Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2024
Sammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Forfattere
Aline Roma Tomaz Ademir de Oliveira Ferreira Rattan Lal Telmo Jorge Carneiro Amado Belchior Oliveira Trigueiro da Silva William Ramos da Silva Felipe José Cury Fracetto Thiago Inagaki Maria Betânia Galvão Santos Freire Elves Obede dos Santos NunesSammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Forfattere
Sonja Keel Alice Budai Lars Elsgaard Brieuc Hardy Florent Levasseur Zhi Liang Claudio Mondini Cesar Plaza Jens LeifeldSammendrag
To increase soil organic carbon (SOC) storage, we need to improve our understanding on how to make best use of available plant biomass. Is it better to leave harvest residues on the field, or can we achieve higher SOC storage after processing biomass through, for instance, composting or pyrolysis to produce biochar? In the present study, we developed new parameters for different types of exogenous organic materials (EOMs), which allowed us to estimate the long-term effect of EOM addition on SOC storage using the soil carbon model RothC. For this purpose, we used a model version that included two additional EOM pools. First, we simulated the SOC evolution after addition of equal amounts of C in plant material and different EOMs (manure, compost, digestate, biochar) for a 38-year cropland trial in Switzerland. As expected, biochar showed the greatest increase in SOC due to its high stability. Next, we estimated how much C would remain after subjecting equivalent amounts of plant material and other EOMs to different processes. Loss rates of C for different processes were obtained from the literature. Due to different decomposition rates, the amounts of C remaining in the EOMs ranged from 7 % for anaerobic digestion of animal excreta to 100 % for plant material added directly to soil. These amounts of C were then added to the soil in the model experiments. Although the largest amount of C is lost during processing to biochar, biochar would clearly lead to highest long-term SOC stocks. Based on these first results we conclude that the trade-off between off-site stabilization and in-soil mineralization does not compromise the use of biochar for soil C storage. This means that despite the high C losses of about 50 % during biochar production, higher amounts of C remain in the soil because biochar has very low decomposition rates. In terms of C sequestration efficiency, biochar thus clearly outperforms the other biomass processing pathways. However, for practical recommendations, additional factors should be considered, such as nutrient availability of EOMs and environmental effects during processing, storage and soil application like nutrient leaching or gaseous emissions. Furthermore, we suggest a full life cycle assessment that considers e.g. energy costs for transport of biomass and energy savings from fossil fuel substitution by natural gas.
Forfattere
Arne Verstraeten Aldo Marchetto Andreas Schmitz Nicholas Clarke Anne Thimonier Catherine Hilgers Anne-Katrin Prescher Till Kirchner Karin Hansen Tamara Jakovljevic Carmen Iacoban Wim de Vries Bernd Ahrends Peter WaldnerSammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Sammendrag
Since the 1950s, the use of plastics in agriculture has helped solving many challenges related to food production, while its persistence and mismanagement has led to the plastic pollution we face today. Soils are no exception and concentrations of polyethylene mulch debris up to 380 kg/ha have been reported in Chinese agricultural soils. A variety of biodegradable plastic products have thus been developed and marketed, with the aim to solve plastic pollution through complete degradation after use. But the environmental conditions for rapid and complete degradation are not always fulfilled, and the risk that biodegradable plastics could also contribute to plastic pollution must be evaluated. In this presentation, we want to share the knowledge gained through research projects on biodegradable plastics in agricultural soil, where we both studied the degradation of biodegradable mulch under Nordic soil conditions, and the fate of other biodegradable plastics in soil amendments such as compost and biogas digestate. A two-year field experiment with biodegradable mulch (PBAT-starch and PBAT-PLA) buried in soil in mesh bags showed that also under colder climatic conditions does degradation occur, involving fragmentation already after 2 months, but that complete degradation may take 3 to 9 years, depending on soil temperature and soil organic matter content (both correlate positively with degradation rate). Accumulation is therefore likely to happen when biodegradable mulch is repeatedly used every year. A full-scale experiment with compostable plastic cups (PLA) at an industrial composting plant, where we followed their fate and conducted metagenomic analysis over 13 weeks, demonstrated the major role played by fungi for a successful degradation of PLA. However, the successful management of biodegradable plastic products largely depends on existing waste management infrastructure. Most biodegradable plastic bags, labelled as compostable and used for food waste collection do not end up in industrial composting plants in Norway, but in biogas production plants. Here, we showed that these plastic bags (Mater-Bi®) are only marginally degraded (maximum 21-33 % mass loss) during biogas production, and likely to end up in biogas digestate and then in agricultural soils, unless digestate is treated to remove plastic residues.
