Effect of Various Litter Amendments on Ammonia Volatilization and Nitrogen Content of Poultry Litter

Abstract

Ammonia volatilization from poultry manure contributes to atmospheric N pollution, negatively affects poultry performance, and decreases the fertilizer value of manure. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of alum [Al 2 (SO 4 ) 3 ·14H 2 O], liquid alum, high acid alum (A7), aluminum chloride (AlCl 3 ·6H 2 O), fly ash, Poultry Litter Treatment (PLT), and Poultry Guard (PG) litter amendments on NH 3 volatilization and N contents in litter. Two laboratory studies were conducted for 42 d each. The treatments in experiment 1, which were mixed in the upper 1 cm of litter, were 4 g of alum, 8 g of alum, 8.66 g of liquid alum, 17.3 g of liquid alum, 11.2 g ofA7, 22.4 g ofA7, 4 g of PG, 4 g of PLT, 4 g of fly ash, and 4 g of AlCl 3 /100 g of litter. The treatments for experiment 2 were identical to experiment 1, except the fly ash treatment was dropped and an additional 4 g of alum/100 g of litter treatment was added, which was incorporated totally within the litter. The various rates of dry alum, liquid alum, and A7 significantly decreased NH 3 volatilization compared with the controls, with reductions ranging from 77 to 96% for experiment 1 and from 78 to 96% for experiment 2, respectively. Poultry Litter Treatment decreased NH 3 volatilization by 76 and 87% for experiment 1 and 2, respectively. Aluminum chloride decreased NH 3 volatilization by 48 and 92% for experiment 1 and 2, respectively. Litter treated with alum, liquid alum, A7, PLT, and AlCl 3 had a lower pH and a greater N content than the controls in experiment 1 and 2. In contrast, PG and fly ash resulted in a greater pH and were ineffective in decreasing NH 3 volatilization and increasing N contents in experiment 1. However, in experiment 2, PG was effective in reducting NH 3 loss. In this study, the decreased NH 3 volatilization was chiefly associated with reduction in litter pH.