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The Nitrogen Contained in Carbonized Poultry Litter Is Not Plant Available

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The Nitrogen Contained in Carbonized Poultry Litter Is Not Plant Available Open Agriculture. 2018; 3: 284–290 Research Article Christoph Steiner*, Keith Harris, Julia Gaskin, KC. Das The nitrogen contained in carbonized poultry litter is not plant available https://doi.org/10.1515/opag-2018-0030 received February 7, 2018; accepted June 26, 2018 1 Introduction Abstract: Pyrolysis of biomass, reduces its volume, mass, There is growing concern about the large amounts of odour, and potential pathogens, while concentrating manure being generated by large animal feeding operations nutrients in the resulting biochar. However, the plant and the potential hazard for water eutrophication and air availability of nutrients in particular of nitrogen remains quality. In many cases there is insufficient land available largely unknown. Therefore, we investigated the nutrient for spreading the manure at agronomic rates and the availability of carbonized poultry litter. A nutrient poor increasing scale of animal feeding operations which has soil was either fertilized with poultry litter or poultry litter caused accumulation of excess nutrients. The poultry carbonized at 500°C at the rates of 1.5, 3 and 6 t/ha. These industry in the US produces 576,436 t of nitrogen (N) and organic amendments were compared with corresponding 276,932 t of phosphorus (P) representing an excess of rates of mineral fertilizers (NH4NO3, KCl, CaHPO4, MgSO4) in 483,646 and 252,493 t respectively (Gollehon et al. 2001). a pot experiment. After four successive harvests of ryegrass Thermochemical conversion (pyrolysis) might be (Lolium sp.) in a greenhouse we analyzed plant nutrient one option to process poultry litter for renewable energy uptake and nutrient concentrations in the soil. While all (synthesis gas and hydrocarbon fuels) and biochar treatments showed a linear increase in plant growth and (Cantrell et al. 2007; Schnitzer et al. 2007; Tagoe et al. nitrogen uptake, the plants fertilized with carbonized 2008). Biochar is the residue and consists of minerals and poultry litter did not show such a response. The carbonized fixed carbon (C). In comparison to common biological poultry litter treatment produced more biomass than the treatments like composting, pyrolysis of poultry litter unfertilized control, but the tissue concentration of nitrogen is faster; requires less space and; destroys potential was below that of the control. Mehlich 1 extractable nutrients pathogens and most pharmaceutically active compounds in the soil showed that there is more available phosphorus, and reduces gaseous emissions (Cantrell et al. 2007). potassium, calcium and magnesium in the soil fertilized with During the pyrolysis process important plant nutrients the carbonized poultry manure, but these available nutrients (P, K+, Ca2+, and Mg2+) are concentrated in the biochar were not utilized due to the nitrogen limitation to plant (Gaskin et al. 2008). This might facilitate a more efficient growth. The results clearly show that nitrogen contained in nutrient recovery by reducing the costs associated with carbonized poultry litter is not available for plants. land application and transportation. But depending on pyrolysis temperature, some nutrients susceptible Keywords: black carbon, carbon sequestration, fertilization, to volatilization such as N are partially lost during the nutrient availability, pyrolysis process (Gaskin et al. 2008). Research on biochar as a soil improver have shown beneficial effects on soil fertility apart from its nutrient *Corresponding author: Christoph Steiner, The University of Georgia, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, content (Glaser et al. 2002; Lehmann et al. 2003; Steiner et Driftmier Engineering Center, Athens, 30602 GA, USA, E-mail: al. 2007). Biochar has also received attention as a potential [email protected] sink for atmospheric CO2 (Lehmann et al. 2006; Steiner KC. Das, The University of Georgia, Department of Biological and 2007; Gaunt and Lehmann 2008), due to its recalcitrance Agricultural Engineering, Driftmier Engineering Center, Athens, against decomposition (Kuzyakov et al. 2009; Smith et al. 30602 GA, USA 2010). Keith Harris, US EPA, Athens, GA, 30605 Julia Gaskin, Crop and Soil Sciences Dept, College of Agricultural However, this recalcitrance seems to have implications and Environmental Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, GA to nutrient availability. Knicker et al. (2005) have shown 30602 that fire and carbonization can increase the N content Open Access. © 2018 Christoph Steiner et al., published by De Gruyter. