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Effects of Long-term Exposure to Black Carbon Particles on Growth and Gas

Exchange Rates of Fagus crenata, Castanopsis sieboldii, Larix kaempferi and
Cryptomeria japonica Seedlings

Article in Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment · December 2012

DOI: 10.5572/ajae.2012.6.4.259

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 Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
Vol. 6-4, pp.259-267, December 2012
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.5572/ajae.2012.6.4.259

Effects of Long-term Exposure to Black Carbon Particles

on Growth and Gas Exchange Rates of Fagus crenata,
Castanopsis sieboldii, Larix kaempferi and
Cryptomeria japonica Seedlings
Masahiro Yamaguchi, Yoko Otani1), Kenta Takeda1), I. Wuled Lenggoro2), Atsushi Ishida3), Kenichi Yazaki4),
Kyotaro Noguchi5), Hiroyuki Sase6), Naoto Murao7), Satoshi Nakaba8), Kenichi Yamane8), Katsushi Kuroda4),
Yuzou Sano9), Ryo Funada8) and Takeshi Izuta8),*

Faculty of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, 3-5-8 Saiwaicho, Fuchu, Tokyo 183-8509, Japan
1)
Graduate School of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, 3-5-8 Saiwaicho, Fuchu, Tokyo 183-8509, Japan
2)
Institute of Engineering, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, 2-24-16 Nakacho, Koganei, Tokyo 184-8588, Japan
3)
Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, 509-3, 2-chome, Hirano, Otsu, Shiga 520-2113, Japan
4)
Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, 1 Matsunosato, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8687, Japan
5)
Shikoku Research Center, Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, Kochi, Kochi 780-8077, Japan
6)
Asia Center for Air Pollution Research, 1182 Sowa Nishi-ku, Niigata-shi, Niigata 950-2144, Japan
7)
Graduate School of Engineering, Hokkaido University, Kita 13, Nishi 8, Kita-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-8628, Japan
8)
Institute of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, 3-5-8 Saiwaicho, Fuchu, Tokyo 183-8509, Japan
9)
Graduate School of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Kita 9, Nishi 9, Kita-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-8589, Japan
*Corresponding author. Tel: +81-42-367-5728, E-mail: izuta@cc.tuat.ac.jp

base diameter during the experimental period and

ABSTRACT the whole-plant dry mass at the end of the experi-
ment. These results indicate that the exposure to BC
To clarify the effects of black carbon (BC) particles on particles with sub-micron size for two growing sea-
growth and gas exchange rates of Asian forest tree sons did not significantly affect the growth and leaf or
species, the seedlings of Fagus crenata, Castanopsis needle gas exchange rates of F. crenata, C. sieboldii,
sieboldii, Larix kaempferi and Cryptomeria japonica L. kaempferi and C. japonica seedlings.
were exposed to BC particles with sub-micron size for
two growing seasons from 1 June 2009 to 11 Novem- Key words: Forest tree species, Black carbon parti-
ber 2010. The BC particles deposited after the expo- cles, Exposure, Growth, Gas exchange rates, Stoma-
sure to BC were observed on the foliar surface of the tal diffusive conductance
4 tree species. At the end of the experiment, the
amount of BC accumulated on the foliar surface after
the exposure to BC aerosols were 0.13, 0.69, 0.32
and 0.58 mg C m-2 total leaf area in F. crenata, C. 1. INTRODUCTION
sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica seedlings, re-
spectively. In August 2010, the exposure to BC parti- Recently, East Asian countries face the problem of
cles did not significantly affect net photosynthetic rate transboundary air pollution including aerosol particles
under any light intensity, stomatal diffusive conduc- and its effects on vegetation (Izuta and Funada, 2010).
tance to water vapour (gs), stomatal limitation of pho- The aerosol particles present in the atmosphere vary in
tosynthesis, response of gs to increase in vapour pres- size from a few nm to a few hundred μm in diameter
sure deficit and leaf temperature under light saturat- (Chin et al., 2007). The sub-micron sized particles are
ed condition in the leaves or needles of the seedlings. originated mainly from the anthropogenic sources (e.g.
These results suggest that the BC particles deposited combustion) (Kasahara, 2004; Colvile, 2002). Because
on the foliar surface did not reduce net photosynthe- the particles with sub-micron size deposit quite slowly
sis by shading, did not increase leaf temperature by to terrestrial surfaces, sub-micron sized particles have
absorption of irradiation light, and did not induce relatively long atmospheric lifetimes in the absence of
plugging of stomata in the leaves or needles of the precipitation and are transboundary air pollutant (Fow-
seedlings. There were no significant effects of BC par- ler, 2002; Colvile, 2002). Furthermore, the deposition
ticles on the increments of plant height and stem rates onto forests are substantially larger than those
260 Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment, Vol. 6(4), 259-267, 2012

