Tuesday, 8 November 2005
5

Micrometeorological Techniques for Measuring Ammonia Fluxes from Cattle Feedlots.

Kristen Baum and Jay Ham. Kansas State University, Department of Agronomy, Throckmorton Hall, Manhattan, KS 66506

Cattle feedlots are major sources of atmospheric NH3 in the U.S. Unfortunately, NH3 is a highly reactive compound that is difficult to measure. A micrometeorological system was developed to measure NH3 gas and NH4+ aerosol fluxes (together known as NHx flux) from cattle feedlots. The system was composed of a sonic anemometer and chemical NHx traps composed of an impinger, honeycomb denuder, and filter pack. Gaseous NH3 and aerosol NH4+ samples were collected and analyzed using ion chromatography. These data were then combined with the sonic anemometer data to compute NHx flux. Ammonia concentrations were also measured using chemilumnescence techniques. Data were collected during the summer of 2005 at a 30,000-head feedlot in central Kansas. Results will demonstrate the utility of using these techniques for estimating long-term NHx losses from cattle feedlots.

Handout (.pdf format, 2057.0 kb)

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