Nitrous Oxide Emissions in Response to ESN and Urea Application in a No-Till Barley Cropping System

Li, Chunli; Hao, Xiying; Blackshaw, Robert E.; Clayton, George W.; O’Donovan, John T.; Harker, K. Neil

doi:10.1080/00103624.2016.1146745

Cited by 10 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Li et al. (2012, 2016) reported a 15–20% reduction in N 2 O emissions with ESN compared with urea in canola ( Brassica napus L.) and barley ( Hordeum vulgare L.) crops in Alberta, Canada. In an evaluation of rainfed continuous maize ( Zea mays L.) in Illinois Fernández, Terry, and Coronel (2015) found that N 2 O emissions were higher with both AA (by 73%) and urea (by 44%) than with ESN.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrous oxide emissions and nitrogen use efficiency in wheat: Nitrogen fertilization timing and formulation, soil nitrogen, and weather effects

Thilakarathna

Hernandez‐Ramirez

Puurveen

et al. 2020

Soil Science Soc of Amer J

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Improving N fertilization in croplands could minimize soil emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O) and mitigate climate change. This study investigated the effects of spring vs. fall N applications of conventional vs. enhanced‐efficiency N fertilizers (EENFs) on N2O emissions and N use efficiency in spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) over 2.5 yr in Alberta, Canada. Fertilizers were anhydrous ammonia and urea and the EENF formulations included urease and nitrification inhibitors and a polymer coating. We measured a fertilizer N2O emission factor of 0.31 ± 0.04%. Irrespective of N fertilizer and timing options peak N2O emissions were evident following soil thawing and major rainfalls. Because most of the annual N2O emissions were associated with soil thawing, spring‐applied N emitted half the N2O of the fall‐applied N during the second study year (P < .001). Conversely, the opposite was observed for the first study year when overall N2O emissions were 36% larger for spring‐ than fall‐applied N (P = .031) as major rainfalls occurred shortly after the spring N fertilization. Nevertheless, within this first study year, EENFs significantly reduced N2O emissions (by 26% on average; P = .019), with a tendency for 11% higher grain yield across springtime EENFs than for conventional fertilizers. Concomitantly, spring‐applied N doubled the fertilizer N recovery efficiency in the same year (P = .023). The soil at the study site inherently had high N availability (NH4 and NO3) and this probably moderated the beneficial effects of EENFs on N2O emissions and grain yields. Results suggest that spring EENFs can mitigate the risk for N2O emissions while sustaining high yields even under scenarios with high availability of native soil N.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrous oxide emissions and nitrogen use efficiency in wheat: Nitrogen fertilization timing and formulation, soil nitrogen, and weather effects

Thilakarathna

Hernandez‐Ramirez

Puurveen

et al. 2020

Soil Science Soc of Amer J

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“…Annual estimates based on periodic field measurements of N 2 O fluxes also showed that for recommended application rates of N fertilizer, ESN did not show any significant reduction in N 2 O-N losses from spring wheat, barley, and canola fields across Alberta and other prairie provinces as compared to the conventional urea (Li et al, 2012(Li et al, , 2016Gao et al, 2015). However, estimated annual N 2 O-N losses were 15-25% larger in urea than in ESN when application rates were 1.5 times higher than the recommended rates, or when there was considerable seeding delay in the spring that created excessive NO 3 − accumulation from the spring banded N fertilizer (Li et al, 2012(Li et al, , 2016Gao et al, 2015). Annual modeled N 2 O emissions were predominantly contributed by large flushes of N 2 O fluxes during spring thaw when inadequate O 2 supply forced modeled microbes to reduce NO 3 − as alternate electron acceptors.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…These N losses can be minimized with a spring application that can optimize fertilizer NUE and reduce loss concerns. For instance, N 2 O emissions from prairie crop fields can be reduced by up to 30% depending on weather and soil type by avoiding spring thaw following a fall N fertilizer application (Dunmola et al, 2010;Glenn et al, 2012;Li et al, 2012Li et al, , 2016Maas et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing Effects of Agronomic Nitrogen Management on Crop Nitrogen Use and Nitrogen Losses in the Western Canadian Prairies

Mezbahuddin

Spiess²,

Hildebrand³

et al. 2020

Front. Sustain. Food Syst.

