Recently, a research team led by Prof. WU Yuejin from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, developed an ammonia emission estimate system for rice fields in China.
The research results were published in Resources, Conservation & Recycling.
Rice production has great contributions to food security in China. Application of nitrogen (N) fertilizer is an important measure to increase rice yield. However, the N applied in rice fields is easily lost through ammonia emissions. Clarifying the characteristics of ammonia emissions from rice fields in China is of great significance for reducing N loss and promoting efficient rice production.
In this study, researchers developed an ammonia emission estimation system. The system contains several ammonia emission estimation models. With the models, the ammonia emissions under different N application rates and frequencies were estimated.
Unlike simply reporting ammonia emission data, this study enables user interaction, allowing users to evaluate ammonia emissions from rice fields at different geographical scales as needed.
Researchers found that the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River are the main areas contributing to ammonia emissions from rice fields. The proportion of N loss via ammonia emissions over total N input is high in the southeastern coastal areas of China.
"Our findings provide a valuable tool to guide N management in rice production and will promote further studies on ammonia emissions," said Dr. YANG Yang.
Roadmap for ammonia emission estimation from rice fields in China. (Image by YANG Yang)
