when using carbon monoxide. For the adsorption process in the mass spectrometer we found a fractionation factor of 0.982 +/- 0.005 for delta(13)C and 1.002 +/- 0.004 for delta(18)O.
RESUMO
Early observations of the tritium (3H) activity in precipitation from Switzerland started in 1967 in Bern and a monitoring program with improved analytical techniques was carried out between 1971 and 2009. Between 2012 and 2015, we performed tritium analyses on daily precipitation samples from north-western Switzerland to better constrain the tritium variability. We also collected waters dripping inside Milandre Cave (Jura Mountains) with a 4-6 months' resolution in order to estimate the age of the drip water, which is mandatory to interpret the high-resolution speleothem (cave carbonate deposits) records. Over the monitoring period, the mean tritium concentration in the daily precipitation samples was approximately 8.7 ± 4.7 TU with distinct seasonality showing higher values in spring and summer (from April-May to August-September). The similarity in trends with the other cosmogenic radionuclide beryllium-7 (7Be) suggests that, for the study site, tritium in precipitation essentially originates from stratospheric input in spring. In winter, precipitation dynamics with increasing moisture originating from the Atlantic and diluted during transport contribute to low values close to the Atlantic background. In cave drip water, the depleted activity level of tritium indicates a relatively long percolation time from the surface to the cave of several years. A residual superimposed short tritium variability provides evidence for the occurrence of fast flowing water paths. The contribution from both components were quantified based on a two-component lumped parameter-mixing model. Finally, we show that tritium concentrations in cave drip water are linked to the moisture origin and atmospheric transport pathways.
Assuntos
Berílio , Monitoramento de Radiação , Radioisótopos , Trítio , Berílio/análise , Cavernas , Radioisótopos/análise , Suíça , Fatores de Tempo , Trítio/análiseRESUMO
The reasons for the early Holocene temperature discrepancy between northern hemispheric model simulations and paleoclimate reconstructions-known as the Holocene temperature conundrum-remain unclear. Using hydrogen isotopes of fluid inclusion water extracted from stalagmites from the Milandre Cave in Switzerland, we established a mid-latitude European mean annual temperature reconstruction for the past 14,000 years. Our Milandre Cave fluid inclusion temperature record (MC-FIT) resembles Greenland and Mediterranean sea surface temperature trends but differs from recent reconstructions obtained from biogenic proxies and climate models. The water isotopes are further synchronized with tropical precipitation records, stressing the Northern Hemisphere signature. Our results support the existence of a European Holocene Thermal Maximum and data-model temperature discrepancies. Moreover, data-data comparison reveals a significant latitudinal temperature gradient within Europe. Last, the MC-FIT record suggests that seasonal biases in the proxies are not the primary cause of the Holocene temperature conundrum.
RESUMO
The equilibration method is the present-day standard method for measuring delta18O in water samples. The mass-to-charge ratio of 45 is measured at the same time but generally not used for further analysis. We show that an improved equilibration method can be used for precise determination of delta17O in addition to that of delta18O, and therefore can estimate 17O excess values to a precision of better than 0.1 per thousand. To control the masking effect of the 14 times more abundant 13C on mass 45, we propose to use a chemical buffer in the water samples to keep the pH value and therefore the fractionation during the equilibration process of the 13C constant. With this improved method, the precision for the delta18O value could also be slightly improved from 0.05 to 0.03 per thousand. Furthermore, we discuss the influences of the amount of water, the temperature, the CO2 gas pressures, and changes in the pH during the measuring procedure on oxygen and carbon isotopes. We noticed that measured delta45 values are a good control for delta18O measurements. This study tries to fathom the possibilities and limitations of the equilibration method for measuring 17O excess values of water samples.
