In Search of the Compensation Point -- Leaf-Level Exchange of Nitrogen
Oxides and Ozone for Selected Tree Species at a North America Temperate
Forest
Abstract
Biosphere-atmosphere interactions in forest settings have a large impact
on the budget and fate of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and ozone, as forests
cover over 30% of Earth’s land surface area, where major sources and
sinks of these key trace gases are located. Owing to their structure and
biological activity, forests affect trace gas transport and chemistry
both within and above the canopy. Factors such as turbulence, surface
deposition, soil emission, and gas-phase oxidation chemistry must be
considered when evaluating canopy-scale NOx and ozone fluxes.
Interactions involving these processes result in canopy-scale
bi-directional exchange of NOx. This might be further affected by
leaf-level bi-directional NOx exchange characterized by the compensation
point, the ambient NOx mixing ratio above which NOx is taken up by
leaves and below which NOx is emitted by leaves. During the summer 2016
Program for Research on Oxidants: PHotochemistry, Emissions, and
Transport campaign at the University of Michigan Biological Station, we
conducted leaf-level gas exchange experiments on white pine (Pinus
strobus), bigtooth aspen (Populus grandidentata), red maple (Acer
rubrum), and red oak (Quercus rubra), all dominant tree species of the
forest surrounding the campaign site. Known amounts of NO, NO2, or ozone
were added to a pair of branch and blank enclosures. Measurements of
these gases were made continuously in a sequence of inlet and outlet air
from the branch enclosure followed by the blank enclosure. We also
measured PAR, ambient and enclosure temperatures and moisture, leaf
temperatures and wetness, and CO2 within the enclosure. Initial analyses
show that the NOx mixing ratio differences before and after the
enclosure have a small but clear correlation to the input NOx mixing
ratio. Further analysis is required to examine the dependence of these
differences on the micro-environment of the enclosures before
conclusions can be made on the existence and magnitude of compensation
points for each tree type. These results, combined with the concurrently
observed NOx and ozone vertical gradients, will be further analyzed
using a Multi-Layer Canopy Chemistry Exchange Model for assessing the
effect of leaf-level exchange on the NOx and ozone dynamics at this
forest site.