Why is the thermodynamic efficiency of carbon uptake by terrestrial vegetation so low despite its optimal functioning?

Author(s):  
Axel Kleidon

<p>Optimality concepts have been used to successfully infer ecophysiological properties and functioning of terrestrial vegetation from the leaf- to ecosystem scale.<span>  </span>In many cases this implies, roughly speaking, that vegetation is as productive as it can possibly be.<span>  </span>However, when vegetation activity is looked at in terms of its energy conversion from the radiant energy in sunlight to the chemical energy stored in carbohydrates, it has a very low conversion efficiency of about 1% or less.<span>  </span>This is much less than what would be expected from thermodynamics applied to the photochemical conversion process.<span>  </span>How do these two seemingly contradictory views fit together?<span>  </span>Here I suggest that thermally-driven gas exchange between vegetation canopies and the lower atmosphere represents the major bottleneck, explaining the low thermodynamic efficiency of carbon uptake and setting a strong constraint to any form of vegetation optimality.<span>  </span>Gas exchange intimately links the carbon taken up by vegetation from the atmosphere for photosynthesis during the day with the water loss by evaporation, with evaporation being a major component of the surface energy balance.<span>  </span>The magnitude of this exchange is, however, not externally set by atmospheric conditions, but predominantly determined by the local heating of the surface, creating buoyancy and thus this exchange.<span>  </span>Thermodynamics sets a strong constraint on the magnitude of this locally generated exchange by the maximum power that can be derived from the absorption of solar radiation to generate the associated kinetic energy.<span>  </span>I use global, observation-based radiation and precipitation datasets and this thermodynamic constraint to quantify surface energy balance partitioning over land as well as the associated rate of evaporation at the climatological scale.<span>  </span>I then use a typical value for the water use efficiency observed in vegetation to convert this evaporative flux to a carbon uptake flux by vegetation and show that the derived fluxes of water and carbon compare very well to observation-based estimates across regions.<span>  </span>This means that the low thermodynamic efficiency of terrestrial carbon uptake should not be attributed to an inefficient use of light, but rather to the low efficiency by which radiative heating generates gas exchange that is needed to supply canopies with carbon dioxide and that maintains evaporation.<span>  </span>This interpretation has broad implications for the role of vegetation in the Earth system.<span>  </span>It implies that physically-driven gas exchange with the atmosphere - and not energy directly - is a major constraint on vegetation activity, shaping its geographic patterns.<span>  </span>Given this constraint, vegetation may then maximize its carbon uptake for the given evaporative flux, but it has comparatively little control over evaporation and surface energy balance partitioning if sufficient water is available.<span>  </span>Applied to global warming, this then implies that the response of evaporation is mostly determined by changes in the radiative forcing and water availability, and not by stomatal responses.</p>

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Rebecca L. Stewart ◽  
Matthew Westoby ◽  
Francesca Pellicciotti ◽  
Ann Rowan ◽  
Darrel Swift ◽  
...  

Abstract Surface energy-balance models are commonly used in conjunction with satellite thermal imagery to estimate supraglacial debris thickness. Removing the need for local meteorological data in the debris thickness estimation workflow could improve the versatility and spatiotemporal application of debris thickness estimation. We evaluate the use of regional reanalysis data to derive debris thickness for two mountain glaciers using a surface energy-balance model. Results forced using ERA-5 agree with AWS-derived estimates to within 0.01 ± 0.05 m for Miage Glacier, Italy, and 0.01 ± 0.02 m for Khumbu Glacier, Nepal. ERA-5 data were then used to estimate spatiotemporal changes in debris thickness over a ~20-year period for Miage Glacier, Khumbu Glacier and Haut Glacier d'Arolla, Switzerland. We observe significant increases in debris thickness at the terminus for Haut Glacier d'Arolla and at the margins of the expanding debris cover at all glaciers. While simulated debris thickness was underestimated compared to point measurements in areas of thick debris, our approach can reconstruct glacier-scale debris thickness distribution and its temporal evolution over multiple decades. We find significant changes in debris thickness over areas of thin debris, areas susceptible to high ablation rates, where current knowledge of debris evolution is limited.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Tim Hill ◽  
Christine F. Dow ◽  
Eleanor A. Bash ◽  
Luke Copland

Abstract Glacier surficial melt rates are commonly modelled using surface energy balance (SEB) models, with outputs applied to extend point-based mass-balance measurements to regional scales, assess water resource availability, examine supraglacial hydrology and to investigate the relationship between surface melt and ice dynamics. We present an improved SEB model that addresses the primary limitations of existing models by: (1) deriving high-resolution (30 m) surface albedo from Landsat 8 imagery, (2) calculating shadows cast onto the glacier surface by high-relief topography to model incident shortwave radiation, (3) developing an algorithm to map debris sufficiently thick to insulate the glacier surface and (4) presenting a formulation of the SEB model coupled to a subsurface heat conduction model. We drive the model with 6 years of in situ meteorological data from Kaskawulsh Glacier and Nàłùdäy (Lowell) Glacier in the St. Elias Mountains, Yukon, Canada, and validate outputs against in situ measurements. Modelled seasonal melt agrees with observations within 9% across a range of elevations on both glaciers in years with high-quality in situ observations. We recommend applying the model to investigate the impacts of surface melt for individual glaciers when sufficient input data are available.


