BG3.20
Gas exchange and related soil processes in agricultural ecosystems

BG3.20

EDI
Gas exchange and related soil processes in agricultural ecosystems
Co-organized by AS3
Convener: Christof Ammann | Co-conveners: Amanda Matson, Christian Brümmer, Eliza HarrisECSECS, Alex Valach, Alexander Moravek, Balázs Grosz, Reinhard Well
Presentations
| Wed, 25 May, 08:30–11:50 (CEST)
 
Room 3.16/17

Presentations: Wed, 25 May | Room 3.16/17

Chairpersons: Amanda Matson, Balázs Grosz, Christof Ammann
08:30–08:33
08:33–08:36
08:36–08:42
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EGU22-90
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ECS
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On-site presentation
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Rajina Bajracharya, Lutz Weihermüller, Michael Herbst, and Harry Vereecken

An understanding of the impact of different levels of nitrogen fertilization on soil fertility and crop production is needed to develop sustainable farming practices. In conjunction with experimental data, simulation models provide insights into how agricultural systems function under various environmental conditions and can provide efficient interpretation of data. An important step in modelling simulations is to calibrate the model parameters for robust predictions as they are sensitive to location or cultivar and cannot be measured. Unfortunately, most crop or agroecosystem model calibrations are performed on temporal or spatial data that is sparsely resolved.

In this study, AgroC model was used to simulate soil hydraulics, crop biometrics, and the nitrogen fluxes in agricultural field trials with the aim to test the model efficacy after nitrogen cycle module was integrated in. Two high quality datasets covering the essential measurement variables were used for testing the model: a 4-year high-resolution lysimeter data from Dedelow and yearly data from suction cups and SoilNet sensors in Campus Klein Altendorf (CKA), both collected in Germany. These data are collected at high temporal resolution, with multi-site characteristics that focus on eroded soils and nitrogen leaching to the deep zone. Among other soil and hydrological state variables, the data in Dedelow specializes in flux measurements (e.g., evapotranspiration, precipitation, drainage) while the data in CKA specializes on carbon and nitrogen content of soil and plant organs at a bi-weeekly interval.

How to cite: Bajracharya, R., Weihermüller, L., Herbst, M., and Vereecken, H.: AgroC model for carbon and nitrogen cycling in soils and plant organs across different fertilization levels, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-90, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-90, 2022.

08:42–08:48
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EGU22-1266
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Jie Zhang, Wenxin Zhang, Per-Erik Jansson, and Søren O. Petersen

To develop good mitigation strategies, estimates of nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from agricultural soils are needed. Process-based biogeochemical models have been used for such estimation but those have mainly been tested on field scaled measurement. Here we will explore how experimentally laboratory measurements can be used to to improve future model use. Based on a series of 43 days incubation experiments and a process model (CoupModel), we assessed the model’s sensitivity and uncertainty in estimating N2O fluxes, CO2 fluxes and soil mineral N. Our results suggested that the most sensitive parameters to N2O flux estimates were related to the decomposibility of soil organic matter and related links to the denitrification processes. The model showed better performance in simulating low-magnitude daily and cumulative N2O fluxes but a tendency to underestimate the fluxes as observed values increased. Residual analysis indicated that nitrification rate could be underestimated but did not sufficiently explain the model deviations. We also evaluated ancillary variables regarding N cycling, which indicates that additional types of observed data including soil oxygen concentrations and the sources of emitted N2O, are required to evaluate model performance and possible biases. The modeled response to abiotic factors (e.g. soil moisture) did not reflect the measured values using consistent parameter sets, limiting the model application under constantly changing environmental conditions in reality. To conclude, the restricted description of N cycling process in the model may not be able to consistently simulate the denitrification and nitrification processes behind N2O emissions and limits the extension of models beyond calibration. This calls for more frequent and more aspects of measurements in future experimental design for model evaluation and development. For the development of process models including CoupModel, there is a need to address crucial missing processes including solute diffusion and microscale heterogeneity, revisit current subrountines of moisture response functions and denitrifier growth dynamics, and report more aspects of simulated outputs for prediction and model.

How to cite: Zhang, J., Zhang, W., Jansson, P.-E., and Petersen, S. O.: Modelling nitrous oxide emissions from agricultural soil incubation experiments using CoupModel, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-1266, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-1266, 2022.

08:48–08:54
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EGU22-6870
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Pauline Sophie Rummel, Amanda Matson, Jonas Eckei, Reinhard Well, and Klaus Dittert

Denitrification is the main source of the greenhouse gas N2O emitted from agricultural soils. While N2O emissions and influencing factors have been very well studied in field experiments, there are hardly any reliable data for N2 emissions on the field scale. However, these are essential to understand under which conditions complete denitrification occurs leading to N2 formation and when N2O is the main end product. Whether NO3- is reduced to N2O or N2 depends on several factors: the availability of NO3- and available organic C, as well as pH, oxygen availability, soil moisture, denitrifier community structure, and temperature. All of these parameters are highly dependent on crop development, as growing plants take up NO3- and water while increasing organic C availability via root exudates and dying roots, and alter soil pH as well as microbial communities by rhizosphere dynamics.

The objective of this field trial was to collect reliable measurement data on N2 and N2O emissions in typical German crops. Two crops were chosen that differ greatly in their temporal development: Winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and sugar beet (Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris). Both crops were grown site-typically according to the rules of good agricultural practice. To measure N2O and N2 emissions, the improved 15N gas flux method including high enrichment 15N-labeled fertilizer was applied. Prior to gas sampling, chambers were purged with a mixture of helium and oxygen (80:20) to reduce the atmospheric N2 background to < 2%. Soil samples were taken at regular intervals and analyzed for mineral N (NO3- and NH4+) and water-soluble Corg content. In addition, we monitored crop development, plant N uptake, N transformation processes in soil, and N translocation to deeper soil layers.

How to cite: Rummel, P. S., Matson, A., Eckei, J., Well, R., and Dittert, K.: Effect of plant development and N uptake on denitrification in two contrasting crop species, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-6870, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-6870, 2022.

08:54–09:00
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EGU22-7043
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On-site presentation
Reinhard Well, Dominika Lewicka-Szczebak, Martin Maier, and Amanda Matson

Analysing isotopocule values of nitrous oxide (N2O) produced in soil can be used to distinguish N2O production pathways and to quantify N2O reduction to N2. In the field, this is typically accomplished by analysing gas samples collected from closed chambers and calculating the isotopocule values of soil-emitted N2O taking into account the fraction of atmospheric N2O. Accuracy of this approach is often limited when N2O fluxes are low, leading to small fraction of soil-derived N2O in the chamber gas. To overcome this limitation, some studies used N2O isotopocules of soil air, assuming that these reflected N2O produced in soil (Gallarotti et al., 2021, Zou et al., 2014). However, this can lead to inaccurate results because (i) due to bi-directional diffusive gas exchange with the atmosphere, soil air is a mixture of soil-derived and atmospheric N2O and (ii) isotopic fractionation during diffusive flux to the atmosphere leads to enrichment of residual N2O in soil air. To evaluate these confounding factors and develop an approach to determine isotopocules of N2O produced in soil from soil air samples, we compared surface fluxes of N2O isotopocules determined by the closed chamber method (Lewicka-Szczebak et al. 2020) with gas probe data. Moreover, a diffusion-reaction model (Maier et al., 2017, Well et al., 2019) will be extended to include isotopic fractionation in order to determine isotopocule values of produced N2O from soil air data. Scenarios varying in depth–dependent N2O production and diffusivity will be analyzed. Results will show to which extent soil air and production values differ, which bias is obtained by using uncorrected soil air values, how well values can be corrected by modeling, and under which conditions soil air sampling might lead to better performance than closed chamber sampling. We expect that soil air sampling can lead to improved sensitivity for isotopocule values of soil-derived N2O in certain cases, but correction of data is obligate to obtain useful results.

