Cost-effective on-site ammonia emission quantification tool for agricultural monitoring

Overview

This solution addresses the urgent need for precise, affordable measurement of ammonia (NH3) volatilisation from agricultural sources. Ammonia is a highly reactive nitrogen-based atmospheric pollutant that contributes to particulate matter formation, ecosystem eutrophication, and the release of nitrous oxide, one of the most powerful greenhouse gases. Reliable on-site quantification is essential for environmental regulation, climate reporting, and socioeconomic decision-making.

The offering combines inverse dispersion modeling with field measurement techniques to deliver a robust methodology that reduces cost and complexity compared to conventional approaches. It is intended for use in fertilized cereal crops, maize, grassland, and rice production systems, making it broadly applicable across global agricultural contexts.

Technical specifications

Key features:

• Inverse dispersion modeling approach for back-calculating ammonia emission rates from field-scale concentration measurements
• Cost-effective instrumentation designed to lower the barrier to routine NH3 monitoring compared to traditional chamber or tunnel methods
• Field-level precision validated across contrasting agroecosystems spanning four countries in Europe, Asia, and Latin America
• Broad crop applicability including cereal crops, maize, grassland, and rice paddies
• Supports abatement verification by enabling before-and-after comparisons of mitigation practices

Technology readiness level

The methodology has been advanced through several years of development and is now positioned for launch as a new field-level ammonia measurement approach. Prior validation work has been published in a peer-reviewed journal, demonstrating the underlying inverse dispersion modeling framework. Future validation will extend the method across multiple agroecosystems and continents to establish a standardized, cost-effective protocol for robust NH3 volatilization quantification in diverse agricultural settings.