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Special Issue "Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems"

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A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Farming Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2023 | Viewed by 14053

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. David Fangueiro

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Guest Editor

LEAF, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade de Lisboa, 1349-017 Lisboa, Portugal
Interests: nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorous) and carbon cycling in soils amended with organic residues; management, treatment and valorization of organic wastes from agricultural activities; management of nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium) at farm and field scale; soil and water contamination by nitrates and phosphates; emissions of greenhouse gases (CO₂, CH₄, N₂O) and ammonia from agricultural activities
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Dr. José L. S. Pereira

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Agrarian School of Viseu, Polytechnic Institute of Viseu, Quinta da Alagoa, 3500-606 Viseu, Portugal
Interests: agricultural science; waste management; air, soil and water pollution; ammonia and greenhouse gases emissions
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Meat and dairy production consumption should increase over the next decades despite the well-known impact of livestock production on ammonia (NH₃) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and consequently on climate change. It is therefore of high relevance to define some accurate and specific strategies of NH₃ and GHG abatement in each country or even region. Indeed, even if a significant number of studies dealing with the topic of NH₃ and GHG emissions from livestock production are already published, there is still some lack of information regarding the impact of livestock production in some countries that erroneously adopt solutions developed in other regions with very different characteristics. On the other hand, many solutions have been presented to minimize NH₃ and GHG emissions but only few are applied at farm scale due to the associated cost or even to low farmer acceptance. Finally, some of these solutions might lead to the so-called pollution swapping if not studied following an holistic approach.

We invite all the research teams dealing with NH3 and GHG emissions from livestock production to share your most recent results in this Special Issue with research articles. Invitations are open but not limited to the following topics:

Emissions from livestock facilities and animal manure management: assessment of emissions factors, mitigation techniques, impacts on animal welfare and environment
Enteric fermentation and animal welfare
Ammonia and GHG measurement: new expedited and accurate methodologies and low cost solutions to assess gaseous emissions in emerging countries
Implementation of available technology: farmer and society acceptance, optimization of costs

Prof. David Fangueiro
Prof. Dr. José L.S. Pereira
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

ammonia
animal houses
emissions factors
greenhouse gases
manure management
nutrients recycling
measurement methodologies
mitigation techniques
livestock production

Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

Open AccessArticle

Manure Acidification and Air Cleaners for Ammonia Abatement: A Holistic Assessment of the Costs and Effects on Terrestrial, Freshwater and Marine Ecosystems

Eugenio Molina-Navarro

Dennis Trolle

Hans Thodsen

Jesper L. Bak

Maria Theresia Konrad

Berit Hasler

Kaj M. Hansen

Jesper H. Christensen

and

Karen Timmermann

Agronomy 2023, 13(2), 283; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13020283 - 17 Jan 2023

Viewed by 499

Abstract

Manure acidification has been introduced as an abatement to reduce ammonia (NH₃) emissions to improve air quality and protect terrestrial and aquatic environments from nitrogen deposition. A successful regulation of NH₃ emissions using manure acidification might, however, result in increased nitrogen leaching from fertilized fields with adverse effects on freshwater and marine ecosystems, if the overall fertilizer application rate in the fields is not adjusted according to the increased fertilizer value of the manure. We apply a holistic model framework encapsulating all important environmental compartments to assess the ecological and economic consequences of a specific agricultural practice or a combination of these. The results show that manure acidification combined with air cleaners reduces NH₃ emission and atmospheric nitrogen deposition with substantial positive effects on the terrestrial environment. Although manure acidification results in a slight increase in total nitrogen input into freshwater and marine ecosystems, the subsequent increase in chlorophyll a concentration and decrease in water transparency is insignificant. Hence, according to the model results, manure acidification will improve terrestrial nature quality, with no significant adverse effects on the aquatic environments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

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Open AccessArticle

Assessment of a Low-Cost Portable Device for Gas Concentration Monitoring in Livestock Housing

Provvidenza Rita D’Urso

Claudia Arcidiacono

and

Giovanni Cascone

Agronomy 2023, 13(1), 5; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13010005 - 20 Dec 2022

