The universal applicability of logistic curve in simulating ecosystem carbon dynamic

As an S-shaped curve, the logistic curve has both high and low limit, which provides advantages in modelling the influences of environmental factors on biogeological processes. However, although the logistic curve and its transformations have drawn much attention in theoretical modelling, it is often used as a classification method to determine a true or false condition, and is less often applied in simulating the real data set. Starting from the basic theory of the logistic curve, with observed data sets, this paper explored the new application scenarios such as modelling the time series of environmental factors, modelling the influence of environmental factors on biogeological processes and modelling the theoretical curve in ecology area. By comparing the performance of traditional model and the logistic model, the results indicated that logistic modelling worked as well as traditional equations. Under certain conditions, such as modelling the influence of temperature on ecosystem respiration, the logistic model is more realistic than the widely applied Lloyd-Taylor formulation under extreme conditions. These cases confirmed that the logistic curve was capable of simulating nonlinear influences of multiple factors on biogeological processes such as carbon dynamic. (C) 2020 China Geology Editorial Office.