Water content as a function of apparent dielectric permittivity in a Fibric Limnic Humisol

2008 ◽  
Vol 88 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
S F Lange ◽  
S E Allaire ◽  
V. Juneau

Volumetric water content (θv) was estimated from time domain reflectometry (TDR) measurementsof apparent dielectric permittivity (Ka) in an organic soil (Humisol). The goals of this study were: (i) to test the accuracy of existing θv-Ka relationships in this soil and if found insufficient (ii) to develop alternative θv-Ka relationships for this organic soil. The Ka values were measured over a wide range of θv in intact soil cores taken from three horizons (Ohp, Of, Oco). Empirical θv-Ka relationships found in the literature for organic porous media could not accurately describe the θv-Ka relationships of any horizon of this Humisol, probably because of the its very large organic matter content (> 75%) of this soil. New θv-Ka relationships for each horizon were consequently developed. Key words: Organic soil, TDR, coprogenic soil, volumetric water content, apparent dielectric permittivity

Weed Science ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 757-765 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew D. Jeffries ◽  
Travis W. Gannon

Indaziflam is a cellulose biosynthesis-inhibiting herbicide for annual weed control in various agricultural systems. Sporadic cases of unacceptable injury to desirable plants have been reported after indaziflam application, which may have been due to conditions favoring increased indaziflam–soil bioavailability. Research was conducted from 2013 to 2015 on a sandy soil to elucidate the effects of soil organic matter content (SOMC) and soil volumetric water content (SVWC) on indaziflam–soil bioavailability. Indaziflam was applied (50 or 100 g ha–1) at fall only, fall plus spring, and spring only timings to plots in a factorial arrangement of SOMC, pre–indaziflam application (PrIA) SVWC, and post–indaziflam application (PoIA) SVWC. After application, field soil cores were collected for a subsequent greenhouse bioassay experiment, where foliage mass reduction of perennial ryegrass seeded from 0 to 15 cm soil depth was used as an indicator of indaziflam–soil bioavailability throughout the profile. Significant edaphic effects were observed at 0 to 2.5, 2.5 to 5, and 5 to 7.5 cm depths, with increased bioavailability at low compared with high SOMC. Pre–indaziflam application SVWC did not affect bioavailability, whereas PoIA high SVWC increased indaziflam–soil bioavailability at 2.5 to 7.5 cm depth compared with PoIA low SVWC. Low SOMC–PoIA high SVWC decreased perennial ryegrass foliage mass 40 and 37% at 5 to 7.5 cm depth from cores collected 10 and 14 wk after treatment, respectively, whereas reductions from all other SOMC–PoIA SVWC combinations were < 12% and did not vary from each other. Pearson's correlation coefficients showed a moderate, positive relationship between perennial ryegrass mass reductions at 0 to 2.5, 2.5 to 5, 0 to 5, and 0 to 10 cm depths and hybrid bermudagrass cover reduction, which suggests conditions favoring increased indaziflam–soil bioavailability can adversely affect plant growth. Data from this research will aid land managers to use indaziflam effectively without adversely affecting growth of desirable species.


2016 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 677-687 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew D. Jeffries ◽  
Travis W. Gannon

