Pore shape and organic compounds drive major changes in the hydrological characteristics of agricultural soils

A small increase in soil organic matter (SOM) content can change soil hydrological properties from a completely wettable to a partially water‐repellent state. Although considerable research describes hydrophobic compounds as a primary driver of this shift, the influence of pore shape has only been considered in a few studies and none of these has emphasized the role of different carbon compounds. Using a capillary bundle model of non‐cylindrical (wavy) capillaries, we described measured hydrological properties of five agricultural soils that have a small degree of water repellency and textures ranging from coarse sand to heavy clay. To isolate the influence of SOM, it was removed by combustion to provide an SOM‐free treatment. Water and methanol sorptivities quantified infiltration rates and soil‐water wetting angles in packed soil cores. Different cores were sectioned to measure wetting profiles and calculate diffusivity. The results from natural soils were supplemented by measurements carried out on model ‘soils’ consisting of quartz particles (50–200 µm) with four different hydrophobic states. Soil organic matter removal increased water sorptivity from about 60% for a coarse sandy soil (Haplic Arenosol) to about 290% for a heavy clay soil (Haplic Leptosol), corresponding to a decreased apparent wetting angle of 20–30°. Application of the wavy pore model suggests that the apparent wetting angle resulting from SOM removal can be several times smaller than its Young value. Generally, SOM removal increased water diffusivity values by one to two orders of magnitudes. The SOM components having the greatest impact on contact angle were hexanedioic acid and heneicosanoic acid (both hydrophilic) and docosane (hydrophobic).     

砂土和黏土的颗粒差异对土壤斥水性的影响

斥水性土壤广泛存在于自然界中,并且对土壤环境和作物生长等有重要影响。建立理想化的土壤颗粒模型对砂土和黏土的斥水特性进行计算分析。结果表明:当接触角很小时,砂土中不存在斥水现象。随着接触角的增大,砂土斥水性与含水率密切相关,砂土的密实度对其斥水性也有重要影响,当砂土比较密实时,土壤的"亲水"与"斥水"特性对含水率特别敏感,随着含水率的变化,砂土可能由亲水性较好的土壤转变为斥水性土壤;当砂土比较松散时,土壤颗粒的斥水性对含水率并不敏感。当黏土接触角略小于90°且湿润半径b也较小时,黏土也存在斥水现象。如果黏土颗粒的接触角较小或接触角小于90°且湿润半径b较大,黏土总是亲水的。黏土含水率较大时,斥水特性由土壤颗粒的接触角决定。     

Modified technique to assess the wettability of soil aggregates: comparison with contact angles measured on crushed aggregates and bulk soil

Wettability parameters determined for individual soils often show a considerable variation depending on the kind of sample (aggregated or homogeneous material) and the method used. To investigate the causes of this variation, we assessed wettability of both intact and crushed aggregates and bulk soil using different methods. Wettability of intact aggregates was characterized by a modified technique where the specific infiltration rates of water and a completely wetting liquid were used to define a repellency index. Contact angles were determined on crushed aggregates and bulk soil using the Wilhelmy plate and capillary rise methods. The repellency index was found to be sensitive to slight differences in wettability and was in good agreement with Wilhelmy plate contact angles. Contact angles measured with the capillary rise method showed a strong deviation from those determined with the Wilhelmy plate method. This can be ascribed to the underlying assumptions of the capillary rise method (i.e. cylindrical and parallel capillaries) resulting in an over‐estimation of contact angle, particularly for the small‐sized particle fraction because of the impact of inertia and pore structure. No significant differences were found between intact and crushed aggregates whereas the bulk soil was slightly more water‐repellent, probably because of a somewhat larger organic carbon content. We conclude that the contact angle determined by the Wilhelmy plate method and the repellency index are appropriate parameters for characterizing soil water repellency because they detected small changes in wettability over a wide range extending from subcritical water repellency to hydrophobicity.     

