Radiocarbon and stable carbon isotope compositions of chemically fractionated soil organic matter in a temperate-zone forest

To better understand the role of soil organic matter in terrestrial carbon cycle, carbon isotope compositions in soil samples from a temperate-zone forest were measured for bulk, acid-insoluble and base-insoluble organic matter fractions separated by a chemical fractionation method. The measurements also made it possible to estimate indirectly radiocarbon (14C) abundances of acid- and base-soluble organic matter fractions, through a mass balance of carbon among the fractions. The depth profiles of 14C abundances showed that (1) bomb-derived 14C has penetrated the first 16 cm mineral soil at least; (2) Δ14C values of acid-soluble organic matter fraction are considerably higher than those of other fractions; and (3) a significant amount of the bomb-derived 14C has been preserved as the base-soluble organic matter around litter–mineral soil boundary. In contrast, no or little bomb-derived 14C was observed for the base-insoluble fraction in all sampling depths, indicating that this recalcitrant fraction, accounting for approximately 15% of total carbon in this temperate-zone forest soil, plays a role as a long-term sink in the carbon cycle. These results suggest that bulk soil organic matter cannot provide a representative indicator as a source or a sink of carbon in soil, particularly on annual to decadal timescales.