Changes In Moisture Retention Properties Of Five Waste Materials During Short-Term Mesophilic Composting

The effect of composting for a maximum period of 90 days on the water retention characteristics of five waste materials — coconut dust (CD) (also known as coir), mixed sawdust (SD), rice hulls (RH), sapwood sawdust (SW) and heartwood sawdust (HW) was investigated with or without the addition of nitrogen. Total porosity (TP), easily available water (EAW) and water buffering capacity (WBC) were increased with time in all five materials, while air space (AS) was decreased in all the materials except in rice hulls, where it increased. Of all the materials, CD retained the most moisture and RH the least after 90 days. SD, SW and HW had similar characteristics, and separation for utilization is unnecessary. Nitrogen addition did not affect TP and AS but slightly increased EAW and WBC. Formulation and management of potting media using these materials should take into account these moisture retention changes for maximum benefit to plants grown in them.     

Frost action in clay soils. II. Ice and water location and suction of unfrozen water in clays below 0°C

The relation between temperature, unfrozen water content (UWC) and shrinkage of a number of clays, and the distribution of ice and water within the clays, was studied. The clays included sodium and calcium Wyoming bentonites, < 1 μm and 1–2 μm kaolinite and three English subsoil clays. On freezing blocks of these clays (initial size up to approximately 1 cm³) over a period of months, they shrank progressively with reduction in temperature studied except for the < 1 μm and 1–2 μm kaolinites, which ceased shrinking at – 0.24°C and – 0.73°C respectively. During shrinkage, the water in the clay blocks migrated to freeze outside the blocks where ice was already nucleated. After equilibration for a month at – 0.19°C and at – 0.73°C, the water contents of the finer clays, excluding ice bands, equalled the UWCs measured previously using a differential scanning calorimeter. Two stages of ice formation were apparent in the curves of UWC vs temperature and were attributed to the different locations of the ice in the clays. Initially, ice formed in bands outside the clay matrix, accompanied by clay shrinkage (Stage 1). After a shrinkage limit had been reached ice began to form within the pores of the clay (Stage 2). Comparisons of the results of these freezing experiments with conventional moisture-release curves showed that the suction of the unfrozen water in clays was, within experimental error, as predicted by the Schofield equation. Results are also discussed in terms of ice-water and air-water interfacial tensions.     

PORE SIZE DISTRIBUTION IN CRITICAL POINT AND FREEZE DRIED AGGREGATES FROM CLAY SUBSOILS

Using aggregates from 2 clay soils over a range of water contents from pF 1 to oven dry, shrinkage and water release curves were measured and pore size distributions found by mercury porosimetry after critical point and after freeze drying. Freeze drying caused less shrinkage, the maximum being 6 cm³ 100 g^?1 from pF 1, but gave a large increase, up to 10 cm³ 100 g^?1, of pores in the 0.1–10 μm size range. Critical point drying produced more shrinkage from pF 1, more than half of which was attributed to loss of interlamellar water and the rest to the collapse of pores larger than 10 μm. In these clays the volume of pores of over 3 μm diameter was very small (<3 cm³ 100 g^?1) and most of the plant available water was released by collapse of narrower pores and not by pore emptying.     

再生水水质对斥水和亲水土壤水分特征曲线的影响

为探求再生水灌溉对斥水和亲水土壤水力特性的影响,该文选用有代表性的斥水黏壤土和亲水黏壤土、斥水砂土和亲水砂土,测定其在自来水、再生水和其他4种生活污水条件下的土壤水分特征曲线,采用主成分分析法得到不同水质综合指标,分析水质综合指标对不同土壤水分特征曲线的影响,采用van Genuchten-Mualem模型对黏壤土土-水曲线的参数进行拟合,并分析水质综合指标对黏壤土累积当量孔径分布、比水容量和水分常数的影响。结果表明:在相同基质吸力情况下,黏壤土含水率随水质综合指标增加(水质变差)而减小,砂土的含水率随水质变化不大;在低吸力段,斥水和亲水黏壤土的比水容量随水质综合指标的增加而增加;土壤进气值与水质综合指标呈显著负线性相关关系(R~2分别为0.94和0.78);相同水质条件下,斥水土壤的进气值比亲水土壤小;随着水质综合指标的增加,斥水和亲水黏壤土的极微孔隙降低,而中等孔隙和大孔隙增加,小于某当量孔径的累积百分比增加;随着水质综合指标的增加,斥水和亲水黏壤土的田间持水率、凋萎系数、有效水和易利用水比例均减小,但再生水对田间持水率和易利用水比例降低作用不显著。研究结果可为大面积再生水灌溉及其管理提供一定的理论依据。     