 

 

End Text

@END_ABSTRACT@

 

Gallarotti N, Barthel M, Verhoeven E et al. (2021) In-depth analysis of N2O fluxes in tropical forest soils of the Congo Basin combining isotope and functional gene analysis. The ISME Journal, 15, 3357-3374.

Lewicka-Szczebak D, Lewicki MP, Well R (2020) N2O isotope approaches for source partitioning of N2O production and estimation of N2O reduction – validation with the 15N gas-flux method in laboratory and field studies. Biogeosciences, 17, 5513-5537.

Maier M, Longdoz B, Laemmel T, Schack-Kirchner H, Lang F (2017) 2D profiles of CO2, CH4, N2O and gas diffusivity in a well aerated soil: measurement and Finite Element Modeling. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 247, 21-33.

Well R, Maier M, Lewicka-Szczebak D, Köster JR, Ruoss N (2019) Underestimation of denitrification rates from field application of the N-15 gas flux method and its correction by gas diffusion modelling. Biogeosciences, 16, 2233-2246.

Zou Y, Hirono Y, Yanai Y, Hattori S, Toyoda S, Yoshida N (2014) Isotopomer analysis of nitrous oxide accumulated in soil cultivated with tea (Camellia sinensis) in Shizuoka, central Japan. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 77, 276-291.

How to cite: Well, R., Lewicka-Szczebak, D., Maier, M., and Matson, A.: Determination of nitrous oxide processes in soil from depth profiles of natural abundance stable isotope values by diffusion-reaction-fractionation modelling, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-7043, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-7043, 2022.

09:00–09:06
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EGU22-8376
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ECS
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Virtual presentation
Márton Dencső, Rebeka Saliga, Sándor Molnár, and Eszter Tóth

In this study we investigated the effect of mouldboard ploughing (MP), shallow cultivation (SC) and no-tillage (NT) methods on N2O emission of a Central European long-term field experiment. We measured N2O fluxes and environmental parameters (soil moisture and temperature) in three replicates per treatment on a biweekly to mounthly basis during two and a half year period. Besides regular measurements we carried out additional occasions timed to heavy rainfalls. N2O fluxes occured after fertilization and on soils under high soil moisture conditions only, during spring and autumn. The average N2O emission for the whole experimental period was the highest in NT (0.025±0.045 µg N2O m-2 s-1), which was significantly higher (p<0.005) than in MP (0.004±0.003 µg N2O m-2 s-1) or SC (0.003±0.003 µg N2O m-2 s-1). Soil mositure was a significant (p<0.005) environmental driver of N2O emissions in NT treatment.

How to cite: Dencső, M., Saliga, R., Molnár, S., and Tóth, E.: Effect of different tillage methods on soil N2O emission in an arable field, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-8376, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-8376, 2022.

09:06–09:12
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EGU22-9113
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On-site presentation
Balázs Grosz, Björn Kemmann, Stefan Burkart, Søren O. Petersen, and Reinhard Well

Prediction of liquid manure effects on N transformations in soils and associated N2O and N2 fluxes is poor because previous investigations mostly excluded N2, the end product of denitrification. We address the questions, (1) how liquid manure fertilization and its application technique impact N2, N2O and CO2 fluxes from agricultural soil, and (2) how the water, mineral N and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) content of the manure amended soil change between the soil layers. A sandy arable soil was used in a 10 days laboratory incubation at constant 15oC, constant 40% and 60% water-filled pore space (WFPS) and amended with and without artificial slurry in three manure treatments (control, surface-applied, injected). N2O and CO2 fluxes were quantified by gas chromatography. N2 and source-specific N2O flux was quantified by isotope-ratio mass spectrometry. At 5th and 10th day, depth distribution of moisture, NH4+, NO3-, DOC, pH and 15N enrichment of NO3- was determined with destructive sampling. The N2+N2O flux of the surface-applied and injected 40% WFPS treatments were 75% and 110% higher than the control and at 60% WFPS treatments were more than 610% and 1690% higher than the control. The product ratio of denitrification showed enhanced share of N2 to the N2+N2O flux in the manure treatments, which we attribute to hot-spot dynamics of the manure layers. Our data demonstrate how the dynamics of moisture, labile C, NH4+-N, formation of NO3--N by nitrification and pH following manure surface application or injection interact and result in N2O cycling by various pathways. The data-set can thus be used to evaluate and further develop models to predict denitrification and respiration processes of the manure-soil hot-spots. Further progress in unravelling and modeling manure induced hot-spot dynamics can be achieved if temporal and spatial resolution of our measurements is improved and additional techniques to determine O2 distribution and distinguish gross N transformations and their gaseous N fluxes are included.

How to cite: Grosz, B., Kemmann, B., Burkart, S., Petersen, S. O., and Well, R.: The impact of liquid organic fertilization and associated application techniques on N2, N2O and CO2 fluxes from agricultural soils, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-9113, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-9113, 2022.

09:12–09:18
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EGU22-11709
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ECS
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Presentation form not yet defined
3.5-dimensional Simulation of Denitrification
(withdrawn)
Johannes Christian Schulze, Jan Felix Zawallich, Steffen Schlüter, and Olaf Ippisch
09:18–09:24
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EGU22-585
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Gianni Micucci, Fotis Sgouridis, Stefan Krause, Iseult Lynch, Niall P. McNamara, Gloria Dos Santos Pereira, Felicity Roos, and Sami Ullah

Denitrification is one of the major pathways of nitrogen (N) output from soil. In this process, soil nitrate (NO3-) is chemically reduced into dinitrogen (N2) through microbial respiration. Incomplete denitrification leads to the emission of nitrous oxide (N2O), a greenhouse gas 300 times more potent in inducing global warming than carbon dioxide (CO2). Denitrification is highly variable in space and time, which makes it one of the most unconstrained processes in the global N cycle.

Measuring denitrification is challenging because it emits small amounts of N2, hardly distinguishable from the high N2 atmospheric background (78% in volume). The aim of this study was to increase the sensitivity of the 15N Gas Flux method (15NGF), which is considered today, the only suitable method for in situ measurement of denitrification. The 15NGF consists of injecting a stable isotopic tracer (15NO3-) in a pre-determined area of soil and quantifying N2 production via its isotopic composition over time under an enclosed chamber. In order to increase the sensitivity of this method, we aimed to optimize two parameters: the quantity of tracer injected and the N2 background concentration. Increasing the amount of available nitrate represents a risk of stimulating microbes. Reducing the atmospheric N2 background in situ can be challenging because of leaks and diffusion issues.

Our study focused on three different types of agricultural land uses: Arable, Herbal-Rich ley and Grass Clover ley. All three land uses were part of the same experimental field and the leys were in a 3-year rotation with the Arable. We first incubated homogenised soil under lab conditions and under different treatments of added tracer in order to increase sensitivity and observe if a microbial stimulation occurred. Gravimetric moisture was raised to 45% (on a dry mass basis) to simulate a rainfall event and increase the magnitude of denitrification. First experiments showed no detectable amount of evolved N2 and thus, a custom-made gas mix had to be used. This gas mix contained 20% of dioxygen (O2), 5% of N2 and 75% of Helium (He) and was used to replace the native atmosphere in the incubation chambers.

