Particle packing and organization of the textural porosity in clay–silt–sand mixtures

The packing of elementary particles in soil largely determines the properties that depend on the textural soil pore space, but is studied little. The relations between packing and size and nature of soil particles were studied using fractions of clay, silt and sand, mixed when wet and then dried. Ternary mixtures (clay:silt:sand) were compared with binary mixtures (clay:silt, clay:sand). The pore space of the mixtures was studied using mercury porosimetry and scanning electron microscopy. In all the mixtures the textural pore space was divided into two compartments: (1) lacunar pores due to the presence of skeleton particles and to the shrinkage of the clay phase between these particles, and (2) the clay–fabric pores due to the packing of the clay. In the ternary mixtures, lacunar pores could be divided into two classes: (1) those due to sand particles within the clay–slit phase considered as a single phase, and (2) those due to silt particles within this same phase. For certain mixtures, lacunar pores, referred to as hidden lacunar pores, were not interconnected but were occluded. This occurred both for hidden pores caused by the presence of sand and occluded by the clay–slit phase, and for hidden pores caused by the presence of silt and occluded by the clay phase. The relations between these types of textural pores and the proportions of different size fractions in the mixtures provide guidelines for making optimum use of the particle-size characteristics of the soil to determine its properties.     

Effect of electrolyte solution on saturated hydraulic conductivity of soils varying in clay type and content,and iron oxides

Changes of hydraulic conductivity (HC) at electrolyte solutions having different combinations of sodium adsorption ratio (SAR)¹ and electrolyte concentration (EC), were monitored in soil columns packed with samples from Rhodustalf, Chromustert, Andic Eutropept and Oxic Rhodustult, four subtropical soils varying in clay type and content, and iron oxides. In general, it was observed that the HC dropped with the decrease of EC and with the increase in SAR of solutions, or, with the increase in exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP) of the soil. In montmorillonitic soils the reduction of HC had been most pronounced, while the kaolinite-rich soils showed only an insignificant drop in HC even at the highest SAR coupled with the lowest EC. The improvement or revival of HC from its final drop was examined upon leaching the soil columns finally with the initial high concentration solution. Montmorillonitic soils showed moderate to high revival of HC, while for montmorillonite-illite-kaolinite mixed clayey soils and kaolinitic soils the improvement of HC was low and practically nil respectively. The percentage revival of HC from its final drop was employed as a criterion to assess the major cause of HC reduction and it was found that irrespective of clay mineralogy “dispersion and subsequent pore plugging” played a major role in reducing the HC of soils, though in montmorillonitic soils swelling had been found to be an almost equivalent additional cause of HC drop. Simple correlations (r) between the saturated HC at varying SAR & EC and different physico-chemical and mineralogical properties have been calculated and its role and implications have been discussed.     

Effect of soil organic matter, electrical conductivity and sodium adsorption ratio on tensile strength of aggregates

The properties of soils affected by salinity and processes involving degradation of soil structure have been partly recognized. However, the effects of saline and sodic conditions on mechanical and physical properties of soils have been studied to a lesser extent. In this research, the effects of electrical conductivity (EC) and sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) on soils possessing various amounts of organic matter were assessed under laboratory conditions. The soils contained a uniform clay type, predominantly Illite. The major difference of the soils was their amount of organic matter content. The treatments consisted of solutions with definite EC and SAR (two levels of EC: 0.5 and 4 dS/m and three levels of SAR: 0, 5 and 15). The amount of tensile strength was dependent on organic matter, EC, and SAR in a way that with the increase of SAR, the tensile strength decreased. In similar SAR, treatments with higher EC exhibited greater tensile strength. Also, the soils with higher organic matter showed greater tensile strength. The analysis of variance showed the significant difference (at 1%) between the mean of parameters analyzed (soil type, sampling depth, EC, and SAR). The order of averages of tensile strength were: permanent pasture (Agropyron elengatum)Festuca arusdinaceae)相似文献   