Effects of organic carbon and clay contents on structure-related properties of arable soils with high clay content

Understanding of factors governing soil structural features is necessary for managing key processes affecting crop productivity and environmental impacts of agriculture, for example, soil water balance, aeration, and root penetration. Organic matter is known to act as a major binding agent in soil aggregation and thus constitutes a central pillar in soil structure formation. However, knowledge of the structural role of organic matter or carbon (OC) in soils highly rich in clay-sized particles (<0.002 mm) is limited. In this study, the effects of clay and OC contents on aggregate stability, water holding capacity, near-saturated hydraulic conductivity, total porosity, and pore size distribution were assessed in cultivated fields with high clay content located in private crop production farms in southern Finland. Significant positive correlations were found between OC content and proportion of water stable aggregates and specific pore sizes from the range of 30 μm up to 1 mm diameter determined by image analysis. Porosities on a smaller size range derived from water retention measurements likewise showed a positive correlation with OC in <0.2 μm sizes. On the range of 0.2–1 μm, a negative relationship was observed, which induced a negative effect of OC on soil plant available water reserves. In line with the positive correlation between OC and larger soil pores, free water, representing the amount of water that can be drained by gravity, exhibited a positive relationship with OC suggesting that OC content can enhance aeration of soils with high clay content. Compared to OC, clay content tended to have an adverse effect on soil structural properties. Clay correlated negatively with pores larger than 30 μm, free water content, and extrapolated field saturated hydraulic conductivity. Further, our imaging results showed how saturated hydraulic conductivity was controlled by pore morphology, and there was a power law relationship between the conductivity and critical pore diameter. $K\propto d_c^2$ in agreement with the percolation theory. Overall, the structural impacts and hydrological implications of OC and clay in heavy clay soils vary by pore size ranges and their emergent practical impacts are thus not straightforward.     

小碎石与细土混合介质的导水特性

含碎石土壤的导水性质研究有利于这种多孔介质水分运动的模拟。本文采用室内定水头法和离心机法分别测定两种质地土壤(壤土、黏壤土)和三种岩性小粒径(2~10 mm)碎石构成的土石混合介质的饱和导水率和水分特征曲线,采用van Genuchten-Mualem模型计算各土石介质的非饱和导水率,分析碎石对土壤导水能力的影响。试验结果显示,风化程度低的碎石对黏壤土具有明显的增大饱和导水率的作用,且碎石含量愈高,增加的效果愈明显;而风化程度高的碎石对土壤结构无明显的改善作用,且对黏壤土具有减小饱和导水率的作用。风化程度低碎石介质的非饱和导水率随土壤水吸力的增加呈现了先大于土壤和土石介质的后迅速减小到低于土壤和土石介质的变化过程。风化程度低的河卵石和风化程度高的粉泥页岩碎屑分别构成的土石介质的非饱和导水率较土壤的低,而风化程度中等的片麻状花岗岩碎块构成的土石介质的非饱和导水率较土壤的高。近饱和状态下,碎石含量高的土石介质的非饱和导水率也相应的高,而较大的土壤水吸力下,土石介质的非饱和导水率呈现随碎石含量的增大而减小变化趋势。试验结论可为含碎石土壤水分平衡研究提供参考。     

Compost Use in Plant Nurseries: Hydrological and Physicochemical Characteristics

A study was conducted to collect, classify and analyze a large number of compost samples to establish a database for determining the relative quality of different types of composts and their potential use based on their hydrological and physicochemical characteristics. Special attention was devoted to the use of compost for flower growing, which extended the analysis to include substrates, such as peats and organic substrates for pot coltures. Some 64 samples of various composts were collected directly from production plants in northern Italy. Depending on the starting raw materials, compost samples were grouped in six categories: sludge compost; animal manure compost; slaughterhouse waste compost; source separated MSW compost; raw MSW compost and yard waste compost. At the same time, 52 samples chosen from among peats and organic substrates, for professional growers and amateur gardeners, were obtained or bought from greenhouses, garden centres and shops. Hydrological and physicochemical properties of the 116 samples (composts, peats and substrates) were determined including: easily available water (EAW), water buffering capacity, (WBC), air capacity, total porosity, bulk density, real density, pH, specific electrical conductivity, cation exchange capacity, organic carbon and ash     

