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MONet Program Now Accepting Proposals

MONet will start accepting sample submission requests beginning February 14 

Sarah Wong |
soil core removal process

EMSL is seeking soil sample submissions to provide both experimental and observational data from across the United States. This data will then be incorporated into a comprehensive database containing molecular-level and microstructural information on the composition and structure of soil, water, resident microbial communities, and biogenic emissions. (Photo by Eddie Pablo III | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

Many vitally important, life-sustaining reactions on Earth occur just beneath the surface. To understand more about these processes, researchers from the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL) established the Molecular Observation Network (MONet). 

Through MONet, EMSL will collaborate with researchers and citizen scientists to develop a comprehensive understanding of molecular processes in soils across the nation. MONet will begin accepting sample submission requests February 14. 

Starting Small: 1,000 Soils 

MONet was established as one of EMSL’s 10-year objectives, but before MONet could be launched as a full-scale program, researchers started with a much smaller pilot project. 

The pilot, called 1000 Soils, aimed to collect, curate, and analyze 1,000 soil cores across the United States to help understand carbon processes in soil. The project leverages EMSL’s strengths in high-molecular-resolution measurements, including molecularly resolved soil organic matter composition and soil pore network structure and hydraulic properties of intact cores. Led by Earth scientist Emily Graham, researchers in the 1000 Soils pilot also developed a standardized collection workflow for soil samples.  

“With the 1000 Soils pilot, we really wanted to focus on standardization: a standardized kit with a standardized processing method,” said Maggie Bowman, EMSL postdoctoral research associate. By keeping the data collection and processing methods consistent for all the samples, researchers can more accurately compare samples.  

Another important aspect of the 1000 Soils pilot was collaboration. EMSL researchers partnered with an established set of networks, from the National Ecological Observation Network to the United States Army Corps of Engineers, to collect soil samples. Through a partnership with the Confederate Tribes of Warm Springs, researchers in the 1000 Soils pilot produced preliminary data showing the effect of wildfires on soils.  

Beyond 1000 Soils 

EMSL will integrate results from samples submitted through MONet and the 1000 Soils pilot into a standardized database of soil information and continue to build upon the success of the pilot project.  

“A large portion of the 1000 Soils pilot was getting our technologies [as] standardized and high throughput as possible so we can process many different soil cores for MONet,” Graham said. 

A part of that was curating a kit of equipment for MONet researchers to use when collecting samples. The kit includes everything needed to collect a soil core, as well as shipping to and from EMSL for analysis.  

MONet research will concentrate on four main areas:  

  • Automated organic matter and soil analysis  

  • Rhizosphere sensors 

  • Model–experiment integration (ModEX)  

  • Multiscale modeling. 

Initial projects will focus on standardized soil core collection and analysis of organic matter chemistry, physical and hydraulic properties, and microbiology. Soil cores will undergo analysis using methods such as Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry for soil organic matter composition, X-ray computed tomography and water retention curves for pore network structure and hydraulics, and metagenomics for microbial community composition.  

Integrating Soil Data into a New Database 

MONet will collaborate with a variety of researchers and citizen scientists to collect both experimental and observational data from across the United States. This data will then be incorporated into a comprehensive database containing molecular-level and microstructural information on the composition and structure of soil, water, resident microbial communities, and biogenic emissions. The metadata within the MONet database will also align with that of the National Microbiome Data Collaborative Data Portal for easy integration between the two.  

Using FAIR principles as a guide, the MONet database will integrate various soil data into a single location and allow for direct queries. The database will allow users to ask exciting research questions, such as how different climate conditions affect carbon cycling across the nation.  

Though the database is not currently available, MONet is accepting sample submission requests beginning February 14.Those interested in becoming a MONet collaborator should contact monet@pnnl.gov.