Developing an environmental friendly approach for enhancing water retention with the amendment of water-absorbing polymer and fertilizers

The effect of climate/environmental change has resulted in adverse water stress conditions which necessitates the sustainable approaches for improving the water use efficiency to boost agricultural production in Central Asia. Water-absorbing polymer (WAP) has emerged as one of the amendments for soil water stress management. WAP are chemically cross-linked structure capable of absorbing and storing a large amount of water. The agricultural land has different levels of fertilizers which can influence the performance of WAP because of its sensitivity due to external ionic medium. Therefore, the combined or hybrid use of WAP and organic/ inorganic fertilizers may inhibit the functionality of WAP, which needs to be thoroughly investigated. This study demonstrates the performance of two different WAPs (a commercially WAP (crosslinked potassium polyacrylate) and a laboratory synthesized WAP (crosslinked fly ash-polyacrylate superabsorbent composite)) with varying combinations of fertilizers in silt loam (agrarian soil). The combined use of fertilizers and WAP have improved the water retention properties of soils due to modification in the soil pore volume for both the WAPs. Quantification from water retention properties revealed a significant increase in plant wilting time (PWT) and plant available water content (PAWC) under the combined influence of fertilizers and WAP amended soils, indicating the possibility of high-water availability to plant roots. The study suggests the potential of WAPs as an efficient soil conditioner even in the presence of fertilizer for countering the negative impacts of water stress conditions. WAPs might minimize the requirement for chemical fertilizers, which helps to enhance the climate/environmental change and agriculture sector in the Central Asian region

Exploring implication of variation in biochar production on geotechnical properties of soil

Biochar produced from the pyrolysis of plant based feedstock has been advocated as an alternative soil amendment for landfill cover. Previous literature indicated that the pyrolysis temperature influences the intra-pore distribution and surface functional groups (especially hydroxyl groups), resulting in “love-hate relationship” of the biochar amended soil (BAS) with water. From the purview of geotechnical engineering, the effect of pyrolysis temperature on geotechnical properties are rarely investigated. In total, three biochar rates (0, 5 and 10%) were considered for a set of geotechnical experiments in sand clay mixture soil with biochar produced at 350 ℃ and 550 ℃. Test results show that biochar addition in soil, in general regardless of pyrolysis temperature, increased the optimum moisture content (OMC), plasticity index, soil water retention characteristics (SWRC) and decreased the maximum dry density (MDD), shear strength parameters (cohesion, friction), erosion rates. Whilst comparing the pyrolysis temperature effects on two biochar amended soils, only marginal effects (in terms of magnitude) on SWRC were observed. The most significant decrease of MDD (or increase of OMC) for 5% (w/w) and 10% (w/w) biochar additions occurred at pyrolysis temperatures of 550 ℃ and 350 ℃, respectively. In addition, biochar produced at lower pyrolysis temperature (350 0C) was more effective in reducing cracks and enhancing shrinkage area ratio. 10% biochar addition with pyrolysis temperature of 350 0C was the optimum combination in resisting soil erosion. The study provides evidence that the geotechnical properties of biochar amended soils for landfill cover soil applications could be tailor made by controlling the pyrolysis temperature

A geotechnical perspective on soil-termite interaction: Role of termites in unsaturated soil properties

The soil-insect interaction has gathered significant attention in the recent years due to its contribution to bio-cementation. Termites, as a group of cellulose-eating insects, alter physical (texture) and chemical (chemical composition) properties of soil. Conversely, physico-chemical properties of soil also influence termite activities. It is vital to understand the soil-termite interaction and their influence on hydraulic properties and shear strength of soil, which are related to a series of geotechnical engineering problems such as ground water recharge, runoff, erosion and stability of slopes. In this study, an attempt has been made to review the latest developments and research gaps in our understanding of soil-termite interaction within the context of geo-environmental engineering. The hydraulic properties and shear strength of termite modified soil were discussed with respect to soil texture, density and physico-chemical composition. The incorporation of hysteresis effect of soil water characteristic curve, and spatio-temporal variations of hydraulic conductivity and shear strength of termite modified soil is proposed to be considered in geotechnical engineering design and construction. Finally, the challenges and future trends in this research area are presented. The expertise from both geotechnical engineering and entomology is needed to plan future research with an aim to promote use of termites as maintenance engineers in geotechnical infrastructure

Probabilistic Estimation of Specific Surface Area and Cation Exchange Capacity: A Global Multivariate Distribution

Specific surface area (SSA) and cation exchange capacity (CEC) are two fundamental clay properties. However, the determination of CEC and SSA is challenging due to inherent uncertainties and difficulty in experimental measurement. Popular approach is to employ transformation models for its estimation. However, most of the existing models were developed on limited sample sizes, and quantification of uncertainty associated with the estimate is not possible. Therefore this study proposes a multivariate probabilistic approach for estimation of CEC and SSA. First, a five-dimensional database (2785) for parameters liquid limit (LL), plasticity index (PI), clay fraction (CF), CEC and SSA (labelled as CLAY/C-S/5/278) is developed. Thereafter, multivariate distribution for the five parameters in the database is constructed using vine copula approach. Implementation of the proposed approach is demonstrated by updating prior/unconditional probability density function (PDFs) of CEC and SSA given single/ multiple clay parameters using Bayes’ rule. The posterior/conditional PDFs of CEC and SSA are also summarized as practitioner friendly analytical expressions. Two geotechnical application examples are also shown. In the proposed approach, CEC and SSA are characterized by their complete joint distribution, and is, therefore, superior to the popular deterministic transformation approach in literature.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author

Hydraulic conductivity variation in compacted bentonite-fly ash mixes under constant volume and free swelling flow conditions

Compacted bentonite-sand (B-S) and bentonite-fly ash (B-FA) are established combinations for the construction of landfill liners. This study determined the upper and lower bounds of equilibrium hydraulic conductivity (keq) of amended bentonite under extended duration of flow. The keq for constant volume flow condition differed from free swelling condition by more than two orders of magnitude due to the difference in geomaterial interaction, microstructural changes, and mineralization. Considering constant volume and free swelling condition, B-FA mix with class F and class C fulfilled the hydraulic conductivity criterion up to 70 % and 30 % amendment, respectively. The higher keq observed for the B mixed with class C FA was attributed to the formation of porous calcium aluminium silicate hydrate gel and ettringite needle type minerals. The time taken to achieve equilibrium was inversely related to keq by a power relationship. The data from this study were used to propose empirical relationships for estimating keq (long-term) based on k obtained at 48 hours (short-term), plasticity and geomaterial type. The study reveals that FA can be used as an alternate for S as amendment material and keq based on free swelling condition should be used for designing the liner.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author