onto short vegetation (Matsuda et al., 2010; Petroff et surface was avoided. For each tree species, 10 seed-
al., 2008; Fowler, 2002; Ruijgrok et al., 1997). There- lings were assigned to each chamber, for a total of 60
fore, it is necessary to clarify the effects of sub-micron seedlings per species. The whole-plant dry mass, plant
sized aerosol particles on growth and physiological height and stem base diameter of the seedlings at the
functions of East Asian forest tree species. beginning of the experiment were 11.7±3.3 g, 31.0±
Limited information on the effects of sub-micron 3.7 cm and 6.6±0.8 mm for F. crenata, 13.0±2.9 g,
sized aerosol particles on plants is available at the pre- 35.0±3.4 cm and 4.7±0.5 mm for C. sieboldii, 2.9±
sent time. Burkhardt et al. (2001) reported that the ex- 0.8 g, 19.9±2.9 cm and 4.1±0.5 mm for L. kaempferi,
posure to NaNO3 particles (0.5-1.0 μm in diameter) for and 2.2±0.9 g, 19.2±3.1 cm and 3.3±0.6 mm for C.
3 to 4 hours increased transpiration rate in the leaves of japonica, respectively.
Sambucus nigra. Hirano et al. (1995, 1991) reported In the chambers, air temperature and relative air hu-
that the exposure of Cucumis sativus and Phaseolus midity were maintained at 25.0±1.0/18.0±1.0� C (6:
vulguris to black carbon (BC) particles within 3 min. 00-18:00/18:00-6:00) and 70±5%, respectively, from
reduced net photosynthetic rate by shading, and in- 1 June to 7 December 2009 and from 17 April to 11
creased leaf temperature by absorption of irradiation November 2010. From 7 January to 19 March 2010,
light. These authors used BC with primary particle the seedlings were grown under field condition to in-
sizes of 0.03-0.2 μm (SEM-based sizes), and based on duce winter dormancy. During the winter dormancy
the fluidized bed-type aerosol generator they used, period, to avoid washing out of any particles deposited
their system dispersed particles over a size range from on the leaf or needle surface, all the seedlings were
sub-μm to few ten μm. However, there is no informa- protected from natural precipitation and snowfall by a
tion on the long-term effects of sub-micron sized aero- transparent polyvinylchloride roof on rainy and snowy
sol particles on growth and physiological functions days. For approximately one month before and after
such as photosynthesis of forest tree species. the winter dormancy period, to acclimatize the seed-
The BC is a component of fine particulate matter. lings to field condition, air temperature and relative air
The main sources of BC are combustion of fossil fuels humidity in the chambers were maintained at 17.0±
and biomass burning (WHO, 2012). The major source 1.0/12.0±1.0� C (6:00-18:00/18:00-6:00) and 60±5%,
regions of BC are developing nations in the tropics respectively. During the growth period, all the seedlings
and East Asia (Ramanathan and Carmichael, 2008). In were irrigated as necessary with tap water and fertiliz-
Asian region, furthermore, it is predicted that BC emis- ed at the two-week intervals with 200 mL of liquid fer-
sions will increase (Ohara et al., 2007). To evaluate the tilizer (HYPONeX, N : P : K= =6% : 10% : 5%, Hypo-
effects of anthropogenic aerosol particles such as BC nex Japan Co. Ltd., Japan) diluted 2,000 times.
particles on forest ecosystems in East Asia, in the pre-
sent study, we investigated the effects of BC particles 2. 2 Black Carbon Exposure
with sub-micron size on growth and physiological The seedlings were exposed to black carbon (BC)
functions of forest tree species native to East Asia. particles with sub-micron size generated by an aerosol
generator system newly developed for this study. The
system is based on an electrostatic-spray (Lenggoro
2. MATERIALS AND METHODS et al., 2002) running for 10 min. and an ultrasonic ne-
bulizer (Wang et al., 2008) running for 5 min. using
2. 1 Plant Materials suspension of BC particles. The source of BC is a
On 8 May 2009, 3-year-old seedlings of Fagus cre- combustion-derived nanopowders (suspension) with
nata (deciduous broad-leaved tree), 2-year-old seed- primary particle size around 30 nm, and mainly con-
lings of Castanopsis sieboldii (evergreen broad-leaved sisting of elemental carbon. The size distributions of
tree), 1-year-old seedlings of Larix kaempferi (decidu- generated and suspended aerosols in the dry condition
ous conifer) and 1-year-old seedlings of Cryptomeria (i.e. the solid BC particles) were measured by a real-
japonica (evergreen conifer) were individually planted time technique based on a differential mobility analyz-
in 2 L pots filled with Kanuma pumice soil. During the er (DMA) method (Wang et al., 2008; Lenggoro et al.,
experimental period from 1 June 2009 to 11 November 2002). The measured mean size of BC particles was
2010, the seedlings were grown in 6 phytotron cham- between 100-300 nm. This result indicates that the gen-
bers (around 2×2×2 m glasshouse with an air-condi- erated (dry) aerosols are formed by the aggregation of
tioner system) located at Tokyo University of Agricul- BC particles having primary particle size of around
ture and Technology (Fuchu, Tokyo, Japan). In the 30 nm. From 13 June 2009 to 6 January 2010 and from
chambers, the seedlings received natural day length, 21 March 2010 to 12 June 2010, the half of the seed-
and washing out of any particles deposited on the foliar lings were exposed to BC particles every two days with-
 Effects of Black Carbon Particles on East Asian Forest Tree Species 261

