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Different chemical composition and storage mechanism of soil organic matter between active and permafrost layers on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau

  • Soils, Sec 1 • Soil Organic Matter Dynamics and Nutrient Cycling • Research Article
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Abstract

Purpose

Although many studies have paid attention to the storage and dynamics of organic carbon (OC) in the Arctic permafrost, there are limited reports for low-latitude alpine permafrost ecosystems like Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (QTP). The aims of this study are to (1) reveal the vertical distribution of OC stocks in permafrost soils; (2) assess the storage and transformation of permafrost OC; and (3) disentangle the effect of mineral protection on OC storage in permafrost soils.

Materials and methods

A 2-m permafrost profile on the QTP was investigated to understand vertical distribution of organic matter (OM) in different density fractions based on elemental composition, carbon stable isotope (δ13C), mineral grain size, Fe and Al concentrations, and solid-state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (13C NMR).

Results and discussion

A positive relationship between light fraction organic carbon (LOC) and root abundance indicates that root is an important contributor for LOC. However, in heavy fractions, the total organic carbon to total nitrogen ratio (TOC/TN) is significantly lower than that in light fractions. This, combined with a negative correlation between TOC/TN and heavy fraction organic carbon (HOC), indicates that microbial input affects the quantity of HOC. In the active layer, the downward decreased δ13C, elevated alkyl/O-alkyl, and decreased ratio of 70–75:52–57 ppm suggest selected decomposition of carbohydrate components. While in the deep permafrost layer, the relatively constant δ13C values and chemical composition of OM suggest a stable environment and minor impact of cryoturbation. The redundancy analysis shows that soil textures and concentration of Fe and Al have weak correlations with OC content, but for deep permafrost soils only, fine soil fraction is associated with aromatic carbon, and Al has strong influence on alkyl carbon, which could be attributed to OM-mineral stabilization.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that soil textures and Fe and Al concentration affect SOM preservation in the permafrost soils on the QTP; however, they largely control the quality rather than quantity of OM.

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Funding

This study was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (no. 2014CB954001).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory for Earth Surface Processes of the Ministry of Education, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China

    Yinghui Wang

  2. College of Marine Sciences, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, 201306, China

    Yunping Xu, Dandan Wei, Linlin Shi & Zehua Jia

  3. State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100093, China

    Yuanhe Yang

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  1. Yinghui Wang
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Correspondence to Yunping Xu.

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Wang, Y., Xu, Y., Wei, D. et al. Different chemical composition and storage mechanism of soil organic matter between active and permafrost layers on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau. J Soils Sediments 20, 653–664 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-019-02462-9

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