Diurnal cycle relationships between passive fluorescence, PRI and NPQ of vegetation in a controlled stress experiment

Abstract

In order to estimate vegetation photosynthesis from remote sensing observations; some critical parameters need to be quantified. From all absorbed light; the plant needs to release any excess that is not used for photosynthesis; by non-photochemical quenching; by fluorescence emission and unregulated thermal dissipation. Non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) processes are controlled photoprotective mechanisms which; once activated; strongly control the dynamics of photochemical efficiency. With illumination conditions increasing and decreasing during a diurnal cycle; photoprotection mechanisms needs to change accordingly. The goal of this work is to quantify dynamic NPQ; measured from active fluorescence measurements; based on passive proximal sensing leaf measurements. During a 22-day controlled light and water stress experiment on a tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) leaf we measured the diurnal dynamics of passive fluorescence (Chl F); the Photochemical Reflectance Index (PRI); the Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (APAR) and leaf temperature in combination with the actively retrieved non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) parameter. Based on a bi-linear combination of diurnal APAR and PRI (plane fit model) we succeeded to estimate NPQ with a RMSE of 0.08. The simple plane fit model estimation represents well the diurnal NPQ dynamics; except for the high light stress phase; when additional reversible photoinhibition processes took place. The present works presents a way of determining NPQ from passive remote sensing measurements; as a necessary step towards estimating photosynthetic rate.