Plant rhizodeposition — an important source for carbon turnover in soils

Hütsch Augustin Merbach 2002

Organic matter in the soil is important in ecological soil functions. It should be

considered as an important CO2 sink on a global scale. Aside from crop residues, left over on

the field after harvest and other compound are also released by plant roots into the soil during

vegetation. Nowadays, the learnings about amount, composition, and turnover of these root‐

borne compounds is still very limited. So far it could be demonstrated with different plant

species and other compound are released into the soil during vegetation period. These roots

have large percentage of root‐borne substances and rapidly respired by microorganisms. The

root exudates of maize were mainly water‐soluble, and in this fraction carbohydrates, amino

acids and organic acids could be identified. Plant species and in some cases also plant cultivars

varied strongly in their root exudation pattern. The combination of root exudates to parts of the

soil that is released also improved soil structure by increasing aggregate stability. Future

research should focus on quantification and characterization of root‐borne . It is important to

conduct model field experiments with CO2 labelling to be able to identify between

CO2 originating from the soil C pool and rhizosphere respiration, originating from plant

assimilates. The incorporation of root‐borne into soil organic matter of different stability is also of

particular interest.
Importance of rhizodeposition in the coupling of plant and microbial productivity

Paterson 2003

Roots of the plants plays important role in terms of the biological, chemical and physical

properties of rhizosphere soil. Their growth, activity and the exudation of organic compounds

are the effects. In natural way, the linkages between inputs of carbon from plants and microbial

activity driven by these inputs are the point to our understanding of nutrient cycling in soil and

the productivity of these systems. This coupling of plant and microbial productivity is also

increasing importance in agriculture, where shift towards low‐input systems increases the

dependence of plant production on nutrient cycling, as opposed to fertilizers. This study

considers the processes by which plants can influence the cycling of nutrients in soil, and in

particular the importance of organic substance from roots in driving microbially mediated

transformations of nitrogen. This coupling of plant inputs to the functioning of the microbial

community is beneficial for acquisition of nitrogen by plants, specifically in low‐input systems.

This occurs through stimulation of microbes that produce enzymes that degrade organic matter.

And, plants increase the cycling of nitrogen by changes in exudation in response to nitrogen

supply around roots, and in response to consuming by herbivores. Plants can release

compounds in exudate that directly affect the expression of genes in microbes, and may be

plays important way of controlling their function to the benefit of the plant.
Review of estimation of plant rhizodeposition and their contribution to soil organic

matter formation

Kuzyakov Schneckenberger 2006

The ways used for estimating rhizodeposition of plants (carbon deposition of living

roots), and the results obtained for different plant species are reviewed. There are different

tracer techniques using carbon isotopes to know the quantity of rhizodeposition are discussed:

pulse labelling, continuous labelling, and natural increasing carbon . The tracer methods

provided brief results for the entire rhizodeposition. The differences in the below-ground carbon

translocation pattern between cereals and grasses are discussed. Cereals transfer 20 – 30% of

total assimilated carbon into the soil. When the amount is halved, subsequently found in the

roots and about one-third in CO2 evolved from the soil by root respiration and microbial

utilization of root-borne organic substances. The remaining part of below-ground translocated is

carbon incorporated into the soil micro-organisms and soil organic matter. The portion of

assimilated carbon allocated below the ground by cereals decreases during growth and by

increasing N fertilization. Factors influencing the contribution of maize-derived carbon to soil

organic carbon are discussed. The contribution of maize derived carbon decreases with soil

depth, without fertilization, after removal of above ground biomass, and with soil tillage.
Green electricity production with living plants and bacteria in a fuel cell

Strik Hamelers Snel Buisman 2008

The world needs sustainable and renewable energy production. We present the plant

microbial fuel cell a concept that exploits a natural energy source in situ. In the plant‐MFC,

plants and bacteria were experiment to convert solar energy into green electricity. The point of

this study is that plants can produce rhizodeposits, often in the form of carbohydrates, and the

bacteria convert these rhizodeposits into electrical energy via the fuel cell. Demonstrated the

proof of principle using Reed manna-grass. We achieved a maximal electrical power production

of 67 mW m−2 anode surface. This system was characterized by nondestructive in

situ harvesting and potential implementation in wetlands and poor soils without competition to

food.
Influence of rhizodeposition under elevated CO 2 on plant nutrition and soil organic

matter

ND 1995

Atmospheric CO2 concentrations can influence ecosystem carbon storage through net

primary production, soil carbon storage, or both. In assessing the potential for carbon storage in

terrestrial ecosystems under elevated CO 2, both NPP and processing of soil organic matter , as

well as the multiple links between them, must be identified. Within this review, both the quantity

and quality of carbon matter from roots to soil are important, since roots produce compounds

that enhance nutrient acquisition and since the flux of organic compounds from roots to soil

fuels soil microbial activity. The perspective of root physiology, a technique is described which

uses genetically engineered bacteria to detect the distribution and amount of flux of particular

compounds from single roots to non-sterile soils. Other review from several labs are noted

which explore effects of elevated CO2 on root acid phosphatase and citrate production, all

associated with phosphorus nutrition. From a soil perspective, effects of elevated CO 2 on the

processing of SOM developed and measurements of soil atmosphere are combined with soil

respiration rates show that during vegetative growth, elevated CO2 decreased respiration. This

emphasis on the impacts of carbon loss from roots on both NPP and SOM processing will be

essential to understanding terrestrial ecosystem carbon storage under changing atmospheric

CO2 concentrations.
Rhizodeposition of organic C by plants: mechanisms and controls

Nguyen 2003

During their life, plant roots release organic compounds into their surrounding

environment. This process, named rhizodeposition, is of ecological importance because 1/ it is a

loss of reduced C for the plant, 2/ it is an input flux for the organic C pool of the soil, and 3/ it

fuels the soil microflora, which is involved in the great majority of the biological activity of soils,

such as the nutrient and pollutant cycling or the dynamics of soil-borne pathogens, for example.