Soil structure and the saturated hydraulic conductivity of subsoils

The saturated hydraulic conductivity, K_sat, was measured on soil samples collected from the plough layer and the subsoil. A range of naturally occurring soil bulk densities was obtained by sampling in different years, with different crops and within and without wheel-tracks, etc. It was found that, for the plough layer, quite good linear relationships exist between the logarithm of K_sat and the bulk density. However, for the subsoils, the value of K_sat usually lies above the regression line for found for the corresponding plough layer. This “excess” hydraulic conductivity of subsoils is attributed to the presence of biopores, especially root channels. The lower hydraulic conductivity of the plough layer, relative to the subsoil, is attributed to the destruction of these biopores by tillage. A simple model for the separate contributions of soil texture and root channels to the overall value of K_sat is presented. It is concluded that subsoil tillage could cause significant reductions in K_sat with potentially serious environmental consequences unless it is repeated periodically.     

Scaling the saturated hydraulic conductivity of an alfisol

Alfisols exhibit a high degree of spatial variability in their physical properties. As a result, it is difficult to use information on physical parameters measured at one location to model larger-scale hydrologic processes. In this study, the saturated hydraulic conductivity, K_S , of an Alfisol was determined on 109 undisturbed monoliths using the falling-head permeameter method. The model developed by Arya & Paris (1981) was used to calculate the pore volume from sand and clay fractions. Scaling factors were calculated from the measured K_s , sand pore-volume, clay pore-volume, clay content and effective porosity, using the similar media concept. Prediction of K_s of gravelly Alfisol using clay pore-volume is confounded by high gravel content which, when discounted, improves the prediction remarkably. The scaled mean saturated hydraulic conductivity K* for all horizons of the Alfisol was approximately l.0x 10⁻⁵ms⁻¹.     

Evaluation method dependency of measured saturated hydraulic conductivity

Saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) is one of the most important hydraulic properties affecting water flow in soils. Spatial and seasonal variability as well as scale dependency are key factors which make it more difficult to accurately measure the saturated hydraulic conductivity. The uncertainty of the Ks values due to different evaluation methods was investigated using raw measured data obtained on two different Hungarian soils with three different in situ measuring devices (double ring, tension disc and mini disc infiltrometers), as well as with two laboratory methods. Since the very same raw infiltration data could result in significantly different Ks values, we have introduced the evaluation method dependency of the measured Ks values. Our investigations found that the effect of the applied evaluation method for assessing raw measured data can be just as significant as the effect of other factors, such as the scale effect, as well as the spatial and temporal variability.     

Influence of growing plants and nitrogen fertilizer on saturated hydraulic conductivity

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted on a sandy loam (typic Hapludoll) to test the effect of maize (Zea mays L.) and nitrogen (N) fertilizers on soil saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat). Half of the plots were planted to maize and the other half were kept unplanted. All the plots were fertilized at the rate of 75 kg ha^‐1, with two fertilizers differing in their acidity index [calcium ammonium nitrate (CAN)=16 and ammonium sulphate (AS)=111]. Undisturbed topsoil samples were taken at the time of maize harvest to determine soil Ksat in the laboratory. Total organic carbon (TOC) and soluble carbon (SC), pH (1:2.5), and the electrical conductivity (EC) of soil saturated extract were determined in grounded and sieved soil samples. The Ksat reached the highest values under maize fertilized with AS. Most of the variation of soil Ksat was determined by the increment of soil salinity. So, soil permeability improvements were caused by a greater flocculation of soil colloids because of saline effects. Soil pH decrease caused by these acid N sources did not provoke the dissolution of organic matter because none of the carbon (C)‐forms measured in the experiment were affected by the fertilization. Thus, other C‐compounds different from those here measured might be improving soil permeability.     