Water-repellent soil and its relationship to granularity, surface roughness and hydrophobicity: a materials science view

Considerable soil water repellency has been observed at a wide range of locations worldwide. The soil exhibiting water repellency is found within the upper part of the soil profile. The reduced rate of water infiltration into these soils leads to severe runoff erosion, and reduction of plant growth. Soil water repellency is promoted by drying of soil, and can be induced by fire or intense heating of soil containing hydrophobic organic matter. Recent studies outside soil science have shown how enhancement of the natural water repellency of materials, both porous and granular, by surface texture (i.e. surface roughness, pattern and morphology) into super‐hydrophobicity is possible. The similarities between these super‐hydrophobic materials and observed properties of water‐repellent soil are discussed from a non‐soil scientist, materials‐based perspective. A simple model is developed for a hydrophobic granular surface and it is shown that this can provide a mechanism for enhancement of soil water repellency through the relative size and spacing of grains and pores. The model provides a possible explanation for why soil water repellency should be more prevalent under dry conditions than wet. Consequences for water runoff, raindrop splash and soil erosion are discussed.     

Effects of hydrophobic and hydrophilic organic matter on the water repellency of model sandy soils

Soil water repellency affects the hydrological functions of soil systems. Water repellency is associated with the content and the composition of soil organic matter. In the present study, we examined the effects of hydrophobic and hydrophilic organic matter contents, the hydrophobic/hydrophilic organic matter ratio and the total organic matter content on water repellency using model sandy soils. Stearic acid and guar gum were used as the hydrophobic and hydrophilic organic compounds, respectively. Water repellency was estimated using the sessile drop method. Hydrophobic organic matter content was found to be the dominant factor affecting soil water repellency. Hydrophilic organic matter was found to increase the contact angle to some extent without the presence of hydrophobic organic matter. With the presence of both hydrophobic and hydrophilic organic matter, the effects of the hydrophilic organic matter content on contact angle were found to be dependent on the hydrophobic organic matter content of the soil. This relationship was explained by the differences in the surface free energies of different organic matter and mineral surfaces. The contact angle increased with increasing hydrophobic/hydrophilic organic matter ratio when the hydrophilic organic matter content was constant. When the hydrophobic organic matter content was constant, contact angles were roughly comparable, irrespective of the hydrophobic/hydrophilic organic matter ratio. The contact angles were not comparable at each total organic matter content. Accordingly, the hydrophobic/hydrophilic organic matter ratio and the total organic matter content in soil may not provide satisfactory information about soil water repellency.     

The effect of addition of a wettable biochar on soil water repellency

The potential of biochar to ameliorate soil water repellency has not been widely studied. Previous studies have focused on the potential for biochar to induce or exacerbate existing water repellency rather than alleviate it. This study investigates the effect of adding wettable biochar to water‐repellent soil by comparing the water drop penetration times (WDPTs) of a control and biochar‐amended soil. The potential of wettable biochar to act as a physical amendment to water‐repellent soil was evaluated by mixing coarsely‐ground biochar (CGB, particle size range 250–2000 µm) or finely‐ground biochar (FGB, particle size range < 250 µm) with one strongly and one severely naturally water‐repellent soil in various quantities, and then measuring the WDPT for each mixture. When biochar particles did not fall within the size range of existing soil particles, an initial increase in both mean WDPT (WDPT_M) and variation in WDPT was observed with small additions of biochar. These effects possibly result from increased surface roughness and inhibition of infiltration by the suspension of drops above the average soil–air interface at a few hydrophobic points. Both CGB and FGB reduced soil water repellency, FGB more effectively than CGB. The addition of 10% w/w FGB reduced soil WDPT by 50%, and 25% FGB eliminated repellency. Direct absorption of water by biochar and an increase in soil surface area in contact with water are the predominant physical mechanisms involved. This exploratory study suggests biochar has the potential to amend water‐repellent soil.     

Organic compounds of different extractability in total solvent extracts from soils of contrasting water repellency

Previous studies examining organic compounds that may cause water‐repellent behaviour of soils have typically focussed on analysing only the lipophilic fraction of extracted material. This study aimed to provide a more comprehensive examination by applying single‐ and sequential‐accelerated solvent extraction (ASE), separation and analysis by GC/MS of the total solvent extracts of three soils taken from under eucalypt vegetation with different degrees of water repellency. Water repellency increased in all the soils after extraction with DCM/MeOH (95:5), but was eliminated with iso‐propanol/ammonia (95:5). Quantities of major lipid compound classes varied between solvents and soils. Iso‐propanol/ammonia (95:5) solvent released saccharides, glycerol, aromatic acids and other polar organic compounds, which were more abundant in fractionated extracts from the single extraction and the third step sequential ASE extraction, than in the extracts from the DCM/MeOH ASE solvent. Dominant compounds extracted from all soils were long‐chain alkanols (>C₂₂), palmitic acid, C₂₉ alkane, β‐sitosterol, terpenes, terpenoids and other polar compounds. The soil with the lowest repellency lacked >C₁₈ fatty acids and had the lowest concentrations of alkanols (C_26,C₂₈ and C₃₀) and alkanes (C₂₉, C₃₁), but a greater abundance of more complex polar compounds than the more repellent soils. We therefore speculate that the above compounds play an important role in determining the water repellency of the soils tested. The results suggest that one‐stage and sequential ASE extractions with iso‐propanol/ammonia and subsequent fractionation of extracts are a useful approach in providing a comprehensive assessment of the potential compounds involved in causing soil water repellency.     

