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D.H. Wilkison

Publications and source records attributed to D.H. Wilkison.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
USGS2000

Use of isotopically labeled fertilizer to trace nitrogen fertilizer contributions to surface, soil, and ground water

The fate and transport of a single N fertilizer application through plants, soil, runoff, and the unsaturated and saturated zones was determined for four years at a field site under continuous corn (Zea mays L.) management. Claypan soils, which underlie the site, were hypothesized to restrict the movement of agrichemicals from the soil surface to ground water. However, N fertilizer moved rapidly through preferential flow paths in the soil and into the underlying glacial till aquifer. Most N transport occurred during the fall and winter when crops were not available to use excess N. Forty months after application, 33 percent of the fertilizer had been removed by grain harvests, 30 percent had been transpired to the atmosphere, and 33 percent had migrated to ground water. Although runoff volumes were 50 percent greater than infiltration, less than 2 percent of the fertilizer was lost to runoff. Small measured denitrification rates and large measured dissolved oxygen concentrations in ground water favor the long-term stability of NO3-1 in ground water. Successive fertilizer applications, in areas that lack the ability to moderate N concentrations through consumptive N reactions, risk the potential of N-saturated ecosystems.

Journal of Environmental Hydrology↗
USGS1999

Observations on preferential flow and horizontal transport of nitrogen fertilizer in the unsaturated zone

A study site underlain by a claypan soil was instrumented to examine the transport of fertilizer nitrogen (N) under corn ( Zea mays L.) cultivation. The study was designed to examine N transport within the unsaturated zone and in intedlow (the saturated flow of water on top of the claypan). A 15 N-labeled fertilizer (labeled N), bromide (Br), and chloride (Cl) were used as field tracers. Rapid or prolonged infiltration events allowed water and dissolved solutes to perch on the claypan for brief periods. However, a well-developed network of preferential flow paths quickly diverted water and solutes through the claypan and into the underlying glacial till aquifer. Excess fertilizer N in the unsaturated zone supplied a continuous, but declining input of N to ground water for a period of 15 mo after a single fertilizer application. Calculated solute velocities through the claypan matrix (6.4 × 10 −6 cm s −1 ) were similar to horizontal transport rates along the claypan (3.5 to 7.3 × 10 −6 cm s −1 ) but much slower than infiltration rates determined for preferential flow paths (1.67 × 10 −3 cm s −1 ). These flow paths accounted for 35% of the transport. A seasonally variable, dual mode of transport (matrix and preferential flow) prevented the daypan from being an effective barrier to vertical transport. Simulations of selected field observations, conducted using the variably saturated two-dimensional flow and transport model, VS2DT, confirmed the presence of a dual flow regime in the claypan.

Journal of Environmental Quality↗
USGS1998

Nitrous oxide fluxes from a claypan soil overlying nitrate-enriched glacial drift

The closed chamber method was used to assess nitrous oxide (N2O) fluxes from corn (Zea mays, L.) fields during the 1995 growing season. The study area was characterized by a claypan soil overlying a nitrate (NO31-)-enriched glacial-drift aquifer. Denitrification produced N2O fluxes of 0.2-6.9 g ha-1 hr-1 early in the growing season. Fluxes increased with increasing soil temperature, soil water potential, and soil saturation. However, greatly diminished N2O fluxes (0.001-0.09 gha-1 hr-1) occurred when soil saturation increased to 94 percent. Losses of N2O increased linearly during the day and decreased at night, probably because of declining soil temperatures. Declines in soil saturation (less than 80 percent) and soil moisture potential (less than -10 kPa) produced late season N2O fluxes (0.03-0.8 g ha-1 hr-1) attributable to nitrification. Results indicate that denitrification would not significantly reduce claypan soil NO31- concentrations.

Journal of Environmental Hydrology↗
USGS1997

Agricultural chemicals in alluvial aquifers in Missouri after the 1993 flood

Intense rains produced flooding during the spring and summer of 1993 over much of the midwestern USA including many agricultural areas of Missouri. Because of potential contamination from floodwater, an investigation was conducted to determine the changes in concentrations of agricultural chemicals in water samples from alluvial wells in Missouri after the flood. Water samples from 80 alluvial wells with historical data were collected in March, July, and November 1994, and analyzed for dissolved herbicides, herbicide metabolites, and nitrate (NO 3 ). There were no statistically significant differences in the distribution of alachlor ((2,chloro-2′-6′-diethyl- N -[methoxymethyl]-acetanilide), atrazine (2-chloro-4-ethylamino-6-isopropylamino-1, 3, 5 triazine), and nitrate concentrations between pre- and postflood samples (α = 0.05). The detection frequency of alachlor and atrazine in postflood samples was generally lower than the frequency in preflood samples. Analyses of agricultural chemicals in water samples from an intensely sampled well field indicate significant differences between the distribution of dissolved P concentrations in pre- and postflood samples (α = 0.05). However, no significant differences were detected between the pre- and postflood distributions of NO 3 or ammonia concentrations. Because of the numerous sources of temporal variability and the relatively short record of water-quality data for the study wells, a cause-and-effect relation between changes in agricultural chemical concentrations and a single factor of the 1993 flood is difficult to determine. Based on the results of this study, the 1993 flood did not cause widespread or long-term significant changes in concentrations of agricultural chemicals in water from alluvial aquifers in Missouri.

Journal of Environmental Quality↗