土柱尺寸对扰动黏壤土饱和导水率的影响

土壤饱和导水率Ks是最基本的水力参数之一,而已知实验室内其值的确定受土柱尺寸的影响.以关中的塿土为研究对象,在室内,采用定水头法,研究5～30 cm内6个不同土柱尺寸对扰动黏壤土Ka测定的影响.结果表明：随着时间的延伸,Ks逐渐减小,其值最初降幅较大,其后趋于稳定,且在5 ～ 30 cm土柱直径范围内,Ks随着土柱直径的变大,扰动黏壤土的Ks递增,二者线性相关,y=0.000 4x＋0.003 7（R2=0.965 1）.研究结果可为测定Ks合理测定时间段及合理尺寸的选择提供参考.     

Field-scale spatial variability of saturated hydraulic conductivity on a recently constructed artificial ecosystem

Saturated hydraulic conductivity (K_s) influences water storage and movement, and is a key parameter of water and solute transport models. Systematic field evaluation of K_s and its spatial variability for recently constructed artificial ecosystems is still lacking. The objectives of the present study were; (1) to determine saturated hydraulic conductivity of an artificial ecosystem using field methods (Philip-Dunne, and Guelph permeameters), and compare their results to the constant-head laboratory method; (2) to evaluate the spatial variability of K_s using univariate and geostatistical analyses, and (3) to evaluate the ability of five pedotransfer functions to predict K_s. The results showed that K_s varied significantly (p < 0.05) among methods, probably reflecting differences in scales of measurement, flow geometry, assumptions in computation routines and inherent disturbances during sampling. Mean K_s values were very high for all methods (38.6-77.9 m day^− 1), exceeding values for natural sandy soils by several orders of magnitude. The high K_s values and low coefficients of variation (26-44%) were comparable to that of well-sorted unconsolidated marine sands. Geostatistical analysis revealed a spatial structure in surface K_s data described by a spherical model with a correlation range of 8 m. The resulting kriged map of surface K_s showed alternating bands of high and low values, consistent with surface structures created by wheel tracks of construction equipment. Vertical K_s was also spatially structured, with a short correlation range of 40 cm, presumably indicative of layering caused by post-construction mobilization and deposition of fine particles. K_s was linearly and negatively correlated with dry soil bulk density (ρ_b) (r² = 0.73), and to a lesser extent silt plus clay percentage (Si + C) (r² = 0.21). Combining both ρ_b and Si + C significantly (p < 0.05) improved the relationship and gave the best predictor of K_s (r² = 0.76). However, evaluation of five PTFs developed for natural soils showed that they all underestimated K_s by an order of magnitude, suggesting that application of water balance simulation models based on such PTFs to the present study site may constitute a bias in model outputs. Overall, the study demonstrated the influence of material handling, construction procedures and post-construction processes on the magnitude and spatial variability of K_s on a recently constructed artificial ecosystem. These unique hydraulic properties may have profound impacts on soil moisture storage, plant water relations and water balance fluxes on artificial ecosystems, particularly where such landforms are intended to restore pre-disturbance ecological and hydrological functions.     

The measurement of the variation with depth of the hydraulic conductivity of saturated soil monoliths

Hydraulic conductivity profiles of saturated composite porous columns were obtained in two ways: first, from measurements of the hydraulic potential profiles with uniform vertical flow; and second, by making use of a potential theorem concerning the flow between sources and sinks, from measurements of the hydraulic potential difference between the ponded surface and the base when the flow was intercepted in turn by successive drains located at intervals down the column. Both techniques gave the same results. The hydraulic conductivity profile of a structurally unstable column changed significantly with time, suggesting that such measurements might be used to monitor soil structural changes and root development in lysimeter studies.     

