In-vitro method and model to estimate methane emissions from liquid manure management on pig and dairy farms in four countries

Søren O. Petersen; Chun Ma; Julio E. Hilgert; Kristina Mjöfors; Paria Sefeedpari; Barbara Amon; André Aarnink; Balázs Francó; Federico Dragoni; Karin Groenestein; Steen Gyldenkærne; Christiane Herrmann; Nicholas J. Hutchings; Ib S. Kristensen; Jing Liu; Jørgen E. Olesen; Lena Rodhe

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120233

In-vitro method and model to estimate methane emissions from liquid manure management on pig and dairy farms in four countries

Søren O. Petersen^*, Chun Ma, Julio E. Hilgert, Kristina Mjöfors, Paria Sefeedpari, Barbara Amon, André Aarnink, Balázs Francó, Federico Dragoni, Karin Groenestein, Steen Gyldenkærne, Christiane Herrmann, Nicholas J. Hutchings, Ib S. Kristensen, Jing Liu, Jørgen E. Olesen, Lena Rodhe

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaper › Journal article › Research › peer-review

Abstract

Methane (CH₄) emissions from manure management on livestock farms are a key source of greenhouse gas emissions in some regions and for some production systems, and the opportunities for mitigation may be significant if emissions can be adequately documented. We investigated a method for estimating CH₄ emissions from liquid manure (slurry) that is based on anaerobic incubation of slurry collected from commercial farms. Methane production rates were used to derive a parameter of the Arrhenius temperature response function, lnA', representing the CH₄ production potential of the slurry at the time of sampling. Results were used for parameterization of an empirical model to estimate annual emissions with daily time steps, where CH₄ emissions from individual sources (barns, outside storage tanks) can be calculated separately. A monitoring program was conducted in four countries, i.e., Denmark, Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands, during a 12-month period where slurry was sampled to represent barn and outside storage on finishing pig and dairy farms. Across the four countries, lnA' was higher in pig slurry compared to cattle slurry (p < 0.01), and higher in slurry from barns compared to outside storage (p < 0.01). In a separate evaluation of the incubation method, in-vitro CH₄ production rates were comparable with in-situ emissions. The results indicate that lnA' in barns increases with slurry age, probably due to growth or adaptation of the methanogenic microbial community. Using lnA' values determined experimentally, empirical models with daily time steps were constructed for finishing pig and dairy farms and used for scenario analyses. Annual emissions from pig slurry were predicted to be 2.5 times higher than those from cattle slurry. Changing the frequency of slurry export from the barn on the model pig farm from 40 to 7 d intervals reduced total annual CH₄ emissions by 46 %; this effect would be much less on cattle farms with natural ventilation. In a scenario with cattle slurry, the empirical model was compared with the current IPCC methodology. The seasonal dynamics were less pronounced, and annual CH₄ emissions were lower than with the current methodology, which calls for further investigations. Country-specific models for individual animal categories and point sources could be a tool for assessing CH₄ emissions and mitigation potentials at farm level.

Original language	English
Article number	120233
Journal	Journal of Environmental Management
Volume	353
Number of pages	12
ISSN	0301-4797
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120233
Publication status	Published - Feb 2024

Keywords

Dairy cattle
Empirical model
Finishing pigs
Manure management
Methane emission

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Petersen, S. O., Ma, C., Hilgert, J. E., Mjöfors, K., Sefeedpari, P., Amon, B., Aarnink, A., Francó, B., Dragoni, F., Groenestein, K., Gyldenkærne, S., Herrmann, C., Hutchings, N. J., Kristensen, I. S., Liu, J., Olesen, J. E., & Rodhe, L. (2024). In-vitro method and model to estimate methane emissions from liquid manure management on pig and dairy farms in four countries. Journal of Environmental Management, 353, Article 120233. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120233