in 6:00-9:00 (BC treatment), and the other half of the and needles were air-dried in desiccators, fixed onto
seedlings were not exposed to the particles (control specimen stubs for FE-SEM and coated with platinum-
treatment). Because the deposition efficiency of sub- palladium using a sputter coater or with platinum by
micro-meter sized aerosols is low, the BC particles vacuum evaporation. The foliar surface was observed
were driven against the seedlings under windless con- under field-emission scanning electron microscopes
dition in the present study. The windless condition was (S-4800, HITACHI) at 0.5 to 2.5 kV.
achieved by stopping the air circulation and air-condi-
tioner system. To avoid the adverse effect of high air 2. 5 Quantification of BC Particles Deposited
temperature on the seedlings during the stopping the on Foliar Surface
system, it is necessary to conduct the BC exposure On 12-17 November 2010, the leaves or needles of
during the time when ambient air temperature and sun- the harvested seedlings were washed with distilled wa-
light intensity were low. On the other hand, it was re- ter followed by the washing with chloroform for 20
ported that aerosol particles has plugging effect on seconds. To quantify MBC, the particles suspended in
stomata (Hirano et al., 1995; Flückiger et al., 1979; the distilled water and chloroform were then collected
Ricks and Williams, 1974). Because light stimulates on a quartz fiber filter (QR-100, Advantec MFS, Inc.,
stomatal opening (Roelfsema and Hedrich, 2005), ex- Japan) by filtration. Filtration efficiency of BC parti-
posure to BC was conducted within 6:00-9:00 to clari- cles suspended in water was considered to be more
fy the plugging effect of sub-micron sized BC particles than 80% (Matsuda et al., 2012) and that in chloroform
on stomata. From 7 January to 20 March 2010, BC ex- was confirmed as more than 90% according to the me-
posure could not be conducted, because the seedlings thod of Matsuda et al. (2012) (data not shown). To de-
were not enclosed during winter dormancy period as termine the amounts of BC particles collected on the
mentioned above. At the end of the first growing sea- quartz fiber filter, the absorbance at 580 nm of the
son, the amount of BC deposited on foliar surface quartz fiber filters (A580) were measured by a spectro-
(MBC) of the seedlings were lower than that observed photometer with an integrating sphere (U-4100, Hitachi
in the field which may include particles larger than few High Technologies Corp., Japan). In the quantification
micrometers (e.g. Matsuda et al., 2012). To achieve of BC, a calibration line was made between A580 of the
the greater MBC, therefore, the exposure time was ex- filter and amount of BC collected on the filters mea-
tended to 5 times and the seedlings grown in the BC sured by the thermal optical reflectance method using
treatment were exposed to BC particles every day with- a DRI OC/EC carbon analyzer (Model 2001A). The
in 6:00-9:00 from 13 June to 31 October 2010. In each MBC was expressed on the basis of total leaf surface
treatment, 3 chamber replications for a total of 6 cham- area. Leaf area of F. crenata and C. sieboldii seedlings
bers were used. was measured with an area meter (Hayashi Denko Co.
Ltd., Japan). Leaf area of L. kaempferi seedlings was
2. 3 Measurements of Plant Growth determined by image analysis software (LIA32, http://
On 1 June 2009 and 1 November 2010, plant height www.agr.nagoya-u.ac.jp/~shinkan/LIA32/index.html).
and stem base diameter of all the seedlings were mea- Needle surface area of C. japonica was determined by
sured. Increments of plant height and stem base diam- the method of Sase et al. (1998).
eter during the experimental period were differences
between plant height and stem base diameter on 1 June 2. 6 Leaf Gas Exchange Rates
2009 and those on 1 November 2010. On 12-17 No- To determine leaf or needle gas exchange rates, 3
vember 2010, all the seedlings were harvested. The seedlings per treatment-chamber combination were
harvested seedlings were separated into the plant or- randomly selected for the analyses (9 determinations
gans. The separated plant organs of the harvested seed- per treatment). Gas exchange rates of the leaves or
lings were dried at 80� C in an oven for 1 week and needles of F. crenata, C. sieboldii (current-year leaves),
weighed. L. kaempferi and C. japonica (current-year needles)
were measured from 25 August to 4 September 2010.
2. 4 Observation of BC Particles Deposited The measurements were performed using an infrared
on the Foliar Surface gas analyzer system (LI-6400, Li-Cor Inc., NE, U.S.A).
On 12-17 November 2010, the leaves or needles of Light-saturated net photosynthetic rate (Asat), stomatal
F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica diffusive conductance to H2O (gs) and leaf temperature
seedlings, which were exposed to BC in the growth (Tleaf) were determined at air temperature of 25.0±0.1
chambers, were harvested to observe the BC particles �C, 380 μmol CO2 mol-1, relative air humidity of 70±
deposited on the surface by field-emission scanning 5% and photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) of
electron microscopy (FE-SEM). The harvested leaves 1500 μmol m-2 s-1. To obtain photosynthetic light-
262 Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment, Vol. 6(4), 259-267, 2012

