Besides ammonia volatilization, airborne losses include denitrification, a process in which bacteria convert nitrate to nitrous oxide and nitrogen gas. Denitrification is a major process of nitrogen removal from soils, however, enhancing nitrogen loss by denitrification on farms cannot be accomplished without substantial capital investment and altered management practices. Furthermore, nitrous oxide has been implicated as a greenhouse gas, contributing to global warming. This analysis focuses, therefore, on ammonia volatilization and its overall environmental impacts. Estimated manure nitrogen production in Pennsylvania.
Manure is handled by a wide variety of schemes.
For example, Figure 2 shows the manure handling options for dairy manure alone. While the actual manure handling methods for individual farms are highly variable, collection, storage, and land application are common components of most management systems. Manure treatment systems can often be engineered to enhance ammonia losses. Factors which influence ammonia losses during these operations will be discussed. During collection, the forms in which N exist largely determine the immediate volatilization potential.