Abstract
Nitrogen (N) behavior in soil is a major component of the global N cycle. Climate scientists seek to accurately measure N flux to the atmosphere, farmers want to maximize plant N uptake and reduce input costs, and industries land-applying wastewater must mitigate potential N leaching to drinking water supplies. The need to quantify denitrification rates of wastewater disposed of by vegetable processing and cheese making industries in Wisconsin drove the development of an autonomous high-throughput in situ sampling and analysis system for soil N flux. The system was deployed to six unique industry sites with different soil types for 7 days once per quarter and data collected continuously. Additional seasonal data collection allowed for the determination of system N mass balances. The system can deliver quality data under challenging conditions where staffing would be impractical and provide detailed information about soil gas emissions under a range of environmental conditions.
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The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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This work was funded jointly by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, and the Midwest Food Products Association.
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Siemering, G.S., Vanderleest, C.P. & Arriaga, F.J. Autonomous high-throughput in situ soil nitrogen flux measurement system. Environ Monit Assess 194, 680 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-10351-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-022-10351-x