Petra Straková
Specialized in chemometrics and FTIR analysis of plants and soil
Member of the Peatland ecology working group at the University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Czechia
Profile at the University of Helsinki
My research focuses on biogeochemical processes in boreal peatlands and their responses to climatic and/or land-use changes. I studied the interactions between plant community composition, microbial enzyme activity, rates of organic matter (plant litter, peat) decomposition and environmental conditions in pristine and drained peatlands. In this work, I apply FTIR spectroscopy and chemometric methods to characterize changes in litter and soil organic matter composition and to extract meaningful patterns from complex datasets. My ultimate qoal is to quantify how each of these factors contribute to the C sink/source function of peatlands under different conditions, and to provide decomposition data and models that could be used for verifying the functionality and reliability of ecosystem-level C models and for developing them further.
This research was initiated during my doctoral study at the University of Helsinki, Finland, results from the early stage of litter decomposition process are summarized in my doctoral thesis "Carbon dynamics in peatlands under changing hydrology: Effects of water level drawdown on litter quality, microbial enzyme activities and litter decomposition rates" (approved with distinction -kiittäen hyväksytty-, received the Doctoral Thesis Award from the Finnish Society of Forest Science).