The dynamics of N2O near the groundwater table and the transfer of N2O into the unsaturated zone: A case study from a sandy aquifer in Germany

Publikation: Beitrag in FachzeitschriftArtikelForschungPeer-Review

Autorschaft

  • M. Deurer
  • C. von der Heide
  • J. Böttcher
  • W. H.M. Duijnisveld
  • D. Weymann
  • R. Well

Externe Organisationen

  • Plant & Food Research New Zealand
  • Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe (BGR)
  • Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
Forschungs-netzwerk anzeigen

Details

OriginalspracheEnglisch
Seiten (von - bis)362-373
Seitenumfang12
FachzeitschriftCATENA
Jahrgang72
Ausgabenummer3
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 31 Jan. 2008

Abstract

The research area was the Fuhrberger Feld aquifer (FFA) in northern Germany. It is situated about 30km northeast of the city of Hannover and covers about 300km2. Six multilevel sampling wells along a representative strip under predominantly arable land along a groundwater flow-line were sampled from the groundwater table down to a depth of 10m below the soil surface. We measured N2O, CO2, NO3-, SO42-, DOC, pH, redox potentials and O2 concentrations. N2O accumulated at four out of six wells close to the groundwater table. About 20% of N2O that occurred between the groundwater table and 7-8m below it resided in the top 0.4m. An exchange zone for N2O at the interface between the saturated and the unsaturated zone extended 0.55 ± 0.22m below the groundwater table and acted as a source and sink for N2O. N2O below the exchange zone cannot be transferred from the groundwater to the atmosphere. The upward fluxes from the exchange zone into the unsaturated zone at the six wells ranged between 0.0009 and 0.3kg N2O ha- 1 year- 1. The yearly downward fluxes into the exchange zones had about the same order of magnitude as the upward fluxes. The upward and downward fluxes of N2O at the (fluctuating) water table did cancel out each other, but this does not yet imply, that the N2O fluxes at the soil surface also cancel out each other. N2O-N:NO3-N ratios were highly variable ranging from 0.0002 to 0.0417. A multiple regression for the monthly N2O amounts in the exchange zone could explain 66% of the yearly variation. The significant variables were NO3-, CO2, pH, and O2. Therefore, a combination of the land use (NO3-), the geochemical boundary conditions (pH) and the type of denitrification reaction (O2 and CO2 indicate the importance of a heterotrophic denitrification process) governed the N2O dynamics in the surface groundwater of the FFA and its transfer into the unsaturated zone.

ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete

Ziele für nachhaltige Entwicklung

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The dynamics of N2O near the groundwater table and the transfer of N2O into the unsaturated zone: A case study from a sandy aquifer in Germany. / Deurer, M.; von der Heide, C.; Böttcher, J. et al.
in: CATENA, Jahrgang 72, Nr. 3, 31.01.2008, S. 362-373.

Publikation: Beitrag in FachzeitschriftArtikelForschungPeer-Review

Deurer M, von der Heide C, Böttcher J, Duijnisveld WHM, Weymann D, Well R. The dynamics of N2O near the groundwater table and the transfer of N2O into the unsaturated zone: A case study from a sandy aquifer in Germany. CATENA. 2008 Jan 31;72(3):362-373. doi: 10.1016/j.catena.2007.07.013
Deurer, M. ; von der Heide, C. ; Böttcher, J. et al. / The dynamics of N2O near the groundwater table and the transfer of N2O into the unsaturated zone : A case study from a sandy aquifer in Germany. in: CATENA. 2008 ; Jahrgang 72, Nr. 3. S. 362-373.
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title = "The dynamics of N2O near the groundwater table and the transfer of N2O into the unsaturated zone: A case study from a sandy aquifer in Germany",
abstract = "The research area was the Fuhrberger Feld aquifer (FFA) in northern Germany. It is situated about 30km northeast of the city of Hannover and covers about 300km2. Six multilevel sampling wells along a representative strip under predominantly arable land along a groundwater flow-line were sampled from the groundwater table down to a depth of 10m below the soil surface. We measured N2O, CO2, NO3-, SO42-, DOC, pH, redox potentials and O2 concentrations. N2O accumulated at four out of six wells close to the groundwater table. About 20% of N2O that occurred between the groundwater table and 7-8m below it resided in the top 0.4m. An exchange zone for N2O at the interface between the saturated and the unsaturated zone extended 0.55 ± 0.22m below the groundwater table and acted as a source and sink for N2O. N2O below the exchange zone cannot be transferred from the groundwater to the atmosphere. The upward fluxes from the exchange zone into the unsaturated zone at the six wells ranged between 0.0009 and 0.3kg N2O ha- 1 year- 1. The yearly downward fluxes into the exchange zones had about the same order of magnitude as the upward fluxes. The upward and downward fluxes of N2O at the (fluctuating) water table did cancel out each other, but this does not yet imply, that the N2O fluxes at the soil surface also cancel out each other. N2O-N:NO3-N ratios were highly variable ranging from 0.0002 to 0.0417. A multiple regression for the monthly N2O amounts in the exchange zone could explain 66% of the yearly variation. The significant variables were NO3-, CO2, pH, and O2. Therefore, a combination of the land use (NO3-), the geochemical boundary conditions (pH) and the type of denitrification reaction (O2 and CO2 indicate the importance of a heterotrophic denitrification process) governed the N2O dynamics in the surface groundwater of the FFA and its transfer into the unsaturated zone.",
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note = "Funding information: We thank H. Geistlinger, H. Flessa, and K. Sch{\"a}fer for many helpful discussions. The field work would not have been possible without the help of A. Keitel and G. Klump. We thank the German Research Foundation (DFG) for funding this research.",
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T1 - The dynamics of N2O near the groundwater table and the transfer of N2O into the unsaturated zone