Effect of data resolution on soil hydraulic conductivity prediction

The aim of the paper is to compare results of the instantaneous profile method (IPM) for measurement and calculation of unsaturated hydraulic conductivity k(ψ) of soils obtained with different measurement data resolution. The application of IPM allows to realize a great number of k(ψ) measurements for the purpose of mapping soil properties on large areas. Application of shorter samples i.e. less sensors makes the method even more quick and cheap. The calculation of unsaturated soil water conductivity by the IPM method bases on measurements of time and space variability of water content and water pressure within the soil sample in a cylinder. The spatial resolution of data depends on the number of probes applied in the core. The question arises how the number of compartments within one core influences the calculation of soil hydraulic conductivity. Application of three sensors instead of five reduced the accuracy of calculation but allowes to use 5 cm long standard cores during unsaturated flow experiment.<?show $6#>     

Control of hydraulic conductivity and chromium mobility in soil-drilling fluid mixtures by polyacrylamide

Land disposal of water-based oil and gas well drilling fluid is an cause of environmental concern due to the high salt concentration and potential chromium (Cr) contamination of groundwater. Safe land disposal of waste drilling fluid and remediation of drilling fluidaffected soils require an adequate hydraulic conductivity for the leaching of excessive salt accumulation and immobilization of Cr to prevent groundwater contamination. Anahuac and Crowley sandy loam surface soils sampled near the southern Louisiana-Texas state line were treated by a batch method with the drilling fluid and two cationic polyacrylamides (PAMs). The PAMs were used as amendments to increase the hydraulic conductivity and the adsorption capacity of the drilling fluid-affected soils for the Cr organic complex. Hydraulic conductivity of the soil-drilling fluid mixtures and light transmittance of the leachates increased, while the Cr mobility decreased by the PAM treatment. The larger PAM molecules were more effective in improving the hydraulic conductivity of the soil-drilling fluid mixtures than the smaller molecules. The Anahuac soil-drilling fluid mixtures showed a higher hydraulic conductivity and lower Cr mobility than the Crowley soil-drilling fluid mixtures apparently because of the higher organic matter content and lower sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) of the former. The hydraulic conductivity, light transmittance, and Cr mobility data indicated that the PAM treatment and soil organic matter enhanced the flocculation and aggregate stability of the soil-drilling fluid mixtures and contributed to the immobilization of the Cr added as lignosulfonate to the soils.     

Spatial scaling of saturated hydraulic conductivity of soils in a small watershed on the Loess Plateau, China

Purpose

Soil saturated hydraulic conductivity (K _S) is a key variable in hydrologic processes, the parameters of which have strong scale-dependency. Knowing the scaling dependency of K _S is important when designing an appropriate sampling strategy.

Materials and methods

Determinations of K _S were made for 4,865 undisturbed soil samples, collected from a grid with cells of 10?×?10?m in the Daye watershed (50?ha) on the Loess Plateau, China. The dataset was ??re-sampled?? to investigate the effect on K _S of scales that differed by two orders of magnitude in terms of spacing and support, and eight scales of extent. The variance, correlation length, and nugget?Csill ratio derived by analysis of the full dataset were taken to be the true values. Apparent values of variance, correlation length, and nugget?Csill ratio were those calculated for each re-sampled data sub-set.

Results and discussion

Comparing the parameter values at different scales showed that apparent variance increased with increasing extent (p?<?0.01), decreased with increasing support (p?<?0.01), but was not significantly affected by spacing (p?=?0.137). Apparent correlation length increased with increasing extent and support (p?<?0.01). As spacing increased below 1.1 times the true correlation length (i.e., below 80?m), the apparent correlation length decreased slightly but, as spacing increased above 80?m, it notably increased. Apparent nugget?Csill ratio decreased with increasing spacing and support (p?<?0.01), and increased with increasing extent (p?<?0.01). The scaling dependency for K _S was in the order of extent > support > spacing for all three parameters, with mean coefficient of determination values of 0.96, 0.88, and 0.53, respectively.

Conclusions

The statistical properties investigated for K _S were found to be scaling-dependent, which would benefit sampling strategy design.     

