Integrated modelling approaches for estimating total organic carbon, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and ash content in forest floor samples using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy

Key message

ATR-FTIR spectroscopy combined with statistical modelling provides accurate predictions of forest floor properties: total organic carbon, total nitrogen, total phosphorus and ash. Performance decreases in carbonate-rich samples, particularly for organic carbon and the carbon to nitrogen ratio; excluding such samples improves reliability. This makes ATR-FTIR a fast and sustainable complement to conventional chemical analyses for forest monitoring and nutrient cycling studies.

Keywords
Forest floor decomposition; Forest soil organic layers; Mid-infrared spectroscopy; Mixed forest; Monospecific forest; ATR-FTIR spectral prediction

Publication
Martín-Sanz, R., Getino-Álvarez, M., Pando, V. et al. Integrated modelling approaches for estimating total organic carbon, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and ash content in forest floor samples using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. Annals of Forest Science (2025). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13595-025-01309-3

Data availability 
Full modeling details are provided in Appendix C and all data obtained in this study is available at https://zenodo.org/records/16315149 (Martín-Sanz et al. 2025)

Handling editor 
Erwin Dreyer