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Phosphorus (P) is a valuable, nonrenewable resource in agriculture promoting crop growth. P losses through surface runoff and subsurface drainage discharge beneath the root zone is a loss of investment. P entering surface water contributes to eutrophication of freshwater environments, impacting tourism, human health, environmental safety, and property values. Soluble P (SP) from subsurface drainage is nearly all bioavailable and is a significant contributor to freshwater eutrophication. The research objective was to select phosphorus sorbing media (PSM) best suited for removing SP from subsurface drainage discharge. From the preliminary research and literature, PSM with this potential were steel furnace slag (SFS) and a nano-engineered media (NEM). The PSM were evaluated using typical subsurface drainage P concentrations in column experiments, then with an economic analysis for a study site in Michigan. Both the SFS and generalized NEM (GNEM) removed soluble reactive phosphorus from 0.50 to below 0.05 mg/L in laboratory column experiments. The most cost-effective option from the study site was the use of the SFS, then disposing it each year, costing $906/hectare/year for the case study. GNEM that was regenerated onsite had a very similar cost. The most expensive option was the use of GNEM to remove P, including regeneration at the manufacturer, costing $1641/hectare/year. This study suggests that both SFS and NEM are both suited for treating drainage discharge. The use of SFS was more economical for the study site, but each site needs to be individually considered.

Phosphorus is a major cause of lake eutrophication. Understanding the characteristics regarding the release of phosphorus from sediments under hydrodynamic conditions is critical for the regulation of lake water quality. In this work, the effects of sediment suspension on the release characteristics of phosphorus from sediment were investigated under different hydrodynamic conditions. The experimental results showed that in the experimental process, the phosphorus was at first released quickly into the overlying water but then slowed down. Furthermore, the process of dissolved phosphorus (DP) release under hydrodynamic conditions with and without sediment suspension was simulated using a lattice Boltzmann method. The simulation showed satisfying results.

Reducing dissolved phosphorus (P) losses from legacy P soils to surface waters is necessary for preventing algal blooms. Phosphorus removal structures containing steel slag have shown success in treating surface runoff for dissolved P, but little is known about treating subsurface (tile) drainage. A ditch-style and subsurface P removal structure were constructed using steel slag in a bottom-up flow design for treating tile drainage. Nearly 97% of P was delivered during precipitation-induced flow events (as opposed to baseflow) with inflow P concentrations increasing with flow rate. Structures handled flow rates approximately 12 L s&minus, 1, and the subsurface and ditch structures removed 19.2 (55%) and 0.9 kg (37%) of the cumulative dissolved P load, respectively. Both structures underperformed relative to laboratory flow-through experiments and exhibited signs of flow inhibition with time. Dissolved P removal decreased dramatically when treated water pH decreased &lt, 8.5. Although slag has proven successful for treating surface runoff, we hypothesize that underperformance in this case was due to tile drainage bicarbonate consumption of slag calcium through the precipitation of calcium carbonate, thereby filling pore space, decreasing flow and pH, and preventing calcium phosphate precipitation. We do not recommend non-treated steel slag for removing dissolved P from tile drainage unless slag is replaced every 4&ndash, 6 months.