First results showed no significant difference in denitrified N for the ley soils treated with different amounts of tracer. The Arable soil however seemed to have been stimulated when using greater quantities of tracer but further results are expected to confirm this. The Arable treatment also had the highest potential of denitrification in the lab with a mean value of 6.26 x 10-1 µgN/kg/h of emitted N2, compared to the leys who both emitted 1.65 x 10-1 µgN/kg/h. The theoretical sensitivity is increased 24 times for the detection 29N2 and 97 times for the detection of 30N2 when using the gas mix and a 50% tracer enrichment, compared to a 20% enrichment under atmospheric conditions.

Finally, we measured denitrification directly in-situ using higher quantities of tracer and the custom-made gas mix. This was done using either modified greenhouse gas chambers or sealed plastic liners.

How to cite: Micucci, G., Sgouridis, F., Krause, S., Lynch, I., McNamara, N. P., Dos Santos Pereira, G., Roos, F., and Ullah, S.: Towards enhanced sensitivity of the 15N Gas Flux method for quantifying denitrification in soil, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-585, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-585, 2022.

09:24–09:30
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EGU22-13033
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On-site presentation
Amanda Matson, Dirk Lempio, Frank Höppner, and Reinhard Well

Accurate models of soil N cycling are an important tool for optimizing N use efficiency within agricultural systems and predicting N emissions to the environment. However, due to the methodological limitations for the measurement of N2 emissions, in particular high atmospheric N2, only a very limited number of soil N2 flux datasets are available to validate model estimates of denitrification. As part of the DFG-research unit “Denitrification in Agricultural Soils: Integrated Control and Modelling at Various Scales (DASIM)”, we are building on existing methods to take in situ measurements of denitrification under a variety of field conditions, with an emphasis on the detection of non-peak events. Using static chambers, we establish a low-N2 background through headspace and soil flushing, and then use stable isotope techniques (natural abundance and 15N labeling of the soil mineral N pool) to assess the response of soil denitrification to combinations of climate, soil and plant factors found in the field. Here we present results of N2 and N2O fluxes from the field, which highlight both the potential and the challenges of using this combined method.  

How to cite: Matson, A., Lempio, D., Höppner, F., and Well, R.: Combining low-N2 background and 15N soil gas flux - lessons from the field, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-13033, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-13033, 2022.

09:30–09:33
09:33–09:39
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EGU22-4766
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Irene Martin Brull, Carlos Cantero-Martínez, Ana Bielsa Aced, Victoria Lafuente Rosales, Fernando Gómez Valenciano, and Jorge Álvaro-Fuentes

Carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrous oxide (N2O) are two of the most important greenhouse gases (GHG) resulting from agricultural activity. Production, emission and consumption of these gases are regulated by structural and chemical soil properties along with biological processes. Therefore, agricultural soils can act as GHG emitters but also as potential sinks.

Water scarcity added to a low soil quality, represent a challenge for agricultural sustainability in Mediterranean semiarid regions. Additionally, winter cereal cultivation followed by a summer fallow period has been the main extensive farming system in rainfed Mediterranean areas of Spain. No-tillage systems preserve more efficiently soil moisture and boost soil organic carbon storage in comparison with conventional tillage systems. Diversifying cropping systems may have several benefits on crop productivity and sustainability, such as an efficient control of weed seed bank, the prevention of possible crop diseases, the increase of the soil organic matter and the improvement of the soil water storage capacity. Due to the ability of legume crops to establish bacterial symbiosis for N fixation, crop rotations with cereal and legume crops may lead to a reduction of nitrogen fertilizers application. Minimizing N-fertilization is often associated with a decrease in GHG soil emissions. Henceforth, selecting adequate agricultural practices and cropping systems are key to minimize soil GHG emissions contributing to mitigate climate change. Accordingly, this study aims to evaluate the effect of diversified cropping systems compared to cereal monoculture systems on GHG soil emissions (CO2 and N2O) in Mediterranean semiarid conditions.

For this purpose, it was conducted a long-term field experiment in rainfed conditions located in Zaragoza, Spain. Two crop rotations under direct sowing system were compared (wheat-barley and barley-pea) for the evaluation of possible alternatives to the traditional barley monoculture. The soil CO2 and N2O emissions were quantified every two weeks since sowing (October) until harvest (June) and every three weeks from harvest to the next sowing (summer fallow) during three growing seasons: 2018-2019, 2019-2020 and 2020-2021. In addition, soil surface temperature and moisture were measured as well as bulk density.

During the first growing season, there was not effect of cropping diversification on CO2 and N2O emissions. However, in the following two seasons, the results obtained showed significative differences on the soil CO2 and N2O emission rates depending on the different cropping systems. A significant temporal variability was also observed in the soil emission rates of CO2 and N2O.The temporal variability found in the GHG emissions were mostly explained by the wide range of soil temperature and moisture found among years.

How to cite: Martin Brull, I., Cantero-Martínez, C., Bielsa Aced, A., Lafuente Rosales, V., Gómez Valenciano, F., and Álvaro-Fuentes, J.: Crop diversification effect on CO2 and N2O soil emissions in Mediterranean semiarid conditions, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-4766, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-4766, 2022.

09:39–09:45
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EGU22-11707
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ECS
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On-site presentation
François Boland, Matthieu Delespesse, Henri Chopin, Alain Debacq, Benjamin Dumont, Bernard Longdoz, and Bernard Heinesch

The transition from conventional tillage (CT) to reduced tillage (RT) on cultivated lands to achieve carbon sequestration has shown variable impact on the greenhouse gas (GHG) balance at local sites from short to long-term studies. In this context, replicated automated closed chambers were set up on two plots from a long-term (since 2008) differentiated tillage trial (conventional CT vs. reduced tillage RT) on a loamy soil in Gembloux (Belgium) with the aim to analyse the temporal and spatial variabilities of N2O fluxes and the impacts of tillage with regards to soil physical and chemical drivers in the soil profile.

Continuous measurements of CO2 and N2O emissions were performed with 8 chambers at four hours temporal resolution on each plot of 600 m², within 16 m² sampling square, during the growing season of sugar beet (April to October 2021), following a winter wheat crop with straw incorporation (crop residue). Soil physical (water content and tension, temperature, O2 concentration, bulk density and gas diffusivity) and chemical (NO3 and NH4) drivers in the soil profile (5, 15, 25 cm) were also monitored.

Results show no significant difference between treatments on mean CO2 and N2O emissions. Nevertheless, a visible tendency of higher N2O emissions on RT (>200%) echoes with previous experiment results over this site that indicated significantly higher mean N2O emissions in the reduced tillage (RT) plot compared to conventional on a maize crop in 2015 and winter wheat in 2016. For each treatment, more than 70% of the N2O emissions were measured during two peaks episodes that occurred after intense rainfall. A significant correlation was observed between the base-10 logarithm of N2O and CO2 fluxes, and it likely shows a link between N2O production and mineralisation of organic matter, e.g. previous crop residues that were incorporated following previous summer wheat harvest. Soil relative gas diffusivity (Dp/Do) in the first horizon (0-10 cm) was the best predictor of N2O fluxes.

The N2O emissions showed significant spatial variability within both treatments with coefficients of variation up to 400% between chamber measurements on the RT plot, especially during peak emissions, hampering statistical comparison between treatments. As replicated chambers are covering a limited surface, this suggests N2O production in small-scale hotspots within the chambers sampling square. These results call for further work on local (sampling square) and plot scale spatial variabilities that need to be investigated to help the optimisation of the sampling strategy for a finer comparison between treatments.

