Soil microbial communities are structured by biogeochemical processes that occur at many different spatial scales, which makes soil sampling difficult. Because soil microbial communities are important in nutrient cycling and soil fertility, it is important to understand how microbial communities function within the heterogeneous soil landscape. In this study, a self-organizing map was used to d...

The global carbon cycle is subject to intense research, where sources and sinks for greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide in particular, are estimated for various systems and biomes. Lakes have previously been neglected in carbon balance estimations, but have recently been recognized to be significant net sources of CO2. This thesis estimates emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) from boreal lakes and fa...

The aerobic biodegradability of the high explosive CL-20 by activated sludge and the white rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium has been investigated. Although activated sludge is not effective in degrading CL-20 directly, it can mineralize the alkaline hydrolysis products. Phanerochaete chrysosporium degrades CL-20 in the presence of supplementary carbon and nitrogen sources. Biodegradation ...

Decomposition is essential for carbon and nutrients cycling for all ecosystems (Hoorens et al., 2003). In lentic aquatic environments (e.g., lakes and reservoirs), aquatic macrophytes are the main autochthonous detritus source, and their mineralization is fundamental for maintaining biogeochemical cycles, associated with energy flux and detritus food-webs. (Bianchini Junior et al., 2014). In di...

Atmospheric nitrogen deposition is at a high level in some forests of South China. The effects of addition of exogenous N and P on soil organic carbon mineralization were studied to address: (1) if the atmospheric N deposition promotes soil C storage through decreasing mineralization; (2) if the soil available P is a limitation to organic carbon mineralization. Soils (0-10 cm) was sampled from ...

Due to the high volume of crude oil released by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the salt marshes along the gulf coast were contaminated with crude oil. Biodegradation of crude oil in salt marshes is primarily limited by oxygen availability due to the high organic carbon content of the soil, high flux rate of S(2-), and saturated conditions. Chlorate, nitrate, and perchlorate were evaluated for...

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is a critical and active pool in the global C cycle, and the addition of pyrogenic organic matter (PyOM) has been shown to change SOC cycling, increasing or decreasing mineralization rates (often referred to as priming). We adjusted the amount of easily mineralizable C in the soil, through 1-day and 6-month preincubations, and in PyOM made from maple wood at 350 °C, th...

Changes in resource availability often cause competitively driven changes in tree allocation to foliage, wood, and fine roots, either via plastic changes within individuals or through turnover of individuals with differing strategies. Here, we investigate how optimally competitive tree allocation should change in response to elevated atmospheric CO2 along a gradient of nitrogen and light availa...