O2, pH, and redox potential microprofiles around Potamogeton malaianus measured using microsensors

This study aimed to elucidate the effects of periphyton on the microprofiles of oxygen (O2), pH, and oxidation-reduction potential around the stems and leaves of a submerged macrophyte Potamogeton malaianus and on the plant growth in the eutrophic shallow Taihu Lake, China. The microprofiles were measured using a motorized microprofiling system equipped with microsensors. The leaf age of the macrophyte and periphyton exerted significant effects on the microprofiles of O2, pH, and oxidation-reduction potential. O2 concentration and pH increased whereas the oxidation-reduction potential decreased with decreasing distance to the stem/leaf surface. The fluctuation amplitudes of O2, pH, and oxidation-reduction potential were the largest in the microprofiles of mature leaves and the lowest in senescent leaves. The periphyton increased the thickness of the broad diffusive boundary layer and fluctuation amplitudes of O2, pH, and oxidation-reduction potential. When the periphyton was removed, the thickness of the broad diffusive boundary layer in the microprofiles of stems, senescent leaves, and mature leaves reduced by 29.0%, 49.72%, and 70.34%, and the O2, pH, and oxidation-reduction potential fluctuation amplitudes also declined accordingly. Our results suggest that a thick periphyton exerted negative effects on the growth of macrophytes by providing extensive shading and creating a barrier that hindered the transport of dissolved substances such as O2, and led to premature decline in macrophytes in the eutrophic Taihu Lake. The consequent implications can help to elucidate the control mechanism of the broad diffusive boundary layer around macrophytes on nutrient cycling in eutrophic waters and to better understand the role of this layer in the Taihu Lake and other similar eutrophic waters.