Falling water tables reduce peatland semiconductor minerals' capacity for preserving carbon

Bibliographic Data

ID21648964
AuthorsJia Zeng (0000-0003-3488-3123, School of Life Science and Engineering Southwest University of Science and Technology Mianyang China), Qin Cao (School of Life Science and Engineering Southwest University of Science and Technology Mianyang China), Yinping Bai (School of Environment and Resource Southwest University of Science and Technology Mianyang China), Huai Chen (0000-0001-7650-289X, Key Laboratory of Mountain Ecological Restoration and Bioresource Utilization & Ecological Restoration Biodiversity Conservation, Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Institute of Biology Chinese Academy of Sciences Chengdu China), Mingxue Liu (0000-0002-6801-1705, School of Life Science and Engineering Southwest University of Science and Technology Mianyang China), Yi He (0000-0002-5562-4190, School of National Defense Science and Technology College Southwest University of Science and Technology Mianyang China), Huichao He (0000-0003-1193-1129, Key Laboratory of Solid Waste Treatment and Resource Recycle, Ministry of Education Southwest University of Science and Technology Mianyang China), Wenyuan Hu (Key Laboratory of Solid Waste Treatment and Resource Recycle, Ministry of Education Southwest University of Science and Technology Mianyang China), Gang Yang (0000-0003-2576-013X, School of Life Science and Engineering Southwest University of Science and Technology Mianyang China, corresponding author)
Year2024
Volume35
Issue2
Pages744-756
Publication date2024-01-30
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueLand Degradation and Development (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1085-3278 • E-ISSN: 1099-145X
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/ldr.4949
OpenAlexW4387607925
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited65

Semiconductor minerals in peatland play a significant role in the stability of the soil carbon pool. Nevertheless, the ecosystem‐scale importance of semiconductor minerals distribution and their influence on carbon stability in peatlands is still to be determined. Therefore, this study investigated the spatial distribution of semiconductor minerals and their photoelectrochemical activity (PA) in three peatlands with distinct water tables ( Equisetum ‐swamp [−2.0 cm], Caltha ‐meadow [−8.0 cm], and Carex ‐meadow [−13.8 cm]). The results indicate that the peatlands of the Qinghai‐Tibet Plateau mainly contain hematite (4.64 wt%), brookite (0.71 wt%), baddeleyite (0.23 wt‰), and zincite (0.10 wt‰); hematite content is the main mineral in peatland. And significantly increased with the decrease of the water table; the photoelectrochemical examination showed that the band gap of semiconductor minerals displayed Caltha ‐meadow > Equisetum ‐swamp > Carex ‐meadow, and the carrier concentration displayed Carex ‐meadow > Equisetum ‐swamp > Caltha ‐meadow, and Carex ‐meadow exhibits a steady photocurrent density (0.3 μA/cm 2 ) under light. This suggests that peat soils exhibit an improved photoelectric response with water table drawdown, which would promote the potential for soil carbon mineralization; structural equation model analysis showed that hematite had a significant positive effect on soil organic carbon (SOC), while the PA of semiconductor minerals had a significant negative effect on SOC. That is, semiconductor minerals can not only protect SOC by adsorption but also accelerate organic carbon mineralization by photo‐catalytic generation of reactive oxygen species. Therefore, the decrease in the water table increases the PA of semiconductor minerals, which will weaken the protective effect of semiconductor minerals on soil carbon through adsorption and other means

Botany · Carex · Peat · Chemistry · Coastal wetland ecosystem dynamics · Environmental Science · Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology · Peatlands and Wetlands Ecology · Ecology · Environmental Chemistry

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