Rapid photocatalytic determination of soil organic carbon content: development and validation of protocols

Soil organic carbon (SOC) is a vital indicator of soil health and plays a crucial role in mitigating climate emissions through carbon sequestration. Accurate and rapid estimation of SOC is essential for farmers to implement climate change mitigation strategies and claim carbon credits. In this study, we developed and validated a protocol for the rapid photocatalytic determination of SOC content using the PeCOD analyzer. Our results confirmed that fine-grained materials, particularly clayey soils, generally exhibited higher SOC content. Additionally, we observed a decrease in SOC content with increasing soil depth. The study revealed a direct correlation between Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) and SOC content, indicating that the PeCOD analyzer method is a reliable tool for estimating SOC levels in soils. These findings contribute to our understanding of soil carbon dynamics and offer valuable insights for farmers, researchers, and policymakers in addressing climate change mitigation strategies and promoting soil health. The developed protocol provides a rapid and cost-effective approach for accurately determining SOC content, enabling effective soil management practices and carbon credit claims