Diurnal hysteresis between soil CO2 and soil temperature is controlled by soil water content

Abstract

Recent years have seen a growing interest in measuring and modeling soil CO2 efflux, as this flux represents a large component of ecosystem respiration and is a key determinant of ecosystem carbon balance. Process‐based models of soil CO2 production and efflux, commonly based on soil temperature, are limited by nonlinearities such as the observed diurnal hysteresis between soil CO2 concentration ([CO2]) and temperature. Here we quantify the degree to which hysteresis between soil [CO2] and soil temperature is controlled by soil water content in a montane conifer forest, and how this nonlinearity impacts estimates of soil CO2 efflux. A representative model that does not consider hysteresis overestimated soil CO2 efflux for the entire growing season by 19%. At high levels of soil water content, hysteresis imposes organized, daily variability in the relationship between soil [CO2] and soil temperature, and at low levels of soil water content, hysteresis is minimized.