RESUMO
The High Altitude Research Station at Jungfraujoch is widely recognised as an important research site. This is documented by the fact that Jungfraujoch was recently selected as one of the 24 Global Atmosphere Watch stations (GAW) within the framework of WMO activities. The GAW activities are in line with the International Global Observing Strategy (IGOS) on Integrated Global Atmospheric Chemistry Observation (IGACO). In addition, Jungfraujoch is an alpine site within the Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change (NDACC). Jungfraujoch is also a station within national networks such as the Swiss national network of air pollution observation (NABEL), which is part of the European Monitoring and Evaluation Program (EMEP), investigating particularly the large-scale dissemination of air pollutants within Europe. The station was opened in 1931. Therefore, an international conference to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the High Altitude Research Station Jungfraujoch was held at Interlaken, Switzerland (11-13 September, 2006). Studies across different research fields were presented, stimulating discussions among representatives of many disciplines from chemists, physicists, astronomers, and biologists to physicians.
Assuntos
Poluição do Ar/análise , Monitoramento Ambiental , Altitude , Clima , Pesquisa , SuíçaRESUMO
First real time CO2 and O2 measurements on the High Altitude Research Station Jungfraujoch (Switzerland) are compared with corresponding flasks samples. Whereas CO2 measurements show a good agreement, O2 compares only moderately. Real time O2 measurements are performed using two different methods, i.e. by paramagnetic and fuel cells. Fuel cell values exhibit significantly higher scatter, but they compare acceptably well with the paramagnetic values when averaging over 228 min (20 point running mean). Continuous measurements are powerful in many respects in contrast to spot-like flask sampling. They help to set up data selection criteria and to improve the robustness of trend calculations. Further, real time measurements help to partition the anthropogenic CO2 increase into ocean and terrestrial biosphere for short-time variations of minutes, hours, days, which are not covered by flask sampling.
Assuntos
Dióxido de Carbono/análise , Oxigênio/análise , Atmosfera/análise , Monitoramento Ambiental/instrumentação , Monitoramento Ambiental/métodos , Sistemas On-Line , Reprodutibilidade dos Testes , Estações do Ano , Suíça , Fatores de TempoRESUMO
Atmospheric O2 and CO2 flask measurements from the high altitude research station Jungfraujoch, Switzerland, and from the observatory at Puy de Dôme, France, are presented. Additionally, the Jungfraujoch delta13C record of CO2 is discussed. The observations on flask samples collected at the Jungfraujoch station show, since 2003, an enhancement of the oxygen trend which amounts to about 45 per meg/year with a corresponding CO2 increase of around 2.4 ppm/year. This enhancement is comparable with that observed at the Puy de Dôme station where oxygen, since mid 2002, has decreased with a rate of about 50 per meg/year whilst the CO2 increase was of around 1.7 ppm/year but exhibiting a higher variability. Several processes influence deltaO2/N2. However, these processes are marked with different oxidation ratios (O2:CO2) that can be used to distinguish them. The apparent slopes calculated from correlation plots between de-trended CO2 and deltaO2/N2 records as well as between corresponding trends are significantly larger than the observe ratios depending on processes within the ocean, it is to our understanding the only possibility to explain our observations. The stability of the deltaO2/N2 scale is critical in this regard, therefore, it is addressed here and we found no significant scale drift which would influence our trend calculations. In our view more important are criterions on the data selection before trend analysis.
Assuntos
Dióxido de Carbono/análise , Oxigênio/análise , Altitude , Isótopos de Carbono/análise , Monitoramento Ambiental , França , Oceanos e Mares , SuíçaRESUMO
A correction to this article has been published and is linked from the HTML and PDF versions of this paper. The error has been fixed in the paper.
RESUMO
Solar variability has been hypothesized to be a major driver of North Atlantic millennial-scale climate variations through the Holocene along with orbitally induced insolation change. However, another important climate driver, volcanic forcing has generally been underestimated prior to the past 2,500 years partly owing to the lack of proper proxy temperature records. Here, we reconstruct seasonally unbiased and physically constrained Greenland Summit temperatures over the Holocene using argon and nitrogen isotopes within trapped air in a Greenland ice core (GISP2). We show that a series of volcanic eruptions through the Holocene played an important role in driving centennial to millennial-scale temperature changes in Greenland. The reconstructed Greenland temperature exhibits significant millennial correlations with K+ and Na+ ions in the GISP2 ice core (proxies for atmospheric circulation patterns), and δ18O of Oman and Chinese Dongge cave stalagmites (proxies for monsoon activity), indicating that the reconstructed temperature contains hemispheric signals. Climate model simulations forced with the volcanic forcing further suggest that a series of large volcanic eruptions induced hemispheric-wide centennial to millennial-scale variability through ocean/sea-ice feedbacks. Therefore, we conclude that volcanic activity played a critical role in driving centennial to millennial-scale Holocene temperature variability in Greenland and likely beyond.
