Water retention and conduction properties assessed in field conditions

As propriedades hidráulicas do solo de interesse são a curva de retenção da água no solo, a condutividade hidráulica e difusividade hidráulica, ambas em função do conteúdo de água no solo. Estas propriedades dependem do tamanho, forma, distribuição e grau de interconexões dos poros. O método do perfil instantâneo é um dos métodos mais utilizados na determinação da condutividade hidráulica do solo não saturado pela sua simplicidade experimental e matemática. Assim, este projeto visa avaliar a) a condutividade hidráulica em função do conteúdo de água em dois solos bem distintos estruturalmente pelo método do perfil instantâneo, com e sem a remoção de horizontes sobrejacentes, estimando o conteúdo de água via curvas de retenção determinadas em laboratório e em campo, e b) o sistema poroso do solo por meio de técnicas de análise de imagens e correlacionar os resultados à condutividade hidráulica do solo não saturado obtido pelo método do perfil instantâneo. O experimento foi conduzido em quatro horizontes de um Latossolo e de um Nitossolo. A CRA em campo foi elaborada utilizando-se tensiômetros com manômetro de mercúrio, enquanto que a CRA em laboratório foi determinada com amostras de solo com estrutura indeformada em funis de placa porosa e em câmara de pressão com placa porosa. A condutividade hidráulica não saturada foi determinada pelo método indireto em laboratório e em campo, seguindo a metodologia do método do perfil instantâneo, sem e com a remoção dos horizontes sobrejacentes. De acordo com os resultados obtidos, pode-se concluir que: (a) os valores do conteúdo de água médio à base de volume para cada tensão em campo foram menores que os obtidos em laboratório em praticamente todas as tensões; (b) a eficiência da equação de ajuste da curva de retenção da água foi maior para o método de laboratório; (c) as análises micromorfométricas tenderam a subestimar os valores de área de poro para todas as classes de tamanho de poros e horizontes; (d) a análise micromorfométrica fornece uma estimativa do grau de interconexões do sistema poroso; (e) pequenas mudanças no conteúdo de água no solo afetam o valor de difusividade hidráulica em um grau muito menor que a condutividade hidráulica; e (f) é necessário ter cautela ao utilizar dados de laboratório para representar as condições de campo, visto que os valores de K(θ) foram superestimados pela CRA obtida em laboratório, em relação ao método de campo, ocorrendo de forma mais pronunciada nas menores tensões da água no solo.The soil hydraulic properties of interest are the soil water retention curve, hydraulic conductivity and hydraulic diffusivity, both as a function of the soil water content. These properties depend on the size, shape, distribution and degree of pore interconnections. The instantaneous profile method is one of the most used methods to determine the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity due to its experimental and mathematical simplicity. Thus, this project aims to evaluate a) hydraulic conductivity as a function of water content in two distinct structured soils by the instant profile method, without/with removal of overlying horizons, estimating the soil water content through retention curves determined in the laboratory and in the field, and b) the soil porous system using image analysis techniques and correlation the results to the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity obtained by the instant profile method. The experiment was conducted on four horizons of a Ferralsols and a Nitisol. The SWRC was made with tensiometers with mercury manometers, while a SWRC in the laboratory was made with undisturbed soil samples in porous plate funnels and in porous plate pressure chamber. The unsaturated hydraulic conductivity was determined by the indirect method in the laboratory and using the instant profile method in the field, without/with removal of the overlying horizons. The conclusions are: (a) the water content for each tension in the field are smaller than those obtained in the laboratory at practically all tensions; (b) the efficiency of the water retention curve fitting equation was greater for the laboratory method; (c) the micromorphometric analysis tended to underestimate pore area values for all pore size classes and horizons; (d) the micromorphometric analysis provides an estimation of the porous system interconnections degree; (e) small changes in soil water content affect the hydraulic diffusion values to a much lower degree than the hydraulic conductivity; and (f) it is necessary to take care in using laboratory data to represent field conditions, since the values of K(θ) were overrated by the laboratory SWRC, compared to the field, more pronounced in smaller water tensions