response curve, net photosynthetic rates (A) were mea- 2. 7 Statistical Analyses
sured under different PPFD at the foliar surface rang- Statistical analyses were performed with the IBM®
ing from 1500 to 0 μmol m-2 s-1. On 16-24 August SPSS® Advanced Statistics 19. To identify significant
2010, stomatal limitation of photosynthesis (Ls) and difference between the mean of 3 chamber replications
response of gs to increase in vapour pressure deficit in the control treatment and that in the black carbon
(VPD) were measured in the leaves or needles of F. treatment, paired t-test was performed (p⁄0.05).
crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica. To
examine the relative limitation of net photosynthetic
rate by stomatal diffusive resistance, the response of 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
A to change in the intercellular CO2 concentration (Ci)
was measured by varying inlet CO2 concentration from The FE-SEM images of foliar surface of F. crenata,
0 to 500 μmol CO2 mol-1. Carboxylation efficiency C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica seedlings
(CE) was calculated from the linear relationship bet- grown in black carbon (BC) treatment were shown in
ween A and Ci ranging from 0 to 400 μmol CO2 mol-1. Fig. 1. The BC particles deposited after the BC expo-
The Ls was calculated by the following function: sure were observed in all the tree species. The amount
=[(Ao-A380)/Ao]×100 of BC particles deposited on the foliar surface (MBC)
Ls (%)=
of F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica
where Ao is the A estimated from CE and the assump- seedlings was indicated in Fig. 2. In all the tree species,
tion that Ci was equal to 380 μmol CO2 mol-1, and the MBC of the seedlings grown in the BC treatment
A380 is the A measured at inlet CO2 concentration of was higher than that of the seedlings grown in the con-
380 μmol CO2 mol-1. To examine the stomatal respo- trol treatment. These results indicate that the aerosol
nse to increase in VPD (dgs/dVPD), the reduction rate exposure chamber and generation system of BC parti-
of gs with increase in leaf-to-air VPD from 1.5 to 3.5 cles with sub-micron size adopted in the present study
kPa was measured by varying inlet H2O concentration. is useful for relatively long-term experimental study
The dgs/dVPD was calculated as slope of the regres- on the effects of aerosol particles on the seedlings of
sion line between vapour pressure deficit and relative forest tree species.
value of gs (gs determined at 1.5 kPa VPD was defin- In the present study, the degree of increase in MBC by
ed as 1.0). the exposure to BC particles was little as compared
with MBC in the control treatment (Fig. 2). Because the

