Soil gas measurement seminar

I was involved in teaching one of my supervisor’s (Prof. Dan Breecker) graduate courses, which aimed at teaching students how to build soil gas wells, collect soil gas samples, measure concentrations and isotope compositions of soil CO2, as well as use \(\delta^{13}C\) of soil CO₂ to trace plant respiration and the dissolution and precipitation of soil carbonates.

Building soil gas wells with commercially available parts

Graduate student Will punching holes on the pvc tube. It certainly looks easier!

Installing soil gas wells

Lab manager Jeff drilling the hole for gas well installation while graduate student Riley sucking particles out of the hole. This ensures the drilling reaches the targeted depth. It is a two-men job!

Measuring soil gas concentrations

Graduate student Mielle measuring soil CO₂ and O₂ concentrations using Quantek.