Phosphorus (P) is a key nutrient in controlling surface water eutrophication. Because of the decrease of urban and industrial P emissions, most of the P nowadays causing surface water eutrophication in western countries consists of P transferred from agricultural soils, explaining why current eutrophication research focused on understanding the mechanisms by which P is released from soils. In this thesis, we studied these release mechanisms for dissolved P (DP) – i.e. the most bioavailable P component for algae - using an approach combining field monitoring of soil and stream water compositions in a small, headwater catchment typical of western countries agricultural catchments (the Kervidy-Naizn catchment, France), and laboratory experimental simulations. Field monitoring data revealed that riparian wetlands (RW) are the main zones of DP release and DP production in the studied catchment, through essentially two mechanisms triggered by groundwater table fluctuations, namely i) rewetting of dry soils (DRW), and ii) reductive dissolution of soil Fe (hydr)oxides during anaerobic periods. Field monitoring data also revealed the presence of strong spatial variations in the chemical nature (inorganic vs. organic/colloidal) of the released DP, which was in relation to differences in soil properties and local topography. Seasonal and inter-annual hydroclimate variations, combined with variations in local topography were found to control the frequency of soil DRW events and duration of anaerobic periods, resulting in strong seasonal and inter-annual variations of DP release dynamics. As shown in a conceptual model, topography is likely to be the key driver of the observed spatial and temporal variations, because of its combined control on i) the transfer of P from upland fields to RW zones, ii) the mineralization rates of soil organic P and iii) the triggering of the above two release mechanisms. Laboratory leaching experiments on the same soils confirmed the role of DRW events as a major process causing DP release pulses in RWs. The data demonstrated that the released DP consisted not only of true dissolved inorganic and organic P but also of colloidal P, the latter phase being the most reactive to DRW events. The data also revealed that the different P forms came from different P sources in the soil (soil macro/mesopores for colloidal P and organic DP; soil micropores for inorganic DP) and that the amount of released colloidal P correlated positively with the organic matter contents and soil microbial biomass size of the soil. Anaerobic incubation experiments, on their hand, confirmed the role of anoxic conditions as conditions favoring the release of DP in RW. Reductive dissolution of soil Fe-oxyhydroxide was, however, not the sole process involved in that release, another process being the rise in pH caused by reduction reactions. Experimental data showed that the pH rise controlled the DP release in organic-rich soils, this release being on the contrary mainly controlled by soil Fe-oxyhydroxides reductive dissolution in organic-poor soils. Experimental data also showed that the input of soil sediments from upland fields enhanced the release of DP in RW, most likely due to the enhanced dissolution of sediment Fe-oxyhydroxides by RW Fe-reducing bacteria. Overall, this thesis allowed new constraints to be placed on the release mechanisms of DP in headwater agricultural catchments. One very practical output is that great care should be taken of hydroclimate variability, local topography, and soil property when designing and implementing management options to reduce DP release and transfer in agricultural catchments., Le phosphore (P) est un nutriment essentiel dans le contrôle de l'eutrophisation des eaux de surface. La majorité du P causant cette eutrophisation dans les pays occidentaux est aujourd'hui issu des sols agricoles, ce qui explique pourquoi les recherches actuelles sur l'eutrophisation se focalisent sur la compréhension des mécanismes par lequel le P est relargué de ces sols. Dans cette thèse, nous étudions ces mécanismes en nous focalisant sur la fraction dissoute (DP) du P, fraction la plus menaçante du point de vue de l'eutrophisation. Une double approche a été utilisée, combinant le suivi de la composition d'eaux du sol et d'eaux de ruisseau dans un petit bassin versant (BV) agricole représentatif (BV de Kervidy-Naizin, France) et des simulations expérimentales au laboratoire. Les suivis de terrain ont révélé que les zones humides ripariennes (RW) étaient les principales zones de relargage de DP dans le BV étudié, via deux mécanismes essentiellement déclenchée par les fluctuations des hauteurs de nappe, i) la réhumectation des sols (DRW) et ii) la dissolution réductrice des oxydes de fer du sol dans de périodes d'anoxie. Ces mêmes suivis ont révélé la présence de fortes variations spatiales de la nature chimique (inorganique et organique/colloïdale) du DP relargué. Les variations saisonnières et interannuelles de l'hydroclimat, combinées aux variations locales de topographie ont été démontrées être les deux facteurs principaux contrôlant i) la fréquence des épisodes DRW, et ii) la durée des périodes anoxiques, entraînant au final de fortes variations saisonnières et interannuelles de la dynamique de relargage du DP. Comme indiqué dans un modèle conceptuel général, la topographie est sans doute le facteur clé de contrôle des variations observées, en raison de son rôle sur i) le transfert de P à partir des parcelles agricoles amont, ii) le taux de minéralisation du P organique du sol P et iii), le déclenchement des deux mécanismes de relargage précités. Les expériences en laboratoire ont confirmé le rôle des événements DRW comme processus clé causant le relargage de DP dans les RWs. Les résultats ont démontré que le DP relargué consistait non seulement de "vrai" DP inorganique et organique, mais aussi de P colloïdal, le P colloïdal et le DP organique étant les plus réactifs aux événements DRW. Les données ont aussi révélées que ces différentes formes de P provenaient de différentes sources dans le sol (méso et macroporosité pour P colloïdal et le DP organique; microporosité pour DP inorganique), et que la quantité de P colloïdal relargué était positivement corrélée avec la teneur en matière organique et la taille de biomasse microbienne du sol. Ces mêmes expériences ont confirmé le rôle des conditions anoxiques comme conditions favorisant la libération de DP dans les RWs. La dissolution réductive de sol Fe-oxyhydroxydes n'est cependant pas le seul processus impliqué, un autre processus étant la hausse du pH causée par des réactions de réduction. Les résultats obtenus démontrent que l'augmentation de pH contrôle la libération de DP dans les sols riches en matière organique, alors que ce relargage est contrôlé principalement par la réduction des oxydes de fer dans les sols pauvres en matière organique. Les données expérimentales démontrent également que l'apport de sédiments issus des sols agricoles amont accroit le relargage de DP dans les RW, probablement en raison de la dissolution des oxydes de fer de ces mêmes sédiments par les bactéries ferroréductrices des Rws. Au final, cette thèse permet de mieux contraindre les mécanismes et facteurs responsables du relargage de DP dans les bassins versants agricoles. Une conséquence très pratique de ce travail est que la conception de stratégies pour limiter les fuites de DP dans ces bassins ne peut se faire sans une prise en compte des rôles de l'hydroclimat, de la topographie locale et des propriétés du sol sur ce relargage.

ABASTRACT Lake Erie has undergone re-eutrophication beginning in the 1990s, even though total phosphorus (TP) loads to the lake continued to slowly decline. Using our 1982 and 2007–10 studies of the bioavailability of dissolved and particulate phosphorus export frommajor Ohio tributaries, togetherwith our long-termTP and dissolved reactive phosphorus (DRP) loading data, we estimated long-term annual export of dissolved and particulate bioavailable phosphorus. DRP was found to adequately represent dissolved bioavailable export while 26–30% of the particulate phosphorus (PP) was extractable by 0.1 N NaOH, a frequently used indicator of PP bioavailability. During the period of re-eutrophication (1991–2012), DRP export from nonpoint sources in the Maumee and Sandusky rivers increased dramatically while NaOH-PP export had a slight decline for the Maumee and a small increase in the Sandusky. For the Cuyahoga River, both DRP and NaOH-PP increased, but these changes were small in relation to those of the Maumee and Sandusky. During this period, whole lake loading of both nonpoint and point sources of phosphorus declined. This study indicates that increased nonpoint loading of DRP is an important contributing factor to re-eutrophication. Although nonpoint control programs in the Maumee and Sandusky have been effective in reducing erosion and PP export, these programs have been accompanied by increased DRP export. Future target loads for Lake Erie should focus on reducing bioavailable phosphorus, especially DRP from nonpoint sources. Agricultural P load reduction programs should address both DRP and PP, and take into account the lower bioavailability of PP.