Investigating the fate and transport of nitrate-nitrogen contaminants under different water regimes | |
| Author | Mrutu, Macklera Alles |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.WM-22-07 |
| Subject(s) | Water resources development Agricultural chemicals Nitrogen fertilizers |
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering in Water Engineering and Management |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | Recently, the application of N fertilizer has increased globally resulting in higher NO3-N accumulation in the soil. Groundwater pollution from N fertilizer applications has been a global problem. The present study aimed to investigate NO3-N leaching from soil column experiment at varying NO3 concentrations and flow applications rates and compare the soil column experimental results with simulation results thereafter develop and analyze NO3-N leaching in different irrigation (AWD, mix of AWD & CF, and CF) and fertilizer scenarios (full and intermittent applications). The soil texture in the study was sandy loam soil. The soil column experiment used two water application rates (0.017 cm/min and 0.033 cm/min) and three NO3 application rates (20, 30, and 40 mg/l). The results indicate that NO3-N concentration in the leachate increased as higher NO3 application rates were applied. The results also showed that, increasing the water application rate increases NO3-N concentration in the leachate and speeds up the transport of NO3-N within a soil profile. There was good agreement between simulated and observed data (r2 close to 1, RMSE and MAE close to 0) which indicates that HYDRUS 1-D predicted NO3-N leaching successfully. The scenario analysis indicated that the AWD scenario with the intermittent application of fertilizer showed less amount of NO3-N concentration in the leachate at the bottom of the soil profile |
| Year | 2022 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Engineering and Technology (SET) |
| Department | Department of Civil and Infrastucture Engineering (DCIE) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Water Engineering and Management (WM) |
| Chairperson(s) | Shanmugam, Mohana Sundaram |
| Examination Committee(s) | Shrestha, Sangam;Ho Huu Loc;Babel, Mukand S. |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | World Bank (JJ/WBGSP) |
| Degree | Thesis (M. Eng.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2022 |