Diel plant water use and competitive soil cation exchange interact to enhance NH4+ and K+ availability in the rhizosphere

© The Author(s), 2016. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Plant and Soil 414 (2017): 33-51, doi:10.1007/s11104-016-3089-5.Hydro-biogeochemical processes in the rhizosphere regulate nutrient and water availability, and thus ecosystem productivity. We hypothesized that two such processes often neglected in rhizosphere models — diel plant water use and competitive cation exchange — could interact to enhance availability of K+ and NH4+, both high-demand nutrients. A rhizosphere model with competitive cation exchange was used to investigate how diel plant water use (i.e., daytime transpiration coupled with no nighttime water use, with nighttime root water release, and with nighttime transpiration) affects competitive ion interactions and availability of K+ and NH4+. Competitive cation exchange enabled low-demand cations that accumulate against roots (Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+) to desorb NH4+ and K+ from soil, generating non-monotonic dissolved concentration profiles (i.e. ‘hotspots’ 0.1–1 cm from the root). Cation accumulation and competitive desorption increased with net root water uptake. Daytime transpiration rate controlled diel variation in NH4+ and K+ aqueous mass, nighttime water use controlled spatial locations of ‘hotspots’, and day-to-night differences in water use controlled diel differences in ‘hotspot’ concentrations. Diel plant water use and competitive cation exchange enhanced NH4+ and K+ availability and influenced rhizosphere concentration dynamics. Demonstrated responses have implications for understanding rhizosphere nutrient cycling and plant nutrient uptake.This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Biological & Environmental Research Terrestrial Ecosystem Science program under Award Number DE-SC0008182 to Z.G.C. and R.B.N

Benchmark problems for reactive transport modeling of the generation and attenuation of acid rock drainage

Acid rock drainage (ARD) is a problem of international relevance with substantial environmental and economic implications. Reactive transport modeling has proven a powerful tool for the process-based assessment of metal release and attenuation at ARD sites. Although a variety of models has been used to investigate ARD, a systematic model intercomparison has not been conducted to date. This contribution presents such a model intercomparison involving three synthetic benchmark problems designed to evaluate model results for the most relevant processes at ARD sites. The first benchmark (ARD-B1) focuses on the oxidation of sulfide minerals in an unsaturated tailing impoundment, affected by the ingress of atmospheric oxygen. ARD-B2 extends the first problem to include pH buffering by primary mineral dissolution and secondary mineral precipitation. The third problem (ARD-B3) in addition considers the kinetic and pH-dependent dissolution of silicate minerals under low pH conditions. The set of benchmarks was solved by four reactive transport codes, namely CrunchFlow, Flotran, HP1, and MIN3P. The results comparison focused on spatial profiles of dissolved concentrations, pH and pE, pore gas composition, and mineral assemblages. In addition, results of transient profiles for selected elements and cumulative mass loadings were considered in the intercomparison. Despite substantial differences in model formulations, very good agreement was obtained between the various codes. Residual deviations between the results are analyzed and discussed in terms of their implications for capturing system evolution and long-term mass loading predictions

Offsetting of CO₂ emissions by air capture in mine tailings at the Mount Keith Nickel Mine, Western Australia: Rates, controls and prospects for carbon neutral mining

The hydrated Mg-carbonate mineral, hydromagnesite [Mg₅(CO₃)₄(OH)₂•4H₂O], precipitates within mine tailings at the Mount Keith Nickel Mine, Western Australia as a direct result of mining operations. We have used quantitative mineralogical data and δ¹³C, δ¹⁸O and F¹⁴C isotopic data to quantify the amount of CO₂fixation and identify carbon sources. Our radiocarbon results indicate that at least 80% of carbon stored in hydromagnesite has been captured from the modern atmosphere. Stable isotopic results indicate that dissolution of atmospheric CO₂ into mine tailings water is kinetically limited, which suggests that the current rate of carbon mineralization could be accelerated. Reactive transport modeling is used to describe the observed variation in tailings mineralogy and to estimate rates of CO₂ fixation. Based on our assessment, approximately 39,800 t/yr of atmospheric CO₂ are being trapped and stored in tailings at Mount Keith. This represents an offsetting of approximately 11% of the mine's annual greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, passive sequestration via enhanced weathering of mineral waste can capture and store a significant amount of CO₂. Recommendations are made for changes to tailings management and ore processing practices that have potential to accelerate carbonation of tailings and further reduce or completely offset the net greenhouse gas emissions at Mount Keith and many other mines

Tracing molybdenum attenuation in mining environments using molybdenum stable isotopes

Molybdenum contamination is a concern in mining regions worldwide. Better understanding of processes controlling Mo mobility in mine wastes is critical for assessing potential impacts and developing water-quality management strategies associated to this element. Here, we used Mo stable isotope (δ98/95Mo) analyses to investigate geochemical controls on Mo mobility within a tailings management facility (TMF) featuring oxic and anoxic environments. These isotopic analyses were integrated with X-ray absorption spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and aqueous chemical data. Dissolved Mo concentrations were inversely correlated with δ98/95Mo values such that enrichment of heavy Mo isotopes in solution reflected attenuation processes. Inner-sphere complexation of Mo(VI) with ferrihydrite was the primary driver of Mo removal and was accompanied by a circa 1 ‰ isotope fractionation. Limited Mo attenuation and isotope fractionation was observed in Fe(II)- and Mo-rich anoxic TMF seepage, while attenuation and isotope fractionation were greatest during discharge and oxidation of this seepage after discharge into a pond where Fe-(oxyhydr)oxide precipitation promoted Mo sorption. Overall, this study highlights the role of sorption onto Fe-(oxyhydr)oxides in attenuating Mo in oxic environments, a process which can be traced by Mo isotope analyses

Comparison of numerical methods for simulating strongly non-linear and heterogeneous reactive transport problems – the MoMaS benchmark case

International audienceAlthough multicomponent reactive transport modeling is gaining wider application in various geoscience fields, it continues to present significant mathematical and computational challenges. There is a need to solve and compare the solutions to complex benchmark problems, using a variety of codes, because such intercomparisons can reveal promising numerical solution approaches and increase confidence in the application of reactive transport codes. In this contribution, the results and performance of five current reactive transport codes are compared for the 1D and 2D sub-problems of the so-called "Easy Test Case" of the MoMaS benchmark (Carrayrou et al., this issue). As a group, the codes include iterative and non-iterative operator splitting, and global implicit solution approaches. The 1D Easy Advective and 1D Easy Diffusive scenarios were solved using all codes and, in general, there was good agreement, with solution discrepancies limited to regions with rapid concentration changes. Computational demands were typically consistent with what was expected for the various solution approaches. The most important outcome of the benchmark exercise is that all codes are able to generate comparable results for problems of significant complexity and computational difficulty

Dissecting the knee - Air shower measurements with KASCADE

Recent results of the KASCADE air shower experiment are presented in order to shed some light on the astrophysics of cosmic rays in the region of the knee in the energy spectrum. The results include investigations of high-energy interactions in the atmosphere, the analysis of the arrival directions of cosmic rays, the determination of the mean logarithmic mass, and the unfolding of energy spectra for elemental groups