Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 15, 2026
10:29
Calibrated Passive Sampling - Multi-plot Field Measurements of NH3 Emissions with a Combination of Dynamic Tube Method and Passive Samplers
Published on: March 21, 2016
Ammonium as sole N source improves grain quality in wheat.
Teresa Fuertes-Mendizábal1, Jon González-Torralba, Luis M Arregui
1Departamento de Biología Vegetal y Ecología, UPV/EHU, Apdo 644, E-48080, Bilbao, Spain.
Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture
|January 23, 2013
Summary
Wheat plants can achieve high yields and improved grain protein using ammonium as the sole nitrogen (N) source. Splitting N applications, especially into three, enhances ammonium
Area of Science:
- Agronomy
- Plant Nutrition
- Crop Physiology
Background:
- Optimizing nitrogen (N) fertilizer management is crucial for wheat profitability, impacting yield and quality.
- Limited research exists on using ammonium as the sole N source for wheat.
- Understanding N source and timing effects is key for efficient wheat production.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the impact of N source (nitrate vs. ammonium) on wheat.
- To assess the effect of splitting N application (two or three times) on wheat.
- To determine the influence on grain yield and quality under irrigated conditions.
Main Methods:
- Wheat (Cezanne variety) grown in irrigated pots.
- Comparison of nitrate and ammonium as exclusive N sources.
- N application split into two or three amendments during the wheat life cycle.
Main Results:
- Ammonium as the sole N source yielded comparably to nitrate.
- Late N application (GS37) was efficiently utilized by wheat plants.
- Ammonium nutrition increased gliadins and glutenins, enhancing the gli/glu ratio.
- Splitting N rates amplified ammonium's effect on grain protein composition.
Conclusions:
- Ammonium N source, particularly when split into three applications, matches higher N rates for grain protein content and composition.
- This management strategy leads to improved nitrogen use efficiency in wheat.
- Ammonium offers a viable alternative N source for optimizing wheat production and quality.
Related Concept Videos
01:30Preparation of Amines: Alkylation of Ammonia and Amines
Alkylation is one of the methods used to prepare amines. Direct alkylation of ammonia or a primary amine with an alkyl halide gives polyalkylated amines along with a quaternary ammonium salt through successive SN2 reactions. This process of making the quaternary salt through the direct alkylation method is called exhaustive alkylation.
Each alkylation step makes the nitrogen center more nucleophilic, which triggers successive alkylations until a quaternary ammonium salt is formed. Considering...
Each alkylation step makes the nitrogen center more nucleophilic, which triggers successive alkylations until a quaternary ammonium salt is formed. Considering...
01:22Inorganic Nitrogen Assimilation
Nitrogen is an essential element in biological systems, forming a crucial component of proteins, nucleic acids, and other cellular constituents. Many bacteria and archaea acquire nitrogen in the form of nitrate (NO₃⁻) or ammonia (NH₃), which are then assimilated into biomolecules through specific enzymatic pathways.Assimilatory Nitrate ReductionWhen nitrate enters the cell, it undergoes a two-step reduction process known as assimilatory nitrate reduction. Initially, the enzyme nitrate reductase...
01:21Basicity of Aliphatic Amines
Amines can behave as Brønsted–Lowry bases by accepting a proton from the acid to form corresponding conjugate acids. Due to a lone pair of nonbonding electrons, aliphatic amines can also act as Lewis bases by forming a covalent bond with an electrophile.
To measure the basicity of amines, two conventions are generally used. The first defines Kb as the basicity constant for the deprotonation reaction of water by the amine, as presented in Figure 1. Conventionally, lower Kb indicates higher...
To measure the basicity of amines, two conventions are generally used. The first defines Kb as the basicity constant for the deprotonation reaction of water by the amine, as presented in Figure 1. Conventionally, lower Kb indicates higher...
01:20Overview of Nitrogen Metabolism
Nitrogen is a very important element for life because it is a major constituent of proteins and nucleic acids. It is a macronutrient, and in nature, it is recycled from organic compounds and stored in the form of ammonia, ammonium ions, nitrate, nitrite, or nitrogen gas by many metabolic processes. Many of these metabolic processes are carried out only by prokaryotes.
The largest pool of nitrogen available in the terrestrial ecosystem is gaseous nitrogen (N2) from the air, but this nitrogen...
The largest pool of nitrogen available in the terrestrial ecosystem is gaseous nitrogen (N2) from the air, but this nitrogen...
02:35Key Elements for Plant Nutrition
Like all living organisms, plants require organic and inorganic nutrients to survive, reproduce, grow and maintain homeostasis. To identify nutrients that are essential for plant functioning, researchers have leveraged a technique called hydroponics. In hydroponic culture systems, plants are grown—without soil—in water-based solutions containing nutrients. At least 17 nutrients have been identified as essential elements required by plants. Plants acquire these elements from the atmosphere, the...
01:202° Amines to N-Nitrosamines: Reaction with NaNO2
Secondary amines react with nitrous acid to form N-nitrosamines, as depicted in Figure 1. Nitrous acid, a weak and unstable acid, is formed in situ from an aqueous solution of sodium nitrite and strong acids, such as hydrochloric acid or sulfuric acid, in cold conditions. In the presence of an acid, the nitrous acid gets protonated. The subsequent loss of water results in the formation of the electrophile known as nitrosonium ion.