Fig. 1. Field-emission scanning electron micrographs showing black carbon (BC) particles deposited on the leaves or needles of
(a) F. crenata, (b) C. sieboldii, (c) L. kaempferi and (d) C. japonica seedlings grown in the BC treatment. Arrows indicate the
BC particles originated from the BC exposure. Bars= =500 nm.
 Effects of Black Carbon Particles on East Asian Forest Tree Species 263

seedlings were grown in the glasshouse chambers, in constant deposition of ambient BC, including both
washing out of any particles deposited on the leaf or fine (below 1 μm) and coarse (above 1 μm) particles,
needle surface was avoided. Furthermore, the upper onto the foliar surface of the seedlings. As a result,
direction wind was always blowing (at most 0.5 m s-1) weight-based MBC of the seedlings grown in the control
in the chamber except for the exposure time, resulting treatment was relatively high (Fig. 2). On the other
hand, difference in MBC between the control treatment
4.0 and the BC treatment can be considered as the MBC
accumulated by the exposure to BC particles. The MBC
Amount of BC (mg C m-2 TLA)

3.5
accumulated by the exposure to BC particles consisted
3.0
of mainly fine particles. As compared with MBC in the
2.5 control treatment, therefore, the weight-based MBC
2.0 accumulated by the exposure to BC particles was rela-
1.5 tively low.
1.0
It is important for development of the generic dry
deposition model to understand the relationship bet-
0.5
ween generated amount of BC and MBC of the seed-
0 lings. Because a “direct” deposition technique was used
F. crenata C. sieboldii L. kaempferi C. japonica
in the chamber, it is difficult to compare between the
Control treatment Black carbon treatment number concentrations of BC (solid) particles generat-
Difference in the amount between the treatments ed from the nozzle with those of suspended (non-depo-
sited) in the chamber and deposited particles on the
Fig. 2. Amount of black carbon (BC) particles deposited on plants, even a real-time apparatus (such as a laser-based
the surface of the leaves or needles of F. crenata, C. sieboldii,
L. kaempferi and C. japonica seedlings in November 2010.
submicron-particle counter) was introduced in the
The amount of BC particles was expressed on the basis of total chamber. Therefore, it is difficult to consider the rela-
leaf area (TLA). Each value shows the mean of 3 chamber re- tionship between generated amount of BC and MBC to
plications, and the standard deviation is given by vertical bar. discuss the deposition process of BC in the chamber.

8 12 5
7 10 4
6
A (μmol m-2 s-1)

8
5 3
4 6
2
3 4
2 1
2
1 F. crenata C. sieboldii C. sieboldii
0 0
0 (current-year leaves) (l-year old leaves)
-1 -2 -1
0 500 1000 1500 0 500 1000 1500 0 500 1000 1500
120 50 50
100 40 40
A (μmol kg-1 s-1)

80
30 30
60
20 20
40
10 10
20
L. kaempferi 0 C. japonica 0 C. japonica
0
(current-year needles) (l-year old needles)
-20 -10 -10
0 500 1000 1500 0 500 1000 1500 0 500 1000 1500
-2 -1
Photosynthetic photon flux density (μmol m s )

Control treatment Black carbon treatment

Fig. 3. Effects of black carbon particles on the response of net photosynthetic rates (A) to photosynthetic photon flux density in
the leaves or needles of F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica seedlings in August 2010. Each value shows the
mean of 3 chamber replications, and the standard deviation is given by vertical bar. The regression analysis was performed using
non-rectangular hyperbolic function.
264 Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment, Vol. 6(4), 259-267, 2012

