Litter cover breaks soil water repellency of biocrusts, enhancing initial soil water infiltration and content in a semi-arid sandy land

AbstractGlobal climate change is projected to continue and result in prolonged and more intense droughts, which can increase soil water repellency (SWR). To be able to estimate the consequences of SWR on vadose zone hydrology, it is important to determine soil hydraulic properties (SHP). Sequential modeling using HYDRUS (2D/3D) was performed on an experimental field site with artificially imposed drought scenarios (moderately M and severely S stressed) and a control plot. First, inverse modeling was performed for SHP estimation based on water and ethanol infiltration experimental data, followed by model validation on one selected irrigation event. Finally, hillslope modeling was performed to assess water balance for 2014. Results suggest that prolonged dry periods can increase soil water repellency. Inverse modeling was successfully performed for infiltrating liquids, water and ethanol, withR2and model efficiency (E) values both > 0.9. SHP derived from the ethanol measurements showed large differences in van Genuchten-Mualem (VGM) parameters for the M and S plots compared to water infiltration experiments. SWR resulted in large saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) decrease on the M and S scenarios. After validation of SHP on water content measurements during a selected irrigation event, one year simulations (2014) showed that water repellency increases surface runoff in non-structured soils at hillslopes.

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Factors Determining Soil Water Repellency in Two Coniferous Plantations on a Hillslope

Forests ◽

10.3390/f10090730 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 730 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Moein Farahnak ◽

Keiji Mitsuyasu ◽

Kyoichi Otsuki ◽

Kuniyoshi Shimizu ◽

Atsushi Kume

Keyword(s):

Soil Water ◽

Overland Flow ◽

Soil Aggregates ◽

Aggregate Size ◽

Water Repellency ◽

Soil Aggregate ◽

Water Infiltration ◽

Soil Water Repellency ◽

Tree Cutting ◽

Coniferous Plantations

Soil water repellency (SWR) is a cause of low water infiltration, overland flow and soil erosion in mountainous coniferous plantations in Japan. The factors determining SWR intensity were investigated in two coniferous plantations of Chamaecyparis obtusa (Siebold et Zucc.) Endl. and Cryptomeria japonica (L.f.) D. Don, using intact tree plots and cut tree plots on the same hillslope. The SWR of Ch. obtusa plots was stronger than that of Cr. japonica plots. SWR intensity decreased after tree cutting. There were no significant differences in SWR upslope and downslope of individual trees/stumps for both tree species, though areas downslope of individual Ch. obtusa trees had higher SWR intensity than those upslope. SWR intensity and soil aggregate stability were positively correlated in the Ch. obtusa intact tree plot (r = 0.88, p < 0.01), whereas in the cut tree plot, this correlation was weak with no significance (r = 0.29, p = 0.41). Soil aggregate size had a non-significant influence on SWR intensity. These findings suggest that SWR intensity was not related to the soil aggregate size, but SWR intensity seemed have a role in soil aggregation in the Ch. obtusa intact tree plot. Destruction of soil aggregates could occur after tree cutting because of physical disturbances or increased input of different types of organic matter from other vegetation into soil. The presence of Ch. obtusa introduces a source of SWR, although uncertainty remains about how water repellency is distributed around soil aggregates. The distribution pattern of soil water content and soil hydraulic conductivity around Cr. japonica was related to other factors such as the litter layer and non-water-repellant soil.

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Influence of Soil Water Repellency on Seedling Emergence and Plant Survival in a Burned Semi-Arid Woodland

Arid Land Research and Management ◽

10.1080/15324982.2012.680655 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 26 (3) ◽

pp. 236-249 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

Matthew D. Madsen ◽

Steven L. Petersen ◽

Kaitlynn J. Fernelius ◽

Bruce A. Roundy ◽

Alan G. Taylor ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Water ◽

Seedling Emergence ◽

Water Repellency ◽

Soil Water Repellency ◽

Plant Survival ◽

Semi Arid

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Root morphological characteristics and soil water infiltration capacity in semi-arid artificial grassland soils

Agricultural Water Management ◽

10.1016/j.agwat.2020.106153 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 235 ◽

pp. 106153 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Yu Liu ◽

Lei Guo ◽

Ze Huang ◽

Manuel López-Vicente ◽

Gao-Lin Wu

Keyword(s):

Soil Water ◽

Morphological Characteristics ◽

Water Infiltration ◽

Infiltration Capacity ◽

Grassland Soils ◽

Soil Water Infiltration ◽

Artificial Grassland ◽

Semi Arid

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Water Shedding Properties of Oil Impregnated Hydrophobic Soils

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-765 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Rebecca McCerery ◽

John Woodward ◽

Glen McHale ◽

Kate Winter

Keyword(s):

