Journal article

Publication year: 2019

Pages: 608-616

Journal: Environmental Pollution

Volume number: 244

ISSN: 0269-7491

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.10.054

Publisher: Elsevier

Abstract: 
Nitrogen (N) deposition has rapidly increased and is influencing forest ecosystem processes and functions on a global scale. Understanding process-specific N transformations, i.e., gross N transformations, in forest soils in response to N deposition is of great significance to gain mechanistic insights on the linkages between global N deposition and N availability or loss in forest soils. In this paper, we review factors controlling N mineralization, nitrification and N immobilization, particularly in relation to N deposition, discuss the limitations of net N transformation studies, and synthesize the literature on the effect of N deposition on gross N transformations in forest ecosystems. We found that more than 97% of published papers evaluating the effect of N deposition (including N addition experiments that simulate N deposition) on soil N cycle determined net rates of mineralization and nitrification, showing that N deposition significantly increased those rates by 24.9 and 153.9%, respectively. However, studies on net N transformation do not provide a mechanistic understanding of the effect of N deposition on N cycling. To date, a small number of studies (<20 published papers) have directly quantified the effect of N deposition on gross N transformation rates, limiting our understanding of the response of soil N cycling to N deposition. The responses to N deposition of specific N transformation processes such as autotrophic nitrification, heterotrophic nitrification, dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium, N mineralization, and N immobilization are poorly studied. Future research needs to use more holistic approaches to study the impact of N deposition on gross N transformation rates, N toss and retention, and their microbial driven mechanisms to provide a better understanding of the processes involved in N transformations, and to understand the differential responses between forest and other ecosystems. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Harvard Citation style: Cheng, Y., Wang, J., Chang, S., Cai, Z., Müller, C. and Zhang, J. (2019) Nitrogen deposition affects both net and gross soil nitrogen transformations in forest ecosystems: A review, Environmental Pollution, 244, pp. 608-616. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.10.054

APA Citation style: Cheng, Y., Wang, J., Chang, S., Cai, Z., Müller, C., & Zhang, J. (2019). Nitrogen deposition affects both net and gross soil nitrogen transformations in forest ecosystems: A review. Environmental Pollution. 244, 608-616. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.10.054