Wenliang Yang

Changes in soil organic carbon and aggregate stability after conversion to conservation tillage for seven years in the Huang-Huai-Hai Plain of China

Abstract Soil aggregate stability and organic carbon (OC) are regarded as effective indicators of soil structure and quality. A long-term field experiment was established in 2006 to examine the influence of tillage systems on soil aggregation and OC in a sandy loam soil in the Huang-Huai-Hai Plain of China. The study involved eight treatments: plowing every year with (TS) and without residue (T), plowing every 2 years with (2TS) and without residue (2T), plowing every 4 years with (4TS) and without residue (4T), and no plowing with (NTS) and without residue (NT). In 2013, soil samples were collected at depths of 0–5, 5–10 and 10–20 cm, and separated into three aggregate-size classes: macroaggregates (>250 μm), microaggregates (53–250 μm) and the silt+clay fraction ( microaggregates>silt+clay fraction. In the 0–5 cm soil layer, concentrations of macroaggregate-associated OC in 2TS, 4TS and NTS were 14, 56 and 83% higher than for T, whereas T had the greatest concentration of OC associated with the silt+clay fraction in the 10–20 cm layer. Soil OC concentrations under 4TS and NTS were significantly higher (P

Application of a high-temporal resolution method to estimate ammonia emissions from farmland

A viable method—open-path tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (OPTDL) in conjunction with a backward Lagrangian stochastic (bLS) dispersion model—has been used for micrometeorological monitoring of ammonia fluxes. In this technique, the gas concentration measured with the OPTDL sensor is used to infer the surface emission rate with the aid of dispersion model calculations. On the basis of numerous assessment experiments and field trials, several beneficial strategies for using the OPTDL technique properly to monitor atmospheric NH3 concentrations in the field have been summarized. Theoretically, the location of the concentration measurement can be anywhere in the emission plume, but in practice, the concentration measurement position must be carefully selected to avoid making measurements which are on the periphery of the downwind plume or are affected by obstructions. To obtain accurate estimates, periods with low friction velocity or extreme atmospheric stability, where Monin–Obukhov similarity theory-based relationships are invalid, or unrepresentative estimates due to unsuitable wind direction, should be excluded. A validation experiment showed that there was no significant difference between the ammonia emission rates obtained by the micrometeorological mass balance method and those obtained by the bLS model combined with the OPTDL technique. This study also indicated the potential of the bLS and OPTDL technique for investigation of diurnal emission patterns and environmental influences.

An ammonia sensor with high sensitivity in farmland based on laser absorption spectroscopy technology

High nitrogen fertilizer input is the main manner to maintain the high-yield crops in farmland in China. The average application quantity of nitrogen fertilizer in China is significantly higher than some developed countries in the world. However, the nitrogen fertilizer utilization efficiency is very low. Thus, high sensitivity sensing and on-line monitoring ammonia concentration were needed to quickly acquire the soil nutrient information and to get the nitrogen fertilizer utilization efficiency. A high sensitivity ammonia concentration sensor used in farmland has been developed based on Tunable Diode Laser Absorption Spectroscopy (TDLAS) technology, high frequency modulation technique and long optical path technique. TDLAS is a method to obtain the spectroscopy of gas molecule single absorption line in the characteristic absorption spectrum region as the characteristic of the distributed feed back (DFB) laser with narrow line width and tunability. A sensor array formed with three ammonia concentration sensors by distributed sensing technique was used for ammonia volatilization experiment in a wide range of farmland. It was verified that the performance consistency of the three ammonia sensors was good and the sensor array realized the regional ammonia concentration monitoring. Continuous measurement results showed that the ammonia concentration influenced by the volatile source location, wind direction, weather and other factors, and it was positively correlated with the ammonia volatilization rate. The ammonia sensor array is suitable for continuously ammonia volatilization monitoring in a wide range of farmland environment with its high sensitivity, rapid response time without gas sampling.