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Title: Nitrous oxide emissions during establishment of eight alternative cellulosic bioenergy cropping systems in the North Central United States

Journal Article · · Global Change Biology. Bioenergy
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/gcbb.12268 · OSTI ID:1246697
 [1];  [1];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [1]
  1. Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States). Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) and Dept. of Agronomy
  2. Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States). Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC), W.K. Kellogg Biological Station and Dept. of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences
+ Show Author Affiliations

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from soils are a key sustainability metric of cropping systems. During crop establishment, disruptive land-use change is known to be a critical, but under reported period, for determining GHG emissions. We measured soil N2O emissions and potential environmental drivers of these fluxes from a three-year establishment-phase bioenergy cropping systems experiment replicated in southcentral Wisconsin (ARL) and southwestern Michigan (KBS). Cropping systems treatments were annual monocultures (continuous corn, corn–soybean–canola rotation), perennial monocultures (switchgrass, miscanthus, and poplar), and perennial polycultures (native grass mixture, early successional community, and restored prairie) all grown using best management practices specific to the system. Cumulative three-year N2O emissions from annuals were 142% higher than from perennials, with fertilized perennials 190% higher than unfertilized perennials. Emissions ranged from 3.1 to 19.1 kg N2O-N ha-1 yr-1 for the annuals with continuous corn > corn–soybean–canola rotation and 1.1 to 6.3 kg N2O-N ha-1 yr-1 for perennials. Nitrous oxide peak fluxes typically were associated with precipitation events that closely followed fertilization. Bayesian modeling of N2O fluxes based on measured environmental factors explained 33% of variability across all systems. Models trained on single systems performed well in most monocultures (e.g., R2 = 0.52 for poplar) but notably worse in polycultures (e.g., R2 = 0.17 for early successional, R2 = 0.06 for restored prairie), indicating that simulation models that include N2O emissions should be parameterized specific to particular plant communities. These results indicate that perennial bioenergy crops in their establishment phase emit less N2O than annual crops, especially when not fertilized. These findings should be considered further alongside yield and other metrics contributing to important ecosystem services.

Research Organization:
Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States); Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER); National Science Foundation (NSF)
Grant/Contract Number:
FC02-07ER64494; AC05‐76RL01830; AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
1246697
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1295952; OSTI ID: 1438264
Journal Information:
Global Change Biology. Bioenergy, Vol. 8, Issue 3; ISSN 1757-1693
Publisher:
WileyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 54 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Data from: Nitrous oxide emissions during establishment of eight alternative cellulosic bioenergy cropping systems in the North Central United States
  • Oates, Lawrence G.; Duncan, David S.; Gelfand, Ilya
  • Dryad-Supplementary information for journal article at DOI: 10.1111/gcbb.12268, 3 files https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.j8227
dataset September 2015
Temporal and spatial variations of soil CO2, CH4 and N2O fluxes at three differently managed grasslands text January 2013
Data from: Nitrous oxide emissions during establishment of eight alternative cellulosic bioenergy cropping systems in the North Central United States
  • Oates, Lawrence G.; Duncan, David S.; Gelfand, Ilya
  • Dryad-Supplementary information for journal article at DOI: 10.1111/gcbb.12268, 3 files https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.j8227
dataset September 2015

Cited By (17)

Global Nitrous Oxide Emissions From Pasturelands and Rangelands: Magnitude, Spatiotemporal Patterns, and Attribution journal February 2019
Sustainable intensification of high-diversity biomass production for optimal biofuel benefits journal November 2018
Long-term nitrous oxide fluxes in annual and perennial agricultural and unmanaged ecosystems in the upper Midwest USA journal August 2016
Diverse lignocellulosic feedstocks can achieve high field-scale ethanol yields while providing flexibility for the biorefinery and landscape-level environmental benefits journal July 2018
Soil nitrous oxide flux following land-use reversion from Miscanthus and SRC willow to perennial ryegrass journal August 2018
X-ray computed tomography to predict soil N 2 O production via bacterial denitrification and N 2 O emission in contrasting bioenergy cropping systems journal September 2018
Soil N 2 O emissions with different reduced tillage methods during the establishment of Miscanthus in temperate grassland journal October 2018
Environmental factors function as constraints on soil nitrous oxide fluxes in bioenergy feedstock cropping systems journal October 2018
Cellulosic biofuel crops alter evapotranspiration and drainage fluxes: Direct quantification using automated equilibrium tension lysimeters journal January 2019
Real‐time monitoring of greenhouse gas emissions with tall chambers reveals diurnal N 2 O variation and increased emissions of CO 2 and N 2 O from Miscanthus following compost addition journal October 2019
Cellulosic biofuel contributions to a sustainable energy future: Choices and outcomes journal June 2017
Controlling microbial contamination during hydrolysis of AFEX-pretreated corn stover and switchgrass: effects on hydrolysate composition, microbial response and fermentation journal November 2015
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Water and nitrogen management effects on semiarid sorghum production and soil trace gas flux under future climate journal April 2018
Nitrate Leaching from Continuous Corn, Perennial Grasses, and Poplar in the US Midwest journal January 2019
Data from: Nitrous oxide emissions during establishment of eight alternative cellulosic bioenergy cropping systems in the North Central United States
  • Oates, Lawrence G.; Duncan, David S.; Gelfand, Ilya
  • Dryad-Supplementary information for journal article at DOI: 10.1111/gcbb.12268, 3 files https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.j8227
dataset September 2015
Data from: Nitrous oxide emissions during establishment of eight alternative cellulosic bioenergy cropping systems in the North Central United States
  • Oates, Lawrence G.; Duncan, David S.; Gelfand, Ilya
  • Dryad-Supplementary information for journal article at DOI: 10.1111/gcbb.12268, 3 files https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.j8227
dataset September 2015

Linked Research (1)

Figures / Tables (6)

Fig. 1(p. 4)figure Fig. 1
Fig. 2(p. 5)figure Fig. 2
Fig. 3(p. 6)figure Fig. 3
Table 1(p. 6)table Table 1
Table 2(p. 7)table Table 2
Fig. 4(p. 8)figure Fig. 4

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Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES
Bayesian model averaging
cellulosic biofuels
corn
greenhouse gas
miscanthus
poplar
restored prairie
switchgrass