Viewed by 564

Abstract

The increasing regulatory pressure to monitor and reduce GHG emissions and air pollutants requires cost-effective methods for their surveillance. The most common techniques used for scientific investigations into gas concentration monitoring in barns are accurate but expensive and require complex maintenance. This research study analyzed the potential use of low-cost portable measurement devices for the measurement of ammonia (NH₃) and carbon dioxide (CO₂) concentrations in an open dairy barn. A comparison between the gas concentrations acquired at different heights from the floor by using portable devices and those acquired by a photoacoustic infrared multigas spectroscope (i.e., reference measurement) in the same sampling locations was carried out to determine the precision of the low-cost portable devices. The performances of the low-cost portable devices were statistically analyzed by application of the one-way analysis of variance, correlation analysis, and regression analysis. The results showed a significant difference between the gas concentration values at various heights from the floor for both NH₃ and CO₂. The correlations between the concentrations acquired by the low-cost portable devices and the INNOVA were statistically significant (r = 0.83; p < 0.001) for gas concentrations monitored at 0.4 m from the floor. Compared with the reference measurement device, the low-cost devices were effective at the monitoring of NH₃ concentrations at 0.40 m from the floor; however, they underestimated the concentrations in the barn at increasing heights from the floor, and the device was not adequate for CO₂ concentrations. In detail, the relative measurement error of the low-cost devices compared to the INNOVA was reduced close to the floor during NH₃ concentration measurements. Within these limitations, this device may be useful for monitoring the NH₃ concentration in the barn and assessing variations in the NH₃ concentrations mainly related to the animal occupied zone. Further efforts are needed in this field of research to identify a low-cost device that can simplify emission estimation from open dairy barns. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

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Open AccessArticle

Mitigating Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Stored Pig Slurry Using Chemical Additives and Biochars

and

Agronomy 2022, 12(11), 2744; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12112744 - 04 Nov 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 888

Abstract

Slurry storage is a significant source of NH₃ and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The aim of this laboratory study was to assess the effects of different chemical additives and biochars on the emissions of NH₃, N₂O, CO₂, and CH₄ during the short-term storage of pig slurry. The experiment was performed using Kilner jars filled with raw slurry as control and six treatment additives (5% w/w): acidified slurry, alkalinized slurry, neutralized slurry, agroforestry biochar, cardoon biochar, and elderberry biochar. The gas emissions were measured for 30 days, and the composition of the slurries was determined. During short-term storage, the results of this laboratory study indicated that the NH₃ emissions were reduced by 58% by acidification and by 20% by the biochars (Agroforestry, Cardoon, and Elderberry treatments), while neutralization reduced this loss by only 12%. Nitrous oxide emissions were not reduced by the chemical additives (Acidified, Alkalinized, and Neutralized treatments), while this loss was increased by 12% by the biochars. Carbon dioxide, CH₄, and global warming potential emissions were not affected by the chemical additives and biochars. Furthermore, the absence of differences between the biochars may be related to their similar composition. Regarding the influence of the studied additives on NH₃ losses, it can be concluded that acidification was the best mitigation measure and the biochars were quite similar due to their composition. Furthermore, neutralization had the advantage of sanitizing the slurry, but only had a mild impact on NH₃ preservation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of a Tomato Waste Biofilter for the Retention of Gaseous Losses from Pig Slurry Hygienization by pH Modification

José L. S. Pereira

Adelaide Perdigão

and

David Fangueiro

Agronomy 2022, 12(8), 1838; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12081838 - 03 Aug 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1028

Abstract

The use of pig slurry as organic fertilizer in intensive horticulture could be possible after hygienization to avoid contamination of products. This research aimed to evaluate a mixture of a tomato waste and rice husk as biofilter media to reduce NH₃, N₂O, CO₂, and CH₄ losses from a simple and low-cost solution for slurry hygienization by pH modification. The experiment was made in a system of laboratory scale biofilters connected to jars filled with raw slurry as control and three treatment methods: acidified slurry, alkalinized slurry, and neutralized slurry. The gas concentrations were measured for 35 days, and the composition of slurries and biofilters were determined. The results of this study showed that the mixture of biofiltering media, composed of tomato waste and rice husk, has the potential to retain NH₃ and greenhouse gases (GHG) from a simple and low-cost solution for slurry hygienization by pH modification. Compared to the treatment raw slurry biofilter, the treatment neutralized slurry biofilter, subjected to a combined treatment by alkalinization/neutralization, retained 19% NH₃, 4% CO₂, and 83% CH₄ losses and had no impact on N₂O and global warming potential. Thus, the use of tomato waste biofilter during alkalinization did not increase the loss of NH₃ and reduced GHG compared to raw slurry, avoiding the subsequent neutralization of slurry for environmental reasons, and could be used as an organic fertilizer in horticulture. However, using the combined alkalinization/neutralization treatment will improve the fertilizer value of the slurry by adjusting the pH from 9.5 to 7.5. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

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Open AccessArticle

Effects of the Addition of Different Additives before Mechanical Separation of Pig Slurry on Composition and Gaseous Emissions

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Agronomy 2022, 12(7), 1618; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12071618 - 05 Jul 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1058

