A combined flow cell–respiration box to quantify carbon transformation processes in undisturbed soil

Abstract

A new experimental laboratory design is introduced to analyze and quantify transport and turnover processes in top- and subsoils. The proposed technique allows the monitoring of transformation processes in an undisturbed soil matrix while preserving entirely intact soil particle interfaces. The experimental setup with undisturbed soil samples, which are embedded into two coupled gas sealed chambers, allows on-time measurement of soil respiration processes under realistic moisture, water flux, and temperature conditions.