nerc.ac.uk

The production and degradation of trichloroacetic acid in soil: Results from in situ soil column experiments

Heal, M.R.; Dickey, C.A.; Heal, K.V.; Stidson, R.T.; Matucha, M.; Cape, J.N.. 2010 The production and degradation of trichloroacetic acid in soil: Results from in situ soil column experiments. Chemosphere, 79 (4). 401-407. 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2010.02.003

Before downloading, please read NORA policies.
[thumbnail of N009476PP.pdf]
Preview
Text
N009476PP.pdf - Accepted Version

Download (665kB) | Preview

Abstract/Summary

Previous work has indicated that the soil is important to understanding biogeochemical fluxes of trichloroacetic acid (TCA) in the rural environment, in forests in particular. Here, the hydrological and TCA fluxes through 22 in situ soil columns in a forest and moorland-covered catchment and an agricultural grassland field in Scotland were monitored every 2 weeks for several months either as controls or in TCA manipulation (artificial dosing) experiments. This was supplemented by laboratory experiments with radioactively- labelled TCA and with irradiated (sterilised) soil columns. Control in situ forest soil columns showed evidence of net export (i.e. in situ production) of TCA, consistent with a net soil TCA production inferred from forest-scale mass balance estimations. At the same time, there was also clear evidence of substantial in situ degradation within the soil (70% on average) of applied TCA. The laboratory experiments showed that both the formation and degradation processes operate on time scales of up to a few days and appeared related more with biological rather than abiotic processes. Soil TCA activity was greater in more organic-rich soils, particularly within forests, and there was strong correlation between TCA and soil biomass carbon content. Overall it appears that TCA soil processes exemplify the substantial natural biogeochemical cycling of chlorine within soils, independent of any anthropogenic chlorine flux.

Item Type: Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI): 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2010.02.003
Programmes: CEH Programmes pre-2009 publications > Biogeochemistry > SE01B Sustainable Monitoring, Risk Assessment and Management of Chemicals
CEH Topics & Objectives 2009 - 2012 > Biogeochemistry
CEH Programmes pre-2009 publications > Biogeochemistry > BG01 Measuring and modelling trace gas, aerosol and carbon
UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas: Billett (to November 2013)
ISSN: 0045-6535
Additional Information. Not used in RCUK Gateway to Research.: Supplementary data associated with this article can be found, in the online version, at doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2010.02.003.
Additional Keywords: Trichloroacetic acid, TCA, Soil lysimeter, Microbial biomass, Degradation
NORA Subject Terms: Agriculture and Soil Science
Ecology and Environment
Date made live: 20 Apr 2010 15:15 +0 (UTC)
URI: https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/9476

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item

Document Downloads

Downloads for past 30 days

Downloads per month over past year

More statistics for this item...