Abstract

The treatment of animal slurry is used to improve management on a farm scale. The aim of this laboratory study was to assess the effects of the addition of the additives biochar, alum and clinoptilolite before the mechanical separation of whole pig slurry (WS) on the characteristics and emission of NH₃, N₂O, CO₂ and CH₄ from solid (SF) and liquid fractions (LF). The additives were mixed with WS (5% w/w), followed by separation, in a total of 12 treatments with 3 replicates, including the controls and WS with additives. Gaseous emissions were measured for 30 d by a photoacoustic multigas monitor, and initial characteristics of the slurries were assessed. The results indicated that the separation of the WS modified the initial physicochemical characteristics and increased the GWP emissions of the SF and LF, but not the NH₃ losses. However, the addition of additives before separation increased the nutrient value and reduced the GWP emissions from the SF and LF. Additionally, just the additive alum was effective in the reduction of E. coli. The additives led to significant reductions in NH₃ and N₂O emissions, with higher reductions in NH₃ losses for alum (51% for NH₃) and similar N₂O losses for all additives (70% for N₂O) observed, whereas the CO₂ and CH₄ emissions were reduced by biochar (25% for CO₂ and 50% for CH₄) and alum (33% for CO₂ and 30% for CH₄) but not by clinoptilolite. Although the additives had a positive effect on slurry management, it can be concluded that the addition of alum before mechanical separation has the potential to be the best mitigation measure because it improves the nutrient content and sanitation and decreases gaseous losses from slurry management. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

Open AccessArticle

Comparison of Methane Emission Patterns from Dairy Housings with Solid and Slatted Floors at Two Locations

and

Agronomy 2022, 12(2), 381; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12020381 - 03 Feb 2022

Viewed by 1108

Abstract

Methane (CH

_{4}

Methane (CH

_{4}

) emissions from dairy husbandry are a hot topic in the context of active climate protection, where housing systems with slatted floors and slurry storage inside are in general expected to emit more than systems with solid floors. There are multiple factors, including climate conditions, that modulate the emission pattern. In this study, we investigated interrelations between CH

_{4}

emission patterns and climate conditions as well as differences between farm locations versus floor effects. We considered three data sets with 265, 264 and 275 hourly emission values from two housing systems (one slatted, one solid floor) in Switzerland and one system with solid floors in Germany. Each data set incorporated measurements in summer, winter and a transition season. The average CH

_{4}

emission was highest for the slatted floor system. For the solid floor systems, CH

_{4}

emissions at the Swiss location were around 30% higher compared to the German location. The shape of the distributions for the two solid floor systems was rather similar but very different from the distribution for the slatted floor system, which showed higher prevalence for extreme emissions. Rank correlations, which measure the degree of similarity between two rankings in terms of linear relation, were not able to detect dependencies at the selected significance level. In contrast, mutual information, which measures more general statistical dependencies in terms of shared information, revealed highly significant dependencies for almost all variable pairs. The weakest statistical relation was found between winds speed and CH

_{4}

emission, but the convection regime was found to play a key role. Clustering was consistent among the three data sets with five typical clusters related to high/low temperature and wind speed, respectively, as well as in some cases to morning and evening hours. Our analysis showed that despite the disparate and often insignificant correlation between environmental variables and CH

_{4}

emission, there is a strong relation between both, which shapes the emission pattern in many aspects much more in addition to differences in the floor type. Although a clear distinction of high and low emission condition clusters based on the selected environmental variables was not possible, trends were clearly visible. Further research with larger data sets is advisable to verify the detected trends and enable prognoses for husbandry systems under different climate conditions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

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Open AccessArticle

Livelihood Diversification Helps Herder Households on the Mongolian Plateau Reduce Emissions: A Case Study of a Typical Pastoral Area

Zhidong Li

and

Moucheng Liu

Agronomy 2022, 12(2), 267; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12020267 - 21 Jan 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1058

Abstract

Environmental issues caused by energy consumption have become increasingly prominent in recent years. In some ecologically vulnerable areas of developing countries, the negative environmental effects caused by farmers’ household energy consumption are closely related to the local (and even global) ecological environment and human health. Taking a typical ecologically vulnerable area of the Mongolian Plateau as an example, we combined a regression model, energy popularity rate, and average energy consumption to explore the impact of livelihood diversification on herder households’ energy consumption structures. We also attempted to quantify the environmental effects of the energy transition in terms of greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions. The findings show that the average consumption of livestock dung, gasoline, coal, liquefied gas, solar, and wind of livelihood diversification households (LDHs) is lower than that of pure herder households (PHHs), whereas the average consumption of electricity is higher than that of PHHs. As a result, the average emission of CO₂ by LDHs is 5.14 t/a lower than that of PHHs. And compared with PHHs, the average emission reductions of air pollutants by LDHs are ranked as follows: CO: 153.20 kg/a, PM₁₀: 36.56 kg/a (including PM_2.5: 32.94 kg/a), VOCs: 12.47 kg/a, SO₂: 3.14 kg/a, and NO_x: 3.06 kg/a. Therefore, livelihood diversification can help herder households on the Mongolian Plateau reduce emissions through energy consumption transitions. Strengthening education (especially language education) can help herder households engage in livelihood diversification. This study provides a scientific means for ecologically vulnerable areas in developing countries to resolve conflicts between farming households’ energy consumption and the environment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

