Biogenic volatile organic compound emission from tropical plants in relation to temperature changes

Abstract

Climate change has resulted in many environmental changes which impact living organisms including plants. Biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOC) are emitted from plants under stressful conditions as a defensive mechanism. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of temperature on the emission rate of the BVOC (isoprene and monoterpenes) from the tropical plants Syzygium cumini and Peltophorum pterocarpum. These species were reported as high BVOC emitting and abundant species in the urban green area. The temperatures focused in this study were low temperature (16–18 °C), three optimal temperatures (36–38 °C, 38–40 °C and 40–42 °C) and high temperature (48–50 °C). BVOC were measured using a VOCs analyser. The results showed that the BVOC emission rate increased with increasing temperature up to 38–40 °C and decreased after. The highest concentration of BVOC of S. cumini and P. pterocarpum were 44.04 and 13.12 µg/m2 h, respectively. S. cumini had higher emission than P. pterocarpum owing to the leaf morphology such as number and width of stomata. These results can be used to develop a model study of plant BVOC emissions in the urban green area, especially megacities where heat island effect is likely to occur.

Keywords

• Heat stress
• Plant stress
• Tropical plant
• BVOC emission