Collaborative Research: Rivers and the Carbon Cycle: A Mechanistic Basis for Dissolved Organic Carbon Removal

溪流和河流对于去除水在景观中流动时从陆地上运输的有机物非常重要。 关于有机物是如何从淡水中去除的，还有许多问题。 一个关键的挑战是，并非所有的有机物都是一样的。 溶解在淡水中的有机物由许多不同的化合物组成。这些化合物的年龄、来源和化学成分各不相同，所有这些都会影响它们的加工速度。 为了克服这一挑战，研究人员将收集实时传感器数据，并设计现场规模的实验，以测量有机物被河流去除的速度。该项目旨在测试关于哪些过程控制着溪流和河流中不同类型有机物的去除的假设。 这一点很重要，因为有机物提供了支持食物网的能量，并可能污染下游生态系统。有机物处理还可以决定溪流和河流向大气的温室气体排放率。这项研究也将提供宝贵的机会，高中教师参与调查，这将提高他们的能力，以满足下一代科学标准。什么过程驱动流中的有机碳去除，以及有机碳去除如何调节运行的沃茨是生物反应器与有机碳的出口商的程度？ 这些都是碳循环研究中尚未解决的关键问题。 该项目将开发一种概念验证方法，以测试混合有机物源（即启动）的非累加效应控制溪流中有机碳去除的假设。 数据产品将包括从生态系统代谢和河流化学中得出的有机碳周转距离估计数，以及从使用单一来源和混合有机碳添加物的生态系统一级实验中得出的有机碳去除的经验性措施。 项目数据和计算机源代码将分别通过HydroShare和GitHub公开共享。 这项研究将在平头湖生物站进行，研究人员将与该站合作？美国国家科学基金会最近资助了SensorSpace，这是一个用于建造和测试新型环境传感器的社区设施，也是一个将基于传感器的数据整合到下一代科学课程中的测试平台。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

Streams and rivers are important for the removal of organic matter transported from land as water moves across landscapes. Many questions remain about how organic matter is removed from freshwaters. A key challenge is that not all organic matter is the same. Organic matter dissolved in freshwaters is made up of many different compounds. These compounds range in age, source, and chemical composition, all of which can influence how fast they are processed. To overcome this challenge, researchers will collect real-time sensor data and design field-scale experiments to measure how fast organic matter is removed by streams. The project aims to test hypotheses about what processes control the removal of different types of organic matter from streams and rivers. This is important because organic matter provides energy that supports food webs, and can pollute downstream ecosystems. Organic matter processing can also determine rates of greenhouse emissions from streams and rivers to the atmosphere. This research will also provide valuable opportunities for high school teachers to engage in investigations that will enhance their ability to meet Next-Generation Science standards.What processes drive organic carbon removal in streams, and how does organic carbon removal regulate the degree to which running waters are biological reactors versus exporters of organic carbon? These are key unresolved questions in carbon cycle research. This project will develop a proof-of-concept approach to test the hypothesis that non-additive effects of mixed organic matter sources (i.e. priming) control organic carbon removal in streams. Data products will include estimates of organic carbon turnover distance derived from ecosystem metabolism and stream chemistry, as well as empirical measures of organic carbon removal from ecosystem-level experiments that use single-source and mixed organic carbon additions. Project data and computer source codes will be shared openly via HydroShare and GitHub, respectively. The research will be conducted at Flathead Lake Biological Station and the researchers will partner with the Station?s recently funded SensorSpace, a community facility for construction and testing of novel environmental sensors, as well as a test bed for integrating sensor-based data into Next-Generation Science curricula.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.