Effect of subcritical hydrophobicity in a sandy soil on water infiltration and mobile water content

Recent research shows that most soils are more or less water repellent. Already subcritical water repellency may cause incomplete soil wetting and preferential flow. Both processes potentially reduce the residence time of water and solutes in the vadose zone, resulting in an enhanced risk of groundwater contamination. The objective of the present paper is, therefore, to evaluate the impact of reduced soil wettability on the soil water infiltration rate and to investigate the tendency towards preferential flow with the analysis of the immobile water content in the infiltration zone. In november 2002, a field experiment was done in a coniferous forest, 30 km N of Hannover, Germany. Soil hydrophobicity was quantified by measuring the contact angles. The hydraulic conductivity of the podsolic sandy soil was measured depth‐dependent with a double‐ring tension infiltrometer in three soil horizons. To quantify possible preferential‐flow effects, a LiBr‐Tracer was added to the infiltrating water to evaluate the mobile water‐content fraction after infiltration. Additionally, infiltration rates of water were compared with infiltration rates of ethanol which were determined after water infiltration at the same locations. Results show that the actual water repellency of field‐moist soil was mainly subcritical (contact angle <90°). Water infiltration rates were reduced due to subcritical repellency by a factor of 3–170 compared with ethanol infiltration rates (exclusion of wetting effects). This spatially variable infiltration behavior was not clearly reflected neither by the small‐scale contact‐angle measurements nor by the analysis of the average immobile soil water content in the infiltration zone. We conclude that this specific infiltration behavior of water caused by small‐scale wettability effects may temporarily reduce the local connectivity of water‐flow pathways.     

Abstracts of nippon Dozyohiryogaku Zasshi

This study is an attempt to establish an evaluation method of water repellency of soil ranging complete wettability to complete nonwettability. The principal used was the theory of capillary rise.

The samples were packed into teflon tubes which are verv hydrophobic and placed at a certain depth in water. In this method, the height of capillary rise of very nonwettable sample would remain under the free water level even for an infinite lime. On the other hand, the letting front of the wettable samples would be above the free water level for an infinite lime. This method is considered to he suitable for both writable and nonwettable samples. It was found that not onlv writable samples but also nonwettable samples changed to be completely lettable bv healing at 250 C, and also thai this change was particularly remarkable in the case of humic acid.

From the ratio of the maximum height of capillary rise of the sample heated at 105°C to that 250 C, the sample heated at 250 C, the water repellency of the soil sample can be represented as contact angle, whether the sample is very wettable of nonwettable.     

Water repellency of fly ash‐enriched forest soils from eastern Germany

Fly ash‐enriched soils occur widely throughout the industrial regions of eastern Germany and in other heavily industrialized areas. A limited amount of research has suggested that fly ash enrichment alters the water repellency (WR) characteristics of soil. This study concentrates on the influence of fly ash enrichment on WR of forest soils with a focus on forest floor horizons (FFHs). The soils were a Technosol developed from pure lignite fly ash, FFHs with lignite fly ash, and FFHs without lignite fly ash enrichment. Three different methods (water drop penetration time, WDPT, test; water and ethanol sorptivity measurement and the derived contact angle, θ_R; and the Wilhelmy‐plate method contact angle, θ_wpm) were used to characterize soil WR. Additionally, carbon composition was determined using ¹³C‐NMR spectra to interpret the influence of the organic matter. This study showed that the actual WR characteristics of undisturbed, fly ash‐enriched soils can be explained in terms of the composition of soil organic matter, with the fly ash content playing only a minimal role. Regardless of the huge amounts of mainly mineral fly ash enrichment, all undisturbed FFHs were comparable in their WR characteristics and their carbon compositions, which were dominated by recently‐formed organic substances. The pure fly ash deposit was strongly influenced by lignite remains, with the topsoil having a greater content of recent plant residues. Thus, the undisturbed topsoil was more repellent than the subsoil. When homogenized samples were used, we found a distinct effect of fly ash enrichment and structure on WR. Water repellency of the pure fly ash horizons did not differ distinctly, while the fly ash enrichment in the FFHs caused a significant reduction in WR. The methods used (WDPT, θ_R and θ_wpm) identified these differences similarly. These results led to the assumption that water‐repellent structures of the topsoils were probably the result of hydrophobic coatings of recently formed organic substances, whereby the initially high wettability of the mainly mineral, hydrophilic fly ash particles was reduced.     

