Nitrous oxide emission from a grassland soil fertilized with slurry and calcium nitrate |
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Authors: | GWEN M EGGINTON K A SMITH |
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Institution: | The Edinburgh School of Agriculture, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JG, U.K. |
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Abstract: | Concentrations of nitrous oxide (N2O) and oxygen were monitored over a 2-yr period in an imperfectly drained grassland soil receiving applications of N as cattle slurry or Ca(NO3)2. In both years N2O concentrations in the different treatments were in the order nitrate > slurry > control. Gaseous diffusion coefficients were determined in soil cores by a krypton-85 tracer method and used to calculate approximate N2O fluxes from the soil. Only 1–5 kg N ha?1 was lost as N2O after a single application of > 1200 kg N ha ?1 as slurry compared with 3–11 kg N ha ?1 lost after 100 kg was added as NO3?. Total gaseous losses (N2O+N2) could be expected to be higher in both cases. |
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