Indaziflam is a cellulose biosynthesis–inhibiting herbicide for PRE annual weed control in turfgrass systems. Since indaziflam's 2010 U.S. registration, sporadic cases of hybrid bermudagrass injury have been reported; however, causes are not well understood. Field research was conducted from 2013 to 2015 on sandy soil to elucidate the effects of soil organic matter content (SOMC) and soil volumetric water content (SVWC) on plant growth following indaziflam application on established or root-compromised (5 cm long) hybrid bermudagrass. The effect of SOMC was evaluated at two levels, 1.4 (low) and 5.5% (high) w/w at the soil surface (0 to 2.5 cm depth), whereas SVWC was evaluated PRE (2 wk before) and POST (6 wk after) indaziflam application at two levels (low or high). Indaziflam was applied (50 or 100 g ai ha−1) at fall-only, fall-plus-spring, and spring-only timings. Regardless of application timing or SVWC, indaziflam applied at 50 g ha−1 to high SOMC did not cause > 10% visual cover reduction on established or root-compromised hybrid bermudagrass. Indaziflam applied to hybrid bermudagrass on low SOMC exacerbated adverse growth effects, most notably when root systems were compromised before application. Overall, PRE indaziflam application SVWC did not affect hybrid bermudagrass growth. Within low SOMC, low POST indaziflam application SVWC caused less visual hybrid bermudagrass cover reduction than did high POST indaziflam application SVWC, whereas both fall-plus-spring and spring-only application timings caused similarly greater reductions than fall-only indaziflam application. Data from this research will aid turfgrass managers to effectively use indaziflam without adversely affecting hybrid bermudagrass growth.


1992 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 534-540 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steeve Pepin ◽  
André P. Plamondon ◽  
Jean Stein

The calibration of time domain reflectometry, previously established for an organic soil of 0.422 Mg•m−3 bulk density, was established for peat blocks with bulk densities ranging from 0.06 to 0.25 Mg•m−3. An empirical relationship between the volumetric water content and the measured apparent dielectric constant was established in the laboratory. This relationship can be used to estimate volumetric water content between 0.21 and 0.95 cm3•cm−3 with a standard deviation of 0.03 cm3•cm−3. The large variations observed during the calibration were mainly attributed to the size and heterogeneousness of peat samples. When water tables in the field were high, standard deviation decreased to 0.02 cm3•cm−3, which agrees very well with other time domain reflectometry experiments.


2000 ◽  
Vol 37 (6) ◽  
pp. 1325-1331
Author(s):  
J LH Grozic ◽  
M E Lefebvre ◽  
P K Robertson ◽  
N R Morgenstern

Time domain reflectometry (TDR) can be used to determine the volumetric water content of soils. This note describes the utilization of a TDR miniprobe in triaxial testing. The TDR performance was examined with a series of tests that not only proved its reliability but also resulted in two empirical correlations. Using these correlations, the degree of saturation and volumetric water content during triaxial testing could be determined. The TDR was then put to use in a laboratory program designed to investigate the response of loose gassy sand under static and cyclic loading. Because of the TDR measurements it was possible to determine the degree of saturation and void ratio of the gassy specimens. The TDR miniprobe proved to be accurate, simple to use, and inexpensive to build.Key words: time domain reflectometry, TDR, triaxial testing, gassy, unsaturated.


1970 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashafaque Ahmed ◽  
Mikael Ohlson ◽  
Sirajul Hoque ◽  
Md Golam Moula

Chemical composition of leaves of Sonneratia apetala Buch.-Ham. collected from three islands (chars) representing three hydrological regimes in a segment of the coastal zone of Bangladesh was studied. Their relations to some soil chemical and physical variables have also been investigated. The results showed that concentrations of B, C, Fe, Ga, Li, Mg, Mn, N, Na, P, Zn and Sr in leaves of S. apetala grown in different islands differed significantly. It was also revealed that some heavy metals, viz. Mn, Fe, Al, Sr and Ti showed wide range of concentrations. The leaves from one of the locations in Motherbunia island were characterized by exceptional high concentrations of heavy metals such as Al, As, Cu, Fe, Li, Ni, Pb that may be due to local contamination. Leaves sampled in the most seaward locations of the same island had highest concentrations of Ba, Ca, Cu, Mn and Na. High Mn concentration was found in the leaves of S. apetala of Motherbunia island. Correlations among soil and plant samples were generally very weak and organic matter content of soil did not appear to play a significant role in the nutrient supply of S. apetala. Key words: Coastal zone; tidal inundation; elemental concentration; Sonneratia apetala DOI: 10.3329/bjb.v39i1.5528Bangladesh J. Bot. 39(1): 61-69, 2010 (June)


