Denitrification losses measured by direct method (measuring the evolution of (N2+N2O)-^15N) were compared with the apparent denitrification losses (calculated from the difference between the total N loss and ammonia loss), for fertilizers applied to flooded soils.The direct measured denitrification losses from potassium nitrate were 23.0%,40.0%,and 63.1-79.7% of applied N in rice field,and in incubations of 7 cm deep layer of soil and 2 cm deep layer of soil,respectively;while the corresponding apparent denitrification losses were 96.0%,98.4%,and 97.7-97.9%,respectively.In field experiments with urea,the direct measured denitrification losses ranged from 0.1-1.8%,which were much less than the apparent denitrification losses (41.3-45.7%).Such discrepancies were primarily due to the entrapment of the gaseous products of denitrification in the soil as revealed by the facts:(1) stirring the floodwater and the surface soil markedly increased the fluxes of (N2_N2O)-^15N from urea or potassium nitrate applied to the flooded rice field,and (2) reducing the pressure in the headspace of the incubation bottle with the 7 cm soil layer during gas sampling decreased the discrepance between the direct measured and apparent denitrifecation losses from 58.4% to 21.2%.The advantage of reducing the pressure in the headspace is that there is minimal disturbance of the soil.Further testing of this technique in rice field is needed to determine its effectiveness in releasing the entrapped gaseous products of denitrification so that denitrification losses can be quantified directly.
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