Structural collapse and strength of some Australian soils in relation to hard setting: II. Tensile strength of collapsed aggregates

The strength of soils is related to structural stability. Aggregate structure which collapses on wetting may set to a hard, consolidated layer on drying (hard setting). This process may be moderated by suction wetting and possibly by application of calcium, but the mechanism of moderation is not clear. We investigated the collapse-strength relationship and the mechanism by which wetting method and calcium act to reduce strength in hard setting and non-hard setting soils. Indirect tensile strength of aggregate beds that had been wetted with water or 10mM CaCI₂ by rapid flooding or at a suction of 200 mm, was measured after draining to various suctions and drying at 40°C. The greater the volume strain during wetting and draining, the greater the tensile strength. Beds that were suction wetted, either with water or calcium solution, showed minimal collapse and did not develop high strength on drying. Water-flooded beds had the greatest dry strength while beds flooded with calcium solution developed significantly lower strength. The critical factor determining tensile strength of the beds appeared to be the presence of large (>75 μm diameter) pores. The greater the volume strain on wetting, the smaller the proportion of larger pores and the greater the tensile strength on drying. Flood wetting caused more loss of large pores and closer packing of particles. Wetting with calcium solution did not affect the degree of collapse compared with that of water alone but did produce beds with larger pores than when wetted with water. Consequently the strength of the calcium-wetted beds was lower.     

崩岗不同土层土壤水力学特性差异性分析

为研究崩岗不同土层土壤水力学特性的差异性,采用离心法测定不同土层土壤水分特征曲线,筛选出适合的土壤水分特征曲线拟合模型,结合统计模型,推求土壤的当量孔径分布、比水容量、非饱和导水率和扩散率,分析崩岗不同土层土壤水力学参数的变化规律。结果表明,崩岗土层从红土层到砂土层的变化过程中,土壤质地由黏土向砂土变化;Fredlund&Xing模型对崩岗土壤土水特征曲线拟合效果最好;参数θs、α、n随着质地变黏重逐渐减小;随着土层深度的增加,土壤的持水性能降低;土壤比水容量、非饱和导水率和扩散率受土壤质地和基质吸力的共同影响。在低吸力阶段,3个指标随基质吸力变化比较平缓,砂土层土壤比水容量和非饱和导水率最大,扩散率最小;而在高吸力阶段,砂土层土壤的这些指标降低较快,且低于其他土层,各层土壤间导水率和扩散率差异随着基质吸力的增加而增大。     

Size Distribution of Dispersed and Aggregated Particles and of Soil Pores in 12 Danish Soils

Abstract

Soil texture, aggregates in different size classes and water retention at several water potentials were measured in the top layers of 12 Danish soils. Size frequency curves of dispersed and aggregated soil particles and of soil pores were calculated using numerical differentiation of sum curves, which were obtained from measured data through interpolation procedures. Soils which originated from water sediments had narrow peaks with approximately lognormal distribution of dispersed soil particles and of soil pores, reflecting the sorting action of the water. Moraine soils appeared to have broad and flat frequency curves of dispersed soil particles, some of which were bimodal or skewed. These soils exhibited a typical bimodal size distribution of soil pores. Degree of aggregation was determined primarily by the soil content of clay, 10% or more creating stable macroaggregates of 2–6 mm diameter. A comparison of the frequency curves for soil pore size to a generalized four-parameter mathematical expression relating matric potential and volumetric water content revealed that the model fitted the empirical data reasonably well for the well-sorted water-sedimented soils, while in the case of the bimodal pore size soils a deviation of differing magnitude was observed. From the investigation it is recommended that in most cases, quantities of particles and pores in soil should be related to size with frequency rather than cumulative expressions.     

Pore size distribution measurements in swell-shrink soils

A method for the determination of pore size distribution in swell-shrink soils was described. Undisturbed core samples, saturated and drained at 1.5 MPa suction, were filled with a non-polar liquid (xylol), and its retention at suctions lower than 1.5 MPa was measured. Oven dry samples were analyzed in the same way. Derived pore size distributions were compared with those obtained by water desorption. Pore size distributions and their relative changes as a function of water content were related to some soil constituents and properties. Stability factor and sum of montmorillonite and vermiculite significantly influenced the pore size distribution by water release, A higher stability factor resulted in lower relative changes (ratios) in the pore size classes <10 μm and 0.2–10 μm when the samples were drained from saturation to 1.5 MPa suction, however, at extreme dryness, the relative changes were positively correlated to the sum of montmorillonite and vermiculite.     

