Subsoil Soil Organic Matter Complexation and Stabilization: Assessment of Abiotic and Biotic Controls

Approximately 1200-2000 petagrams (Pg-1015 g) of carbon are stored in the Earth's soil as soil organic matter (SOM), representing two times the amount of carbon stored in the Earth's vegetation and atmosphere combined. SOM significantly influences several essential ecosystem services including nutrient cycling, mitigation of soil erosion, and storage of atmospheric CO2. The majority of studies investigating SOM complexation and stabilization potential mainly occur within the A soil horizon completely ignoring deeper soil horizons. Studies aimed at investigating specific abiotic and biotic interactions that facilitate the complexation and stabilization potential of SOM to C-limited subsoil horizons are needed in order to develop an accurate soil carbon budget. The purpose of this study was to determine the degree to which the presence or absence of iron oxide in combination with increasing degrees of biological processing (micro-macrofauna) would complex and stabilize SOM. We conducted a series of laboratory soil incubation experiments using carbon amended B horizon soils with low and high iron oxide concentrations with increasing levels of biological processing. The experimental design of our study allowed us to track the possible fate of soil carbon: (i) CO2 mineralization (modified Li-COR), (ii) particulate organic matter (density fractionization), mineral surface complexed carbon (N2 adsorption BET method) and (iii) organism biomass. Results from our study clearly demonstrate that the greater the degree of macro-scale biological processing (i.e. mixing) in conjunction with the presence of iron oxide significantly increased the complexation and stabilization potential of SOM. Our results further suggest that organic matter interaction with mineral surfaces and entombment within stable soil aggregates were the primary mechanisms controlling SOM storage. This study reveals the importance of biological SOM burial and mixing with C-limited subsoil horizons as a critical mechanism influencing soil carbon sequestration potential.