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Open AccessArticle

Slurry Acidification as a Solution to Minimize Ammonia Emissions from the Combined Application of Animal Manure and Synthetic Fertilizer in No-Tillage

Arejacy A. Silva

David Fangueiro

and

Mario Carvalho

Agronomy 2022, 12(2), 265; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy12020265 - 20 Jan 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1802

Abstract

The combined application of manure/slurry and synthetic fertilizer (SF) might be a solution to decrease transport and application costs involving those by-products as well as enable access to them in regions where availability is low. Moreover, their joint application can potentially reduce environmental pollution, enlarge the manure benefits to more areas, and enhance the SF efficiency. However, such a strategy might result in increased ammonia emissions when applied to crop residues. Two experiments were implemented to assess ammonia emissions from stubble-covered soil fertilized with manure amended with SF. In Experiment 1 (E1), urea (U) and calcium ammonium nitrate (AN) were applied combined with dairy manure (MAN). In Experiment 2 (E2), urea was combined with acidified pig slurry (APS) and applied just after sowing (T0) or eight days later (T8). The combinations U + MAN and AN + MAN increased the ammonia emissions, while APS decreased the emissions from U, in APS + U combination, by more than 75%. Therefore, manure combined with SF applied on stubble-covered soil should not be recommended. T8 reduced ammonia emissions from U. APS enhanced the efficiency of U, being then an interesting strategy to mitigate ammonia emissions when applied on stubble-covered soil, as in no-tillage. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

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Open AccessArticle

The Use of Natural Sorbents to Reduce Ammonia Emissions from Cattle Faeces

and

Bożena Nowakowicz-Dębek

Agronomy 2021, 11(12), 2543; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11122543 - 15 Dec 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1771

Abstract

Intensification of animal production leads to an increase in ammonia emissions into the environment. For this reason, various methods and strategies are sought to reduce ammonia emissions from faeces. The aim of the study was to test the possibility of using natural sorbents and sorbent mixtures to reduce ammonia emissions from cattle faeces. Faecal samples for analysis were collected from Holstein-Friesian dairy cows during the winter. The amount of ammonia emissions from cow faeces was determined every seven days, after mixing the faeces with a mixture of selected sorbents. All of the sorbents used have the potential to remove ammonia. The most effective reduction in ammonia was achieved using biochar and a mixture of bentonite with zeolite. The reduction in these groups was 42.56% and 24.56%, respectively, relative to the control group. The results indicate that these sorbents can be used to reduce ammonia emissions from cattle farms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

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Open AccessArticle

One-Time Acidification of Slurry: What Is the Most Effective Acid and Treatment Strategy?

and

Agronomy 2021, 11(7), 1319; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy11071319 - 28 Jun 2021

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2231

Abstract

Acidification of slurry is a common practice to reduce ammonia and methane emissions. Sulfuric acid is usually used for this process. However, this has been criticized due to the high sulfur input into soils. Therefore, the objective of this study is to show the effectiveness of a one-time acidification with alternative acids also in combination with other treatment strategies. The amount of acid as well as the change of pH value during storage were investigated. For most variants, a strong pH increase occurred within the first ten days after acidification. Mineral acids (sulfuric or hydrochloric acid) resulted in a lower pH increase compared to organic acids (lactic, acetic, and citric acid). Under anaerobic storage conditions, the pH remained significantly lower. The addition of glucose before acidification resulted in lower pH values during the first week, but in the long term, the conversion of glucose to carbonate led to higher pH values. A previous separation process was able to reduce the amount of acid. Although the pH increase was not that strong in the first days after acidification, it was much faster and stronger afterwards due to the lower buffer capacity in the separated slurry. A long-term pH reduction was achieved by acidification to pH 3.0, but this was associated with an increased amount of acid. On the basis of the results, a combination of organic acids with anaerobic storage can be recommended as an alternative to sulfuric acid. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mitigation of Ammonia and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Livestock Systems)

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