NO2 emissions from agricultural burning in São Paulo, Brazil.
We report here on the application of a compact ultraviolet spectrometer to measurement of NO2 emissions from sugar cane field burns in São Paulo, Brazil. The time-resolved NO2 emission from a 10 ha plot peaked at about 240 g (NO2) s(-1), and amounted to a total yield of approximately 50 kg of N, or about 0.5 g (N) m(-2). Emission of N as NOx (i.e., NO + NO2) was estimated at 2.5 g (N) m(-2), equivalent to 30% of applied fertilizer nitrogen. The corresponding annual emission of NOx nitrogen from São Paulo State sugar cane burning was >45 Gg N. In contrast to mechanized harvesting, which does not require prior burning of the crop, manual harvesting with burning acts to recycle nitrogen into surface soils and ecosystems.
Oppenheimer
Clive
C
Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, Downing Place, Cambridge, CB2 3EN, UK. co200@cam.ac.uk
Tsanev
Vitchko I
VI
Allen
Andrew G
AG
McGonigle
Andrew J S
AJ
Cardoso
Arnaldo A
AA
Wiatr
Antony
A
Paterlini
Willian
W
Dias
Cristine de Mello
Cde M
D000383:Agriculture / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D001938:Brazil; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017745:Incineration / Q000379:methods; D009585:Nitrogen Dioxide / Q000032:analysis*; D031786:Saccharum; D012906:Smoke / Q000032:analysis; D013056:Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet
D000393:Air Pollutants; D012906:Smoke; D009585:Nitrogen Dioxide