title: Quantitative measurement and imaging of transport processes in plants and porous media by 1H NMR.
abstract: NMR and MRI have been applied to transport processes, that is, net flow and diffusion/perfusion, of water in whole plants, cells, and porous materials. By choosing proper time windows and pulse sequences, magnetic resonance imaging can be made selective for each of the two transport processes. For porous media and plant cells the evolution of the spatial distribution of excited spins has been determined by q-space imaging, using a 20 MHz pulsed 1H NMR imager. The results of these experiments are explained by including spin-relaxation and exchange at boundaries. A 10 MHz portable 1H NMR spectrometer is described, particularly suitable to study the response of net flow in plants and canopies to changing external conditions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Physics, Agricultural University, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Schaafsma
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Van As
authors.forename: W D
authors.initials: WD
authors.lastname: Palstra
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Snaar
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: de Jager
mesh_terms: D001693:Biological Transport, Active; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D010944:Plants / Q000378:metabolism*; D014867:Water / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014867:Water