Articles | Volume 5, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-5-265-2019
https://doi.org/10.5194/soil-5-265-2019
Original research article
 | 
19 Sep 2019
Original research article |  | 19 Sep 2019

A new look at an old concept: using 15N2O isotopomers to understand the relationship between soil moisture and N2O production pathways

Katelyn A. Congreves, Trang Phan, and Richard E. Farrell

Cited articles

Balaine, N., Clough, T. J., Beare, M. H., Thomas, S. M., Meenken, E. D., and Ross, J. G.: Changes in Relative Gas Diffusivity Explain Soil Nitrous Oxide Flux Dynamics, Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 77, 1496–1505, https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2013.04.0141, 2013. 
Banerjee, S., Helgason, B., Wang, L., Winsley, T., Ferrari, B. C., and Siciliano, S. D.: Legacy effects of soil moisture on microbial community structure and N2O emissions, Soil Biol. Biochem., 95, 40–50, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.SOILBIO.2015.12.004, 2016. 
Barnard, R., Leadley, P. W., and Hungate, B. A.: Global change, nitrification, and denitrification: A review, Global Biogeochem. Cy., 19, 13 pp., https://doi.org/10.1029/2004GB002282, 2005. 
Bateman, E. and Baggs, E.: Contributions of nitrification and denitrification to N2O emissions from soils at different water-filled pore space, Biol. Fertil. Soils, 41, 379–388, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-005-0858-3, 2005. 
Butterbach-Bahl, K., Baggs, E. M., Dannenmann, M., Kiese, R., and Zechmeister-Boltenstern, S.: Nitrous oxide emissions from soils: how well do we understand the processes and their controls?, Philos. T. R. Soc. Lond. B, 368, 20130122, https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2013.0122, 2013. 
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Short summary
There are surprising grey areas in the precise quantification of pathways that produce nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas, as influenced by soil moisture. Here, we take a new look at a classic study but use isotopomers as a powerful tool to determine the source pathways of nitrous oxide as regulated by soil moisture. Our results support earlier research, but we contribute scientific advancements by providing models that enable quantifying source partitioning rather than just inferencing.
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