Emission of volatile organic compounds by plants on the floor of boreal and mid-latitude forests

Abstract

The forests of the boreal and mid-latitude zones of the Northern Hemisphere are the largest source of reactive volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which have an important impact on the processes occurring in the atmospheric boundary layer. However, the composition of biogenic emissions from them remains incompletely characterized, as evidenced by the significant excess OH radical concentrations predicted by models in comparison with those observed under the forest canopy. The missing OH sink in the models may be related to the fact that they do not take into account the emission of highly reactive VOCs by vegetation on the forest floor. In this work, we report the results of laboratory determinations of the composition of VOCs emitted by representatives of different groups of plants that form the living soil cover (LSC) in the forests of the boreal and mid-latitude zones: bryophytes, small shrubs, herbaceous plants, and ferns. In the chromatograms of volatile emissions of all 11 studied plant species, 254 compounds with carbon atoms ranging in number from two to 20 were registered. All plants were characterized by the emission of terpenes, accounting for 112 compounds, and the second largest group (35 substances) was formed by carbonyl compounds. Both groups of compounds are characterized by high reactivity and are easily included in the processes of gas-phase oxidation with the participation of radicals HO, NO3 and ozone. These data indicate the importance of a thorough study of the so far disregarded source of VOCs, that is, the LSC in forests.

A chemistry overview of the beautiful miniature forest known as mosses

“…This also might be the reason why a considerable number of alkanes (4.3%) and fatty alcohols (4.1%) were detected in mosses species. The detection of many sesquiterpenoids (3.7%), followed by monoterpenoids (2.11%) and diterpenoids (1.4%), is also related to GC-MS as the main analytical technique used, but also because the focus of most of these papers was the analysis of essential oils and volatile compounds (Abay et al 2015; Cuvertino-Santoni et al 2017; Isidorov et al 2022; Klegin et al 2021; Li & Zhao 2009; Pejin et al 2011; Rosenstiel et al 2012; Saritas et al 2001; Tosun et al 2015, 2014; Vicherová et al 2020; Yucel 2020).…”

Vertical profiles of volatile organic compounds and fine particles in atmospheric air by using aerial drone with miniaturized samplers and portable devices

“…Although their group could not detect selectively nitrogen-containing compounds because they used universal l sorbent material for the collection of air sample (i.e. DVB/CAR/PDMS-SPME), they could detect all other VOCs compounds at the same time from the boreal forest (Isidorov et al, 2022).…”