Influence of the Concentration of Aqueous Solutions of Sulfuric Acid on the Reflection Spectra of Pine Needles

The effect of solutions of sulfuric acid of different concentrations on the optical characteristics of pine needles was investigated. It is found that an increase in the acid concentration results in a decrease in the content of pigments in pine needles and in their reflectance in the visible region. An analysis of experimental data by using the LIBERTY model has shown that the decrease in the pine needle reflectance with decrease in the pigment content depends on the change in the refractive index at the cell wall–binding medium interface.