However, the species difference in MBC was obvious cles on net photosynthetic rate (Asat) and stomatal diffu-
especially between deciduous and evergreen tree spec- sive conductance to water vapour (gs) under light-sat-
ies. The higher MBC in evergreen tree species (C. sie- urated condition, stomatal limitation of photosynthesis
boldii and C. japonica) as compared with that in decid- (Ls), response of gs to increase in vapour pressure de-
uous tree species (F. crenata and L. kaempferi) (Fig. 2) ficit (dgs/dVPD) and difference in temperature between
can be attributed to longer leaf longevity in evergreen leaf and air (Tleaf - Tair) in the leaves or needles of F. cre-
tree species. On the other hand, within the both ever- nata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica seed-
green and deciduous species, the MBC in coniferous lings in August 2010. There was no significant effect
tree species was higher than that in the broad-leaved of BC particles on the Tleaf - Tair in the leaves or needles
tree species (Fig. 2). This result was consistent with under light-saturated condition. This result suggests
those reported by Beckett et al. (2000), Freer-Smith et that the BC particles deposited on the foliar surface did
al. (2005) and Hwang et al. (2011). Such greater cap- not increase leaf temperature by absorption of irradia-
ture efficiency of particles by shoots in coniferous tree tion light. There were no significant effects of BC par-
species as compared with that in broad-leaved tree spec- ticles on the gs, Ls and dgs/dVPD in the leaves or nee-
ies can be explained by complex structure of shoot and dles of F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. ja-
smaller leaves (Beckett et al., 2000). ponica seedlings. These results suggest that the BC
The effects of BC particles on the response of net particles deposited on the leaves or needles did not in-
photosynthetic rates to photosynthetic photon flux den- duce plugging of stomata in F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L.
sity (PPFD) (A-light curve) in the leaves or needles of kaempferi and C. japonica seedlings.
F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica The effects of BC particles on the increments of plant
seedlings in August 2010 were indicated in Fig. 3. The height and stem base diameter of F. crenata, C. siebo-
exposure to BC particles did not significantly affect ldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica seedlings during the
net photosynthetic rates in the leaves or needles of F. experimental period were indicated in Fig. 4. There
crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica were no significant effects of BC particles on the in-
seedlings under any PPFD. This result suggests that crements of plant height and stem base diameter of the
the BC particles deposited on the foliar surface did not seedlings. The effects of BC particles on the whole-
significantly reduce net photosynthesis of the seedlings plant dry mass of F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi
by shading. Table 1 indicates the effects of BC parti- and C. japonica seedlings in November 2010 were

Table 1. Effects of black carbon particles on net photosynthetic rate (Asat), stomatal diffusive conductance to water vapour (gs)
under light-saturated condition, stomatal limitaion of photosynthesis (Ls), response of gs to increase in vapour pressure deficit (dgs/
dVPD) and difference in temperature between leaf and air (Tleaf -Tair) in the leaves or needles of F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaemp-
feri and C. japonica seedlings in August 2010.
Asat gs Ls dgs/dVPD** Tleaf -Tair
Tree species Treatment
(μmol m-2 s-1) (mol m-2 s-1) (%) (kPa-1) (� C)
F. crenata Control 5.30 (0.49) 0.143 (0.038) 23.7 (7.8) -0.135 (0.037) -0.13 (0.12)
BC treatment 5.70 (0.85) 0.152 (0.043) 26.3 (2.6) -0.160 (0.027) 0.00 (0.14)
t-test n.s. n.s. n.s. n.s. n.s.
C. sieboldii* Control 7.72 (0.92) 0.240 (0.070) 12.0 (2.4) -0.294 (0.017) 0.71 (0.11)
BC treatment 7.16 (0.85) 0.231 (0.009) 11.5 (0.7) -0.322 (0.077) 0.33 (0.12)
t-test n.s. n.s. n.s. n.s. n.s.
Asat gs Ls dgs/dVPD** Tleaf -Tair
(μmol kg-1 s-1) (mol kg-1 s-1) (%) (kPa-1) (� C)
L. kaempferi Control 82.7 (11.5) 1.897 (0.223) 19.5 (1.6) -0.240 (0.005) 1.36 (0.24)
BC treatment 71.8 (10.0) 1.850 (0.149) 15.3 (3.4) -0.221 (0.022) 1.59 (0.21)
t-test n.s. n.s. n.s. n.s. n.s.
C. japonica* Control 39.5 (1.5) 0.627 (0.035) 21.9 (5.8) -0.302 (0.013) 1.62 (0.29)
BC treatment 37.2 (1.7) 0.604 (0.018) 26.2 (2.2) -0.283 (0.012) 1.46 (0.25)
t-test n.s. n.s. n.s. n.s. n.s.
Each value is the mean of three chamber replicates, and the standard deviation is shown in parentheses. n.s.= =not significant (paired t-test,
p¤0.05). Light-saturated condition: photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD)= =1500 μmol m-2 s-1. *: measurements were conducted in cur-
rent-year leaves or needles, **: slope of the regression line between vapour pressure deficit (VPD) and relative value of gs (gs determined at 1.5 kPa
VPD was defined as 1).
 Effects of Black Carbon Particles on East Asian Forest Tree Species 265