How to cite: Boland, F., Delespesse, M., Chopin, H., Debacq, A., Dumont, B., Longdoz, B., and Heinesch, B.: Is shifting from conventional to reduced tillage worth the change in terms of greenhouse gas emissions: feedback from a long-term case study on a cultivated loamy soil in Belgium, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-11707, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-11707, 2022.

09:45–09:51
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EGU22-13396
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On-site presentation
Sílvia Poblador, Coline Le Noir de Carlan, Erik Verbruggen, and Sara Vicca

Changes in agricultural management practices to enhance soil carbon (C) sequestration while maintaining crop productivity are a key opportunity to reduce the impact of humans on the environment, reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes to the atmosphere and nutrient leaching to aquatic ecosystems without compromising food and soil security. Amongst them, enhanced weathering (EW) of silicate minerals is a promising negative emission technology that can be associated with multiple co-benefits for crop production by spreading silicate minerals on arable soils (i.e. increase in crop yields, restoration of soil base cations and micro- and macronutrient stocks). A growing number of EW studies are focused on soil C sequestration and the effects on crop production. Yet, little is known about the impact of such management practices on GHG sink/source behaviour of agricultural soils and the soil bacterial communities involved.

In this context, winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) was grown in 20 mesocosms undergoing 4 different treatments: acid soil (pH ~5) with or without basalt addition (50 tones ha-1) and alkaline soil (pH ~7) with or without basalt addition. Soil GHG emissions (CO2, CH4 and N2O) were measured at six different time points spread over the growing season (from March to June). Measurements included anaerobic conditions (i.e. immediately after irrigation events) and aerobic condition (i.e. in-between events). Simultaneously, soil was sampled for the study of the soil bacterial community.

We found that basalt application led to an increase in crop yield in acid soils, while it decreased the yield in alkaline soils. GHG emissions were not reduced by the basalt amendment. Soil CO2 fluxes peaked in-between irrigation events and were mainly influenced by the soil pH, being 2-fold higher in alkaline soils than in acid ones. Irrigation events increased both CH4 and N2O fluxes. Soils acted as CH4 sink in-between irrigation events, but became sources shortly after those (up to 5-fold higher). While it was hypothesised that higher pH would result in an improved denitrification completion, the increase in pH induced by basalt application did not reduce soil N2O fluxes. Higher N2O fluxes were observed during irrigation events and in basalt-enriched mesocosms, as a result of combined enhanced nitrification and denitrification processes. Despite the modest effects of EW on soil GHG emissions, soil bacterial communities were very different for acid and alkaline soils, and varied significantly with basalt amendment and throughout time.

Overall, this study showed that EW resulted in an improved wheat yield and altered soil bacterial community in acid soils. However, the general effect of EW on soil GHG emissions was modest and complex.

How to cite: Poblador, S., Le Noir de Carlan, C., Verbruggen, E., and Vicca, S.: Enhanced weathering in acid and alkaline agricultural soils: greenhouse gas emissions and soil bacterial communities implications, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-13396, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-13396, 2022.

09:51–10:00
Coffee break
Chairpersons: Alexander Moravek, Christof Ammann
10:20–10:23
10:23–10:29
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EGU22-2175
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On-site presentation
Katja Kramp, Shrijana Vaidya, Marten Schmidt, Peter Rakowski, Norbert Bonk, Robert Buddrus, Gernot Verch, Michael Sommer, Jürgen Augustin, and Mathias Hoffmann

Improved agricultural practices are considered as one of the potential solutions for mitigating global climate change. However, agricultural used landscapes are complex and their function as source and sink of greenhouse gases like CO2, CH4, and N2O might differ substantially in time and space. Hence, accurate and precise information on the complex spatio-temporal gas flux pattern is needed to evaluate the effects/benefits of new agricultural practices aiming towards increasing soil organic carbon. Automatic chamber measurements are increasingly used in agricultural systems to determine emissions of greenhouse gases as well as the net ecosystem C balance (NECB). While the eddy covariance (EC) technique remains to be the most common method at field scale, automated chamber measurements might close a gap, by detecting small-scale spatial emission patterns, while still compromising a sufficient temporal resolution. Infrared gas analysers (IRGAs) have been available for decades and helped to facilitate CO2 measurements substantially. In addition, further technical progress resulted in the development of multigas analysers, which are able to measure not only CO2, but also CH4, N2O, as well as their isotopes. However, most of these analysers are rather cost-intensive and many of them are primary designed for use in the laboratory.

Here, we compare CO2 fluxes and derived emission estimates, obtained using a widely applied IRGA (LI-850 CO2/H2O, Licor, Germany) with results of a new, medium cost, CO2, CH4, and N2O gas analyser (ProCeas GENERAL, AP2E, France). Two of both sensors were mounted on a novel robotic chamber system (“CarboCrane”), which was installed in 2019 at an undulating summit position of the hummocky ground moraine landscape of NE Germany. The system is comprised of a gantry crane mounted on two tracks (110 m) transporting the sensors and two transparent closed chambers. Measurements of the net CO2 exchange were performed by moving the system along the tracks with each chamber along one half of the covered area. Altogether, 36 measurement plots have been established. On each of these plots, an area for net CO2 exchange measurement has been set up by inserting round iron frames (diameter=1.59 m) 5 cm deep into the soil on which the transparent chambers were deployed for measurements. CO2 fluxes were determined by measuring the development of chamber headspace CO2 concentrations (4 sec frequency; measurements of both sensors in parallel) over chamber deployment time (7 min; see 2.5) in a flow-through non-steady-state (FT-NSS) mode (Livingston and Hutchinson, 1995). CO2 fluxes and emission estimates were derived for all four sensors for a test period of three month (April – June 2021) at six plots, covered with winter rye situated at a mineral fertilized, non-eroded Calcic Luvisol. To guarantee an enhanced variability in measured CO2 fluxes, the six measured plots divide into topsoil diluted and non-diluted treatments. Our results show in general a great consistency between the results delivered by both sensors and support the assumption of a rather small error fraction of the sensor type for both, the calculated CO2 flux and the emission estimates based on it.

How to cite: Kramp, K., Vaidya, S., Schmidt, M., Rakowski, P., Bonk, N., Buddrus, R., Verch, G., Sommer, M., Augustin, J., and Hoffmann, M.: Influence of sensor type on the error of automatic chamber derived CO2 fluxes and gap-filled emission estimates, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-2175, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-2175, 2022.

10:29–10:35
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EGU22-2247
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ECS
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Presentation form not yet defined
Shrijana Vaidya, Marten Schmidt, Katja Kramp, Peter Rakowski, Nobert Bonk, Robert Buddrus, Gernot Verch, Michael Sommer, Jürgen Augustin, and Mathias Hoffmann

On arable land, C dynamics and storage are significantly influenced by tillage and N fertilization. Therefore, new practices such as the combination of topsoil dilution (e.g., through fractional deep tillage) and organic N fertilization may not only ameliorate soil's physical and chemical properties and promote root development but might also enhance soil organic carbon (ΔSOC) stocks. However, the impact of these practices depends on site-specific conditions as agricultural landscapes are often characterized by distinct small-scale soil heterogeneities. To upscale and evaluate the effects or benefits of these new farming practices, accurate and precise information on the complex spatio-temporal C flux pattern and their drivers are thus needed.

