Measuring the contributions of nitrification and denitrification to the flux of nitrous oxide from soil

Stevens, Robert; Laughlin, R. J.; Burns, Louise; Arah, J. R. M.; Hood, Rebecca

doi:10.1016/s0038-0717(96)00303-3

Cited by 340 publications

(192 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Denitrification is proposed to become the dominant source of N 2 O fluxes above a threshold value of 60% WFPS (Davidson et al, 2000) and to become the only N 2 O source at WFPS >70% (Davidson, 1991;Machefert and Dise, 2004;Bateman and Baggs, 2005). Although, WFPS in the top 5 cm of soil only surpassed these threshold values at 2000 m (Table 1), the 15 N tracing method showed that denitrification was the dominant source of N 2 O at 1000 m and the only N 2 O source at 2000 and 3000 m. However, in previous studies, it has been shown that WFPS threshold values can vary substantially depending on soil texture; for example, in acid brown earth (Cambisol) with 48% sand in Northern Ireland, 60-80% of N 2 O was derived from denitrification at 40% WFPS (Stevens et al, 1997). This is comparable to our results from the sandy loam mineral soil (Cambisol) at 1000 m. At 2000 and 3000 m, the 59-71% WFPS in the top 5 cm of the organic layer should theoretically have included some nitrification-derived N 2 O fluxes.…”

Section: Effects Of Elevation On Soil N 2 O Fluxes and Controlling Famentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil N2O fluxes along an elevation gradient of tropical montane forests under experimental nitrogen and phosphorus addition

et al. 2015

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Nutrient deposition to tropical forests is increasing, which could affect soil fluxes of nitrous oxide (N 2 O), a powerful greenhouse gas. We assessed the effects of 35-56 months of moderate nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) additions on soil N 2 O fluxes and net soil N-cycling rates, and quantified the relative contributions of nitrification and denitrification to N 2 O fluxes. In 2008, a nutrient manipulation experiment was established along an elevation gradient (1000, 2000, and 3000 m) of montane forests in southern Ecuador. Treatments included control, N, P, and N+P addition (with additions of 50 kg N ha −1 yr −1 and 10 kg P ha −1 yr −1 ). Nitrous oxide fluxes were measured using static, vented chambers and N cycling was determined using the buried bag method. Measurements showed that denitrification was the main N 2 O source at all elevations, but that annual N 2 O emissions from control plots were low, and decreased along the elevation gradient (0.57 ± 0.26-0.05 1 1 ±0.04 kg N 2 O-N ha − yr − ). We attributed the low fluxes to our sites' conservative soil N cycling as well as gaseous N losses possibly being dominated by N 2 . Contrary to the first 21 months of the experiment, N addition did not affect N 2 O fluxes during the 35-56 month period, possibly due to low soil moisture contents during this time. With P addition, N 2 O fluxes and mineral N concentrations decreased during Months 35-56, presumably because plant P limitations were alleviated, increasing plant N uptake. Nitrogen plus phosphorus addition showed similar trends to N addition, but less pronounced given the counteracting effects of P addition. The combined results from this study (Months 1-21 and 35-56) showed that effects of N and P addition on soil N 2 O fluxes were not linear with time of exposure, highlighting the importance of long-term studies.

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Section: Effects Of Elevation On Soil N 2 O Fluxes and Controlling Famentioning

confidence: 99%

Soil N2O fluxes along an elevation gradient of tropical montane forests under experimental nitrogen and phosphorus addition

et al. 2015

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“…In experiment 2, the contribution of nitrification and denitrification on N 2 O production was calculated based on 15 N data following a method described by Stevens et al (1997). The 15 N abundance of NH 4 + was not measured in this study since the high NO 3 − content in our soil and no extra organic carbon was added; the process of dissimilatory NO 3 − reduction to NH 4 + could be neglected (Zhu et al 2013).…”

Section: Calculations and Statisticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Compaction stimulates denitrification in an urban park soil using 15N tracing technique