Forfattere
Cornelya Klutsch Junbin Zhao Mikhail Mastepanov Hanna Marika Silvennoinen Juho Vuolteenaho Erling Fjelldal David Kniha Runar Kjær Snorre HagenSammendrag
No abstract has been registered
2023
Forfattere
Junbin Zhao Simon Weldon Alexandra Barthelmes Erin Swails Kristell Hergoualc’h Ülo Mander Chunjing Qiu John Connolly Whendee L. Silver David CampbellSammendrag
Greenhouse gas (GHGs) emissions from peatlands contribute significantly to ongoing climate change because of human land use. To develop reliable and comprehensive estimates and predictions of GHG emissions from peatlands, it is necessary to have GHG observations, including carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), that cover different peatland types globally. We synthesize published peatland studies with field GHG flux measurements to identify gaps in observations and suggest directions for future research. Although GHG flux measurements have been conducted at numerous sites globally, substantial gaps remain in current observations, encompassing various peatland types, regions and GHGs. Generally, there is a pressing need for additional GHG observations in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean regions. Despite widespread measurements of CO2 and CH4, studies quantifying N2O emissions from peatlands are scarce, particularly in natural ecosystems. To expand the global coverage of peatland data, it is crucial to conduct more eddy covariance observations for long-term monitoring. Automated chambers are preferable for plot-scale observations to produce high temporal resolution data; however, traditional field campaigns with manual chamber measurements remain necessary, particularly in remote areas. To ensure that the data can be further used for modeling purposes, we suggest that chamber campaigns should be conducted at least monthly for a minimum duration of one year with no fewer than three replicates and measure key environmental variables. In addition, further studies are needed in restored peatlands, focusing on identifying the most effective restoration approaches for different ecosystem types, conditions, climates, and land use histories.
Forfattere
Liang Wang Alba Dieguez-Alonso Maria Nicte Polanco Olsen Julie Cathrine Guldahl Øyvind Skreiberg Alice Budai Daniel RasseSammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Sammendrag
No abstract has been registered
Forfattere
Thiago InagakiSammendrag
The Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO) has been working on many fronts to promote sustainable agriculture. As part of the Department of Biogeochemistry and Soil Quality, I will present initiatives and progress made by the NIBIO Institute in promoting soil organic matter persistence and sustainable agriculture in Norway and worldwide. Two major challenges have been targeted with a focus on Norway: waste generation by several industries (e.g., agriculture, forestry, and fishery) and the short time of the cropping season in the country due to climatic constraints. To solve these issues, we are working on several projects focused on re-utilizing waste products by producing organic fertilizers, optimizing these fertilizers (e.g., biochar N-enrichment), and improving current cropping systems with crop diversification. Our main objective is to investigate the benefits of these practices in improving soil quality and crop productivity and enhancing soil organic matter persistence. Our work on soil science also goes beyond Norwegian and Nordic conditions. Among our international collaborations, we are currently working on a multi-institution bilateral project between China and Norway to promote the restoration of a semi-arid ecosystem in Inner Mongolia. We are also often engaging in project proposals for promoting sustainable agriculture in tropical regions. To develop these ideas, we promote a combined approach of spectroscopy techniques in collaboration with other institutions, such as nanoscale secondary ion mass spectrometry (NanoSIMS) in partnership with the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and NMR spectroscopy in partnership with the National Research Council of Italy (CNR-Pisa). Also, our research facilities count on good infrastructure, focusing on incubations with 13C and 15N labeled amendments and 13C pulse labeling.