@article{ed4a956942c34962b69422dbbf7edeaa,

title = "In-vitro method and model to estimate methane emissions from liquid manure management on pig and dairy farms in four countries",

abstract = "Methane (CH4) emissions from manure management on livestock farms are a key source of greenhouse gas emissions in some regions and for some production systems, and the opportunities for mitigation may be significant if emissions can be adequately documented. We investigated a method for estimating CH4 emissions from liquid manure (slurry) that is based on anaerobic incubation of slurry collected from commercial farms. Methane production rates were used to derive a parameter of the Arrhenius temperature response function, lnA', representing the CH4 production potential of the slurry at the time of sampling. Results were used for parameterization of an empirical model to estimate annual emissions with daily time steps, where CH4 emissions from individual sources (barns, outside storage tanks) can be calculated separately. A monitoring program was conducted in four countries, i.e., Denmark, Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands, during a 12-month period where slurry was sampled to represent barn and outside storage on finishing pig and dairy farms. Across the four countries, lnA' was higher in pig slurry compared to cattle slurry (p < 0.01), and higher in slurry from barns compared to outside storage (p < 0.01). In a separate evaluation of the incubation method, in-vitro CH4 production rates were comparable with in-situ emissions. The results indicate that lnA' in barns increases with slurry age, probably due to growth or adaptation of the methanogenic microbial community. Using lnA' values determined experimentally, empirical models with daily time steps were constructed for finishing pig and dairy farms and used for scenario analyses. Annual emissions from pig slurry were predicted to be 2.5 times higher than those from cattle slurry. Changing the frequency of slurry export from the barn on the model pig farm from 40 to 7 d intervals reduced total annual CH4 emissions by 46 %; this effect would be much less on cattle farms with natural ventilation. In a scenario with cattle slurry, the empirical model was compared with the current IPCC methodology. The seasonal dynamics were less pronounced, and annual CH4 emissions were lower than with the current methodology, which calls for further investigations. Country-specific models for individual animal categories and point sources could be a tool for assessing CH4 emissions and mitigation potentials at farm level.",

keywords = "Dairy cattle, Empirical model, Finishing pigs, Manure management, Methane emission",

author = "Petersen, {S{\o}ren O.} and Chun Ma and Hilgert, {Julio E.} and Kristina Mj{\"o}fors and Paria Sefeedpari and Barbara Amon and Andr{\'e} Aarnink and Bal{\'a}zs Franc{\'o} and Federico Dragoni and Karin Groenestein and Steen Gyldenk{\ae}rne and Christiane Herrmann and Hutchings, {Nicholas J.} and Kristensen, {Ib S.} and Jing Liu and Olesen, {J{\o}rgen E.} and Lena Rodhe",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2024 The Authors",

year = "2024",

month = feb,

doi = "10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120233",

language = "English",

volume = "353",

journal = "Journal of Environmental Management",

issn = "0301-4797",

publisher = "Academic Press",

}

Petersen, SO , Ma, C, Hilgert, JE, Mjöfors, K, Sefeedpari, P, Amon, B, Aarnink, A, Francó, B, Dragoni, F, Groenestein, K, Gyldenkærne, S, Herrmann, C, Hutchings, NJ, Kristensen, IS, Liu, J, Olesen, JE & Rodhe, L 2024, 'In-vitro method and model to estimate methane emissions from liquid manure management on pig and dairy farms in four countries', Journal of Environmental Management, vol. 353, 120233. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120233

In-vitro method and model to estimate methane emissions from liquid manure management on pig and dairy farms in four countries. / Petersen, Søren O.; Ma, Chun; Hilgert, Julio E. et al.
In: Journal of Environmental Management, Vol. 353, 120233, 02.2024.

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaper › Journal article › Research › peer-review

TY - JOUR

T1 - In-vitro method and model to estimate methane emissions from liquid manure management on pig and dairy farms in four countries

AU - Petersen, Søren O.

AU - Ma, Chun

AU - Hilgert, Julio E.

AU - Mjöfors, Kristina

AU - Sefeedpari, Paria

AU - Amon, Barbara

AU - Aarnink, André

AU - Francó, Balázs

AU - Dragoni, Federico

AU - Groenestein, Karin

AU - Gyldenkærne, Steen

AU - Herrmann, Christiane

AU - Hutchings, Nicholas J.

AU - Kristensen, Ib S.

AU - Liu, Jing

AU - Olesen, Jørgen E.