Transitions of water‐drop impact behaviour on hydrophobic and hydrophilic particles

Extreme soil water repellency can have substantial implications for soil hydrology, plant growth and erosion, including enhanced splash erosion caused by raindrop impact. Previous studies of water droplet impact behaviour on man‐made super‐hydrophobic surfaces, with which water‐repellent soil shares similar characteristics, revealed three distinct modes of splash behaviour (rebound, pinning and fragmentation) distinguished by two transition velocities: rebound‐to‐pinning (v_min) and pinning‐to‐fragmentation (v*). By using high‐speed videography of single water droplet impacts we show that splash behaviour is influenced by the hydrophobicity of immobile particles, with hydrophobic glass spheres exhibiting all three modes of splash behaviour in the hydrophobic state but hydrophilic spheres exhibiting solely pinning behaviour. We found that increasing the particle size of fixed glass spheres increases v_min. A study of droplet impact on hydrophobic sand shows that the increased roughness of the immobile particles makes impacting droplets more likely to fragment at slower impact velocities. The mobility of the particles influenced droplet impact behaviour, with loose, hydrophobic particles displaying significantly greater v_min values than their fixed analogues. The surface tension of the water droplet also lifted loose, hydrophobic particles from the surface, forming highly mobile ‘liquid marbles'. Water‐repellent soil was also shown to form ‘liquid marbles' at both the slow (approximately 0.3–2.1 m s^?1) and fast (about 7 m s^?1) droplet impact velocities studied. The observation of very mobile liquid marbles upon water droplet impact on water‐repellent soil is significant as this provided a mechanism that may enhance erosion rates of water‐repellent soil.     

Effects of compaction on soil surface water repellency

Water repellency can reduce the infiltration capacity of soils over timescales similar to those of precipitation events. Compaction can also reduce infiltration capacity by decreasing soil hydraulic conductivity, but the effect of compaction on soil water repellency is unknown. This study explores the effect of compaction on the wettability of water repellent soil. Three air‐dry (water content ～4 g 100 g^?1) silt loam samples of contrasting wettability (non‐repellent, strongly and severely water repellent) were homogenized and subjected to various pressures in the range 0–1570 kPa in an odeometer for 24 h. Following removal, sample surface water repellency was reassessed using the water drop penetration time method and surface roughness using white light interferometry. An increase in compaction pressure caused a significant reduction in soil surface water repellency, which in turn increases the soil's initial infiltration capacity. The difference in surface roughness of soils compacted at the lowest and highest pressures was significant (at P > 0.2) suggesting an increase in the contact area between sessile water drops and soil surfaces was providing increased opportunities for surface wetting mechanisms to proceed. This suggests that compaction of a water repellent soil may lead to an increased rate of surface wetting, which is a precursor to successful infiltration of water into bulk soil. Although there may be a reduction in soil conductivity upon compaction, the more rapid initiation of infiltration may, in some circumstances, lead to an overall increase in the proportion of rain or irrigation water infiltrating water repellent soil, rather than contributing to surface run‐off or evaporation.     

Extraction and characterization of water–repellent materials from Australian soils

Organic materials responsible for water–repellency in some Australian soils were extracted with an amphiphilic mixture of iso -propanol/15.7 m ammonia (7:3, v:v) in a Soxhlet apparatus, after which the water–repellent soils were rendered wettable. The successful extraction by an organic solvent system indicates that the bulk of hydrophobicity in these soils is not covalently linked to the surface of the sand. The extracted materials restored hydrophobicity on acid washed sands or ignited sands at levels comparable to the original soils.
Spectroscopic and chromatographic examination of the extracted materials indicated that both free and esterified long–chain, 16–32 carbon atom, fatty acids were present with a bimodal distribution showing maxima at C₁₆ and C₂₂. The ¹³C–NMR and infrared spectra of the most hydrophobic extract suggest that hydrophobicity is caused by molecules with extensive polymethylene chains. Calculations with model compounds indicate that at least a close packed monolayer is required before measurable hydrophobicity can be detected with the molarity of ethanol droplet penetration test.     

