LIFE+ IPNOA Project (LIFE11 ENV/IT/000302) was developed within the program Life + Environment Policy and Governance project application - Call 2011.
The LIFE+ IPNOA (Improved flux Prototype for N₂O emission from Agriculture), conducted from 2012 to 2016, improved the monitoring technique of N₂O emissions from agricultural soil, improved the under standing of N₂O production processes and promoted the use of specific agricultural practices for reducing N₂O emissions in Tuscany.
THE INSTRUMENTATION
The IPNOA project has contributed to improving the monitoring of emissions of greenhouse gases from the soil by developing innovative instruments:
1. An instrument for the continuous monitoring of temporal variation in emissions of nitrous oxide and other greenhouse gases. This in strument was installed at the Center for Agri-Environmental Research "Enrico Avanzi" (CiRAA), University of Pisa. With this instrumentation the emissions of N₂O, CO₂, and CH₄ were monitored every two hours for two years in a field divided into six plots. The six plots were planted with maize with two levels of nitrogen fertilization.
The station measures simultaneously the fluxes of N₂O, CO₂, and CH₄ through six chambers that are automatically actuated in sequence thereby assessing the temporal variability of the emissions (see below). Each chamber is equipped with a probe for measuring the hu midity and the temperature of the soil. The station is connected with a weather station.
2. A mobile instrument for measuring the variations of the emissions of nitrous oxide and other greenhouse gases in field trials set up to test the effect of different levels of tillage, nitrogen fertilization and irrigation. This instrument is used both at the CiRAA (Pisa) and at the CATES (Arezzo).
The mobile instrument can rapidly measure N₂O, CO₂, and CH₄ emis sions from the soil. The instrumentation is housed on a light-tracked vehicle with electric battery-powered traction. The vehicle can be driven remotely thanks to a remote control device that reproduces the control plank and facilitates maneuvering.
