Presented by

D. R. Bouldin
Crop & Soil Sciences

Tuesday, March 28, 2000
3:30-4:30 PM
135 Emerson Hall

Abstract

Carbon dioxide concentrations in soil solution, ground water, streams, water in flooded rice, reservoirs and lakes is seldom equal to what would be expected if the solutions were in equilibrium with atmospheric carbon dioxide. The major "buffering agent" for pH in most of these solutions is provided by the carbonic acid species and hence pH varies widely depending on actual amount of CO2 in solution. In addition, many of these solutions are supersaturated with respect to calcium carbonate precipitates. The content of carbon dioxide and carbonic acid species in solution is a consequence of competing source-sink processes whose outcome is not easily predicted. The several examples listed in the title illustrate the importance of being able to do so and hence provide a wonderful source of research opportunities.