Effects of urea and(NH_4)_2 SO_4 on nitrification and acidification of Ultisols from Southern China  

作　　者：Dell Tong Renkou Xu 

机构地区：[1]State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture,Institute of Soil Science,Chinese Academy of Sciences,Nanjing 210008,China [2]Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences,Beijing 100049,China

出　　处：《Journal of Environmental Sciences》2012年第4期682-689,共8页环境科学学报（英文版）

基　　金：supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 30821140538);the National Key Technology R&D Program of China (No.2009BADC6B02)

摘　　要：The mechanisms for the effects of ammonium-based fertilizers on soil acidification in subtropical regions are not well understood. Two Ultisols collected from cropland and a tea garden in Anhui and Jiangxi Provinces in subtropical southern China, respectively, were used to study the effects of urea and （NH4）aSO4 on the nitrification and acidification of soils with incubation experiments. Nitrification occurred at very low pH with no N fertilizer added and led to lowering of the soil pH by 0.53 and 0.30 units for the soils from Jiangxi and Anhui, respectively. Addition of urea accelerated nitrification and soil acidification in both Ultisols; while nitrification was inhibited by the addition of （NH4）2SO4, and greater input of （NH4）2SO4 led to greater inhibition of nitrification. Ammonia-oxidizing bacteria （AOB） played an important role in nitrification in cropland soil under acidic conditions. Addition of urea increased the soil pH at the early stages of incubation due to hydrolysis and stimulated the increase in the AOB population, and thus accelerated nitrification and soil acidification. At the end of incubation, the pH of Ultisol from Jiangxi had decreased by 1.25, 1.54 and 1.84 units compared to maximum values for the treatments with 150, 300 and 400 mg/kg of urea-N added, respectively; the corresponding figures were 0.95, 1.25 and 1.69 for the Ultisol from Anhui. However, addition of （NH4）：SO4 inhibited the increase in the AOB population and thus inhibited nitrification and soil acidification. Soil pH for the treatments with 300 and 400 mg/kg of （NHn）2SOa-N remained almost constant during the incubation. AOB played an important role in nitrification of the cropland soil under acidic conditions. Addition of urea stimulated the increase in the AOB population and thus accelerated nitrification and soil acidification; while addition of （NH4）2SO4 inhibited the increase in the AOB population and thus inhibited nitrification.The mechanisms for the effects of ammonium-based fertilizers on soil acidification in subtropical regions are not well understood. Two Ultisols collected from cropland and a tea garden in Anhui and Jiangxi Provinces in subtropical southern China, respectively, were used to study the effects of urea and （NH4）aSO4 on the nitrification and acidification of soils with incubation experiments. Nitrification occurred at very low pH with no N fertilizer added and led to lowering of the soil pH by 0.53 and 0.30 units for the soils from Jiangxi and Anhui, respectively. Addition of urea accelerated nitrification and soil acidification in both Ultisols; while nitrification was inhibited by the addition of （NH4）2SO4, and greater input of （NH4）2SO4 led to greater inhibition of nitrification. Ammonia-oxidizing bacteria （AOB） played an important role in nitrification in cropland soil under acidic conditions. Addition of urea increased the soil pH at the early stages of incubation due to hydrolysis and stimulated the increase in the AOB population, and thus accelerated nitrification and soil acidification. At the end of incubation, the pH of Ultisol from Jiangxi had decreased by 1.25, 1.54 and 1.84 units compared to maximum values for the treatments with 150, 300 and 400 mg/kg of urea-N added, respectively; the corresponding figures were 0.95, 1.25 and 1.69 for the Ultisol from Anhui. However, addition of （NH4）：SO4 inhibited the increase in the AOB population and thus inhibited nitrification and soil acidification. Soil pH for the treatments with 300 and 400 mg/kg of （NHn）2SOa-N remained almost constant during the incubation. AOB played an important role in nitrification of the cropland soil under acidic conditions. Addition of urea stimulated the increase in the AOB population and thus accelerated nitrification and soil acidification; while addition of （NH4）2SO4 inhibited the increase in the AOB population and thus inhibited nitrification.

关 键 词：ammonium-based fertilizer NITRIFICATION soil acidification ammonia-oxidizing prokaryotes 

分 类 号：S829.1[农业科学—畜牧学] TQ925.9[农业科学—畜牧兽医]