Abstract
Measurements of the methane flux and methane concentration profiles in soil air are presented. The flux of methane from the soil is calculated by two methods: a) Direct by placing a static open chamber at the soil surface. b) Indirect, using the 222Rn concentrations profile and the 222Rn flux in the soil surface in parallel with the methane concentration (222Rn calibrated fluxes). The methane flux has been determined in two kinds of soils (sandy and loamy) in the surroundings of Málaga (SPAIN). The directly measured methane fluxes at all investigated sites is higher than methane fluxes derived from “Rn calibrated fluxes”. Atmospheric methane is consumed by soils, mean direct flux to the atmosphere were - 0.33 g m−2yr-1. The direct methane flux is the same within the measuring error in sandy and loamy soils. The influence of the soil parameters on the methane flux indicates that microbial decomposition of methane is primarily controlled by the transport of methane.
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Dueñas, C., Fernández, M.C., Carretero, J. et al. Consumption of methane by soils. Environ Monit Assess 31, 125–130 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00547187
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00547187