Georg Willibald

Measurement of N2, N2O, NO, and CO2 emissions from soil with the gas-flow-soil-core technique.

Here we describe a newly designed system with three stand-alone working incubation vessels for simultaneous measurements of N(2), N(2)O, NO, and CO(2) emissions from soil. Due to the use of a new micro thermal conductivity detector and the redesign of vessels and gas sampling a so-far unmatched sensitivity (0.23 μg N(2)-N h(-1) kg(-1) ds or 8.1 μg N(2)-N m(-2) h(-1)) for detecting N(2) gas emissions and repeatability of experiments could be achieved. We further tested different incubation methods to improve the quantification of N(2) emission via denitrification following the initialization of soil anaerobiosis. The best results with regard to the establishment of a full N balance (i.e., the changes in mineral N content being offset by simultaneous emission of N gases) were obtained when the anaerobic soil incubation at 25 °C was preceded by soil gas exchange under aerobic conditions at a lower incubation temperature. The ratios of N and C gas emission changed very dynamically following the initialization of anaerobiosis. For soil NO(3)(-) contents of 50 mg N kg(-1) dry soil (ds) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations of approximately 300 mg C kg(-1) ds, the cumulative emissions of N(2), N(2)O, and NO were 24.3 ± 0.1, 12.6 ± 0.4, and 10.1 ± 0.3 mg N kg(-1) ds, respectively. Thus, N gas emissions accounted (on average) for 46.2% (N(2)), 24.0% (N(2)O), and 19.2% (NO) of the observed changes in soil NO(3)(-). The maximum N(2) emission reached 1200 μg N h(-1) kg(-1) ds, whereas the peak emissions of N(2)O and NO were lower by a factor of 2-3. The overall N(2):N(2)O and NO:N(2)O molar ratios were 1.6-10.0 and 1.6-2.3, respectively. The measurement system provides a reliable tool for studying denitrification in soil because it offers insights into the dynamics and magnitude of gaseous N emissions due to denitrification under various incubation conditions.

Long-term effects of clear-cutting and selective cutting on soil methane fluxes in a temperate spruce forest in southern Germany

Based on multi-year measurements of CH(4) exchange in sub-daily resolution we show that clear-cutting of a forest in Southern Germany increased soil temperature and moisture and decreased CH(4) uptake. CH(4) uptake in the first year after clear-cutting (-4.5 ± 0.2 μg C m(-2) h(-1)) was three times lower than during the pre-harvest period (-14.2 ± 1.3 μg C m(-2) h(-1)). In contrast, selective cutting did not significantly reduce CH(4) uptake. Annual mean uptake rates were -1.18 kg C ha(-1) yr(-1) (spruce control), -1.16 kg C ha(-1) yr(-1) (selective cut site) and -0.44 kg C ha(-1) yr(-1) (clear-cut site), respectively. Substantial seasonal and inter-annual variations in CH(4) fluxes were observed as a result of significant variability of weather conditions, demonstrating the need for long-term measurements. Our findings imply that a stepwise selective cutting instead of clear-cutting may contribute to mitigating global warming by maintaining a high CH(4) uptake capacity of the soil.

Nitrate leaching and soil nitrous oxide emissions diminish with time in a hybrid poplar short-rotation coppice in southern Germany

Hybrid poplar short‐rotation coppices (SRC) provide feedstocks for bioenergy production and can be established on lands that are suboptimal for food production. The environmental consequences of deploying this production system on marginal agricultural land need to be evaluated, including the investigation of common management practices i.e., fertilization and irrigation. In this work, we evaluated (1) the soil‐atmosphere exchange of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide (N2O); (2) the changes in soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks; (3) the gross ammonification and nitrification rates; and (4) the nitrate leaching as affected by the establishment of a hybrid poplar SRC on a marginal agricultural land in southern Germany. Our study covered one 3‐year rotation period and 2 years after the first coppicing. We combined field and laboratory experiments with modeling. The soil N2O emissions decreased from 2.2 kg N2O‐N ha−1 a−1 in the year of SRC establishment to 1.1–1.4 kg N2O‐N ha−1 a−1 after 4 years. Likewise, nitrate leaching reduced from 13 to 1.5–8 kg N ha−1 a−1. Tree coppicing induced a brief pulse of soil N2O flux and marginal effects on gross N turnover rates. Overall, the N losses diminished within 4 years by 80% without fertilization (irrespective of irrigation) and by 40% when 40–50 kg N ha−1 a−1 were applied. Enhanced N losses due to fertilization and the minor effect of fertilization and irrigation on tree growth discourage its use during the first rotation period after SRC establishment. A SOC accrual rate of 0.4 Mg C ha−1 a−1 (uppermost 25 cm, P = 0.2) was observed 5 years after the SRC establishment. Overall, our data suggest that SRC cultivation on marginal agricultural land in the region is a promising option for increasing the share of renewable energy sources due to its net positive environmental effects.

Disentangling gross N2O production and consumption in soil

The difficulty of measuring gross N2O production and consumption in soil impedes our ability to predict N2O dynamics across the soil-atmosphere interface. Our study aimed to disentangle these processes by comparing measurements from gas-flow soil core (GFSC) and 15N2O pool dilution (15N2OPD) methods. GFSC directly measures soil N2O and N2 fluxes, with their sum as the gross N2O production, whereas 15N2OPD involves addition of 15N2O into a chamber headspace and measuring its isotopic dilution over time. Measurements were conducted on intact soil cores from grassland, cropland, beech and pine forests. Across sites, gross N2O production and consumption measured by 15N2OPD were only 10% and 6%, respectively, of those measured by GFSC. However, 15N2OPD remains the only method that can be used under field conditions to measure atmospheric N2O uptake in soil. We propose to use different terminologies for the gross N2O fluxes that these two methods quantified. For 15N2OPD, we suggest using ‘gross N2O emission and uptake’, which encompass gas exchange within the 15N2O-labelled, soil air-filled pores. For GFSC, ‘gross N2O production and consumption’ can be used, which includes both N2O emitted into the soil air-filled pores and N2O directly consumed, forming N2, in soil anaerobic microsites.