To investigate the impact of topsoil dilution and organic N fertilization on SOC storage, we performed a study in the strongly erosion affected arable landscape of NE Germany (Uckermark region, 53° 23' N, 13° 47' E; ~50-60 m a.s.l). The study area consisted of 36 measurement plots, of which each 12 covered one out of three erosion induced soil types; Calcic Luvisol (non-eroded), Nudiargic Luvisol (strongly eroded) and Calcaric Regosol (extremely eroded). During July 2020, a two factorial experimental design was established (topsoil dilution vs no topsoil dilution and mineral N fertilization vs organic N fertilization) through implementing topsoil dilution and organic N fertilization on three replicates of each of the three measured soil types. Topsoil dilution was achieved by removing the upper 6 cm of the topsoil layer adding/mixing equivalent weight of subsoil into it.

Subsequently, relevant C fluxes, especially the CO2 exchange, were measured using a new robotic chamber system. C in plant biomass was measured by weekly biomass sampling on a nearby reference site and related to plot measurements of CO2 through NDVI (normalized difference vegetation index) and RVI (ratio vegetation index) measurements. Here, we present our first results on the effect of soil type, topsoil dilution, and N-fertilization form on CO2 and C exchange of winter rye. Our results show that there are not only differences between the distinct soil types but also differences between the non-diluted and diluted topsoil treatments. The latter show lower cumulated ecosystem respiration and gross primary productivity, as well as a lower RVI/NDVI  and above-ground biomass production, compared to the non-diluted soil. No substantial difference, however, was detected in the case of net ecosystem exchange. As a result, net ecosystem carbon balance was lower for diluted topsoil compared to the non diluted treatments.

How to cite: Vaidya, S., Schmidt, M., Kramp, K., Rakowski, P., Bonk, N., Buddrus, R., Verch, G., Sommer, M., Augustin, J., and Hoffmann, M.: Distinct short term response of C exchange to topsoil dilution and N-fertilization form at erosion affected arable land, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-2247, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-2247, 2022.

10:35–10:41
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EGU22-4627
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On-site presentation
Oscar Monzon, Danica Antonijevic, Barbara Vergara N, Gernot Verch, Matthias Lück, Jürgen Augustin, and Mathias Hoffmann

As a result of globally strongly intensified N fertilization, agriculture is an important source not only for greenhouse gas (GHG) and especially gaseous N emissions but also N pollution through leaching. To increase nitrogen use efficiency and reduce gaseous N emissions and leaching, N inhibitors can be used. The use of N inhibitors, however, might directly affect crop growth and alter yield, which influences CO2 exchange and might potentially change C sequestration. While the applicability of N inhibitors to reduce especially NH3 and N2O emissions is well recognized, to date, the influence of these inhibiters on CO2 emissions and C sequestration is rather unclear.

We investigated the influence of urease (UI) and nitrification inhibitors (NI) when used with mineral fertilizer on GHG emissions and C sequestration for maize cropping in an on-farm, strip-field trial in NE Germany (Uckermark Region, “53°18'54.2"N, 13°40'15.2"E”). The on-farm field trial consists of four treatments, each implemented on a strip of 15m by 100m: non-fertilized (NF), fertilized (Urea Ammonium Sulfate (AS-HS)), with one (AS-HS + UI) and with two (AS-HS + UI + NI) inhibitors. On each treatment 5 PVC frames (0.5625 m2) for manual closed chamber measurements of GHG emissions were installed. Out of these 5 repetitive plots, one frame per treatment was kept clear of maize crops to obtain soil respiration (Rs). N2O (and CH4) emissions were measured using opaque chambers, evacuated glass bottles for sampling and subsequent GC analyses (Shimadzu GC-14B with ECD and FID detectors), while CO2 exchange (Reco, Rs (opaque chamber) and NEE (transparent chamber)) were determined on-site by connecting the chambers with an infrared gas analyzer (LI-850, LI-COR Biosciences, Lincoln, USA). Crop growth was monitored through weekly measurements of plant height, NDVI and RVI as well as biomass samples. To obtain heterotrophic respiration (Rh), complementary to in-situ measurements, laboratory incubation experiment was conducted, using a fully automated incubation system (Rillig et al. 2021) and soil samples collected at distinct periods of maize cropping period and under different temperatures, to determine soil respiration. C sequestration was determined through calculating the net ecosystem C balance (NECB = NEE + Cimport - Cexport) as well as through repeated soil inventories.

The use of N inhibitors did reduce GHG emissions through reducing N2O emissions, but also reduced maize biomass production (dry matter (t/ha): 18.2, 24.1, 19.9 and 19.5 for NF, AS-HS, AS-HS + UI, and AS-HS + UI + NI respectively). Consequently, Reco and gross primary productivity (GPP) were lower for the treatments with N inhibitors compared to the fertilized field without N inhibitors but higher than the non-fertilized treatment. No significant effect on NEE was found, while the C losses seemed to be slightly higher for the treatment without N inhibitor use.

How to cite: Monzon, O., Antonijevic, D., Vergara N, B., Verch, G., Lück, M., Augustin, J., and Hoffmann, M.: Influence of N inhibitors on carbon losses/sequestration in Maize cropping, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-4627, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-4627, 2022.

10:41–10:47
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EGU22-5747
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Sergio Aranda-Barranco, Penelope Serrano-Ortiz, Andrew Stephen Kowalski, and Enrique Sanchez-Cañete

Olive grove management entails environmental and socio-economic repercussions for the Mediterranean region. Maintaining bare soil in alleys is the most common management in this crop, but its implications for soil respiration (Rsoil) are not well understood. Although previous studies have quantified Rsoil at specific moments, soil respiration has not yet been continuously measured in olive groves. In this study a complete year of Rsoil  measurements was taken in an irrigated olive grove in southeast of Spain. To avoid spontaneous weed growth a glyphosate-based herbicide was periodically applied. Six automated soil CO2 efflux chambers with additional sensors of soil temperature (T) and soil water content (SWC) were controled by a multichamber monitoring system (Li-8100A, Li-cor). With the aim of know the spatial variability in Rsoil and facilitate scaling up to estimate ecosystem soil respiration, 3 chambers were installed under the olive tree canopy and 3 chambers in the alleys.

Preliminary results show that Rsoil increased in the warmer months and decreased in the colder months as expected. Also, daily Rsoil values under the trees are normally several times higher than in the alleys but this ratio changed with the seasons. In warm months, daily Rsoil under the tree was 2-3 times higher than daily Rsoil in the alley, while in cold months (like January) it was 6 times higher. In the alleys, diurnal variability was detected in Rsoil except in winter. While Rsoil under the trees was practically constant throughout the day during the year except in summer when there appears to be a relationship with the decrease in the flux of photosynthates in environments with high VPD. In spring Rsoil-alleys was double at midday versus night-time. Additionally, a positive and a negative relationship was established with temperature and SWC respectively. On the other hand, we found no clear relationship for Rsoil under the tree with respect to T or SWC. These preliminary results suggest a considerable Rsoil component of total ecosystem respiration influenced by the tree which does not depend on changes in T and SWC and that should be included in the partition models.

How to cite: Aranda-Barranco, S., Serrano-Ortiz, P., Kowalski, A. S., and Sanchez-Cañete, E.: Spatial and temporal variability of soil respiration in an irrigated olive grove in southeastern Spain, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-5747, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-5747, 2022.