Estimating the saturated hydraulic conductivity in a spatially variable soil with different permeameters: a stochastic Kozeny–Carman relation

The spatial variability of the saturated hydraulic conductivity (K_s) of a greenhouse banana plantation volcanic soil was investigated with three different permeameters: (a) the Philip-Dunne field permeameter, an easy to implement and low cost device; (b) the Guelph field permeameter; (c) the constant head laboratory permeameter. K_s was measured on a 14×5 array of 2.5 m×5 m rectangles at 0.15 m depth using the above three methods. K_s differences obtained with the different permeameters are explained in terms of flow dimensionality and elementary volume explored by the three methods. A sinusoidal spatial variation of K_s was coincident with the underlying alignment of banana plants on the field. This was explained in terms of soil disturbances, such as soil compaction, originated by management practices and tillage. Soil salinity showed some coincidence in space with the hydraulic conductivity, because of the irrigation system distribution, but a causal relationship between the two is however difficult to support. To discard the possibility of an artefact, the original 70 point mesh was doubled by intercalation of a second 14×5 grid, such that the laboratory K_s was finally determined on a 140 points 2.5 m×2.5 m square grid. Far from diluting such anisotropy this was further strengthened after inclusion of the new 70 points. The porosity (φ) determined on the same laboratory cores shows a similar sigmoid trend, thus pointing towards a plausible explanation for such variability. A power-law relationship was found between saturated hydraulic conductivity and porosity, K_sφⁿ (r²=0.38), as stated by the Kozeny–Carman relation. A statistical reformulation of the Kozeny–Carman relation is proposed that both improved its predictability potential and allows comparisons between different representative volumes, or K_s data sets with different origin. Although the two-field methods: Guelph and Philip-Dunne, also follow a similar alignment trend, this is not so evident, suggesting that additional factors affect K_s measured in the field. Finally, geostatistical techniques such as cross correlograms estimation are used to further investigate this spatial dependence.     

Effect of desiccation cracking on the hydraulic conductivity of a compacted clay liner

Despite our best efforts to reduce the waste stream, there will always remain some residues which cannot be further treated and must be disposed in landfills. One critical aspect of landfill construction is the integrity of the landfill liner. Current landfill liner technology includes a composite liner which consists of a FML component and a compacted soil component. The primary characteristic for selecting a soil for use in composite liner construction is that the soil have a saturated hydraulic conductivity of 1 × 10^?7 cm s^?1 or less. In the present study the effects of desiccation cracks on the hydraulic conductivity of the compacted soil were measured. Two soils of diverse mineralogy and typical of soils used for clay liner construction were selected for use. Each was tested in its native state plus after the addition of 30% sand. Laboratory measurements were made of the volumetric shrinkage of each soil. In addition, the hydraulic conductivity was determined using 10 cm diameter fixed wall permeameters. Additional conductivity measurements were made using 60 cm diameter fixed wall double ring permeameters which had been exposed to 0, 1, and 2 periods of desiccation prior to hydraulic conductivity determinations. The data show that laboratory measurements using 10- cm diameter fixed wall permeameters underestimate the hydraulic conductivity of the same soils when packed in large diameter permeameters. It was also found that exposure to two cycles of desiccation resulted in large increases in hydraulic conductivity. The time required to reach a steady outflow volume decreased as the amount of desiccation increased. The hydraulic conductivities of soils which had been allowed to dry were greater than those which were not allowed to dry prior to measurement. The relationship between volumetric shrinkage and the increase in hydraulic conductivity after desiccation indicates that soils which exhibit less than 11% shrinkage in the laboratory, exhibit increases in K of less than a factor of 2 upon desiccation. Clay soils with greater than 11% shrinkage can potentially be amended with sand to decrease the volumetric shrinkage and their response to desiccation.     

