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Simulated influence of altitude on photosynthetic CO 2 uptake potential in plants
Author(s) -
SMITH W. K.,
DONAHUE R. A.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
plant, cell and environment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.646
H-Index - 200
eISSN - 1365-3040
pISSN - 0140-7791
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-3040.1991.tb01380.x
Subject(s) - altitude (triangle) , lapse rate , photosynthesis , atmospheric sciences , environmental science , effects of high altitude on humans , diffusion , air temperature , chemistry , botany , biology , meteorology , geology , mathematics , thermodynamics , physics , geometry
. A simulation of the quantitative influence of altitude on photosynthetic CO 2 uptake capability (A P ) included the effects of predicted changes (1) in air temperature (lapse rate) and (2) leaf temperature, (3) ambient pressure and CO 2 concentration, and (4) the diffusion coefficient for CO 2 in air. When a dry lapse rate (0.01°C m −1 ) in air temperature was simulated, significant declines (up to 14%) in A P were predicted from sea level to 4km altitude. A moist lapse rate of 0.003°C m −1 resulted in less than a 4% decrease in A P over the same altitude range. When natural leaf temperatures (predicted from heat balance analyses) were simulated, A P was significantly greater (∼20%) than when leaf temperatures were considered equal to air temperature for all lapse conditions. There was virtually no change in A P with altitude when predicted leaf temperatures and moist lapse conditions were simulated. There was a significant (∼10%) increase in A P with altitude when leaf temperature was held constant at 30°C (regardless of altitude) under moist lapse conditions. Future studies evaluating the effects of elevation on photosynthesis could benefit from the above considerations of the effects of natural leaf temperature regimes and prevailing lapse conditions on CO 2 uptake potential.