ABSTRACT
Soil biogeochemistry deals with biological and geochemical processes in ecosystems, including soil-plant-water-atmosphere interactions. The focus of this chapter is the identification and quantification of soil processes. Depending on the research question, are used well-established analytical methods such as molecular markers or biomarkers and stable isotope techniques. In addition, modern agroecology also requires the development of new analytical tools such as nondestructive and noninvasive techniques for rapid data acquisition in the field. On the other hand, more sophisticated and resource-intensive technologies such as position-specific isotope analyses are also required for process identification. This method spectrum allows us to cover research questions from the molecule to the ecosystem level or from basic to applied research. In the following, this concept is explained using the famous terra preta/biochar story as a case study.