2013 ◽  
Vol 33 (5) ◽  
pp. 919-928 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosimaldo Soncela ◽  
Silvio C. Sampaio ◽  
Marcio A. Vilas Boas ◽  
Maria H. F. Tavares ◽  
Adriana Smanhotto

The determination of volumetric water content of soils is an important factor in irrigation management. Among the indirect methods for estimating, the time-domain reflectometry (TDR) technique has received a significant attention. Like any other technique, it has advantages and disadvantages, but its greatest disadvantage is the need of calibration and high cost of acquisition. The main goal of this study was to establish a calibration model for the TDR equipment, Trase System Model 6050X1, to estimate the volumetric water content in a Distroferric Red Latosol. The calibration was carried out in a laboratory with disturbed soil samples under study, packed in PVC columns of a volume of 0.0078m³. The TDR probes were handcrafted with three rods and 0.20m long. They were vertically installed in soil columns, with a total of five probes per column and sixteen columns. The weightings were carried out in a digital scale, while daily readings of dielectric constant were obtained in TDR equipment. The linear model θν = 0.0103 Ka + 0.1900 to estimate the studied volumetric water content showed an excellent coefficient of determination (0.93), enabling the use of probes in indirect estimation of soil moisture.


2009 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Achouak El Arfaoui ◽  
Stéphanie Sayen ◽  
Eric Marceau ◽  
Lorenzo Stievano ◽  
Emmanuel Guillon ◽  
...  

Environmental context. The wide use of pesticides for pest and weed control contributes to their presence in underground and surface waters, which has led to a continuously growing interest in their environmental fate. Soils play a key role in the transfer of these compounds from the sprayer to the water as a result of their capacity to retain pesticides depending on the soil components. The knowledge of soil composition should enable one to predict pesticide behaviour in the environment. Abstract. Eight calcareous soils of Champagne vineyards (France) were studied to investigate the adsorption of the herbicide terbumeton (TER). A preliminary characterisation of the soil samples using X-ray diffraction (XRD), elemental and textural analyses, revealed a wide range of soil properties for the selected samples. The adsorption isotherms of TER were plotted for all samples. The determination of soil properties, which significantly correlated with the Kd distribution coefficient, allowed identification of organic matter and CaCO3 as the two main soil components that govern the retention of the herbicide. Organic matter was the predominant phase involved in the retention but its role was limited by the presence of calcite. Finally, the ratio of CaCO3 content to organic matter content was proposed as a useful parameter to predict the adsorption of terbumeton in chalky soils. The evolution of Kd as a function of this ratio was successfully described using an empirical model.


2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (No. 1) ◽  
pp. 10-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Kim ◽  
J. Sim ◽  
T.-H. Kim

This study presents soil-moisture calibrations using low-frequency (15–40 MHz) time domain reflectometry (TDR) probe, referred to as water content reflectometer (WCR), for measuring the volumetric water content of landfill cover soils, developing calibrations for 28 different soils, and evaluating how WCR calibrations are affected by soil properties and electrical conductivity. A 150-mm-diameter PVC cell was used for the initial WCR calibration. Linear and polynomial calibrations were developed for each soil. Although the correlation coefficients (R<sup>2</sup>) for the polynomial calibration are slightly higher, the linear calibrations are accurate and pragmatic to use. The effects of soil electrical conductivity and index properties were investigated using the slopes of linear WCR calibrations. Soils with higher electrical conductivity had lower calibration slopes due to greater attenuation of the signal during transmission in the soil. Soils with higher electrical conductivity tended to have higher clay content, organic matter, liquid limit, and plasticity index. The effects of temperature and dry unit weight on WCR calibrations were assessed in clayey and silty soils. The sensor period was found to increase with the temperature and density increase, with greater sensitivity in fine-textured plastic soils. For typical variations in temperature, errors in volumetric water content on the order of 0.04 can be expected for wet soils and 0.01 for drier soils if temperature corrections are not applied. Errors on the order of 0.03 (clays) and 0.01 (silts) can be expected for typical variations in dry unit weight (± 2 kN/m<sup>3</sup>).


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