Ammonia volatilization, N2O and CO2 emissions from landfill leachate-irrigated soils

Effects of leachate addition on ammonia volatilization and N2O and CO2 emissions from two different soils were investigated using the 10-day laboratory incubation method at two levels of moisture content. Ammonia volatilization was dominated by soil pH and only occurred in alkaline clay soil, where 0.26–0.32% of soil ammonia could be lost. The N2O emission from the alkaline clay soil was one order of magnitude greater than that from the acidic sandy soil, when either water or leachate was irrigated. Increasing the moisture content from 46% water-filled pore space (WFPS) to 70% WFPS in the alkaline clay soil or the acidic sandy soil by either water or leachate irrigation increased the N2O emission by over twofold. The CO2 emission from each soil sample at the two WFPSs was almost the same. The CO2 emission from the alkaline clay soil with leachate addition was 72% lower than that from the acidic sandy soil with leachate addition, and 6.7 times higher than that from the alkaline clay soil with distilled water addition. Ammonia volatilization and N2O emission under leachate irrigation could be minimized by avoiding the excessively wet condition and by selecting the acidic sandy soil with low organic carbon and total nitrogen content.