RESUMO
New continuous on-line techniques for water and air extracted from ice cores are developed. Water isotope ratio determination on any of the water phases (water vapour, water, ice) is of great relevance in different research fields, such as climate and paleoclimate studies, geological surveys, and hydrological studies. The conventional techniques for water isotopes are available in different layouts but all of them are rather time-consuming. Here we report new fast on-line techniques that process water as well as ice samples. The analysis time is only approximately 5 min per sample which includes equilibration and processing. Measurement precision and accuracy are better than 0.1 per thousand and 1 per thousand for delta18O and deltaD, respectively, comparable to conventional techniques. The new on-line techniques are able to analyze a wide range of aqueous samples. This allows, for the first time, to make continuous isotope measurements on ice cores. Similarly, continuous and fast analysis of aqueous samples can be of great value for hydrological, geological and perhaps medical applications.Furthermore, a new technique for the on-line analysis of air isotopes extracted from ice cores is developed. This technique allows rapid analyses with high resolution of the main air components nitrogen, oxygen, and argon. Measurement precision is comparable to precisions obtained by conventional techniques. It is now possible to measure delta15N and delta18O(atm) over entire ice cores helping to synchronize chronologies, to assess gas age-ice age differences, and to calibrate the paleothermometry for rapid temperature changes. This new on-line air extraction and analyzing technique complements the water methods in an ideal way as it separates the air from the melt-water of an ice sample. The remaining water waste flux can directly be analyzed by the water methods.
Assuntos
Monitoramento Ambiental/métodos , Gases , Isótopos/análise , Sistemas On-Line , Água/química , Clima , Deutério/análise , Geografia , Hélio/análise , Gelo/análise , Isótopos de Nitrogênio/análise , Isótopos de Oxigênio/análise , Temperatura , Movimentos da ÁguaRESUMO
Foliar samples were harvested from two oaks, a beech, and a yew at the same site in order to trace the development of the leaves over an entire vegetation season. Cellulose yield and stable isotopic compositions (δ(13)C, δ(18)O, and δD) were analyzed on leaf cellulose. All parameters unequivocally define a juvenile and a mature period in the foliar expansion of each species. The accompanying shifts of the δ(13)C-values are in agreement with the transition from remobilized carbohydrates (juvenile period), to current photosynthates (mature phase). While the opponent seasonal trends of δ(18)O of blade and vein cellulose are in perfect agreement with the state-of-art mechanistic understanding, the lack of this discrepancy for δD, documented for the first time, is unexpected. For example, the offset range of 18 permil (oak veins) to 57 permil (oak blades) in δD may represent a process driven shift from autotrophic to heterotrophic processes. The shared pattern between blade and vein found for both oak and beech suggests an overwhelming metabolic isotope effect on δD that might be accompanied by proton transfer linked to the Calvin-cycle. These results provide strong evidence that hydrogen and oxygen are under different biochemical controls even at the leaf level.
RESUMO
Greenland ice core water isotopic composition (δ(18)O) provides detailed evidence for abrupt climate changes but is by itself insufficient for quantitative reconstruction of past temperatures and their spatial patterns. We investigate Greenland temperature evolution during the last deglaciation using independent reconstructions from three ice cores and simulations with a coupled ocean-atmosphere climate model. Contrary to the traditional δ(18)O interpretation, the Younger Dryas period was 4.5° ± 2°C warmer than the Oldest Dryas, due to increased carbon dioxide forcing and summer insolation. The magnitude of abrupt temperature changes is larger in central Greenland (9° to 14°C) than in the northwest (5° to 9°C), fingerprinting a North Atlantic origin. Simulated changes in temperature seasonality closely track changes in the Atlantic overturning strength and support the hypothesis that abrupt climate change is mostly a winter phenomenon.