10:47–10:53
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EGU22-8111
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Muhammad Saiful Islam, Stefan Pätzold, Ralf Wehrle, Nele Bendel, Katja Herzog, and Nicolas Brüggemann

Soils in perennial cropping systems, such as vineyards, have good prospects for storing carbon since less management is required with minimum disturbance to the soil that might prevent rapid turnover of organic matter. In addition, incorporation of organic matter into the subsoil instead of conventional topsoil application might increase its resistance to decomposition through physical isolation and the buildup of organo-mineral complexes. However, the stability of organic matter in agricultural land could also be highly dependent on individual systems, soil properties and climatic conditions.

In our study, the stability of high carbon organic materials (i.e., compost and a Terra Preta-like material) after deep (30-60 cm) incorporation into the soil of a vineyard in western Germany was investigated with respect to greenhouse gas emissions. Portable gas analyzers were used for long-term in-situ monitoring of greenhouse gas emissions. Additional parameters quantified were soil redox potential using Pt electrodes and the concentration of greenhouse gases in the pore space of the soil using air samplers.

The deeply incorporated soil organic amendments showed good stability with respect to N2O and CH4 emission, whereas 30.4% and 51.7% of the compost and the Terra Preta-like material, respectively, was decomposed and released as atmospheric CO2 after two years of observation. Oxygen availability at different soil depths throughout the sampling period, indicated by redox potential values of 300 to 700 mV, played a role in the turnover of organic matter in the treatments. Higher CO2 concentration in the treatments in the deeper soil layer (30-50 cm) compared to the control was also consistent with higher CO2 emission at the soil surface.

To investigate the site-specific influence on the stability of organic matter, the emission of greenhouse gases will also be quantified in different vineyards at different locations with similar management.  

How to cite: Islam, M. S., Pätzold, S., Wehrle, R., Bendel, N., Herzog, K., and Brüggemann, N.: Investigating the potential of vineyard soils for carbon sequestration and greenhouse gas emission mitigation after incorporation of organic matter into the subsoil, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-8111, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-8111, 2022.

10:53–10:59
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EGU22-10515
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Sergio David Aguirre García, José Ángel Callejas Rodelas, Sergio Aranda Barranco, Enrique P. Sánchez-Cañete, Andrew S. Kowalski, and Penélope Serrano Ortiz

The Mediterranean region has a great surface of olive crops where about 98% of the world’s olive agricultural area is represented. Of these lands, 2.7 Mha are in Spain with more than half concentrated in the Southeastern Iberian Peninsula. In this type of crop, the maintenance of natural herbaceous-cover in the alleys from autumn to spring is a common practice to protect the soil against erosion, but little is known yet about its contribution to CO2 and H2O fluxes and their seasonal variability. The eddy covariance technique is used worldwide to measure GHG fluxes at the ecosystem level. Additionally, this technique has been used successfully to measure fluxes below the canopy in closed forests and pastures. In this regard, continuous monitoring of eddy covariance CO2/H2O fluxes above and below the trees canopy was carried out in an irrigated olive grove (Olea europaea L.) in the Southeastern Iberian Peninsula in the hydrological year 2020-2021. The olive trees are distributed in a plantation frame of 12×12 m and the area is divided into two plots: 1) with natural herbaceous-cover from autumn to spring, then cut and left on the surface (hereafter HC); and 2) kept herbaceous-free by glyphosate-based herbicide application (hereafter HF). Each plot has two eddy covariance towers, one above the canopy (ecosystem tower) and the other below the canopy (subcanopy tower).

A comparison between fluxes measured with the subcanopy towers and those measured with ecosystem towers showed the need for wind-direction filtering of the fluxes measured at the subcanopy level. Results show the relevance of selecting those fluxes coming from wind directions where the alleys are located in order to get accurate subcanopy CO2/H2O fluxes, avoiding those eddies coming from the olives. Regarding seasonal variability of the CO2/H2O fluxes measured at the subcanopy level, preliminary results showed that the HC plot behaved as a C light sink in winter (Dec., Jan., Feb.), being February the month with the most absorption averaging around 1.5 g C m-2 day-1 while HF behaved as C neutral. In the month before mowing (March), HC behaved as a sink, absorbing, on average, around 2.5 g C m-2 day-1, while HF acted as a light source emitting around 0.2 g C m-2 day-1. After mowing (from April to June) both HC and HF acted as sources, with HC yielding the largest values in April (around 2.1 g C m-2 day-1). Finally, in summer and autumn (from July to Nov.) both HC and HF appear to behave as weak C sources at the subcanopy level.

How to cite: Aguirre García, S. D., Callejas Rodelas, J. Á., Aranda Barranco, S., Sánchez-Cañete, E. P., Kowalski, A. S., and Serrano Ortiz, P.: Viability of Below-Canopy Eddy Covariance Measurements in Herbaceous-free and Herbaceous-cover Mediterranean olive crop, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-10515, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-10515, 2022.

10:59–11:05
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EGU22-10419
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ECS
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On-site presentation
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Andreas Brændholt, Azeem Tariq, Line Vinther Hansen, Lars Stoumann Jensen, Klaus Steenberg Larsen, and Sander Bruun

Danish agricultural ecosystems are one of the main contributors to the total anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases in Denmark. The main research focus on greenhouse gas emissions from mineral agricultural soils has been on N2O, and on how the N2O emissions respond to fertilizer addition and different agricultural practices. Studies on CH4 fluxes are scarce and mostly show a small uptake of CH4, indicating that oxidation of CH4 is dominant in agricultural soils.

As part of the NATEF (National emission factors for nitrous oxide from nitrogen fertilizers and crop rotations) project, we have established a field experiment in Taastrup, Denmark. The experiment has been running since early 2019, and consists of 12 plots (4 rotation treatments × 3 blocks) that each are managed following a common Danish crop rotation (main crops: spring barley, winter wheat and oilseed rape) in addition to cover crops (oat, phacelia, oilseed radish) following winter wheat. The field experiment is one of four identical field experiments located across Denmark, thereby capturing the variation in climate and soil types seen in Denmark. The main aim of the project is to determine emission factors for nitrous oxide for Danish cropping systems. This is achieved by regular manual measurements of N2O, CH4 and CO2 fluxes by the discrete closed chamber method in all plots. Furthermore, we have deployed an automated flux chamber system (ECO2 FluX, Prenart Equipment) connected to a greenhouse gas analyzer (G2508, Picarro) to provide high-frequency measurements of the fluxes of N2O, CH4 and CO2. In each growing season, two plots were selected and three automated chambers were placed in each plot, totaling six automated chambers in the study. The automated measurements allowed us to examine the high-frequency temporal dynamics in the fluxes, e.g. periods following rain events, freeze-thaw, fertilization or tilling.

As expected, we generally observed emissions of N2O across all plots with different crops. CH4 fluxes were slightly negative (i.e. uptake) or close to zero during most periods, indicating that oxidation was the dominant process. However, during the autumn of 2019, we captured CH4 emission by the automated chambers in the plot with oilseed radish, while at the same time, the automated chambers in a plot with winter wheat showed no CH4 emissions. However, spatial variation in emissions were very large indicating that edaphic and topological factors played a major role. Our results show evidence that hotspots of CH4 emissions can occur in Danish agricultural ecosystems that otherwise mostly act as a sink for CH4. We expect that similar hotspots for CH4 emissions could exist in other similar agricultural systems.

How to cite: Brændholt, A., Tariq, A., Hansen, L. V., Jensen, L. S., Larsen, K. S., and Bruun, S.: A hotspot of CH4 emission in a Danish agricultural soil: A soft spot in our knowledge?, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-10419, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-10419, 2022.