Deng

Rensing

et al. 2013

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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Soils in urban areas are subjected to compaction with accelerating urbanization. The effects of anthropogenic compaction on urban soil denitrification are largely unknown. We conducted a study on an urban park soil to investigate how compaction impacts denitrification. By using 15 N labeling method and acetylene inhibition technique, we performed three coherent incubation experiments to quantify denitrification in compacted soil under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. Uncompacted soil was set as the control treatment. When monitoring soil incubation without extra substrate, higher nitrous oxide (N 2 O) flux and denitrification enzyme activity were observed in the compacted soil than in the uncompacted soil. In aerobic incubation with the addition of K 15 NO 3 , N 2 O production in the compacted soil reached 10.11 ng N h −1 g −1 as compared to 0.02 ng N h −1 g −1 in the uncompacted soil. Denitrification contributed 96 % of the emitted N 2 O in the compacted soil and 36 % of the emitted N 2 O in the uncompacted soil; total denitrification rate was higher in the compacted soil (up to 79.35 ng N h −1 g −1 ) than in the uncompacted soil (0.11 ng N h −1 g −1 ). Under anaerobic incubation with the addition of K 15 NO 3 , no statistical difference in total N losses and 15 N-(N 2 O+N 2 ) flux between the uncompacted soil and the compacted soil was detected. Compaction promoted soil denitrification and may impact urban N biogeochemical cycling.

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“…Soil moisture, usually measured by the water-filled pore space (WFPS), regulates oxygen (O 2 ) concentration and controls the aerobic and anaerobic conditions in the soil, which can affect the relative contribution of nitrification and denitrification to N 2 O emissions (Stevens et al 1997;Bateman and Baggs 2005;Kool et al 2011;Cheng et al 2014;Liu et al 2017). Nitrification is believed to be the primary pathway of N 2 O production in well-aerated soils with 30% < WFPS < 60%, while denitrification is the major source in wet soils with WFPS of >60% (Bateman and Baggs 2005;Kool et al 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Responses of soil nitrous oxide production and abundances and composition of associated microbial communities to nitrogen and water amendment

et al. 2017

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Soil moisture and nitrogen (N) are two important factors influencing N 2 O emissions and the growth of microorganisms. Here, we carried out a microcosm experiment to evaluate effects of soil moisture level and N fertilizer type on N 2 O emissions and abundances and composition of associated microbial communities in the two typical arable soils. The abundances and community composition of functional microbes involved in nitrification and denitrification were determined via quantitative PCR (qPCR) and terminal restriction length fragment polymorphism (T-RFLP), respectively. Results showed that N 2 O production was higher at 90% water-filled pore (WFPS) than at 50% WFPS. The N 2 O emissions in the two soils amended with ammonium were higher than those amended with nitrate, especially at relatively high moisture level. In both soils, increased soil moisture stimulated the growth of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and nitrite reducer (nirK). Ammonium fertilizer treatment increased the population size of AOB and nirK genes in the alluvial soil, while reduced the abundances of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and denitrifiers (nirK and nosZ) in the red soil. Nitrate addition had a negative effect on AOA abundance in the red soil. Total N 2 O emissions were positively correlated to AOB abundance, but not to other functional genes in the two soils. Changed soil moisture significantly affected AOA rather than AOB community composition in both soils. The way and extent of N fertilizers impacted on nitrifier and denitrifier community composition varied with N form and soil type. These results indicate that N 2 O emissions and the succession of nitrifying and denitrifying communities are selectively affected by soil moisture and N fertilizer form in the two contrasting types of soil.

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Measuring the contributions of nitrification and denitrification to the flux of nitrous oxide from soil

Cited by 340 publications

References 29 publications

Soil N2O fluxes along an elevation gradient of tropical montane forests under experimental nitrogen and phosphorus addition

Soil N2O fluxes along an elevation gradient of tropical montane forests under experimental nitrogen and phosphorus addition

Compaction stimulates denitrification in an urban park soil using 15N tracing technique

Responses of soil nitrous oxide production and abundances and composition of associated microbial communities to nitrogen and water amendment

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