Messung und Simulation der anisothermen Feuchtebewegung in benetzungsgehemmten Mineralböden

Measurement and simulation of nonisothermal moisture movement in water-repellent mineral soils Water repellency often occurs in surface soil horizons, where the temperature may have a significant effect on water movement. Relatively few studies have been conducted to measure the effect of temperature gradients on hydraulic processes in water-repellent soils. The objective of this paper is to analyze the simultaneous impact of hydraulic and thermal gradients on water movement in unsaturated soils. Four sandy soils with organic matter contents between 1.0 and 2.4 percent were used in a laboratory column experiment. The soils had similar particle size distribution and contact angles between 25 and 111 degrees. The water repellency was measured with the “sessile drop method”. The experiments were conducted with open laboratory soil columns. A ceramic plate was placed at the upper end of the soil column to allow water movement from a reservoir, the lower end was closed. The matric potential of ?175 hPa at the upper part of the column was held constant. Simultaneously a constant temperature gradient of approximatly 1.1 °C/cm was applied during the nonisothermal runs. Hydraulic properties of the four soils were determined sequentially at different temperatures (5, 20 and 38°C). The time dependent volumetric water content, matric potential and temperature were measured at five positions in the column. It was found that after steady state was established the water content and matric potential profiles of the four soils differed considerably. A computer code based on the theory of Philip and De Vries (1957) was developed to simulate water and heat transport. For three soils with contact angles of 25–35, 93–108 and 109–111 degrees, respectively, the model performed well when the theoretically calculated thermal vapor difivisivity, D_TV, was multiplied by a factor between two and three. For the slightly water repellent soil with a contact angle between 45 and 83 degrees, however, this factor was about seven to eight. This factor could be the result of a combined impact of the moderate water repellency and the micromorphology of the humic substance.     

The effect of temperature‐induced soil water repellency on transient capillary pressure–water content relations during capillary rise

Long‐term capillary rise experiments (0 to about 89 000 hour) were performed at 19°C on homogenized and heat‐treated podsolic forest top‐ and subsoil samples. These were packed into columns, the bases of which were then partially immersed, at constant depth, in water reservoirs to simulate a constant water table. Selected columns were equipped with tensiometer and TDR probes. Other columns were removed at prescribed times and divided into 2‐cm horizontal segments whose volumetric water contents were determined. The degree of saturation was then estimated by comparison with the capillary rise in duplicate arrangements of samples immersed in ethanol. It was found that the heat treatments conferred increased water repellency (WR) on the soil, which increased with temperature (significantly so at greater than 60°C). This had a profound effect on the capillary rise characteristics and development of water content in the soil behind the wetting front, indicating an effective, albeit slow, reduction in effective WR. This has implications for hydraulic modelling of soils with significant WR and demonstrates that sub‐surface WR exerts a significant influence on capillary rise from a water table and suggests that commonly used indicators of surface WR using droplet tests may not be useful for such modelling purposes.     

土壤斥水性影响土壤水分运动研究进展

土壤斥水性广泛存在于各类土壤,是影响植物生长、土壤水分运动以及土壤侵蚀等水土过程的重要因素。该文阐述了土壤斥水性的基本概念,介绍了几种常用的斥水性强度测定方法及适用范围。在此基础上,论文对土壤斥水性如何影响土壤水力性质以及水分运动特征等研究现状作了全面评述,重点讨论了近年来该领域的研究热点,如土壤斥水性影响下的指流观测和理论模拟以及斥水性土壤蒸发过程等。最后,提出了相关研究中亟待解决的若干关键科学问题,主要包括确定土壤斥水性影响指流现象和蒸发过程的物理机制的揭示;考虑土壤斥水性参数的土壤水分运动数学模型的构建;以及对新模型的求解及对数值解的理论分析。由于土壤斥水性对土壤水分运动有重要的关联效应,相关问题的深入研究对进一步认识土壤水分运动的内在物理机制具有重要理论意义,也将为掌握和有效利用土壤斥水性提供实践指导。     

Assessment of soil water repellency as a function of soil moisture with mixed modelling