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 License. The nitrogen contained in carbonized poultry litter is not plant available 285 of soil organic carbon, but the alterations in chemical (shown in Table 1). structure have long-term consequences for N availability Poultry litter was obtained from a broiler house (Knicker and Skjemstad 2000). Yet Tagoe et al. (2008) and carbonized in a batch reactor at a constant 500oC found no difference in N uptake by crops if fertilized with carbonization temperature for 0.5 h using N2 carrier gas. carbonized or un-carbonized chicken manure. Soybean Both un-carbonized (PL) and carbonized poultry litter seed yield was higher on soils fertilized with carbonized (PLc) were analyzed for total C and nutrient contents as chicken litter (based on equal N applications) due to the above (Table 2). higher P content of carbonized chicken manure. The extent to which the retained or concentrated elements in biochar are available for plants is unclear. A 2.2 Treatment preparation better understanding of biochar’s properties and how it affects soil fertility is needed before it can be more widely Pots with a volume of 4 L were filled with 3,600 g (3,044 g accepted for use in agriculture. Our objectives were to dry weight) soil. First 1,200 g of soil was placed on the compare soil fertilization efficiency of carbonized chicken bottom of the pot and the remaining 2,400 g was mixed litter with both un-carbonized chicken litter and mineral with the fertilizers (either PL, PLc or mineral fertilizers (s. fertilizer. We hypothesize that a large proportion of P, K+, below). The organic soil enrichments (PL and PLc) were Mg2+, and Ca2+ present in carbonized chicken litter are applied at the rates of 1.5, 3.0, and 6.0 t/ha. By coincidence readily available to plants whereas N uptake is reduced in the N content of PL (35.2 g/kg) was very close to that of PLc comparison to un-carbonized chicken litter and mineral N (35.0 g/kg). The concentrations of other elements such as fertilization. P, K +, Ca2+, and Mg2+ were approximately twice as high in PLc than PL (Table 2). An increasing concentration of these elements and 2 Materials and methods a loss of N by volatilization are common for this type of feedstock (Gaskin et al. 2008). The three application 2.1 Soil and soil amendments rates and the nutrient concentrations should allow a direct comparison of available nutrients. For the Unfertilized sandy topsoil was collected at a farm near mineral fertilized controls, we mixed ammonium nitrate Athens (GA, USA). The soil was screened through 4 mm (NH4NO3), potassium chloride (KCl), calcium phosphate mesh into three separate bins. A subsample from each (CaHPO4), and magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) in a ratio to bin was analyzed for cation exchange capacity (CEC), match the nutrient contents of each litter treated soil (PL pH, total and available nutrient (Mehlich I) and C content and PLc) and designated MF and MFc, respectively. One Table 1: Soil characteristics: pH, total and available nutrient content (means, n=3) pH Elements C N S P K Ca Mg Al Fe Na Zn B Mn g/kg mg/kg CaCl2 4.75 Total 18.9 1.6 0.19 410.6 2318 1015 1623 36280 37227 60.7 61.0 3.4 871 H2O equivalent 5.35 Mehlich 1 7.1 198 891 101 40 61.8 3.4 33 Table 2: Total carbon and nutrient content of the organic amendments (means, n=3) Amendment pH C N P K Ca Mg S Al Fe Na Zn B Mn g/kg PL 8.7 294.6 35.2 19.9 32.6 29.6 7.5 8.9 5.2 2.6 1.1 0.65 0.05 0.69 PLc 9.7 418.1 35.0 42.6 70.4 55.3 15.5 9.2 9.1 4.3 2.0 1.14 0.10 1.21 286 C. Steiner, et al. Table 3: Total elements applied into the soil Fertilization level C N P K Ca Mg t/ha kg/ha PL 1.5 441.9 52.7 29.9 48.9 44.3 11.3 3.0 883.8 105.4 59.8 97.8 88.6 22.6 6.0 1767.6 210.8 119.6 195.6 177.2 45.2 PLc 1.5 627.2 52.5 63.8 105.7 82.9 23.2 3.0 1254.4 105.0 127.6 211.4 165.8 46.4 6.0 2508.8 210.0 255.2 422.8 331.6 92.8 unfertilized control was also established. All treatments 2.4 Statistical Analysis were arranged in a randomized complete block design with four replicates as detailed in Table 3. Plots were made with SigmaPlot 12 and regressions The experiment was conducted in a heated calculated with Microsoft Excel. SPSS (IBM Corp. Released greenhouse. Five plants of ryegrass (Lolium perenne) were 2011. IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 20.0. established from seeds. Two to three seeds were planted Armonk, NY: IBM Corp.) was used to test the homogeneity in five locations in each pot on November 11th. After of variances and a general linear model used to analyse germination, the plants were thinned to five plants per variance and the Student-Newman-Keuls post hoc tests pot. Above-ground biomass was sampled for the first time was used to identify significant differences between the 72 days after planting (January 22nd) and thereafter once treatments.
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