The present review first examines the mechanisms by which major rhizodeposits are released

into the soil: the production of root cap cells, the secretion of mucilage, and the passive and

controlled diffusion of root exudates. In a second part, results from tracer studies (43 articles)

are analyzed and values of C flux from the plant root into the soil are summarized. On average,

17% of the net C fixed by photosynthesis is lost by roots and recovered as rhizosphere

respiration (12%) and soil residues (5%), which corresponds to 50% of the C exported by

shoots to belowground. Finally, the paper reviews major factors that modify the partitioning of

photoassimilates to the soil: microorganisms, nitrogen, soil texture and atmospheric

CO22 concentration.
Plant/microbe cooperation for electricity generation in a rice paddy field

Kaku Yonezawa Kodama Watanabe 2008

Soils are rich in organics, particularly those that support growth of plants. These

organics are possible sources of sustainable energy, and a microbial fuel cell (MFC) system can

potentially be used for this purpose. Here, we report the application of an MFC system to

electricity generation in a rice paddy field. In our system, graphite felt electrodes were used; an

anode was set in the rice rhizosphere, and a cathode was in the flooded water above the

rhizosphere. It was observed that electricity generation (as high as 6 mW/m2, normalized to the

anode projection area) was sunlight dependent and exhibited circadian oscillation. Artificial

shading of rice plants in the daytime inhibited the electricity generation. In the rhizosphere, rice

roots penetrated the anode graphite felt where specific bacterial populations occurred.

Supplementation to the anode region with acetate (one of the major root-exhausted organic

compounds) enhanced the electricity generation in the dark. These results suggest that the

paddy-field electricity-generation system was an ecological solar cell in which the plant

photosynthesis was coupled to the microbial conversion of organics to electricity.

Biogas electricity -- The Pura village case study

Jayakumar Reddy 1993

A potentially useful decentralized source of energy is biogas, which is an approximately 60:40

mixture of methane (CH{sub 4}) and carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}), produced by the anaerobic

fermentation of cellulosic biomass materials such as bovine wastes. Since 1987, the traditional

system of obtaining water, illumination, and fertilizer in Pura village in south India has been

replaced with a community biogas plant electricity-generation system. The technical,

managerial, and economical aspects of this system are the subject manner of the present

paper. Various subsystems are described, and the problems of operation and maintenance

under field conditions are also discussed. A comparison of Pura`s present community biogas

system with its traditional means for obtaining water, illumination, and fertilizer shows that the

households are winners on all counts, having obtained such benefits as improved hygiene and

convenience at relatively low cost. The Pura community biogas plant is held together and

sustained by the convergence of individual and collective interests. Noncooperation with the

community biogas plant results in a heavy individual price (access to water and light being cut

off by the village), which is too great a personal loss to compensate for the minor advantages of

noncooperation and noncontribution to collective interests.

National renewable energy policy and local opposition in the UK: the failed development

of a biomass electricity plant

RajUpreti Horst 2005

Biomass energy developments in the UK are supported by central government but face

considerable opposition from the public. The purpose of this study is to explore the causes and

consequences of public opposition to biomass energy development in North Wiltshire where

Ambient Energy Ltd. proposed the development of a 5MWe wood gasification plant near the

town of Cricklade. The case study was conducted through in-depth interviews, content analysis,

person to person questionnaire survey, focus group discussion and participatory appraisal

methods. Though biomass energy plants in general have fewer environmental impacts than

plants which use fossil fuel, there could still be local impacts which give rise to concerns and

local opposition to the development. The opposition could be partially explained by the fact that

the general public is relatively unfamiliar with biomass energy. Public acceptance or rejection

was mainly based on the public trust or mistrust. The case study demonstrates two distinctly

rigid characteristics among the key stakeholders of biomass energy development. These are the

‘not-in-my-back-yard’ attitude from the public and the ‘there-is-no-alternative’ attitude of the

developers. These rigid stances were widely contributing to the failure of the project to

gain planning permission. The environmental justification of biomass energy at the national level

is not always sufficient to convince the local residents. Winning public support to promote

biomass energy requires an alternative approach of planning and action through interactive

communication, public participation and collective learning among all the stakeholders.
Performance of a direct steam generation solar thermal power plant for electricity

production as a function of the solar multiple

Montes Martínez-Val 2006

This paper describes the influence of the solar multiple on the annual performance of

parabolic trough solar thermal power plants with direct steam generation (DSG). The reference

system selected is a 50 MWe DSG power plant, with thermal storage and auxiliary natural gas-

fired boiler. It is considered that both systems are necessary for an optimum coupling to the

electricity grid. Although thermal storage is an opening issue for DSG technology, it gives an

additional degree of freedom for plant performance optimization. Fossil hybridization is also a

key element if a reliable electricity production must be guaranteed for a defined time span. Once

the yearly parameters of the solar power plant are calculated, the economic analysis is

performed, assessing the effect of the solar multiple in the levelized cost of electricity, as well as

in the annual natural gas consumption.