USE OF TEMPE CELL, MODIFIED TO RESTRAIN SWELLING, FOR DETERMINATION OF HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY AND SOIL WATER CONTENT

1984 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. G. SOMMERFELDT ◽  
G. B. SCHAALJE ◽  
W. HULSTEIN
Keyword(s):  
Hydraulic Conductivity ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Soil Water Content ◽  
Water Movement ◽  
Clay Content ◽  
Core Sample ◽  
Soil Samples ◽  
The Core ◽  
Silty Loam

The Tempe cell, modified by others to determine saturated hydraulic conductivity (K), was further modified to restrain swelling of the soil and to facilitate air and water movement across the top and bottom of the sample. An apparatus was developed whereby K and water content (θ) could be determined for several soil samples concurrently and suction levels could be varied without disturbing the sample. K and θ were determined for several prepared soil samples by the constant head permeameter method and by the Tempe cell with and without swelling restrained, and for soil cores by the Tempe cell with swelling restrained. With swelling restrained, the K results from the prepared samples did not differ significantly from those of the core samples. For the sandy to silty loam soils at suction levels 0, 10, and 20 kPa, θ of the core sample was less than that from the other samples, whereas for the clay loam soils, θ of the core sample was less than that from the others at suction levels of 0 and 10 kPa. For all methods, θ was correlated to clay content of the soil. These results indicate that the Tempe cell, as finally modified with swelling restraints, can be used to determine K and θ for characterizing the drainability of a nonstructured to weakly structured soil, using either prepared samples or cores. Key words: Hydraulic conductivity, pore volume, soil water content, Tempe cell

scholarly journals Effect of Biochar Application and Re-Application on Soil Bulk Density, Porosity, Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity, Water Content and Soil Water Availability in a Silty Loam Haplic Luvisol

Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucia Toková ◽  
Dušan Igaz ◽  
Ján Horák ◽  
Elena Aydin
Keyword(s):  
Hydraulic Conductivity ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Bulk Density ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Soil Water Content ◽  
Soil Bulk Density ◽  
Relative Increase ◽  
Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity ◽  
Soil Drought ◽  
Silty Loam

Due to climate change the productive agricultural sectors have started to face various challenges, such as soil drought. Biochar is studied as a promising soil amendment. We studied the effect of a former biochar application (in 2014) and re-application (in 2018) on bulk density, porosity, saturated hydraulic conductivity, soil water content and selected soil water constants at the experimental site in Dolná Malanta (Slovakia) in 2019. Biochar was applied and re-applied at the rates of 0, 10 and 20 t ha−1. Nitrogen fertilizer was applied annually at application levels N0, N1 and N2. In 2019, these levels were represented by the doses of 0, 108 and 162 kg N ha−1, respectively. We found that biochar applied at 20 t ha−1 without fertilizer significantly reduced bulk density by 12% and increased porosity by 12%. During the dry period, a relative increase in soil water content was observed at all biochar treatments—the largest after re-application of biochar at a dose of 20 t ha−1 at all fertilization levels. The biochar application also significantly increased plant available water. We suppose that change in the soil structure following a biochar amendment was one of the main reasons of our observations.

scholarly journals Using Multivariate Geostatistics to Assess Patterns of Spatial Dependence of Apparent Soil Electrical Conductivity and Selected Soil Properties

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glécio Machado Siqueira ◽  
Jorge Dafonte Dafonte ◽  
Montserrat Valcárcel Armesto ◽  
Ênio Farias França e Silva
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Conductivity ◽  
Soil Properties ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Soil Water Content ◽  
Clay Content ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Soil Electrical Conductivity ◽  
Multivariate Geostatistics ◽  
Northwestern Spain