AU - Rodhe, Lena

PY - 2024/2

Y1 - 2024/2

N2 - Methane (CH4) emissions from manure management on livestock farms are a key source of greenhouse gas emissions in some regions and for some production systems, and the opportunities for mitigation may be significant if emissions can be adequately documented. We investigated a method for estimating CH4 emissions from liquid manure (slurry) that is based on anaerobic incubation of slurry collected from commercial farms. Methane production rates were used to derive a parameter of the Arrhenius temperature response function, lnA', representing the CH4 production potential of the slurry at the time of sampling. Results were used for parameterization of an empirical model to estimate annual emissions with daily time steps, where CH4 emissions from individual sources (barns, outside storage tanks) can be calculated separately. A monitoring program was conducted in four countries, i.e., Denmark, Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands, during a 12-month period where slurry was sampled to represent barn and outside storage on finishing pig and dairy farms. Across the four countries, lnA' was higher in pig slurry compared to cattle slurry (p < 0.01), and higher in slurry from barns compared to outside storage (p < 0.01). In a separate evaluation of the incubation method, in-vitro CH4 production rates were comparable with in-situ emissions. The results indicate that lnA' in barns increases with slurry age, probably due to growth or adaptation of the methanogenic microbial community. Using lnA' values determined experimentally, empirical models with daily time steps were constructed for finishing pig and dairy farms and used for scenario analyses. Annual emissions from pig slurry were predicted to be 2.5 times higher than those from cattle slurry. Changing the frequency of slurry export from the barn on the model pig farm from 40 to 7 d intervals reduced total annual CH4 emissions by 46 %; this effect would be much less on cattle farms with natural ventilation. In a scenario with cattle slurry, the empirical model was compared with the current IPCC methodology. The seasonal dynamics were less pronounced, and annual CH4 emissions were lower than with the current methodology, which calls for further investigations. Country-specific models for individual animal categories and point sources could be a tool for assessing CH4 emissions and mitigation potentials at farm level.

AB - Methane (CH4) emissions from manure management on livestock farms are a key source of greenhouse gas emissions in some regions and for some production systems, and the opportunities for mitigation may be significant if emissions can be adequately documented. We investigated a method for estimating CH4 emissions from liquid manure (slurry) that is based on anaerobic incubation of slurry collected from commercial farms. Methane production rates were used to derive a parameter of the Arrhenius temperature response function, lnA', representing the CH4 production potential of the slurry at the time of sampling. Results were used for parameterization of an empirical model to estimate annual emissions with daily time steps, where CH4 emissions from individual sources (barns, outside storage tanks) can be calculated separately. A monitoring program was conducted in four countries, i.e., Denmark, Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands, during a 12-month period where slurry was sampled to represent barn and outside storage on finishing pig and dairy farms. Across the four countries, lnA' was higher in pig slurry compared to cattle slurry (p < 0.01), and higher in slurry from barns compared to outside storage (p < 0.01). In a separate evaluation of the incubation method, in-vitro CH4 production rates were comparable with in-situ emissions. The results indicate that lnA' in barns increases with slurry age, probably due to growth or adaptation of the methanogenic microbial community. Using lnA' values determined experimentally, empirical models with daily time steps were constructed for finishing pig and dairy farms and used for scenario analyses. Annual emissions from pig slurry were predicted to be 2.5 times higher than those from cattle slurry. Changing the frequency of slurry export from the barn on the model pig farm from 40 to 7 d intervals reduced total annual CH4 emissions by 46 %; this effect would be much less on cattle farms with natural ventilation. In a scenario with cattle slurry, the empirical model was compared with the current IPCC methodology. The seasonal dynamics were less pronounced, and annual CH4 emissions were lower than with the current methodology, which calls for further investigations. Country-specific models for individual animal categories and point sources could be a tool for assessing CH4 emissions and mitigation potentials at farm level.

KW - Dairy cattle

KW - Empirical model

KW - Finishing pigs

KW - Manure management

KW - Methane emission

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U2 - 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120233

DO - 10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120233

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 38330838

AN - SCOPUS:85184136019

SN - 0301-4797

VL - 353

JO - Journal of Environmental Management

JF - Journal of Environmental Management

M1 - 120233

ER -

In-vitro method and model to estimate methane emissions from liquid manure management on pig and dairy farms in four countries

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Keywords

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