40 ing seasons did not significantly affect the growth of

n.s. F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica
Plant height increment (cm)

30 seedlings. The MBC accumulated by the exposure to

n.s. BC particles were 0.13, 0.69, 0.32 and 0.58 mg C m-2
total leaf area (TLA) in F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kae-
20
mpferi and C. japonica seedlings, respectively (Fig. 2).
n.s.
n.s. In Cucumis sativus and Phaseolus vulguris, net photo-
10 synthetic rate was reduced by shading effect of MBC
at ¤320 mg C m-2 projected leaf area (PLA) (i.e. 160
0
mg C m-2 TLA) (Hirano et al., 1991). Using BC gen-
erated by the fluidized bed-type generator, with size
Stem diameter increment (mm)

6 n.s. range from sub-μm to few ten μm, Hirano et al. (1995)
5 reported that leaf temperature of C. sativus and P. vul-
n.s. n.s. guris was increased due to the absorption of irradiation
4 n.s.
light by MBC at ¤400 mg C m-2 PLA (i.e. 200 mg C
3 m-2 TLA). With the existence of particle at few ten μm
2 range, these weight-based MBC (Hirano et al., 1995)
were quite high as compared with those observed in
1
the present study (Fig. 2). As a consequence, it is pos-
0 sible that the reduction in net photosynthetic rate of
F. crenata C. sieboldii L. kaempferi C. japonica
the tree species was not observed in the present study,
Control treatment Black carbon treatment and hence the growth of the seedlings was not reduced
by the exposure to BC particles. To evaluate the effects
Fig. 4. Effects of black carbon particles on the increments of of BC particles on growth and leaf or needle gas ex-
plant height (top) and stem base diameter (bottom) of F. cre- change rates of forest tree species in the field, it is nec-
nata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica seedlings dur-
ing the experimental period. Each value shows the mean of 3
essary to determine whether or not the amount of BC
chamber replications, and the standard deviation is given by deposited on the foliar surface of forest trees grown
=not significant (paired t-test).
vertical bar. n.s.= in the field is higher than the amount observed in the
present study.
Recently, Matsuda et al. (2012) reported that the
50 amount of deposition of elemental carbon from the
n.s. atmosphere to tropical forest in Thailand during the
n.s. leafy season (i.e. growing season) in 2010 was estimat-
Whole-plant dry mass (g)

40
n.s. n.s.
ed to be 0.34 mg C m-2 day-1. This value correspond-
30 ed to MBC of 8.9 mg C m-2 TLA during the season,
assuming that the leaf area index of the forest and the
20 number of days during the season were 3.5 and 183,
respectively (Matsuda et al., 2012). The MBC reported
10 by Hirano et al. (1995, 1991) was very high as compar-
ed with that observed in the field and, thus, not realis-
0
F. crenata C. sieboldii L. kaempferi C. japonica
tic. To clarify the effects of BC particles on the growth
and physiological function of forest tree species in the
Control treatment Black carbon treatment field, it is necessary to clarify the effects of BC parti-
cles deposited on the foliar surface at realistic level. In
Fig. 5. Effects of black carbon particles on the whole-plant the present study, therefore, we tried to make the MBC
dry mass of F. crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japo-
nica seedlings in November 2010. Each value shows the mean at ambient level, resulting in lower MBC than that re-
of 3 chamber replications, and the standard deviation is given ported by Hirano et al. (1995, 1991). However, the
=not significant (paired t-test).
by vertical bar. n.s.= MBC in the present study (start in 2009) was also lower
than that observed in the forest as reported in a recent
study (Matsuda et al., 2012). Because the objective of
shown in Fig. 5. The exposure to BC particles did not the present study is to clarify the effect of sub-micron
significantly affect the whole-plant dry mass of the sized (long-range transport) aerosol particles, the seed-
seedlings at the end of the experiment. These results lings were exposed to sub-micron sized BC particles.
indicate that the exposure to BC particles for two grow- Therefore, the MBC accumulated by the exposure to BC
266 Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment, Vol. 6(4), 259-267, 2012