The apparent soil electrical conductivity (ECa) was continuously recorded in three successive dates using electromagnetic induction in horizontal (ECa-H) and vertical (ECa-V) dipole modes at a 6 ha plot located in Northwestern Spain. One of the ECadata sets was used to devise an optimized sampling scheme consisting of 40 points. Soil was sampled at the 0.0–0.3 m depth, in these 40 points, and analyzed for sand, silt, and clay content; gravimetric water content; and electrical conductivity of saturated soil paste. Coefficients of correlation between ECaand gravimetric soil water content (0.685 for ECa-V and 0.649 for ECa-H) were higher than those between ECaand clay content (ranging from 0.197 to 0.495, when different ECarecording dates were taken into account). Ordinary and universal kriging have been used to assess the patterns of spatial variability of the ECadata sets recorded at successive dates and the analyzed soil properties. Ordinary and universal cokriging methods have improved the estimation of gravimetric soil water content using the data of ECaas secondary variable with respect to the use of ordinary kriging.

scholarly journals An empirical model for describing the influence of water content and concentration of sulfamethoxazole (antibiotic) in soil on the total net CO2 efflux

2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 351-358
Author(s):  
Miroslav Fér ◽  
Radka Kodešová ◽  
Barbora Kalkušová ◽  
Aleš Klement ◽  
Antonín Nikodem
Keyword(s):  
Water Content ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Soil Water Content ◽  
Solution Treatment ◽  
Soil Microbial Activity ◽  
Soil Samples ◽  
Co2 Efflux ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Water Contents ◽  
Soil Water Contents

AbstractThe aim of the study was to describe the impact of the soil water content and sulfamethoxazole, SUL, (antibiotic) concentration in soil on the net CO2 efflux. Soil samples were taken from topsoils of a Haplic Fluvisol and Haplic Chernozem. Soil samples were packed into the steel cylinders. The net CO2 efflux was measured from these soil columns after application of fresh water or SUL solution at different soil water contents. The experiments were carried out in dark at 20°C. The trends in the net CO2 efflux varied for different treatments. While initially high values for water treatment exponentially decreased in time, values for solution treatment increased during the first 250–650 minutes and then decreased. The total net CO2 effluxes measured for 20 hours related to the soil water content followed the second order polynomial functions. The maximal values were measured for the soil water content of 0.15 cm3 cm−3 (Haplic Fluvisol with water or solution, Haplic Chernozem with solution) and 0.11 cm3 cm−3 (Haplic Chernozem with water). The ratios between values measured for solution and water at the same soil water contents exponentially increased with increasing SUL concentration in soils. This proved the increasing stimulative influence of SUL on soil microbial activity.

Time series outlier and intervention analysis: Irrigation management influences on soil water content in silty loam soil

2012 ◽  
Vol 111 ◽  
pp. 105-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Basem Aljoumani ◽  
Jose A. Sànchez-Espigares ◽  
Nuria Cañameras ◽  
Ramon Josa ◽  
Joaquim Monserrat
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Soil Water Content ◽  
Irrigation Management ◽  
Intervention Analysis ◽  
Silty Loam ◽  
Loam Soil

Modelling leaching and recharge in a bare transitional red-brown earth ponded with low salinity water in summer

1994 ◽  
Vol 34 (7) ◽  
pp. 1085 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Cai ◽  
SA Prathapar ◽  
HG Beecher
Keyword(s):  
Hydraulic Conductivity ◽  
Water Content ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Soil Water Content ◽  
Soil Profile ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity ◽  
Rate Dependent ◽  
Water And Salt Movement ◽  
Winter Fallow

A modelling study was conducted to evaluate water and salt movement within a transitional red-brown earth with saline B horizon soil when such waters are used for ponding in summer. The model was calibrated using previously published experimental data. The calibrated model was used to evaluate the effect of depth to watertable, saturated hydraulic conductivity, and ponding water salinity on infiltration, water and salt movement within the soil profile, and recharge. The study showed that when initial soil water content and the saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) are low, infiltrating water will be stored within the soil profile even in the absence of a shallow watertable. Once the soil water content is high, however, recharge will be significant in winter, even if there is no net infiltration at the soil surface. Infiltration rates depend more on Ks than the depth to watertable if it is at, or below, 1.5 m from the soil surface. When Ks is high, recharge under ponding will be higher than that under winter fallow. Subsequent ponding in summer and fallow in winter tend to leach salts from the soil profile, the leaching rate dependent on Ks. During winter fallow, due to net evaporation, salts tend to move upwards and concentrate near the soil surface. In the presence of shallow watertables, leached salts tend to concentrate at, or near, the watertable.

