Theory to predict potentially mineralizable nitrogen in soils
1994
Seneviratne, G. | Karunaratne, J. | Kulasooriya, S.A. | Rosswall, T.
A new theory, based on the diffusion of NH4+ ions during incubation, is put forward to predict potentially mineralizable N (No) in soils. Its validity is tested using predicted real No, based on the regression analysis of experimental data and also it is compared with the conventional one-pool exponential model of Stanford and Smith (1972). In all soil samples employed for the test, our new model predicted No more accurately than the one-pool model. The procedure to calculate No using our model is also easier than for the one-pool model. It is presumed that the accuracy of prediction of our new model could have been further improved, if an average value for the time-variant diffusion coefficient of NH4+ (D), is used for each of the samples separately, because D could vary with the nature and content of organic matter in soils. Therefore, it is concluded that further studies are needed to establish D for soils with different organic matter contents and under different soil conditions.
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