Influence of chemical properties of soils on methane emission from rice paddies

Abstract

The relationships between methane (CH₄) emission from flooded rice paddies and soil chemical properties were investigated using eight different soils in a pot experiment. Since CH₄ is produced in paddy soil microbiologically when reducing conditions are sufficiently developed, the amounts of oxidizing agents including free iron (Fe)(III), amorphous Fe(III), easily reducible manganese (Mn), nitrate (NO₃ ^‐), and sulfate (SO₄ ^2‐), and indexes of reducing agents including total carbon (C), total nitrogen (N), and easily decomposable C, were measured as possible decreasing and increasing factors in CH₄ emission. The seasonal variations in CH₄ emission rates were similar in pattern among the soils used. However, the amount of emitted CH₄ varied largely, with the maximum total CH₄ emission (from a brown lowland soil, 1,535 mg pot^‐1) being 3.8 times that of the minimum (from a gley soil, 409 mg pot^‐1). No correlation was found between the total CH₄ emission and any single factor investigated. However, a statistically significant equation was found through multiple regression analysis: r=‐2.24x10² a+2.88b+6.20x10²; r ²=0.821; P<0.01; where Y is the amount of emitted CH₄ (mg pot^‐1), a is the amount of amorphous Fe(III) (mg pot^‐1), b is the amount of easily decomposable C (mg pot^‐1), and r ² is a multiple correlation coefficient adjusted for the degree of freedom. The amendment of ferric hydroxide [Fe(OH)₃] to a gray lowland soil significantly decreased the CH₄ emission from 1,099 to 592 mg pot^‐1. This measured amount agreed well with that estimated from the above equation, 554 mg pot^‐1.