Effect of Biochar Application on Nitrous Oxide Emission in the Soil with Different Types of Nitrogen Fertilizer During Corn (Zea may) Cultivation

BACKGROUND: Emission of nitrous oxide (N2O) from the soil is expected to depend on the types of nitrogen fertilizer used. Biochar has recently been proposed as a potential mitigation of climate change by reducing the N2O emission. Although laboratory studies reported that biochar applications could reduce N2O emission, the number of field-based studies is still limited. Therefore, a field experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of biochar on N2O emission when different nitrogen fertilizers were applied in corn cultivated field. METHODS AND RESULTS: The field experiment consisted of six treatments: urea fertilizer without biochar (U), ammonium sulfate fertilizer without biochar (A), oil cake fertilizer without biochar (O), urea fertilizer with biochar (U+B), ammonium sulfate fertilizer with biochar (A+B), and oil cake fertilizer with biochar (O+B). Biochar was applied at a rate of 10 t/ha. Greenhouse gas fluxes were measured during growing seasons using static vented chambers. The cumulative N2O emissions were 0.99 kg/ha in the U, 1.23 kg/ha in the A, 3.25 kg/ha in the O, 1.19 kg/ha in the U+B, 0.86 kg/ha in the A+B, and 1.55 kg/ha in the O+B. CONCLUSION: It was found that N2O emission was related to application of both nitrogen fertilizer type and biochar. In particular, the N2O reduction effect was the highest in the corn field incorporated with biochar when oil cake was applied to the soil.