Evaluation of three insitu soil nitrogen availability assays

1989 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 185-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen C. Hart ◽  
Mary K. Firestone
Keyword(s):  
Water Content ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Soil Water Content ◽  
Nitrogen Availability ◽  
Mineral Soil ◽  
N Availability ◽  
Net N Mineralization ◽  
Old Growth ◽  
The Core ◽  
Young Growth

Three indices of nitrogen (N) availability were compared in the field over a 1-year period in an old-growth and a young-growth mixed-conifer forest. The indices utilized were ion exchange resin (IER) bags, buried bags, and a core-IER method employing intact soil cores enclosed in tubes capped at both ends by IER bags. The results from all three methods indicated that in the surface mineral soil, N availability was higher in the young-growth stand than in the old-growth stand. However, seasonal patterns of N availability were generally not well correlated among the methods (correlation coefficients ranged from 0.32 to 0.62). For a given amount of net N mineralized in buried bags, more N accumulated on IER bags placed in the young-growth stand than in those placed in the old-growth stand. This was the result of greater net nitrification in the young-growth stand coupled with the greater mobility of [Formula: see text] relative to [Formula: see text] in soil. Ten-month estimates of net N mineralization measured by the core-IER and buried-bag methods were similar in the young-growth stand (about 42 mg•kg soil−1), but the core-IER estimate was almost twice that of the buried-bag estimate in the old-growth stand (31.7 and 16.8 mg•kg soil−1, respectively). The different sensitivities of the core-IER and buried-bag methods to changes in soil moisture and leaching probably account for much of the difference in their N availability estimates. Results from the core-IER method did reflect the effects of leaching; however, soil water content within the core did not follow changes in soil water content effectively. Because of the greater labor involved in using the core-IER method, its use may be most efficacious in high-precipitation environments, or when in-field soil incubations must be conducted for extended periods of time.

Field calibration of a capacitance soil water probe in heterogeneous fields

Soil Research ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 289 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dieter Geesing ◽  
Martin Bachmaier ◽  
Urs Schmidhalter
Keyword(s):  
Water Content ◽  
Soil Water ◽  
Soil Water Content ◽  
Soil Samples ◽  
Soil Conditions ◽  
Site Specific ◽  
Field Calibration ◽  
Calibration Methods ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Capacitance Probe

Soil water research requires methods to perform accurate measurements. A capacitance probe gauge has characteristics that seem to make it an attractive replacement for neutron scatter gauges to measure soil water content, but there is evidence that capacitance systems should be calibrated for individual soils. Laboratory calibrations and many field calibration methods are costly and time-consuming, and controlled conditions and disturbed soil samples do not always reflect field conditions, and thus, they are inadequate for practical use. The objectives of the present study were (i) to test a simple field calibration method for a recently developed capacitive sensor even under highly variable soil texture conditions, and (ii) to validate this approach under various soil moisture conditions. Soil samples were taken 0.5 m from the access tube of the sensor and a whole field calibration and several site-specific calibrations were developed using 10–142 observations per site under different soil water regimes. A regression of soil water content estimated by sensor reading on water content obtained by core sampling showed no significant difference in the slope and intercept of the 1:1 line when the field calibration was applied. However, the precision of the calibration was only considerably increased if the estimations were based on site-specific calibrations developed on at least 35 observations per site. The precision and accuracy of the calibration equations were not affected when data were obtained only under wet or dry soil conditions. The method presented in this paper is a speedy and cheap way to calibrate capacitance probe sensors.

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