Emission of nitric oxide and nitrous oxide from soil under field and laboratory conditions

A - Papers appearing in refereed journals

Williams, P. H., Jarvis, S. C. and Dixon, E. R. 1998. Emission of nitric oxide and nitrous oxide from soil under field and laboratory conditions. Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 30 (14), pp. 1885-1893. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0038-0717(98)00052-2

AuthorsWilliams, P. H., Jarvis, S. C. and Dixon, E. R.
Abstract

A detailed short-term (12 d) laboratory study was carried out to investigate the effects of applying animal urine, fertilizer (ammonium nitrate) and fertilizer+urine on emission of NO and N2O from soil. A complementary 24 d field study measured the effect of fertilizer or fertilizer+sheep grazing on NO and N2O emissions from pasture. The data generated were used to interpret the transformations responsible for the release of these gases. Application of urine to the soil (at a rate equivalent to 930 kg N ha−1) increased the amount of mineral and microbial N in the soil. This was followed by increases in emissions of NO (from 0.02 to 1.76 mg NO-N m−2 d−1) and N2O (from 15 to 330 mg N2O-N m−2 d−1). Molar ratios of NO-N-to-N2O-N were very low (<0.001 to 0.011) indicating that denitrification was the main process during the first 12 d after application. In the laboratory, nitrification was inhibited during the first 7 d due to an inhibitory effect of the urine, but even though nitrification was clearly underway 7–12 d after application, denitrification was still the dominant process. The fertilizer was applied at a lower rate (120 kg N ha−1) than the urine. Consequently, the effect on soil mineral N was smaller. Nevertheless the fertilizer still increased NO and N2O emission with denitrification the dominant process. The effects of fertilizer and grazing on NO and N2O emissions was less obvious in the field compared with the laboratory and fluxes returned to background rates within 4 d. This was attributed to the rapid decline in soil mineral N in the field trial due to plant uptake and leaching, processes that did not occur in the laboratory.

KeywordsUrine-afected soil; extraction method; grassland soil; pasture soil; Volatilization; Nitrification; Ammonia; Denitrification; Livestock; Dynamics
Year of Publication1998
JournalSoil Biology and Biochemistry
Journal citation30 (14), pp. 1885-1893
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1016/S0038-0717(98)00052-2
Open accessPublished as non-open access
Funder project or code01
57
Project: 2430 4518
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Online23 Nov 1998
Publication process dates
Accepted22 Jan 1998
PublisherElsevier
Copyright licensePublisher copyright
ISSN0038-0717

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