Nutrient Cycles

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Nutrient Cycle

A nutrient cycle is defined as the cyclic pathway by which nutrients pass-through, in order to be
recycled and reutilised. The pathway comprises cells, organisms, community and ecosystem. In
the process, nutrients get absorbed, transferred, released and reabsorbed. It is a natural
recycling system of mineral nutrients.

Nutrients are important components of living organisms. These nutrients take various forms:

Water (H2O), oxygen (O2), carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen (N2), phosphorus (P) But
in order for them to be used again, they need to be recycled. In order to be recycled, organisms
must return these nutrients to the Earth (soil).

Recycling Nutrients

1. Decomposition- As organisms die, decomposers return their nutrients to the soil to be

recycled.

2. Excretion – H2O and N2 are returned to the soil through urine. P is returned to the earth in
the form of feces.

3. Perspiration and Evapotranspiration- when animal perspire, their sweats evaporates and
becomes vapour. Plants release water through evapotranspiration(evaporation in plant).
Vapour goes to the atmosphere(not to the soil)

4. Respiration- animals respire by taking O2 from the environment and release CO2. (O2
CO2). plants respire by taking CO2 to release O2.(CO2O2)

CARBON CYCLE (O2 to CO2 Cycle)

Carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the biosphere,
pedosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the Earth.

The element carbon is the present in all living organisms.

 1. Carbon enters the atmosphere as carbon dioxide from respiration and combustion.

2. Carbon dioxide is absorbed by producers to make carbohydrates in photosynthesis.

3. Animals feed on the plant passing the carbon compounds along the food chain. Most of
the carbon they consume is exhaled as carbon dioxide formed during respiration. The animals
and plants eventually die.

4. The dead organisms are eaten by decomposers and the carbon in their bodies is
returned to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. In some conditions decomposition is blocked.
The plant and animal material may then be available as fossil fuel in the future for combustion.

Carbon enters the atmosphere as carbon dioxide from respiration and combustion. Carbon
dioxide is absorbed by producers to make food and oxygen via photosynthesis. Oxygen is
inhaled. Via photosynthesis. Animals feed on the plant, passing the carbon compounds along
the food chain. Most of the carbon they consume is exhaled as carbon dioxide formed during
respiration. The animals and plants eventually die. The dead organisms are eaten by
decomposers and the carbon in their bodies is returned to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.
The cycle repeats. In some conditions decomposition is blocked. The plant and animal material
may then be available as fossil fuel in the future for combustion.

Another activity that contributes to the release of CO2 is deforestation. When trees are cut, the
CO2 stored in them are released into the atmosphere. Burning of fossil fuels and deforestation
are two human activities that have increased the carbon dioxide content of the atmosphere in
the past hundred years.This results in rise of atmospheric pressure. The greater the pressure,
the greater the temperature. Thus, a phenomenon called global warming.

NITROGEN CYCLE

The nitrogen cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which nitrogen is converted into multiple
chemical forms as it circulates among atmosphere, terrestrial, and marine ecosystems.
Abundant in air(78% of the volume Earth’s atmosphere)

Because N2 is unreactive, it cannot be used directly by plants to make protein. Only nitrates are
useful to plants, so we are dependent in the other processes to convert nitrogen to nitrates in
the soil.

Nitrogen is also an essential component of life. Nitrogen cannot be directly utilised by living
organisms and has to be converted to other forms.

 By the process of nitrogen fixation, nitrogen-fixing bacteria fix atmospheric nitrogen to

ammonia and nitrifying bacteria convert ammonia to nitrate. It is then taken up by plants
 Atmospheric nitrogen is converted to nitrates directly by lightning and assimilated by
plants
 Decomposers break down proteins and amino acids of dead and decaying organic
matters and waste product
 Denitrifying bacteria convert ammonia and nitrates to nitrogen and nitrous oxide by the
process of denitrification. In this way, nitrogen is released back into the atmosphere

Forms of Nitrogen:
1.Organic nitrogen as:
a. ammonium (NH4)
b.nitrite (NO2)
c.nitrate (NO3)
d.nitrous oxide (N2O)
e.nitric oxide (NO)
2.Inorganic nitrogen
a.nitrogen gas (N2)

Nitrogen fixation – process by which free nitrogen (N) in air is converted to other chemical
forms usable to plants.
Nitrification – process of converting ammonia to nitrite, then nitrite to nitrate to plants.

Denitrification – process of converting nitrate to nitrogen gas.

Nitrogen gas is converted to nitrate compounds by nitrogen-fixing bacteria in soil or root

nodules. Lightning also converts nitrogen gas to nitrate compounds. The Haber process
converts nitrogen gas into ammonia used in fertilizers. Ammonia is converted to nitrates by
nitrifying bacteria in the soil.

Some nitrogen-fixing bacteria live free in soil and water. The most important is a bacterium
called rhizobium, which inhabits the root nodules of leguminous plants – a group of soybeans,
peanuts, and peas. This is a form of mutualism.

The nitrogen then becomes ammonia (NH3). But still, NH3 is still unusable to most plants, so it
still needs to be converted. Nitrifying bacteria do this in a process called nitrification (process of
converting ammonia to nitrite, then nitrite to nitrate). Nitrogen > ammonia > nitrite > nitrate

Plants absorb nitrates from the soil and use these to build up proteins. The plant may be eaten
by an animal, and its biomass used to produce animal protein.

Urea and egested material is broken down by decomposers. This results in nitrogen being
returned to the soil as ammonia.

Decomposers also break down the bodies of dead organisms resulting in nitrogen being
returned to the soil as ammonia.

Higher only: In some conditions denitrifying bacteria in the soil break down nitrates and return
nitrogen to the air. This is usually in waterlogged soil. Improving drainage reduces this effect,
making the soil more fertile

The ammonia (NH3) is converted back to nitrogen by denitrifiers or denitrifying bacteria in a

process called denitrification (process of converting nitrate to nitrogen gas). Lightning and other
forms of combustion also play a vital role in nitrogen fixation to form nitrates. The cycle repeats.
Ammonia/nitrite/nitrate > nitrogen

Nitrogen > Ammonia > Nitrite > Nitrate > Ammonia/Nitrite/Nitrate > Nitrogen Nitrogen fixation
Nitrification (usable form) (released back into the soil when an organism dies) Denitrification
Decomposition

THE WATER CYCLE

Water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle or the hydrological cycle, describes the
continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earth.

Constitutes 60-96% of the weight of living things. Differs from the other cycle because here,
water remains unchanged unlike in other cycles (ex. In carbon cycle, carbon takes the form of
CO2)
Water Cycle Steps
1. Evaporation – liquid to gas

2. Condensation – gas to liquid

3. Precipitation – water falls back to the ground either as rain, snow, or hail These three are
the main processes of the water cycle

4. Surface Runoff – much of the water that return to Earth as precipitation runs off the surface
of the land, and flows down hill into streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes. Small streams flow into
larger streams, then into rivers, and eventually the water flows into the ocean. Surface runoff is
an important part of the water cycle because, through surface runoff, much of the water returns
again to the oceans, where a great deal of evaporation occurs.

5. Infiltration – process where rain water soaks into the ground, through the soil and
underlying rock layers, Some of this water ultimately returns to the surface at springs or in low
spots downhill. Some of the water remains underground and is called groundwater. As the water
infiltrates through the soil and rock layers, many of the impurities in the water are filtered out.
This filtering process helps clean the water.

6. Transpiration – process where plants remove water through its stomata in the leaves. This
is the process of evaporation in plants (also called evapotranspiration).