Understanding the Dynamics of Denitrification with high-resolution Simulations

Abstract

<p>Denitrification in unsaturated soils is widely assumed to be a result a result of the formation of so-called hot spots. However, this is a hypothesis, which is hard to test experimentally. Furthermore a better understanding of the microscale dynamics might be very helpful to derive better models at the macroscale.</p><p>Experiments have been conducted, where artificial aggregates from sintered glas have been inocculated with microorganisms and been placed in environments with different oxygen availabilities. Very high-resolution simulations are conducted to reproduce the dynamic of the generation of nitric and nitrous oxide based on a model of microbial growth parametrised with experimental data from batch experiments. The simulations allow a detailed analysis of the local and temporal dynamics of denitrification inside the aggregates.</p>