An understanding of the relation between soil water repellency (SWR) and soil moisture is a prerequisite of water‐flow modelling in water‐repellent soil. Here, the relation between SWR and soil moisture was investigated with intact cores of soil taken from three types of soil with different particle‐size distributions. The SWR was measured by a sessile drop contact angle (CA) during drying at soil pF values that ranged from ?∞ to 4.2. From the measured CA, the work of adhesion (W_a) was calculated and its relation with the pF‐value was explored. Mixed modelling was applied to evaluate the effects of pF, soil type and soil depth on CA and W_a. For all soil types, a positive relation was observed between CA and the pF‐value that could be represented by a linear model for the pF‐range of 1–4.2. The variation in slope and intercept of the CA–pF relationship caused by heterogeneity of the samples taken from a single soil horizon was quantified. In addition, the relation between CA and water content (WC) showed hysteresis, with significantly larger CAs during drying than during wetting.     

Contact angle of soils as affected by depth, texture, and land management

Water repellency can be a significant factor in soil physical behaviour, but little is known about the depth dependence of the contact angle of field soils. We investigated contact angles and wetting properties as a function of depth for a wide range of agricultural and forest soils in Germany. The agricultural soils ranged from silty to sandy texture (six profiles), and the forest soils ranged from sandy to loamy texture (eight profiles). Contact angles (CA) were measured with the Wilhelmy plate method (WPM). In most of the soils, advancing WPM contact angles were considerably greater than 0° and they varied irregularly with depth. In general, sandy soils had larger WPM contact angles than silty soils. From the relation of the contact angle with texture and pH the quality of soil organic matter (SOM) was considered as more important for the wetting properties than the total amount of soil organic carbon (SOC). Finally, it was found that for soils with intermediate sand contents either under agricultural or forest use, the kind of land use seemed not to influence CA. Coarse‐textured sandy soils that were used only as forest sites were more hydrophobic than silty soils which were exclusively used as agricultural soils. We conclude that a coarse texture favours, in combination with other factors (mainly pH), hydrophobic SOM.     

Effects of contact angle on fingered flow during non-ponding infiltration into dry sand layers

Abstract

Gravity-driven fingered flow may readily occur in dry sand layers with small capillary force at the same order of magnitude as gravitational force. Capillary force is related to the contact angle. The present study examined the effects of contact angle on fingered flow development, finger size and fingertip velocity during non-ponding infiltration into dry sand layers. For contact angles of 48–87°, an induction zone always formed in the sand layer, and only one finger developed from the induction zone. Fingertip width reached a minimum value when the contact angle was approximately 70°, and the width and velocity of fingertips were negatively correlated. This finding suggests that a contact angle of approximately 70° has a physical significance for fingered flow to determine fingertip velocity and width. In addition, when the contact angle was 91°, the supplied water did not spontaneously penetrate the sand surface; instead, water drops built up on the surface and two fingers directly formed from the surface. This indicates that 90° is indeed the critical contact angle for water repellency and affects fingered flow development during non-ponding infiltration.     

Analyzing capillary‐rise method settings for contact‐angle determination of granular media§

Water repellency is a relevant topic in soil‐science research due to its effects on vegetation growth, occurrence of surface runoff, infiltration, and erosion. Different methods have been adapted for the assessment of soil wettability by measuring the contact angle (CA), like the capillary‐rise method (CRM), where the liquid penetration dynamics into a dry sample is analyzed. However, questions related to sample preparation and the use of a suitable reference liquid in order to improve the reproducibility in such heterogeneous materials are still open. Different methods use ethanol as a reference liquid to quantify the degree of water repellency, like the molarity of ethanol droplets (MED), whereas other methods (CRM) suggest in addition n‐hexane as reference. To date, no generally accepted protocol has been invented to apply the CRM to soil particles. By using model porous materials with defined and stable levels of water repellency (silt, sand, and glass beads), CA results were compared for different initial settings of the sample. The main objective was to prove the CRM as a reliable and reproducible method to characterize soil wettability and to specify general guidelines for its application for granular materials in terms of sample size, sample‐packing procedure, and reference liquid. Results showed that a sample weight of ≈ 2 g has a relatively lower CA variation between replications. The packing procedure showed erratic results in CA, proving to be a critical factor in reproducibility. A uniform criterion of samples packing is recommended regarding application of CRM in soils. Regarding the reference liquid, n‐hexane should be preferred instead of ethanol for dynamic CA determination, because ethanol increased the tendency of CRM to overestimate angles due to dynamic effects, especially in finer‐textured materials (i.e., silt).