Nitrogen mineralization rates

Flavel,T. C., and Daniel, V. (2006). Carbon and nitrogen mineralization rates after application of organic amendments to soil. J. Environ. Qual. 35,183-193. 

Medina and Cuevas (1994) analyzed available data for potential mineralizaton of nitrogen and nitrification rates from tropical forests. Nitrogen mineralization rates in... 

Gardner, W. S., Corner, J. B., andHerche, L. R. (1993). Chromatographic measurement of nitrogen mineralization rates in marine coastal waters with N. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 93, 65—73. 

Bonito, G. M., Coleman, D. C., Haines, B. L., Cabrera, M. L. 2003. Can nitrogen budgets explain differences in soil nitrogen mineralization rates of forest stands along an elevational gradient Forest Ecol. Managm. 173 563-574. 

In the absence of any one standardized method, many investigators have used laboratory batch incubation of wetland soils and aquatic sediments and measured ammonium production as a measure of nitrogen mineralization rates (Wang et al., 2001 White and Reddy, 2001) (Figure 8.20). These methods range from simple batch incubation experiments in which ammonium accumulation is measured over time to stable isotope dilution technique in which soil cores or anaerobic soil slurries are injected with N-labeled ammonium nitrogen. This method allows to estimate both gross and net mineralization rates (Blackburn, 1979). 

Boudot JP, Brahim ABH, Chone T (1988) Dependence of carbon and nitrogen mineralization rates upon amorphous metallic constituents and allophanes in highland soils. Geoderma 42 245-260... 

CDU in pure form is a white powder. It is made slowly available to the soil solution by nature of its limited solubihty in water. Once in the soil solution, nitrogen from CDU is made available to the plant through a combination of hydrolysis and microbial decomposition. As with any CRE which is dependent on microbial action, the mineralization of CDU is temperature dependent. Product particle size has a significant effect on CDU nitrogen release rate. Smaller particles mineralize more rapidly because of the larger surface contact with the soil solution and the microbial environment. The rate of nitrogen release is also affected by pH because CDU degrades more rapidly in acidic soils. 

It follows that soil nutrients would be expected to occur in low concentration at high elevation, limiting severely plant growth. Nitrogen (N) based nutrients have attracted particular attention in this concern, chiefly because N is the single element likely to limit plant ecosystem production and hence it is most important in regulating ecosystem processes (Mitter et al., 1984 Vitousek et al., 1997). Indeed, plant net primary production increases linearly with N mineralization rates (Reich... 

Knoepp, J. D., Swank, W. T. 1998. Rates of nitrogen mineralization across an elevation and vegetation gradient in the southern Appalachians. Plant Soil 204 235-241. 

Reaction inhibitors slow reaction rates. Nitrogen mineralization and nitrification (conversion of organic nitrogen and ammonium to nitrate) rates in soils, for example, can be slowed temporarily by chemicals that specifically slow or stop the microorganisms involved. Toxic metals can also operate as enzyme inhibitors, by replacing the metal coenzyme portion of an enzyme and thereby inactivating it. 

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