T2 - A case study from a sandy aquifer in Germany

AU - Deurer, M.

AU - von der Heide, C.

AU - Böttcher, J.

AU - Duijnisveld, W. H.M.

AU - Weymann, D.

AU - Well, R.

N1 - Funding information: We thank H. Geistlinger, H. Flessa, and K. Schäfer for many helpful discussions. The field work would not have been possible without the help of A. Keitel and G. Klump. We thank the German Research Foundation (DFG) for funding this research.

PY - 2008/1/31

Y1 - 2008/1/31

N2 - The research area was the Fuhrberger Feld aquifer (FFA) in northern Germany. It is situated about 30km northeast of the city of Hannover and covers about 300km2. Six multilevel sampling wells along a representative strip under predominantly arable land along a groundwater flow-line were sampled from the groundwater table down to a depth of 10m below the soil surface. We measured N2O, CO2, NO3-, SO42-, DOC, pH, redox potentials and O2 concentrations. N2O accumulated at four out of six wells close to the groundwater table. About 20% of N2O that occurred between the groundwater table and 7-8m below it resided in the top 0.4m. An exchange zone for N2O at the interface between the saturated and the unsaturated zone extended 0.55 ± 0.22m below the groundwater table and acted as a source and sink for N2O. N2O below the exchange zone cannot be transferred from the groundwater to the atmosphere. The upward fluxes from the exchange zone into the unsaturated zone at the six wells ranged between 0.0009 and 0.3kg N2O ha- 1 year- 1. The yearly downward fluxes into the exchange zones had about the same order of magnitude as the upward fluxes. The upward and downward fluxes of N2O at the (fluctuating) water table did cancel out each other, but this does not yet imply, that the N2O fluxes at the soil surface also cancel out each other. N2O-N:NO3-N ratios were highly variable ranging from 0.0002 to 0.0417. A multiple regression for the monthly N2O amounts in the exchange zone could explain 66% of the yearly variation. The significant variables were NO3-, CO2, pH, and O2. Therefore, a combination of the land use (NO3-), the geochemical boundary conditions (pH) and the type of denitrification reaction (O2 and CO2 indicate the importance of a heterotrophic denitrification process) governed the N2O dynamics in the surface groundwater of the FFA and its transfer into the unsaturated zone.

AB - The research area was the Fuhrberger Feld aquifer (FFA) in northern Germany. It is situated about 30km northeast of the city of Hannover and covers about 300km2. Six multilevel sampling wells along a representative strip under predominantly arable land along a groundwater flow-line were sampled from the groundwater table down to a depth of 10m below the soil surface. We measured N2O, CO2, NO3-, SO42-, DOC, pH, redox potentials and O2 concentrations. N2O accumulated at four out of six wells close to the groundwater table. About 20% of N2O that occurred between the groundwater table and 7-8m below it resided in the top 0.4m. An exchange zone for N2O at the interface between the saturated and the unsaturated zone extended 0.55 ± 0.22m below the groundwater table and acted as a source and sink for N2O. N2O below the exchange zone cannot be transferred from the groundwater to the atmosphere. The upward fluxes from the exchange zone into the unsaturated zone at the six wells ranged between 0.0009 and 0.3kg N2O ha- 1 year- 1. The yearly downward fluxes into the exchange zones had about the same order of magnitude as the upward fluxes. The upward and downward fluxes of N2O at the (fluctuating) water table did cancel out each other, but this does not yet imply, that the N2O fluxes at the soil surface also cancel out each other. N2O-N:NO3-N ratios were highly variable ranging from 0.0002 to 0.0417. A multiple regression for the monthly N2O amounts in the exchange zone could explain 66% of the yearly variation. The significant variables were NO3-, CO2, pH, and O2. Therefore, a combination of the land use (NO3-), the geochemical boundary conditions (pH) and the type of denitrification reaction (O2 and CO2 indicate the importance of a heterotrophic denitrification process) governed the N2O dynamics in the surface groundwater of the FFA and its transfer into the unsaturated zone.

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KW - Hydropedology

KW - Indirect emission

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