2008 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 819-834 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy M. Barzyk ◽  
John E. Frederick

Abstract Individual structures within the same local-scale (102–104 m) environment may experience different microscale (<103 m) climates. Urban microclimate variations are often a result of site-specific features, including spatial and material characteristics of surfaces and surrounding structures. A semiempirical surface energy balance model is presented that incorporates radiative and meteorological measurements to statistically parameterize energy fluxes that are not measured directly, including sensible heat transport, storage heat flux through conduction, and evaporation (assumed to be negligible under dry conditions). Two Chicago rooftops were chosen for detailed study. The City Hall site was located in an intensely developed urban area characterized by close-set high-rise buildings. The University rooftop was in a highly developed area characterized by three- to seven-story buildings of stone, concrete, and brick construction. Two identical sets of instruments recorded measurements contemporaneously from these rooftops during summer 2005, and results from the week of 29 July to 5 August are presented here. The model explains 83.7% and 96% of the variance for the City Hall and University sites, respectively. Results apply to a surface area of approximately 1260 m2, at length scales similar to the dimensions of built structures and other urban elements. A site intercomparison revealed variations in surface energy balance components caused by site-specific features and demonstrated the relevance of the model to urban applications.


2009 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis Octavio Lagos ◽  
Derrel L. Martin ◽  
Shashi B. Verma ◽  
Andrew Suyker ◽  
Suat Irmak

2021 ◽  
Vol 58 (03) ◽  
pp. 274-285
Author(s):  
H. V. Parmar ◽  
N. K. Gontia

Remote sensing based various land surface and bio-physical variables like Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Land Surface Temperature (LST), surface albedo, transmittance and surface emissivity are useful for the estimation of spatio-temporal variations in evapotranspiration (ET) using Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL) method. These variables were estimated under the present study for Ozat-II canal command in Junagadh district, Gujarat, India, using Landsat-7 and Landsat-8 images of summer season of years 2014 and 2015. The derived parameters were used in SEBAL to estimate the Actual Evapotranspiration (AET) of groundnut and sesame crops. The lower values NDVI observed during initial (March) and end (May) stages of crop growth indicated low vegetation cover during these periods. With full canopy coverage of the crops, higher value of NDVI (0.90) was observed during the mid-crop growth stage. The remote sensing-based LST was lower for agricultural areas and the area near banks of the canal and Ozat River, while higher surface temperatures were observed for rural settlements, road and areas with exposed dry soil. The maximum surface temperatures in the cropland were observed as 311.0 K during March 25, 2014 and 315.8 K during May 31, 2015. The AET of summer groundnut increased from 3.75 to 7.38 mm.day-1, and then decreased to 3.99 mm.day-1 towards the end stage of crop growth. The daily AET of summer sesame ranged from 1.06 to 7.72 mm.day-1 over different crop growth stages. The seasonal AET of groundnut and sesame worked out to 358.19 mm and 346.31 mm, respectively. The estimated AET would be helpful to schedule irrigation in the large canal command.


2016 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel Alves Veloso ◽  
Manuel Eduardo Ferreira ◽  
Roberto Rosa ◽  
Bernardo Barbosa Da Silva

O presente estudo teve como objetivo determinar o albedo de áreas irrigadas do projeto Jaíba. A área de estudo encontra-se localizada no Norte de Minas Gerais, entre as coordenadas UTM de 595204 e 626309 E e 8308401 e 8341257 N. Na elaboração do trabalho foram utilizadas imagens TM do Satélite Landsat 5, órbita/ponto 219/70, obtidas nos dias 31 de janeiro, dia Juliano 31 (DJ31), 21 de abril (DJ111), 24 de junho (DJ175), 10 de julho (DJ191) e 12 de setembro (DJ255), todas do ano de 2011. A determinação do albedo de superfície foi realizada segundo os procedimentos do algoritmo SEBAL (Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land), que se baseia na radiância dos canais refletivos do TM.  A pesquisa obteve valores de albedo de superfície dos dias 31 e 111 para o rio São Francisco na ordem de 9 a 13%, associados ao aumento da carga de sedimentos provocado pela estação chuvosa. Os resultados do albedo de vegetação nativa foram os que demonstraram maior variação, apresentando valores na ordem de 9 a 16%. Este resultado pode estar associado à dinâmica que as estações do ano imprimem na vegetação e na pastagem, sendo que o dia 255 apresentou maior variação no período analisado, período este correspondente ao de estiagem. Os valores observados nas áreas irrigadas foram na ordem de 16 a 23%, enquanto os valores de vegetação degradada, pastagem e solo exposto variaram na ordem de 23 a 32%, sendo estes coerentes com os encontrados na literatura.


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