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

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(SO4)(3) center dot 14H(2)O], liquid alum, high acid alum (A7), aluminum chloride (AlCl3 center dot 6H(2)O), fly ash, Poultry Litter Treatment (PLT), and Poultry Guard (PG) litter amendments on NH3 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 of A7,22.4 g of A7, 4 g of PG, 4 g of PLT, 4 g of fly ash, and 4 g of AlCl3/100 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 NH3 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 NH3 volatilization by 76 and 87% for experiment 1 and 2, respectively. Aluminum chloride decreased NH3 volatilization by 48 and 92% for experiment 1 and 2, respectively. Litter treated with alum, liquid alum, A7, PLT, and AlCl3 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 NH3 volatilization and increasing N contents in experiment 1. However, in experiment 2, PG was effective in reducting NH3 loss. In this study, the decreased NH3 volatilization was chiefly associated with reduction in litter pH.