Examination of the parameters controlling the triple oxygen isotope composition of grass leaf water and phytoliths at a Mediterranean site: a model-data approach

Triple oxygen isotopes (O-17-excess) of water are useful to trace evaporation at the soil-plant-atmosphere interface. The O-17-excess of plant silica, i.e., phytoliths, inherited from leaf water, was previously calibrated in growth chambers as a proxy of atmospheric relative humidity (RH). Here, using a model-data approach, we examine the parameters that control the triple oxygen isotope composition of bulk grass leaf water and phytoliths in natura, at the O3HP experimental platform located in the French Mediterranean area. A grass plot was equipped to measure for 1 year, all environmental and plant physiological parameters relevant for modeling the isotope composition of the grass leaf water. In particular, the triple oxygen and hydrogen isotope composition of atmospheric water vapor above the grass was measured continuously using a cavity ring-down spectrometer, and the grass leaf temperature was monitored at plot scale using an infrared (IR) radiometer. Grass leaves were collected in different seasons of the year and over a 24 h period in June. Grass leaf water was extracted by cryogenic vacuum distillation and analyzed by isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS). Phytoliths were analyzed by IR-laser fluorination-IRMS after chemical extraction. We showed that the traditional Craig-Gordon steady-state model modified for grass leaves reliably predicts the triple oxygen isotope composition of leaf water during daytime but is sensitive to uncertainties on the leaf-to-air temperature difference. Deviations from isotope steady state at night are well represented in the triple oxygen isotope system and predictable by a non-steady-state model. The O-17-excess of phytoliths confirms the applicability of the O-17-excess(phyto) vs. RH equation established in previous growth chamber experiments. Further, it recorded average daytime RH over the growth period rather than daily RH, related to low transpiration and silicification during the night. This model-data approach highlights the utility of the triple oxygen isotope system to improve the understanding of water exchange at the soil-plant-atmosphere interface. The in natura experiment underlines the applicability of O-17-excess of phytoliths as a RH proxy.