This research paper investigates the environmental consequences of using digestate-the material left over after making biogas-as an organic fertilizer on farmland.
The core investigation focused on measuring and understanding the short-term release of nitrous oxide (), a powerful greenhouse gas, after applying seven different types of digestates to the soil. Crucially, the researchers used specialized nitrogen labeling () in the digestates to determine if the emissions came directly from the applied fertilizer or were instead triggered from the existing nitrogen already in the native soil. The objective was specifically to evaluate whether differences in the chemical composition of the digestates affected these emissions