Increased ammonia emissions from synthetic fertilizers and land degradation associated with reduction in arable land area in China

Abstract

For a long time, there has been an excessive use of synthetic fertilizers applied to the decreasing area of arable land to help meet the increasing food demand, which causes NH 3 volatilization and land degradation. In this study, we conducted a nationwide inventory of NH 3 emissions from synthetic nitrogen fertilizers in China from 1991 to 2013. We estimated that NH 3 emissions increased from 3.20 to 5.21 Tg NH 3 yr −1 . Because of the different agricultural practices, fertilizer use schedules, and ambient temperature, monthly NH 3 emissions have varied greatly. NH 3 emissions during the spring and summer accounted for approximately 83% of the national total in 1991, 1998, 2005, and 2013. Similarly, the spatial distribution of NH 3 emissions exhibited large heterogeneity in 1991, 1998, 2005, and 2013. High emissions occurred in the eastern and central provinces and eastern Sichuan. Based on NH 3 emissions in Chinese counties for 1991-1998, 1999-2005, and 2006-2013, the Pearson correlation coefficient was applied to compute the changing trends in NH 3 emissions and fertilization rates. The results showed that the NH 3 emissions from the major grain-producing regions increased, whereas those from the eastern provinces, which experienced rapid economic development, decreased. In addition, fertilizer amount, arable land area, grain yield, and primary industry have been shown to be largely correlated to NH 3 emissions based on principal component analysis. Therefore, the results of this study have significant implications for improving the efficient use of fertilizers and preventing soil and/or land degradation.

Spatial Variation of Reactive Nitrogen Emissions From China's Croplands Codetermined by Regional Urbanization and Its Feedback to Global Climate Change

“…Wu, Wang, et al, 2018;Kang et al, 2016;Lin et al, 2019;Luo et al, 2018;M. R. Wang et al, 2017;NDRC, 2017;Ouyang et al, 2018;Paulot et al, 2014;Qu et al, 2017;Saikawa et al, 2014;X. Huang et al, 2012;Y.…”

“…China is the world's largest producer of croplands Ngr emissions. Yet current estimates of China's croplands Ngr emissions are highly uncertain, with NH 3 emissions ranging from 2.5 to 9.0 Tg N·yr −1 , N 2 O emissions ranging from 0.40 to 0.64 Tg N·yr −1 , and NO x ranging from 0.07 to 0.40 Tg N·yr −1 across studies ( supporting information Table S1) (Chen et al, 2016; Cui et al, 2013; EDGAR v4.3.2, 2017; Fu et al, 2015; Gu et al, 2015; H. Wu, Wang, et al, 2018; Kang et al, 2016; Lin et al, 2019; Luo et al, 2018; M. R. Wang et al, 2017; NDRC, 2017; Ouyang et al, 2018; Paulot et al, 2014; Qu et al, 2017; Saikawa et al, 2014; X. Huang et al, 2012; Y. Huang & Li, 2014; Zhang et al, 2017, 2018; Zhou et al, 2014, 2016). This uncertainty is attributed to differences among methodologies, data on socioeconomic activities, and the emission factors (EFs) that relate agricultural activities (e.g., fertilizer usage) to soil Ngr emissions (H. Wu, Wang, et al, 2018; Zhan et al, 2019).…”

Does exposure to ammonia concentrations lower than the threshold limit value cause acute pulmonary effects?

“…Ammonia is a widely used compound used to produce fertilizers, chemical materials, explosives, plastics, fiber, and medicine. About 80% of the produced ammonia is used in producing sulfate, ammonium nitrate, ammonium phosphate, and urea for agricultural purposes worldwide (Ouyang et al, 2018; Vecino et al, 2019; Yarandi et al, 2021).…”

Ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents for NH3 absorption and separation: a review

“…Ammonia (NH 3 ) is a critical chemical raw material in various industrial manufacturing, including nitrogen fertilizers for crop growth, intermediates for nitrogen-containing chemical products (such as dyes, medicine, antibacterial agents, synthetic fibers, synthetic resins, and plastics), [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] basic chemicals (such as nitric acid, ammonium salt, organic amines, and polyurethane), carbon-free energy storage, and power generation media. [10][11][12] NH 3 can be emitted into the air through many routes.…”