Mitigation of Nitrate Leaching in Tropical Soils using Layered Double Hydroxide

• Grant number: 17/21945-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: March 15, 2018
• End date: January 14, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Soil Science
• Principal Investigator: Quirijn de Jong van Lier
• Grantee: Ali Mehmandoost Kotlar
• Supervisor: Bo V. Iversen
• Host Institution: Centro de Energia Nuclear na Agricultura (CENA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Aarhus University, Denmark
• Associated to the scholarship: 16/18636-7 - Mitigation of Nitrate Leaching in Tropical Soils using Layered Double Hydroxide, BP.DR

Abstract

Nitrate loss from agricultural lands due to extensive fertilizer use poses a threat to the environment, human health and also represents an economic loss to farmers. This study aims to investigate whether the co-application of novel chemicals, namely layered double hydroxide (LDH), alongside fertilizers can promote N use efficiency by better controlling nitrate release to match plant demand. LDHs have the potential to trap nitrate within their composite structures due to their large anion exchange capacity (AEC) and specific surface area (SSA). Considering these advantages, this proposal aims to (i) synthesize and characterize a range of nitrate-intercalated LDHs and investigate the kinetic and equilibrium release of nitrate from LDH particles in soil solution through batch studies; (ii) examine the effect of LDHs on nitrate transport and leaching under different geochemical and soil physical conditions; (iii) perform a numerical modeling of mass transport to simulate nitrate release from LDH and subsequent flow through soil.