Degradation of dimethyl disulphide in soil with or without biochar amendment.
BACKGROUND
Dimethyl disulphide (DMDS) is a new and effective alternative to methyl bromide for soil fumigation. The effect of biochar on the fate of DMDS in soil is not fully understood. The objective of this study was to determine the degradation kinetics of DMDS in different soils and evaluate the effect of biochar amendment on DMDS degradation using incubation experiments.


RESULTS
The degradation half-life of DMDS was between 1.05 and 6.66 days under non-sterile conditions, and 12.63 to 22.67 days under sterile conditions in five types of soil. Seven out of the eight tested biochar amendments (BC-2 to BC-8) delayed the degradation of DMDS in soil, increasing the half-life of DMDS in Fangshan soil from 1.05 to 1.16-5.87 days following amendment with 1% (w/w) biochar. The degradation rate of DMDS in Fangshan soil accelerated as the amendment rate of BC-1 increased, and decreased as the amendment rate of BC-7 increased.


CONCLUSIONS
Biodegradation is an important degradation route for DMDS in soil, and DMDS degraded faster in alkaline soil. The effects of biochar amendments on DMDS degradation in soil are determined by complex multiple factors (such as surface area, pH and physicochemical composition), rather than by any single property of biochar. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Disease and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
Dawei
D
Han
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Disease and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
Dongdong
D
Yan
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Disease and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
Aocheng
A
Cao
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Disease and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
Wensheng
W
Fang
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Disease and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
Pengfei
P
Liu
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Disease and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
Yuan
Y
Li
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Disease and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
Canbin
C
Ouyang
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Disease and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.
Qiuxia
Q
Wang
D000327:Adsorption; D002606:Charcoal / Q000737:chemistry*; D004220:Disulfides / Q000737:chemistry*; D007700:Kinetics; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry*
D004220:Disulfides; D012987:Soil; C540010:biochar; D002606:Charcoal; C021181:dimethyl disulfide
biochar; degradation; dimethyl disulphide; soil