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Effective agronomic nitrogen management strategies ensure optimum productivity, reduce nitrogen losses, and enhance economic profitability and environmental quality. Farmers in western Canada make key decisions on formulation, rate, timing, and placement of fertilizer nitrogen that are suitable for soils, weather, and farming operations within which they operate. Suitability of agronomic nitrogen management options are assessed by estimates from linear interpolations and extrapolations of temporally and spatially discrete field-plot measurements of nitrogen responses. Such estimates do not account for non-linear and offsetting biogeochemical feedbacks of nitrogen cycles and cannot provide comprehensive nitrogen budgets for alternative nitrogen management options. These limitations can be overcome by using process-based agro-ecosystem models that adequately simulate basic processes of nitrogen biogeochemical cycles and are rigorously tested against site observations. Ecosys is a process-based ecosystem model that successfully simulated the biogeochemical feedbacks among nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus cycles across different agro-ecosystems. This study deployed ecosys to generate spatially and temporally continuous estimates to assess crop nitrogen use and agronomic nitrogen losses from the crop fields across Alberta for alternative nitrogen fertilizer management scenarios. The study simulated effects of four nitrogen management scenarios: fall banded urea, fall banded ESN (Environmentally Smart Nitrogen), spring banded urea, and spring banded ESN on nitrogen recovery and losses from barley fields on mid-slope landforms. These simulations were done at township grids of ∼10 km × 10 km over 2011-2015 utilizing provincial soil and climate datasets. Modeled annual N 2 O, N 2 , and NH 3 emissions, and nitrogen losses in surface runoff and sub-surface discharge were lower by about 25, 30, 70, and 40%, respectively, with spring banding than in fall banding across Alberta. Modeled barley yields and grain nitrogen uptake were similar in spring and fall banding, indicating agro-economic and environmental sustainability advantage of spring banding in Alberta. These modeled estimates were consistent with estimates based on plot and laboratory research for Mezbahuddin et al. Modeling Prairie Agronomic N Management Alberta and similar prairie conditions. This study pioneered a methodology of processbased agroecosystem modeling, which is replicable and scalable to assess cumulative impacts of alternative agronomic nitrogen management options on crop production and the environment on provincial, regional, federal, continental, and global scales.

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“…Controlled‐release N fertilizers may prevent N losses and improve timely N availability in cropping systems (Li et al., 2012; Li et al., 2016; Thilakarathna et al., 2021; Ziadi et al., 2011). A common controlled‐release fertilizer is the polymer‐coated urea (PCU; Cambouris et al., 2014; Gao et al., 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nitrous oxide emissions and productivity of irrigated potato: Effects of nitrogen fertilization options

et al. 2022

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Improved N management is needed in intensive agriculture to mitigate nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions while sustaining high yields. We assessed the effectiveness of polymer‐coated urea (PCU); nitrification inhibitor 2,4‐dimethylpyrazol succinic acid (DMPSA), a biostimulant; and their combinations with granular urea and ammonium sulfate nitrate (ASN) fertilizers to reduce N2O emissions and to improve potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) productivity under irrigation. Sites were located in Lethbridge and Brooks, Alberta, Canada over two growing seasons. Tuber yield, grade, specific gravity, and N uptake were quantified. We used the chamber method to measure N2O fluxes from potato hills and furrows. The N2O emissions from furrow positions were at least two‐fold greater than those from hills at the Lethbridge site. Peak N2O emissions and increased N concentrations in potato petiole and soils occurred shortly after fertilizer applications. The overall average emission factor (EF) of N2O was 0.056% kg N2O–N kg−1 N fertilizer (accounting for emissions from unfertilized controls). Urea alone commonly exhibited the highest N2O fluxes. Admixing DMPSA with either urea or ASN lowered N2O emissions in only certain cases. For instance, in one growing season at the Brooks site, adding DMPSA to urea reduced the N2O emissions by 57%. Likewise, in one of the four site‐years in the study, 36% higher potato marketable yields were obtained when applying either ASN treated with DMPSA or PCU compared with the unfertilized controls (45 vs. 33 Mg ha−1). Results showed that under specific conditions, N application strategies using DMPSA admixed with either urea or ASN can maintain high potato yields while reducing N2O emissions relative to soils receiving these fertilizers without this additive.

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Nitrous Oxide Emissions in Response to ESN and Urea Application in a No-Till Barley Cropping System

Cited by 10 publications

References 33 publications

Nitrous oxide emissions and nitrogen use efficiency in wheat: Nitrogen fertilization timing and formulation, soil nitrogen, and weather effects

Nitrous oxide emissions and nitrogen use efficiency in wheat: Nitrogen fertilization timing and formulation, soil nitrogen, and weather effects

Assessing Effects of Agronomic Nitrogen Management on Crop Nitrogen Use and Nitrogen Losses in the Western Canadian Prairies

Nitrous oxide emissions and productivity of irrigated potato: Effects of nitrogen fertilization options

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