Browsing by Author "Grilo, J."
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- Influence of the particle size and animal slurry type on the potential of nitrogen mineralization after soil incorporationPublication . Fangueiro, D.; Gusmão, M.; Grilo, J.; Vasconcelos, E.; Cabral, F.Animal manures are rich in organic matter and nutrients, namely nitrogen (N) and, consequently, widely applied to soil as organic fertilizers. However, a large part of the nitrogen contained in animal manures is in the organic form and so not directly available for plants. Indeed, organic N has to be mineralized prior to plant uptake (Rees and Castle, 2002). Several manure characteristics as the C:N ratio (Chadwick et al., 2000), the lignin content (Kristensen, 1996) and the NH4 +/organic N ratio (Beauchamp and Paul, 1989) have been suggested as indicators of the plant-available N. More recently, Fangueiro et al. (2008) showed that the potential of N mineralization (PNM) of cattle slurry is inversely correlated with slurry particle size: finest fractions are the particle-size fractions from which N mineralization occurs in slurries whereas coarser fractions are associated with immobilization. Furthermore, Moller et al. (2002) reported that animal diet and anaerobic decomposition during storage in slurry channels and stores affect the slurry particle size distribution. Such information is of great interest since the finest slurry particle size should infiltrate the soil more easily and quickly relative to the coarser slurry particle size that should remain close to soil surface. Furthermore, mechanical slurry separation is now performed in many pig and dairy farms in order to improve slurry management in terms of nutrients utilization and reducing costs related to slurry storage. Slurry separation by screw press leads to a nutrient rich organic solid fraction (0.7– 3.2 mm particles) that may be composted and a liquid fraction that can be used for fertigation. In the present study, three types of slurry (pig, duck and cattle) were separated into 4 slurry particle size fractions (>2000 um, 2000-500 um, 500-100 um, <100 um) in order to assess the influence of the type of slurry and slurry particle size on the PNM after soil incorporation.
- Proportion, composition and potencial N mineralisation of particle size fractions obtained by mechanical separation of animal slurryPublication . Fangueiro, D.; Gusmão, M.; Grilo, J.; Porfirio, G.; Vasconcelos, E.; Cabral, F.Mechanical slurry separation is a useful technology for slurry management on farms. The characteristics of the fractions obtained depend on the separation efficiency and on the characteristics of the original slurry. In the present work, three types of slurry e pig, cow and duck e were separated into 4 particle size fractions. The proportion, composition in terms of carbon and nutrients as nitrogen (N) phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) was evaluated. The potential of N mineralisation of whole slurries, and each fraction after soil application, was assessed. Results of the study showed that the characteristics of the slurry fractions obtained depend strongly on the slurry type considered, namely on its dry matter (DM) content. A positive value of PNM was observed with the 3 slurry types and 4 fractions considered, indicating that no N immobilisation occurred. Nevertheless, results showed that the value of PNM vary significantly (P < 0.05) with slurry types and slurry particle size fractions.