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IMAGE: Soil on a chip experiments conducted by Princeton researchers mimic the interactions between soils, carbon compounds and soil bacteria, producing new evidence that large carbon molecules can potentially escape the...
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Credit: Judy Q. Yang
Much of the earth's carbon is trapped in soil, and scientists have assumed that potential climate-warming compounds would safely stay there for centuries. But new research from Princeton University shows that carbon molecules can potentially escape the soil much faster than previously thought. The findings suggest a key role for some types of soil bacteria, which can produce enzymes that break down large carbon-based molecules and allow carbon dioxide to escape into the air.