11:05–11:11
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EGU22-1064
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Jerry Dlamini, Laura Cardenas, Eyob Tesfamariam, Robert Dunn, Jane Hawkins, Martin Blackwell, Jess Evans, and Adrian Collins

Methane (CH4) has a global warming potential (GWP) 28-times that of carbon dioxide (CO2) over a 100-year horizon. Riparian buffers strips are widely implemented for their water quality protection functions along agricultural land, but conditions prevailing within them may increase the emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs), including CH4. However,  only small amount of information is available regarding the dynamics of unintended emissions of soil CH4 in these commonplace features of agroecosystems and how the dynamics compare to those for agricultural land not containing buffer strips. To understand the dynamics of soil CH4 fluxes from a permanent upslope pasture and contiguous riparian buffer strips with different (grass, willow, and woodland) vegetation as well as controls with no buffer vegetation, field measurements were carried out using the static chamber technique on a replicated plot-scale facility. Gas fluxes were measured periodically with soil and environmental variables between June 2018 and February 2019 at Rothamsted Research, North Wyke, United Kingdom. Soils under all treatments were sinks of soil CH4 with the willow riparian buffer (-2555 ± 318.7 g CH4 ha-1) having the lowest soil CH4 flux followed by the grass riparian buffer (-2532 ± 318.7 g CH4 ha-1), woodland riparian buffer (-2318.0 ± 246.4 g CH4 ha-1), no-buffer control (-1938.0 ± 374.4 g CH4 ha-1), and lastly, the upslope pasture (-1328.0 ± 89.0 g CH4 ha-1) which had a higher flux. The three vegetated riparian buffers were more substantial soil CH4 sinks, suggesting that they may help reduce soil CH4 fluxes into the atmosphere in similar agroecosystems.

How to cite: Dlamini, J., Cardenas, L., Tesfamariam, E., Dunn, R., Hawkins, J., Blackwell, M., Evans, J., and Collins, A.: Soil methane (CH4) fluxes in cropland with permanent pasture and riparian buffer strips with different vegetation, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-1064, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-1064, 2022.

11:11–11:14
11:14–11:20
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EGU22-1299
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Jessica Chadwick, Peng Zhang, Iseult Lynch, Sami Ullah, and Ryan Mushinski

Nitrogen emissions from agricultural soils have been increasing over the past century due to improved accessibility of nitrogen fertilisers. These fertilisers have unbalanced the global nitrogen (N) cycle, with far-reaching effects on soil acidification and biodiversity, eutrophication, and ozone depletion. The high yields achieved by modern agriculture must be maintained but this cannot come at the cost of the earth. Nanomaterials have been proposed as a viable alternative to improve conventional fertilisers and have been tested on a range of crops, with analysis of their effects on N cycling also common. Nanofertilisers have one or more dimensions on a nanoscale, and their high surface area to volume ratio causes them to adsorb to biomolecules around them, changing their reactivity and stability as they enter new environments. Previous work (Ramirez-Rodriguez et al. 2020) showed the nanocomposite, urea-doped amorphous calcium phosphate (U-ACP), was able to maintain wheat yield at a much lower concentration as compared to urea alone. Our study compared U-ACP to urea treatment on lettuce growth, N-cycle community size, N leachate concentration and reactive N-oxide (NOY) emissions. Urea and U-ACP treatment both produced more lettuce biomass than the control. However, U-ACP treatment significantly reduced NOY emissions from soil as compared to urea-treated soils, reducing emissions down to the same concentration as control soils. This pattern was also seen in aqueous emissions of reactive N species (ammonium, nitrite, and nitrate), with urea treated soils consistently producing higher concentrations than U-ACP treated soils. Denitrifying bacteria were more prevalent in U-ACP treated soils, potentially reflecting that the nanocomposite is able to aid in more complete denitrification, reducing production of intermediary, polluting N species. Our work focussed on NOY over other forms of volatile N, the high levels of NOY production by urea-treated soils indicate this may be an area of research that is deserving of greater attention in the future. This work illustrates that U-ACP, and other composite nanocarriers like it, may be good fertiliser candidates going into the future to reduce agricultural pollution, while maintaining crop yields.

How to cite: Chadwick, J., Zhang, P., Lynch, I., Ullah, S., and Mushinski, R.: Minimising nitrogen losses from agricultural soil using a nitrogen-doped nanocomposite, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-1299, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-1299, 2022.

11:20–11:26
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EGU22-6473
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Virtual presentation
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Pieternel Levelt and Pierre Coheur and the Nitrosat Science Team

 

 

The nitrogen cycle has been heavily perturbed due to ever growing agriculture, industry, transport and domestic production. It is believed that we now have reached a point where the nitrogen biochemical flow has exceeded its planetary boundary for a safe operating zone. This goes together with a cascade of impacts on human health and ecosystems. To better understand and address these impacts, there is a critical need to quantify the global nitrogen cycle and monitor its perturbations on all scales, down to the urban or agricultural source. The Nitrosat concept, which was preselected recently in the framework of ESA’s Earth Explorer 11 call and is entering Phase0 activities, has for overarching objective to simultaneously identify the emission contributions of NH3 and NO2 from farming activities, industrial complexes, transport, fires and urban areas. The specific Nitrosat science goals are to: Quantify the emissions of NH3 and NO2 on the landscape scales, to expose individual sources and characterize the temporal patterns of their emissions. Quantify the relative contribution of agriculture, in its diversity of sectors and practices, to the total emissions of reactive nitrogen. Quantify the contribution of reactive nitrogen to air pollution and its impact on human health. Constrain the atmospheric dispersion and surface deposition of reactive nitrogen and its impacts on ecosystems and climate; and contribute to monitoring policy progress to reduce nitrogen deposition in Natura 2000 areas in Europe. Reduce uncertainties in the contribution of reactive nitrogen to climate forcing, atmospheric chemistry and interactions between biogeochemical cycles. To achieve these objectives, Nitrosat would consist of an infrared Imaging Fourier Transform Spectrometer and a Visible Imaging Pushbroom Spectrometer. These imaging spectrometers will measure NH3 and NO2 (respectively) at 500 m, which is the required spatial scale to differentiate, identify and quantify the main point and area sources in a single satellite overpass. Source regions would be probed from once a week to once a month to reveal the seasonal patterns. Combined with air quality models, assimilation and inverse modelling, these measurements would allow assessing the processes that are relevant for the human disruption of the nitrogen cycle and their resulting effects, in much more detail than what will be achieved with the satellite missions that are planned in the next decade. In this way, Nitrosat would enable informed evaluations of future policies on nitrogen emission control. This presentation will detail the mission concept, provide first results from the Phase 0 scientific studies and from supporting aircraft campaigns.

 

How to cite: Levelt, P. and Coheur, P. and the Nitrosat Science Team: Nitrosat: Nitrosat: Mapping reactive nitrogen at the landscape scale, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-6473, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-6473, 2022.

11:26–11:32
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EGU22-7188
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On-site presentation
Andreas Pacholski, Felix Engel, and Achim Seidel

Ammonia (NH3) emission is one of the dominant pathways of N loss from liquid manure fertilization with negative effects on environment and human health. It is still an unanswered question, how soil (e.g. pH, Corg, texture) and slurry factors (e.g. pH, Dm) interact in NH3 emission processes and which of the two systems eventually dominates the other. A systematic incubation study was set up using soils with different soil textures, in which different soil pH levels were established by in two long-term fertilisation trials (Jyndevad, Denmark; Bad Lauchstädt, Germany). Two contrasting slurry types combined with two application techniques (surface banding, incorporation) were tested. Guiding hypotheses were that emissions from surface applied slurry are mainly governed by slurry characteristics while soil effects become dominant after slurry incorporation.