Soil water retention curve on evaluation of soil physical quality

O solo é um importante recurso natural e a sua conservação é essencial para uma produção sustentável. A qualidade de um solo, por sua vez, pode ser definida como a capacidade deste em exercer sua função em um ecossistema e pode ser descrita por meio de parâmetros físicos, químicos e biológicos. Os atributos físicos do solo descrevem a organização de sua estrutura, de modo que esta é responsável pela movimentação e disponibilidade da solução do solo para as plantas e depende da dimensão, forma e arranjo de suas partículas sólidas e de seus poros. Portanto, a discussão dos mecanismos de movimento e retenção da água no solo é relevante na inferência da sua qualidade física. A curva de retenção da água no solo é o gráfico da umidade do solo em função do potencial mátrico da água no solo, a qual é uma ferramenta importante na avaliação da qualidade física do solo. No Brasil, os Latossolos são de grande importância, devido a sua extensão e potencial produtivo. Estes solos são muito intemperizados, com elevada estabilidade de agregados e podem ser originados a partir de materiais distintos, o que interfere na resposta física. Portanto, o objetivo geral deste trabalho foi avaliar a qualidade físico-hídrica do solo por meio da análise da curva de retenção da água em três Latossolos, verificando entre dois modelos empíricos de ajuste (BROOKS; COREY, 1964; VAN GENUCHTEN, 1980). Também foram avaliadas a frequência de distribuição do tamanho de poros e a utilização do índice S como indicador da qualidade física do solo. Foram coletadas amostras indeformadas de três áreas para confecção das curvas de retenção de água no solo: (1) Latossolo Vermelho Amarelo Distrófico típico (pousio); (2) Latossolo Vermelho Distrófico típico álico (cana-de-açúcar); (3) Latossolo Vermelho Distrófico típico (cana-de-açúcar). Os resultados mostraram que a curva de retenção de água foi influenciada pela densidade do solo, porosidade, textura e conteúdo de carbono orgânico; o ajuste da curva de retenção de água no solo pelos dois modelos utilizados foi semelhante, porém o modelo de van Genuchten (1980) apresentou-se ligeiramente melhor que o modelo de Brooks e Corey (1964), principalmente nos pontos próximos à saturação; a frequência de distribuição de poros e o índice S foram sensíveis em diferenciar a qualidade estrutural de solos devido à textura e ao manejo.Soil is an important natural resource and its conservation is essential for sustainable production. The quality of a soil can be defined as its ability to exert its function in an ecosystem and can be described by means of physical, chemical and biological parameters. The soil physical attributes describe the organization of its structure, that is responsible for the moviment and availability of soil solution for plants and it depends on the size, shape and arrangement of its solid particles and pores. Therefore, the discussion of the mechanisms of soil water movement and retention is important in inferring its physical quality. The soil water retention curve is an important tool to evaluate soil quality, is the graph of soil water content as a function of soil water matric potential. In Brazil, the Oxisols are of great importance due to their extent and productive potential. These soils are highly weathered, with high aggregate stability and can originate from different materials, which interfer on the physical response. Therefore, the aim of this work was to evaluate the physical-hydric quality of the soil by means of the soil water retention curve of three Oxisols, by using two empirical adjustment models (BROOKS; COREY, 1964; VAN GENUCHTEN, 1980). Pore-size distribution frequency and the use of the S index as an indicator of physical soil quality were also evaluated. Undisturbed soil samples were collected from three areas to obtain the soil water retention curves: (1) Typic Hapludox (fallow land), (2) Rhodic Hapludox (sugarcane), (3) Rhodic Hapludox (sugarcane). The results showed that the soil water retention curve was influenced by the soil bulk density, soil porosity, soil texture and soil organic carbon content. The fitness of the soil water retention curve by the two models was similar, however the van Genuchten\'s model (1980) was slightly better than the model of Brooks and Corey (1964), especially in the points near saturation; the pore-size distribution frequency and the S index were sensitive in differentiating the structural quality of soil due to the texture and management

Soil Water Retention Curve as Affected by Sample Height

ABSTRACT: The soil water retention curve is one of the main instruments to assess the soil physical quality and to improve soil management. Traditionally, the equipment most used in the laboratory to determine the retention curve has been Haines funnels and Richards chambers. An important factor to which little attention has been given in the use of these equipaments is the height of the undisturbed soil sample. This work proposes to evaluate the influence of different heights of undisturbed samples for the determination of the retention curve. For this, undisturbed soil samples were collected in aluminum cylinders of three different heights (S1 = 75 mm; S2 =50mm; S3 =25 mm) and with the same internal diameter (70 mm) from the diagnostic horizons of a Typic Hapludox and a Kandiudalfic Eutrudox (Latossolo Vermelho amarelo distrófico típico and Nitossolo Vermelho eutrófico latossólico, respectively) in experimental areas of “Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz” (ESALQ/USP), Piracicaba (SP), Brazil. The soil physical characterization was done based on granulometric analysis, bulk density, particle density, porosity, and organic carbon. The retention curves were determined for each sample size using Haines funnels for the tensions of 0.5, 1, 4, 6, and 10 kPa and Richards chambers for 33, 100, and 500 kPa. Data of the curves were estimated, fitted to a model and then the distribution of the soil pore radius was evaluated, differentiating the soil water retention curve. The Typic Hapludox showed a not so remarkable difference between the retention curve with the S3 samples and the retention curve with the S1 samples, in the range 0-1 kPa of tensions, and also between the retention curve with S1 samples and both retention curves with the S2 and S3 samples, in the range 100-500 kPa of tension. This led to a slight difference in the pore distribution curves for the sample heights of this soil. The Kandiudalfic Eutrudox, however, presented not only a remarkable difference of the smaller sample retention curve (S3) in relation to the larger ones (S1 and S2) in the range 0-10 kPa of tension, but also a notable difference in the pore distribution curves, with a reduction of mesopores and increase of micropores with the increase of sample height. Finally, from the results obtained and with the methodology used to determine the soil retention curve, it is not recommended to use undisturbed samples with a height greater than 25 mm

Compared performance of penetrometers and effect of soil water content on penetration resistance measurements

Modern agriculture techniques have a great impact on crops and soil quality, especially by the increased machinery traffic and weight. Several devices have been developed for determining soil properties in the field, aimed at managing compacted areas. Penetrometry is a widely used technique; however, there are several types of penetrometers, which have different action modes that can affect the soil resistance measurement. The objective of this study was to compare the functionality of two penetrometry methods (manual and automated mode) in the field identification of compacted, highly mechanized sugarcane areas, considering the influence of soil water volumetric content (θ) on soil penetration resistance (PR). Three sugarcane fields on a Rhodic Eutrudrox were chosen, under a sequence of harvest systems: one manual harvest (1ManH), one mechanized harvest (1MH) and three mechanized harvests (3MH). The different degrees of mechanization were associated to cumulative compaction processes. An electronic penetrometer was used on PR measurements, so that the rod was introduced into the soil by hand (Manual) and by an electromechanical motor (Auto). The θ was measured in the field with a soil moisture sensor. Results showed an effect of θ on PR measurements and that regression models must be used to correct data before comparing harvesting systems. The rod introduction modes resulted in different mean PR values, where the "Manual" overestimated PR compared to the "Auto" mode at low θ