TOWARDS AN OBJECTIVE CLASSIFICATION OF SOIL STRUCTURE

A classification of structural condition in surface soils is proposed, based on the volumes of two categories of pore size, termed air capacity (pores greater than 60 μm diameter) and available water (pores of 60 to 0.2 μm diameter. Relationships of pore volumes to particle size class, organic carbon content and soil water regime are examined. Soil structural conditions are mainly affected by water regime and organic carbon and, apart from the extremes of sandy or clayey textures, less influenced by particle size distribution.     

土基改性固沙植草材料抑制地表水分蒸发

针对固沙生态恢复中面临的有效水分涵养难题,采用Span-80乳化木蜡改性黏土制备了固沙植草喷膜材料。研究了材料在模拟荒漠化环境气候中的保水性能,采用紫外-可见光分光光度分析、扫描电子显微镜分析、傅里叶红外光谱分析、X射线衍射分析、热重分析等手段对制备的材料进行分析和表征。结果表明:该固沙植草喷膜材料具有良好的保水性能,改性后黏土的层间结构未发生变化,木蜡均匀涂覆在土壤颗粒表面,颗粒间的孔隙由亲水孔转变为憎水孔从而抑制了水分的蒸发;植草试验表明当植草喷膜材料中木蜡、黏土、Span-803种组分质量比为1:6:24时固沙植草材料既能很好地抑制水分蒸发又能保持较好的透气性,草籽发芽率从对照组的5%提高至45%。     

Effect of Irrigation Water Quality on Soil Hydraulic Conductivity

The effect of irrigation water quality on unsaturated hydraulic conductivity (HC) of undisturbed soil in field was studied.Results show that within the operating soil suction range (0-1.6 KPa) of disc permeameters,the higher the electric conductivity (EC) of irrigation water,the higher the soil HC became.The soil HC doubled when EC increased from 0.1 to 6.0ds m^-1.High sodium-adsorption ratio(SAR) of irrigation water would have an unfavorable effect on soil HC.Soil HC decreased with the increasing of SAR,especially in the case of higher soil suction.An interaction existed between the effects of EC and SAR of irrigation water on soil HC.The HC of unsaturated soil dependent upon the macropores in surface soil decreased by one order of magnitude with 1 KPa increase of soil suction.In the study on the effect of very low soluble salt concentration (EC=0.1 ds m^-1 of irrigation water on soil HC,soil HC was found to be lowered by 30% as a consequence of blocking up of some continuous pores by the dispersed and migrated clay particles.Nonlinear successive regression analysis and significance test show that the effects of EC and SAR of irrigation water on soil HC reached the extremely significant level.     

Soil-water retention behavior of compacted biochar-amended clay: a novel landfill final cover material

Purpose

Biochar has long been proposed for amending agricultural soils to increase soil-water retention capacity and therefore promotes crop growth. Recent studies revealed the potential use of biochar-amended soil in landfill final covers to promote methane oxidation and odor reduction. However, the effects of biochar application ratio, compaction water content (CWC), and degree of compaction (DOC) on soil-water retention characteristics of biochar-amended clay (BAC) at high soil suction (dry condition) are not well understood. The present study aims to overcome this knowledge gap.

Materials and methods

Soil suction was induced using vapor equilibrium technique by a temperature- and humidity-controlled chamber, and the water desorption (drying) and adsorption (wetting) water retention curves (WRCs) of compacted pure kaolin clay and peanut shell BAC with different biochar application ratios (0, 5, and 20 %, w/w), DOCs (80, 90, and 100 %), and CWCs (30 and 35 %) were measured. The correlations between these factors and the gravimetric water content were analyzed by three-way ANOVA followed by the Tukey HSD test. The soil micro-structure was studied by scanning electronic microscope with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy.

