Acetate and hydrogen gas (H2) is never abundant in aerobic soils and sediments because they are tiny, highly reduced molecules that many bacteria that breathe oxygen and nitrates quickly absorb to use as fuel for energy generation.
<h3>Why are acetate and hydrogen gas not abundant in aerobic soils and sediments?</h3>
Hydrogen is a substrate for methanogenic archaea and, along with acetate, one of the most significant intermediates in the methanogenic breakdown of organic materials. Numerous methanogenic environments exhibit contributions of H₂ to CH₄ production that are both significantly lower and significantly higher than is considered usual. H₂ is rapidly converted in methanogenic settings due to the simultaneous generation by fermenting and syntrophic bacteria and consumption by methanogenic archaea.