Dynamic chamber incubations (400 g dry soil, 60% WHC, 15 °C, exchange rate 10 head space Vol/min) were set up to determine NH3 emissions after surface or incorporated application of pig slurry (PS, pH 6.6, DM 13.2%) and anaerobic digestate (AD, pH 8.1, DM 6.6%). Ammonia emissions were measured by photoacoustic gas monitor for a maximum of four days after fertilization. Soils investigated were a sandy soil with low clay content from Jyndevad in Denmark and a loamy loess-chernozem with high clay content from Bad Lauchstaedt in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. From each location several soils (4 x Jyndevad and 7 x Bad Lauchstaedt) were collected from different experimental plots. The measured soil-pH-values of Jyndevad soils ranged between pH (CaCl2) 3.62 – 6.17 and those from Bad Lauchstaedt between 5.29 – 7.22. Soil incorporation was done manually in the upper 2-3 cm soil layer immediately after slurry application. Data were analysed by ANOVA and multiple contrast tests or multiple mean comparisons.

A general relationship between soil-pH and NH3 volatilization was not observed, although statistically significant differences occurred between different soils. Ammonia emissions for Bad Lauchstaedt were in the order ‘surface AD’ (44 % N applied) > ‘surface PS’ (12 %) > ‘incorporated PS’ (11 %) > ‘incorporated AD’ (7 %). Ammonia emissions for the location Jyndevad followed the same order though on a higher level, the emissions from incorporated AD tended to rise with increasing soil-pH-value and by contrast NH3 emissions for incorporated PS at Jyndevad tended to decline with increasing soil-pH. For PS the effect of incorporation on emissions was only marginal while being very pronounced in AD. This was probably due to comparatively shallow incorporation in this pot trial and very high DM content of PS. Sand content was positively correlated with emissions, while clay and humus content showed negative relationships.

Lower NH3 emissions occurred from PS compared to AD. Emissions were reduced due to factors ‘incorporation’ as well ‘clay and humus content’. Soil pH values had only effects on ammonia emissions from incorporated slurries. The results confirm the hypotheses that soil pH governs emissions from incorporated slurries while soil texture had a much more pronounced effect for both slurry application systems. Interactions with N2O emissions will be discussed.

How to cite: Pacholski, A., Engel, F., and Seidel, A.: Soil texture and pH effects on NH3 emissions from pig slurry and anaerobic digestate with and without incorporation, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-7188, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-7188, 2022.

11:32–11:38
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EGU22-7434
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ECS
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On-site presentation
Sina Kukowski, Hannah Götze, Alexander Kelsch, Jonas Frößl, Nicolas Brüggemann, Reiner Ruser, Andreas Pacholski, Christian Brümmer, and Heinz Flessa

Ammonia emissions affect environment, climate and human health and concomitantly reduce fertilizer nitrogen use efficiency. Against the background of environmental and climate protection, the reduction of ammonia losses in the use of synthetic nitrogen fertilisers have become more important. However, there is a lack of data on simultaneous comparative evaluation of fertilizers in multiplot measurements for the assessment of fertilisation strategies and mitigation options. As a challenge, ammonia emission measurements from small plots in a randomized plot design are debated and uncertain.

The joint research project “NH3-Min” focuses on the most common synthetic nitrogen fertilizers in Germany, i.e. urea (U), calcium ammonium nitrate (CAN), ammonium nitrate urea solution (UAN), ammonium sulphate urea (UAS) and evaluates different options for mitigation of ammonia emissions such as (i) choice of nitrogen form, (ii) use of urease and nitrification inhibitors (UI, NI) and (iii) ammonium sulfate urea injection (CULTAN).

In 2020 and the following 3 years a set of coordinated field trials is conducted in winter wheat, comprising 10 sites across Germany and covering different climatic regions and soil types. A combination of different sensors and flux calculation methods is tested and cross-validated on different spatial scales. In large circular plots (r = 20 m) two types of passive flux samplers, Leuning and Alpha samplers, are tested applying the IHF (integrated horizontal flux), ZINST and bLs (backward Lagrangian stochastic dispersion) flux calculations. Additionally, on one site (r = 70m) an Aerodyne QC-Laser is set-up using eddy covariance flux quantification. On the same field as the micrometeorological methods, Alpha samplers in combination with the bLs method, as well as acid traps in combination with dynamic chamber measurements with Dräger tubes (calibrated passive sampling) are used to determine ammonia fluxes in replicated small quadratic plots (81 m2).

First preliminary results showed that:

  • IHF and ZINST were in close agreement for Leuning samplers.
  • Alpha and Leuning samplers yielded similar results by ZINST flux quantification.
  • Alpha samplers in combination with bLs method and acid traps were capable of significantly differentiating ammonia emissions between different fertilizer treatments in replicated plot measurements. Though, differences between the two plot approaches were observed.
  • Concerning the different treatments, urea showed the highest emissions, however fertilizer injection (CULTAN) also yielded high ammonia emissions. Lowest emissions were recorded in the CAN treatment and urease-inhibited treatment.

More refined experimental results and project details will be presented and discussed.

How to cite: Kukowski, S., Götze, H., Kelsch, A., Frößl, J., Brüggemann, N., Ruser, R., Pacholski, A., Brümmer, C., and Flessa, H.: NH3-Min project: assessment of ammonia measurement methods and evaluation of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer ammonia emissions and nitrogen use efficiency, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-7434, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-7434, 2022.

11:38–11:44
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EGU22-1999
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Virtual presentation
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Thomas Ohnemus, Oliver Spott, and Enrico Thiel

Urea is currently the most distributed nitrogen fertilizer in the world. Its application to soil is accompanied by loss of ammonia (NH3), which contributes to eutrophication, soil acidification, formation of particulate matter and results in economic losses for farmers. Predicting susceptibility of cropland soils to release NH3 after urea fertilization is therefore of high interest for both society and farmers. 
The present study aimed at (i) developing a process-driven model that estimates susceptibility of cropland soils to release NH3 after urea application based on the most relevant processes occurring within the soil and (ii) to use this model to derive the spatial distribution of urea induced NH3 loss potentials of German cropland soils. Therefore, urea induced NH3 loss potential was studied in the lab for 26 German cropland soils and CEC, initial 
soil pH (pHi), texture and SOC were determined. For a subset of these soils (n = 12) soil buffer capacity and pH dynamic after urea application were also analysed. 
Ammonia loss potential of cropland soils was found to be primarily dependent on CEC, but is superimposed by pHi as well as SOC as they directly affect maximum soil pH during urea hydrolysis. Two process-driven models for estimation of Potential Ammonia Loss (PAL) were developed using either CEC and pHi (PAL 1; r² = 0.82) or CEC, pHi and SOC (PAL 2; r² = 0.88) as input variables. Due to limited availability of suitable spatial SOC data only PAL 1 could be applied for evaluating NH3 loss potentials of German cropland soils. The spatial distribution revealed a strong heterogeneity. Cropland soils susceptible to NH3 release due to urea fertilization are primarily located in northern and eastern Germany. Therefore, future large-scale estimations of NH3 loss due to urea fertilization need to consider regional soil characteristics identified here as most relevant for soil NH3 loss. 

How to cite: Ohnemus, T., Spott, O., and Thiel, E.: Spatial distribution of urea induced ammonia loss potentials of German cropland soils, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-1999, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-1999, 2022.

11:44–11:50