particles consisted of mostly sub-micron range parti- plications for regional air quality. Atmospheric Chemi-
cles with light mass per particle. On the other hand, in stry and Physics 7, 5501-5517.
the field, the MBC was not sorted out by particle size Colvile, R.N. (2002) Emissions, dispersion and atmospher-
and consisted of not only fine particle (i.e. sub-micron ic transformation. In Air Pollution and Plant Life, se-
size) but also coarse particle with relatively heavy mass cond edition (Bell, J.N.B. and Treshow, M. Eds), John
per particle. As a result, the weight-basis MBC in the Wiley & Sons, Ltd, England, pp. 23-42.
Flückiger, W., Oertli, J., Flückiger, H. (1979) Relationship
present study was lower than that in the field. There-
between stomatal diffusive resistance and various appli-
fore, it is necessary to sort out the weight of particles
ed particle size on leaf surfaces. Zeitschrift für Pflan-
versus their sizes, and to clarify the relationship bet- zenphysiologie 91, 173-175.
ween field-observed amount and size range of BC de- Fowler, D. (2002) Pollutant deposition and uptake by ve-
posited on the foliar surface and growth and physio- getation. In Air Pollution and Plant Life, second edition
logical functions of forest tree species. (Bell, J.N.B. and Treshow, M. Eds), John Wiley &
Sons, Ltd, England, pp. 43-68.
Freer-Smith, P.H., Beckett, K.P., Taylor, G. (2005) Depo-
4. CONCLUSIONS sition velocities to Sorbus aria, Acer campestre, Popu-
lus deltoides×trichocarpa ‘Beaupré’, Pinus nigra and
The exposure to BC particles with sub-micron size ×Cupressocyparis leylandii for coarse, fine and ultra-
fine particles in the urban environment. Environmental
for two growing seasons dose not significantly affect
Pollution 133, 157-167.
the growth and leaf or needle gas exchange rates of F. Hirano, T., Kiyota, M., Aiga, I. (1991) The effects of dust
crenata, C. sieboldii, L. kaempferi and C. japonica by covering and plugging stomata and by increasing
seedlings. To evaluate the effects of BC particles on leaf temperature on photosynthetic rate of plant leaves.
forest tree species grown under field conditions, fur- Journal of Agricultural Meteorology 46, 215-222. (in
ther study is needed to clarify the relationship between Japanese with English summary)
the amount of BC deposited on the foliar surface and Hirano, T., Kiyota, M., Aiga, I. (1995) Physical effects of
the degree of the negative effects of BC on forest tree dust on leaf physiology of cucumber and kidney bean
species. plants. Environmental Pollution 89, 255-261.
Hwang, H.-J., Yook, S.-J., Ahn, K.-H. (2011) Experimen-
tal investigation of submicron and ultrafine soot particle
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT removal by tree leaves. Atmospheric Environment 45,
6987-6994.
Izuta, T., Funada, R. (2010). Toward the clarification of
The authors are greatly indebted to Dr. Tsumugu the effects of aerosol on forests in East Asia. Hoppo
Totsuka and Dr. Takejiro Takamatsu for their invalu- Ringyo 62, 5-8. (in Japanese)
able advices. The authors also acknowledge Prof. Kasahara, M. (2004). Source and characteristics of aero-
Hidehiro Kamiya, Mr. Shin-ichi Sagawa, Mr. Masao sols. In Glossary of Aerosol Science (Edited by Japan
Gen, Ms. Fong Zyin Lim, Mr. Akito Seki and Mr. Association of Aerosol Science and Technology), pp.
Peiran Li (Tokyo University of Agriculture and Techno- 22-23. Kyoto University Press, Japan. (in Japanese)
logy) for their valuable suggestion and technical sup- Lenggoro, I.W., Xia, B., Okuyama, K. (2002) Sizing of
port. This research was funded by Grant-in-Aid for colloidal nanoparticles by electrospray and differential
Scientific Research on Innovative Areas (No. 2012 mobility analyzer methods. Langmuir 18, 4584-4591.
0009, No. 20120010) from the Ministry of Education, Matsuda, K., Fujimura, Y., Hayashi, K., Takahashi, A.,
Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan. Nakaya, K. (2010) Deposition velocity of PM2.5 sulfate
in the summer above a deciduous forest in central Japan.
Atmospheric Environment 44, 4582-4587.
Matsuda, K., Sase, H., Murao, N., Fukazawa, T., Khoom-
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