Pedosphere (2): 595--602, 2026
ISSN 1002-0160/CN 32-1315/P
©2026 Soil Science Society of China
Published by Elsevier B.V. and Science Press
| Biochar amendment affects soil nitrogen transformation and nitrous oxide emission: A 15N tracer study |
Jie ZHANG1, Ping HE2, Liang JIN3,4, Dan WEI3, Xinpeng XU2, Shicheng ZHAO2, Wei ZHOU2, Shaojun QIU2 |
1 Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Water and Soil Conservation and Environmental Protection, College of Resources and Environment, Linyi University, Shandong 276000 (China)
2 State Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Arable Land in China, Key Laboratory of Plant Nutrition and Fertilizer, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081 (China)
3 Institute of Plant Nutrient and Resources, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing 100097 (China)
4 Institute of Soils, Fertilizers and Environmental Resources, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086 (China) |
| ABSTRACT |
| Biochar amendment is considered a potential strategy to improve soil fertility and mitigate climate change, yet its specific effects on the fate of fertilizer-derived and native soil nitrogen remain unclear. To elucidate the effect of biochar amendment on soil nitrogen (N) transformation and nitrous oxide (N2O) emission, a 56-d soil incubation experiment was conducted using 15N isotope tracing to monitor the fate of N. Three treatments were set up: i) no addition of N or biochar control (CK), ii) addition of 15N-labeled ammonium sulfate ((NH4)2SO4) (NS), and iii) combined addition of 15N-labeled (NH4)2SO4 and biochar (NS+BC). The 15N abundances in soil ammonium (NH4+, nitrate (NO3-), microbial biomass N (MBN), particulate organic N (PON), mineral-associated total N (MTN), and N2O were measured. Compared with NS, endogenous soil N-derived NH4+-N and N2O decreased significantly by 34.4%-67.6% and 18.3%-51.2%, respectively, and exogenous N-derived NH4+-N, MTN, and N2O decreased significantly by 49.6%-81.4%, 15.0%-47.0%, and 42.3%-76.5%, respectively, in NS+BC during the first 14 d. Biochar amendment significantly increased endogenous and exogenous soil N retention in MBN by 16.7%-40.1% and over 200 times, respectively, during the first 21 d. The endogenous and exogenous soil N retention in PON increased by 12.5%-27.0% and 18.2%-78.5%, respectively, over the whole incubation period. For MTN, the endogenous and exogenous soil N retention increased by 3.9%-6.1% and 24.9%-30.6%, respectively, from days 21 to 56. The contribution of endogenous N to the total N2O emission was > 80% across treatments. These results show that biochar amendment can mitigate soil N2O emission and promote inorganic N translocation into MBN, PON, and MTN in soil. |
| Key Words: endogenous N,exogenous N,microbial biomass N,mineral-associated total N,15N isotope tracing,particulate organic N,soil N pool |
| Citation: Zhang J, He P, Jin L, Wei D, Xu X P, Zhao S C, Zhou W, Qiu S J. 2026. Biochar amendment affects soil nitrogen transformation and nitrous oxide emission: A 15N tracer study. Pedosphere. 36(2): 595-602. |
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