Soil Water ◽

Silicone Oil ◽

Water Repellency ◽

Contact Angles ◽

Water Infiltration ◽

Natural Soil ◽

Particle Sizes ◽

Soil Water Repellency ◽

Water Contact ◽

Naturally Occurring

<p>Hydrophobic soils and sediments have gained significant interest in soil science due to negatively influencing biomass production and as drivers of landslides and enhanced erosion. Whilst natural and fire-induced soil water repellency have been studied, little work has considered how the sediment-water interaction with naturally occurring hydrophobic sediments might change in the presence of oil. Recent advances in materials physics have shown bio-inspired slippery liquid infused porous surfaces (SLIPS) and lubricant impregnated surfaces (LIS) can produce super slippery surfaces with excellent water shedding properties. Here we apply this new understanding to the physics of soil water repellency and address how the presence of oil, whether from contamination or otherwise, might influence water infiltration. We hypothesise that oil impregnating a hydrophobic soil may create stable oil coatings and/or layers that create soil surfaces resistant to water infiltration and with enhanced run-off of water. Using monolayers of sand, silt and clay particles treated with a commercial hydrophobising agent and silicone oil, we created model (oil-free) hydrophobic and oil impregnated hydrophobic soils. Static water contact angles and droplet sliding angles were used to classify their degree of hydrophobicity and ability to shed water. Our results show that in the absence of oil, model hydrophobic soil surfaces with particle sizes below 63&#956;m are superhydrophobic with water droplet contact angles above 150 degrees. In the presence of oil, we observed a sediment-based SLIP/LI surface on particle sizes below 63&#956;m with water contact angles of 90 degrees and droplet sliding angles of below 5 degrees. We also achieved reduced sliding angles compared to the oil-free surfaces, and a conformal layer of oil on all particle sizes. These results support our hypothesis that SLIPS/LIS may occur in natural soil systems. These results have implications for soil water repellency, oil clean up from soil and for processes occurring in other sedimentary environments caused by both naturally occurring and anthropogenic contamination of oils.</p>

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Fire impact on soil-water repellency and functioning of semi-arid croplands and rangelands: Implications for prescribed burnings and wildfires

Geomorphology ◽

10.1016/j.geomorph.2016.12.015 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 280 ◽

pp. 67-75 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Ilan Stavi ◽

Daniel Barkai ◽

Yaakov M. Knoll ◽

Hiam Abu Glion ◽

Itzhak Katra ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Water ◽

Water Repellency ◽

Soil Water Repellency ◽

Semi Arid ◽

Fire Impact

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The effects of Woylie (Bettongia penicillata) foraging on soil water repellency and water infiltration in heavy textured soils in southwestern Australia

Austral Ecology ◽

10.1111/j.1442-9993.1998.tb00757.x ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 23 (5) ◽

pp. 492-496 ◽

Cited By ~ 50

Author(s):

MARK J. GARKAKLIS ◽

J. S. BRADLEY ◽

R. D. WOOLLER

Keyword(s):

Soil Water ◽

Water Repellency ◽

Water Infiltration ◽

Soil Water Repellency ◽

Southwestern Australia ◽

Bettongia Penicillata

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Assessing Water Infiltration and Soil Water Repellency in Brazilian Atlantic Forest Soils

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app10061950 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (6) ◽

pp. 1950 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Sergio Esteban Lozano-Baez ◽

Miguel Cooper ◽

Silvio Frosini de Barros Ferraz ◽

Ricardo Ribeiro Rodrigues ◽

Laurent Lassabatere ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hydraulic Conductivity ◽

Soil Water ◽

Atlantic Forest ◽

Water Repellency ◽

Water Infiltration ◽

Brazilian Atlantic Forest ◽

Soil Water Repellency ◽

Soil Hydraulic Conductivity ◽

Soil Hydraulic ◽

Remnant Forest

This study presents the results of the soil hydraulic characterization performed under three land covers, namely pasture, 9-year-old restored forest, and remnant forest, in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Two types of infiltration tests were performed, namely tension (Mini-Disk Infiltrometer, MDI) and ponding (Beerkan) tests. MDI and Beerkan tests provided complementary information, highlighting a clear increase of the hydraulic conductivity, especially at the remnant forest plots, when moving from near-saturated to saturated conditions. In addition, measuring the unsaturated soil hydraulic conductivity with different water pressure heads allowed the estimation of the macroscopic capillary length in the field. This approach, in conjunction with Beerkan measurements, allowed the design better estimates of the saturated soil hydraulic conductivity under challenging field conditions, such as soil water repellency (SWR). This research also reports, for the first time, evidence of SWR in the Atlantic Forest, which affected the early stage of the infiltration process with more frequency in the remnant forest.

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