The Infona portal uses cookies, i.e. strings of text saved by a browser on the user's device. The portal can access those files and use them to remember the user's data, such as their chosen settings (screen view, interface language, etc.), or their login data. By using the Infona portal the user accepts automatic saving and using this information for portal operation purposes. More information on the subject can be found in the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. By closing this window the user confirms that they have read the information on cookie usage, and they accept the privacy policy and the way cookies are used by the portal. You can change the cookie settings in your browser.
In the eastern Amazon basin, four neighbouring clayey Oxisols with similar particle-size distributions were selected, one under rain forest and three under pasture for 7, 12 and 17 years, respectively. These soils were sampled at depth intervals of 0.1 m down to 1 m. Although no clear effect of pasture establishment on aggregate stability was assessed, significant negative effects of cattle trampling...
Geostatistically interpolated soil properties were combined with a pedotransfer function (PTF) to predict the three-dimensional variability of water retention curves (WRCs) in a highly variable soilscape. A new PTF had to be developed to account for the extreme variation in soil parameters: texture varying between gravel and clay, organic C content up to 81 g kg -1 , and bulk density...
A new method for the acquisition of undisturbed in situ samples of milled peat (non-cohesive particulate material) suitable for image analysis was developed. Samples were obtained in the field by dripping Endura epoxy resin onto a stockpile surface. Blocks of material (160 mmx120 mm) with original pore structure up to 140 mm deep were removed to the laboratory and re-impregnated with Crystic resin...
Image analysis of photographs of surface cracks in cultivated soils for a variety of types (Vertisol, Andosol, Mollisol), and surface cracks in mud deposits shows various similar geometric characteristics. Analysis of the skeletal structure of these crack networks indicates that the relations of intersections and numbers of crack segments show a tendency to lie between those of square and hexagonal...
A one-cycle field wetting and drying experiment was conducted in order to observe pore space developed in a cultivated Rendzina soil due to surface cracking and to soil aggregate formation at 3-cm depth. Image analysis of 2D representations of pore size distribution and fractal analysis of the spatial distribution of the pores indicates that pore space due to surface cracking does not develop in the...
Surface, charge, and pore properties of three profiles of a solonetzic toposequence: Mollic Solonetz (top), Salic Solonetz (in-between), and Haplic Solonetz (bottom) were studied. A trial of finding relations between the above and other chemical and physical parameters characterizing salt-affected soils was undertaken.Physicochemical soil properties differed among the studied profiles and horizons...
Conversion of cropland to perennial grasses will, over time, produce changes in soil hydraulic properties. The objective of this study was to characterize and compare hydraulic properties of fine-textured soils on adjacent native grassland, recently tilled cropland, and reestablished grassland in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) at three locations in the Southern Great Plains. A tension infiltrometer...
We have studied the changes in biological and physical properties of a soil, in a semiarid area, contaminated by hydrocarbons in order to predict the potential for bioremediation of this soil. The microbial biomass C, the basal respiration and the metabolic quotient (qCO 2 ) of contaminated soil were significantly higher than that of the control soil, which points to a markedly reduced efficiency...
Measuring fractal dimensions has become a common practice for describing structural properties of porous media. Depending on the object of interest, different features of the structure can be measured: solid matrix, pores, and the interface between them. However, when measuring the fractal dimension of all these features, the question arises whether these dimensions are independent from each other...
In north-eastern Argentina, Camponotus punctulatus builds large numbers of big and coherent anthills after abandonment of rice cultivation. These anthills easily reach 1 m in height and 2 m in diameter, and a density of 1800 nests ha −1 . We studied the internal morphology of C. punctulatus aged anthills of 4, 6 and 15 years, respectively, by describing and quantifying, meso- and macroporosity...
Element distribution at the aggregate scale was studied in a soil naturally rich in trace elements. The studied soil was a Planosol developed in gneiss parent material (Massif Central, France) that exhibits a well-structured clayey pedological (B) horizon. This horizon was sampled for aggregates that showed a strong differentiation between an inner part and an outer part.Element distribution in these...
A 13-year long-term experiment on the Loess Plateau of China was used to evaluate the effect of two different fertilizer regimes on the soil's physical/hydraulic properties. The fertilizer regimes included (i) control without any fertilizer (C), (ii) applications of chemical fertilizer (NPK), and (iii) applications of chemical fertilizer plus dairy manure (MNPK). Undisturbed soil cores were collected...
Measuring and modelling the soil shrinkage curve (ShC) has generated increased interest, but uncertainty in shrinkage curve parameters has not been documented, and the most recent models have not been compared. This study was performed on 11 core samples collected in the same horizon of a vertisol. The objectives of the study were to (i) characterize the anisotropy of soil samples shrinkage by comparison...
Land disturbances (such as cultivation and overgrazing) and global warming have been decreasing soil organic C stocks in alpine regions of China. This study characterized changes in soil aggregation, bulk density, particle density, porosity and water holding capacity in relation to changes in total organic C and carbohydrate-C fractions under a long-term (28 years) annually-cultivated pasture (oats),...
Studies of organic–mineral interactions in soils often include physical fractionation according to particle size and density to separate organic debris and mineral-associated matter. For density fractions, it has been noticed that Fe hydrous compounds, although having a high absolute density, can be found in fractions supposed to contain only compounds of lower density. Probable reasons are incomplete...
Soil physical quality (SPQ) is assessed by comparing values of “indicator” soil properties (e.g. bulk density, air capacity) to “ideal ranges” established in the literature. These ideal ranges may not be optimal for any particular soil or field site, however, as they are only “guidelines” based on broad soil types. The objective of this study was to determine if more relevant estimates of optimal...
In recent years, considerable changes in the management of agricultural land have been observed in the Carpathian region. The aim of this study was to quantify the effects of different land-management systems in mountainous regions on the air–water properties of soil. The field trial was established in the period 2005–2007 on the Haplic Cambisol Dystric soil in the south of Poland, Central Europe...
The drainage of low-lying peatland for agriculture and subsequent conservation measures adopted on some of these peatlands has led to differing degrees of change in the physical and hydraulic characteristics of the soil. We assessed the degree of peat decomposition and measured the soil organic matter (SOM) content, particle density, dry bulk density, saturated hydraulic conductivity, and water retention...
The aim of this study was to evaluate the spatial distribution of different void types and Fe–Mn oxide segregations in the A and B horizons of three Orthic Humic Gleysols from an uncultivated area and two long-time experimental plots – an unfertilized continuous maize plot and a fertilized maize–oats–alfalfa–alfalfa rotation plot – from Woodslee, Ontario. In view of the fact that numerous X-ray CT...
Many studies have shown that the characteristic parameters of an aquifer, specifically the hydraulic conductivity, increase with an increase in the portion of the aquifer tested. The main cause of this behavior is the heterogeneity within the aquifer. Sets of measurements performed on an artificial aquifer by different methods are utilized here, because it was verified that the scale dependence of...
Set the date range to filter the displayed results. You can set a starting date, ending date or both. You can enter the dates manually or choose them from the calendar.