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Nitrous oxide emission from frozen grassland soil and during thawing periods
Author(s) -
Müller C.,
Kammann C.,
Ottow J. C. G.,
Jäger H.J.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
journal of plant nutrition and soil science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.644
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1522-2624
pISSN - 1436-8730
DOI - 10.1002/jpln.200390011
Subject(s) - nitrous oxide , chemistry , frost (temperature) , nitrogen , fertilizer , grassland , nitrate , environmental chemistry , denitrification , zoology , agronomy , organic chemistry , biology , geomorphology , geology
Nitrous oxide (N 2 O) was emitted during a frost period from an old grassland as well as during thawing. Soil incubations at various times throughout the freezing period showed that highest emission rates were emitted around 0 °C, and the magnitude of the emission peak increased with the length of the freezing period. Highest N 2 O emissions during freezing and thawing were measured from soil previously treated with nitrate (NO 3 ‐ ). The emitted N 2 O was produced via reduction of NO 3 ‐ . The steady drop in N 2 O emission at soil temperatures higher than 2 °C coincided with large dinitrogen (N 2 ) emissions which most likely reflected the increasing enzymatic activity of N 2 O reductase with increasing temperatures. Measurements of mineral N concentrations showed that NO 3 ‐ and NH 4 + , which were shortly after fertilizer application immobilized into the microbial biomass, became partly available again through the freezing effect and caused large N 2 O emissions in winter. This study provided evidence that N 2 O emissions during freezing and thawing in the winter are due to biological rather than chemical activity in soil.