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Updated: Oct 25, 2025

Measuring Phosphorus Release in Laboratory Microcosms for Water Quality Assessment
Published on: July 22, 2019
Contrasting effects of carbon source recalcitrance on soil phosphorus availability and communities of phosphorus
Yanlan Huang1, Zhongmin Dai2, Jiahui Lin1
1Institute of Soil and Water Resources and Environmental Science, College of Environmental and Resource Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Agricultural Resources and Environment, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
Abstract:
Carbon (C) additions to soil interact through chemical and microbiological processes to cause changes in soil phosphorus (P) availability. However, the response of soil P transformations and relevant microbial communities to C additions having different degrees of recalcitrance remains uncertain. We studied the effects of glucose, hemicellulose and lignin addition on soil P availability, P transformation processes and relevant microbial activity and communities in a P-deficient flooded soil. Lignin significantly increased soil available P concentrations, which was attributed to chemical release of inorganic P and increased alkaline phosphatase activity. Glucose and hemicellulose additions stimulated microbial metabolism of C thereby enhancing microbial demand for P, with increased soil P availability especially in the early incubation period. Glucose or hemicellulose addition changed soil microbial diversity and community composition, leading to enhanced growth and interactions of P solubilizing microorganisms such as Desulfitobacterium, Bacillus and Desulfosporosinus. Our results infer the importance of pH alteration and competitive sorption between PO4 and functional groups of recalcitrant C (e.g., lignin) with Fe/Al (hydr) oxides in regulating soil P availability. Further, the microbial response to labile C additions led to increased P availability in the P-deficient soil. This study provides important mechanistic information to guide microbially-regulated soil P management in agricultural ecosystems.
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