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| Free-Air CO2 Enrichment | |
|---|---|
| Name | Free-Air CO2 Enrichment |
| Purpose | Field-scale experimental manipulation of atmospheric carbon dioxide |
| Established | 1980s |
| Major sites | FACE experiments (Duke, Oak Ridge, SoyFACE, POPFACE) |
Free-Air CO2 Enrichment Free-Air CO2 Enrichment experiments are field-based manipulations designed to elevate atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration around living ecosystems to study responses. They connect large-scale research programs and institutions such as Duke University, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, United States Department of Agriculture, European Union, and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation with long-term projects like SoyFACE, Aspen FACE, Oak Ridge FACE, POPFACE, and BIFoR to inform policy debates at bodies including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, National Science Foundation, and European Research Council.
FACE platforms expose ecosystems to elevated carbon dioxide levels in situ to observe physiological, ecological, and biogeochemical responses. Major collaborating organizations include Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Columbia University, University of Michigan, Yale University, and Max Planck Society while funding and oversight often involve National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Natural Environment Research Council, Department of Energy, and agricultural agencies. FACE addresses applied questions relevant to stakeholders such as International Panel on Climate Change reviewers, World Bank analysts, and national programs like Agricultural Research Service and DEFRA.
FACE emerged during the 1980s and 1990s as field alternatives to chamber and greenhouse techniques developed earlier at institutions including Brookhaven National Laboratory and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Pioneering projects at sites such as Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Duke University were informed by earlier laboratory work by researchers associated with Royal Society fellows, American Geophysical Union members, and proponents from Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Growth of FACE networks paralleled international initiatives like International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme, Global Change Research Program, and coordination across projects funded by National Science Foundation and European Commission framework programs.
FACE systems use arrays of release rings, wind sensors, and control algorithms developed by engineering groups at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, and manufacturers collaborating with Siemens-style industrial partners. Setups typically deploy automated control systems from groups affiliated with Carnegie Institution for Science and German Aerospace Center to maintain target concentrations under ambient conditions observed by stations like Mauna Loa Observatory and NOAA. Experimental designs compare plots associated with principal investigators from Harvard University, University of California, Berkeley, and Imperial College London using randomization and replication standards endorsed by Royal Society methodological panels and aligning with standards from ISO committees.
FACE results document responses across taxa, with plant physiological responses studied by researchers connected to Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, American Society of Plant Biologists, and Botanical Society of America. Elevated carbon dioxide often increases photosynthetic rates in C3 species, alters stomatal conductance, and interacts with nutrient cycles involving microbes studied by groups at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry. FACE experiments show community shifts that concern conservation stakeholders like IUCN and land managers linked to Forestry Commission or US Forest Service and inform ecological models used by Met Office and National Center for Atmospheric Research.
Agricultural FACE trials such as SoyFACE and corn FACE sites involve collaborations among University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign, Iowa State University, USDA Agricultural Research Service, and agri-business partners including Cargill-type entities. Results indicate crop-dependent yield responses influenced by cultivar, water availability, and fertilizer status, affecting stakeholders like Food and Agriculture Organization and national advisory bodies such as USDA. FACE data are incorporated into breeding programs at institutions like International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center and inform resilience planning for producers represented by organizations like National Farmers Union.
Critiques of FACE include scale limitations noted by reviewers from Royal Society and National Academy of Sciences, representation issues raised in panels convened by IPCC authors, and technical artifacts debated at symposia of American Geophysical Union and European Geosciences Union. Limitations include edge effects, heterogeneity in wind regimes measured against baselines from Mauna Loa Observatory and NOAA datasets, nutrient constraints emphasized by International Nitrogen Initiative participants, and difficulties in simulating co-occurring climate changes studied by Met Office Hadley Centre and GISS teams. Funding and reproducibility concerns have been voiced in forums sponsored by National Science Foundation and Wellcome Trust.
FACE outputs feed process parameterizations in models developed by groups at Princeton University, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and the Model Intercomparison Project. Data assimilation efforts coordinated with CMIP contributors, IPCC authors, and initiatives like Global Carbon Project use FACE-derived response functions to scale from plot to regional projections used by policy agencies including United Nations Environment Programme and national planning bodies. Integration challenges include coupling with land-use modules used by Food and Agriculture Organization scenarios, nitrogen cycling modules advanced by International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, and uncertainty quantification promoted by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessment processes.
Category:Climate change experiments