Results and discussion

Measured WRCs of BAC suggest that the soil-water retention capacity at high suction range (48.49–124.56 MPa) was in general increased, upon biochar application. The BAC compacted with CWC of 35 % at low (80 %) and high (100 %) DOCs for the 5 % BAC were increased by 7.30 and 9.77 %, when compared with clay, while the increases of 20 % BAC were 39.89 and 59.20 %, respectively. This is attributed to the embedded effects of clay particles in biochar pores, which reduce the total pore space of BAC. The soil-water retention capacity of BAC was also increased with CWC and decreased with DOC. The results of three-way ANOVA analysis show that the effects of DOC and biochar ratio on soil gravimetric water content was significant (p?<?0.05) only at 48.49 MPa on drying path. For other induced suctions, only effects of CWC were significant (p?<?0.05).

Conclusions

Biochar application increases soil-water retention capacity of the BAC at high soil suction (48.49–124.56 MPa) (dry condition) at both low (80 %) and high DOC (100 %). The soil-water retention capacity of 20 % BAC was much higher than that of 5 % BAC. BAC is a potential alternative landfill final cover soil with a higher soil-water retention capacity to be used in dry areas or regions with a long period of evaporation event.

     

上海地区土壤持水特性研究

土壤水的研究,从Henri Darcy(1856)提出达西定律算起,已有一百多年历史.经历了由经验到理论、由静态到动态、由定性到定量、由宏观到微观逐步深入发展的过程^[1].1877年Briggs L.J.提出毛管假说,将土壤孔隙组成的孔道看成是一些大小不同的毛细管,认为表面张力是土壤保持水分的主要原因.     

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.     

A casting method for the three-dimensional analysis of the intraprism structural pores in vertisols

The structural voids in vertisols contain easily available water for plants and their volume can be calculated from the shrinkage curve. Access by plants to that water depends also on the geometric arrangement of the pores so that the water can flow through them. We have devised a method for studying the structural porosity by casting the pores in resin. The intraprism pore space of wet soil clods is impregnated with a UV fluorescent polyester resin under vacuum. When this has set we use the swelling properties of the clay to separate the clay matrix from the resin. A cast so obtained is the real three-dimensional solid reproduction of the structural porosity. This representation of the pore system is easier to study than results from computerized reconstitution of the three-dimensional space from two-dimensional images of soil in thin sections. Channels, packing pores and planar voids can be observed directly in three dimensions as the method saves the integrity and continuity of pores as small as 10 μm in diameter. The geometry of the cast shapes agrees with the interpretation of shrinkage and moisture characteristic curves. The method offers direct qualitative observation of pore organization and volume measurements of the intraprism structural porosity in vertisols.     

Structural collapse and strength of some Australian soils in relation to hard setting: I. Structural collapse on wetting and draining

The surface structure of many Australian red and red-brown earths frequently collapses (slakes) when dry, disturbed aggregates are wetted by rain or irrigation. The resulting fine matrix sets, on drying, to a strong, cohesive layer of up to 200 mm thick (hard setting). We investigated the mechanism of collapse and the extent to which the structure of aggregate beds Iron hard setting and non-hard setting soils collapsed when wetted by quick flooding or slowly with water at a suction of 200 mm, then drained in sequential steps of increasing suction and finally dried at 40°C. After flood wetting, but before draining, no collapse was observed due to the small effective stress prevalent in the flooded beds. After suction wetting, some collapse was measured owing to the effective stress (approximately 1.4 kPa) from the applied suction. On draining, flood-wetted beds collapsed extensively (volume strain >0.20), largely due to the disappearance of large pores (>75 μm diameter). Suction-wetted beds collapsed less (volume strain <0.16) and retained more large pores. Hard setting soils collapsed more following both flood and suction wetting (volume strain >0.20 and 0.10, respectively), while non-hard setting soils did not collapse as extensively (volume strain <0.16 and 0.09, respectively). Results indicate that the mechanism causing collapse was independent of wetting method and involved two steps: (i) slaking of aggregates on wetting, and (ii) collapse of the aggregate bed on draining as a result of development of effective stress within the beds.     

吸盘式水稻育秧播种器吸孔气流场仿真分析

为分析吸盘式水稻育秧播种器工况参数和吸孔结构参数对种子吸附性能和吸孔堵塞的影响,运用ANSYS12.0/Fluent软件对3种形式的吸孔在不同边界条件下的气流场进行仿真分析。数值模拟正交试验和单因素试验分析表明吸孔导程对吸孔吸种空穴率和重吸率的影响较小,但减少吸孔导程有利于减少吸孔堵塞;吸种孔最大吸种距离在2mm左右;仿真结果与室内试验结果吻合。该研究对吸盘式水稻育秧播种器吸种孔优化设计和工作参数选择有参考价值。