Water retention and hydraulic conductivity of a loamy sand soil as influenced by crop rotation and fertilization

Measurements are reported of soil organic carbon content, dry bulk density, water retention characteristics, and saturated hydraulic conductivity of a sandy loam soil with two different crop rotations and two levels of fertilization. The water retention characteristics were fitted to the van Genuchten equation. Values of unsaturated hydraulic conductivity were estimated by calculation. It was found that crop rotation has much larger effects on these soil physical properties than fertilization. Water retention and hydraulic conductivity are greater when mustard, and clover with grass are included in the crop rotation, but only at water contents greater than 0,10 and 0, 13 kg kg^?1respectívely.     

Different responses in bulk density and saturated hydraulic conductivity to soil deformation by logging machinery on a Ferralsol under native forest

Ferralsols have high structural stability, although structural degradation has been observed to result from forest to tillage or pasture conversion. An experimental series of forest skidder passes in an east Amazonian natural forest was performed for testing the effects of mechanical stress during selective logging operations on a clay‐rich Ferralsol under both dry and wet soil conditions. Distinct ruts formed up to 25 cm depth only under wet conditions. After nine passes the initially very low surface bulk density of between 0.69 and 0.80 g cm^?3 increased to 1.05 g cm^?3 in the wet soil and 0.92 g cm^?3 in the dry soil. Saturated hydraulic conductivities, initially >250 mm h^?1, declined to a minimum of around 10 mm h^?1 in the wet soil after the first pass, and in the dry soil more gradually after nine passes. The contrasting response of bulk density and saturated hydraulic conductivity is explained by exposure of subsoil material at the base of the ruts where macrostructure rapidly deteriorated under wet conditions. We attribute the resultant moderately high hydraulic conductivities to the formation of stable microaggregates with fine sand to coarse silt textures. We conclude that the topsoil macrostructure of Ferralsols is subject to similar deterioration to that of Luvisols in temperate zones. The stable microstructure prevents marked compaction and decrease in hydraulic conductivity under wetter and more plastic soil conditions. However, typical tropical storms may regularly exceed the infiltration capacity of the deformed soils. In the deeper ruts water may concentrate and cause surface run‐off, even in gently sloping areas. To avoid soil erosion, logging operations in sloping areas should therefore be restricted to dry soil conditions when rut formation is minimal.     

Effects of microorganisms on hydraulic conductivity decrease in infiltration

Microorganisms can clog pores in soils and decrease hydraulic conductivity and infiltration. We did three column experiments to clarify the effects. In all three columns, glucose solution of 50 μg cm⁻³ was percolated for 120 days, and both the saturated hydraulic conductivity, K _s, and the volume ratio of the gas phase, a , were measured continuously. The K _s decreased rapidly for the initial 10 days, and it slowly decreased for the following 110 days. By adding chloramphenicol to the second column as bactericide and cycloheximide to the third column as fungicide, we observed clogging by bacteria and fungi, respectively, bacterial clogging proceeding more rapidly than the fungal clogging. The volume of the gas phase increased and reached the maximum value of 30.6% after 103 days from the beginning of percolation. This large amount of gas was retained in the soil pores as bubbles and occluded the pathways of water, resulting in the decrease in K _s. When the percolating solution was changed to sodium azide (a strong biocide), after 120 days the volume of the gas phase decreased rapidly, and K _s increased simultaneously.     

Effect of 1-1 electrolyte concentration on the adsorption/desorption of copper ion on synthetic birnessite

Purpose  

Oxides are ubiquitous in nature and play an important role in scavenging metal ions from soils and sediments. At the common pH range of the natural environment the well-studied Fe and Al oxides mostly carry a positive charge and adsorbed amounts of heavy metals, and their desorption percentages decrease with increasing ionic strength. The less well studied but also important Mn oxides possess negative charges in the natural environment and this will lead to a different behavior. Therefore, it is useful to further investigate how the electrolyte concentration and type affect the metal ion adsorption/desorption by Mn oxides.