Impact of Rotylenchulus reniformis on Cotton Yield as Affected by Soil Texture and Irrigation.

PubMed

Herring, Stephanie L; Koenning, Stephen R; Heitman, Joshua L

2010-12-01

The effects of soil type, irrigation, and population density of Rotylenchulus reniformis on cotton were evaluated in a two-year microplot experiment. Six soil types, Fuquay sand, Norfolk sandy loam, Portsmouth loamy sand, Muck, Cecil sandy loam, and Cecil sandy clay, were arranged in randomized complete blocks with five replications. Each block had numerous plots previously inoculated with R. reniformis and two or more noninoculated microplots per soil type, one half of which were irrigated in each replicate for a total of 240 plots. Greatest cotton lint yields were achieved in the Muck, Norfolk sandy loam, and Portsmouth loamy sand soils. Cotton yield in the Portsmouth loamy sand did not differ from the Muck soil which averaged the greatest lint yield per plot of all soil types. Cotton yield was negatively related to R. reniformis PI (initial population density) in all soil types except for the Cecil sandy clay which had the highest clay content. Supplemental irrigation increased yields in the higher yielding Muck, Norfolk sandy loam, and Portsmouth loamy sand soils compared to the lower yielding Cecil sandy clay, Cecil sandy loam, and Fuquay sand soils. The Portsmouth sandy loam was among the highest yielding soils, and also supported the greatest R. reniformis population density. Cotton lint yield was affected more by R. reniformis Pi with irrigation in the Portsmouth loamy sand soil with a greater influence of Pi on lint yield in irrigated plots than other soils. A significant first degree PI × irrigation interaction for this soil type confirms this observation.

Respirable dust and quartz exposure from three South African farms with sandy, sandy loam, and clay soils.

PubMed

Swanepoel, Andrew J; Kromhout, Hans; Jinnah, Zubair A; Portengen, Lützen; Renton, Kevin; Gardiner, Kerry; Rees, David

2011-07-01

To quantify personal time-weighted average respirable dust and quartz exposure on a sandy, a sandy loam, and a clay soil farm in the Free State and North West provinces of South Africa and to ascertain whether soil type is a determinant of exposure to respirable quartz. Three farms, located in the Free State and North West provinces of South Africa, had their soil type confirmed as sandy, sandy loam, and clay; and, from these, a total of 298 respirable dust and respirable quartz measurements were collected between July 2006-November 2009 during periods of major farming operations. Values below the limit of detection (LOD) (22 μg · m(-3)) were estimated using multiple 'imputation'. Non-parametric tests were used to compare quartz exposure from the three different soil types. Exposure to respirable quartz occurred on all three farms with the highest individual concentration measured on the sandy soil farm (626 μg · m(-3)). Fifty-seven, 59, and 81% of the measurements on the sandy soil, sandy loam soil, and clay soil farm, respectively, exceeded the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) threshold limit value (TLV) of 25 μg · m(-3). Twelve and 13% of respirable quartz concentrations exceeded 100 μg · m(-3) on the sandy soil and sandy loam soil farms, respectively, but none exceeded this level on the clay soil farm. The proportions of measurements >100 μg · m(-3) were not significantly different between the sandy and sandy loam soil farms ('prop.test'; P = 0.65), but both were significantly larger than for the clay soil farm ('prop.test'; P = 0.0001). The percentage of quartz in respirable dust was determined for all three farms using measurements > the limit of detection. Percentages ranged from 0.5 to 94.4% with no significant difference in the median quartz percentages across the three farms (Kruskal-Wallis test; P = 0.91). This study demonstrates that there is significant potential for over-exposure to respirable quartz in farming and even clay soil farming may pose a risk. Soil type may determine whether exposure is >100 μg · m(3), but the job type and the manner in which the task is performed (e.g. mechanical or manual) may be important determinants of exposure. Identifying quartz exposure determinants (e.g. type of job) and modifiers will be of value to focus implementation of controls of particular importance in developing countries.

Understanding the hydrologic control of N cycle: Effect of water filled pore space on heterotrophic nitrification, denitrification and dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium mechanisms in unsaturated soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mekala, C.; Nambi, Indumathi M.

2017-07-01

Irrigation practice will be effective if it supplies optimal water and nutrients to crops and act as a filter for contaminants leaching to ground water. There is always a scope for improving the fertilizer use efficiency and scheduling of wastewater irrigation if the fate and transport of nutrients particularly nitrogenous compounds in the soil are well understood. In the present study, nitrogen transport experiments for two different agricultural soils are performed under varying saturation 33, 57, 78% water filled pore space for sandy soil 1 and 52, 81 and 96% for loam soil 2. A HYDRUS 2D model with constructed wetland (CW2D) module could simulate aerobic nitrification and anoxic denitrification well for both soils and estimated the reaction kinetics. A hot spot of Dissimilatory Nitrate Reduction to Ammonium (DNRA) pathway has been observed at 81% moisture content for a loamy sand soil. The presence of high organic content and reductive soil environment (5.53 C/NO3- ratio; ORP = - 125 mV) results in ammonium accumulation of 16.85 mg in the soil. The overall observation from this study is nitrification occurs in a wide range of saturations 33-78% with highest at 57% whereas denitrification is significant at higher water saturations 57-78% for sandy soil texture. For a loamy sand soil, denitrification is dominant at 96% saturation with least nitrification at all saturation studies. The greatest nitrogen losses (> 90%) was observed for soil 2 while 30-70% for soil1. The slow dispersive subsurface transport with varying oxygen dynamics enhanced nitrogen losses from soil2 due to lesser soil permeability. This in turn, prevents NO3- leaching and groundwater contamination. This type of modeling study should be used before planning field experiments for designing optimal irrigation and fertigation schedules.

Bacterial polyextremotolerant bioemulsifiers from arid soils improve water retention capacity and humidity uptake in sandy soil.

PubMed

Raddadi, Noura; Giacomucci, Lucia; Marasco, Ramona; Daffonchio, Daniele; Cherif, Ameur; Fava, Fabio

2018-05-31

Water stress is a critical issue for plant growth in arid sandy soils. Here, we aimed to select bacteria producing polyextremotolerant surface-active compounds capable of improving water retention and humidity uptake in sandy soils. From Tunisian desert and saline systems, we selected eleven isolates able to highly emulsify different organic solvents. The bioemulsifying activities were stable with 30% NaCl, at 4 and 120 °C and in a pH range 4-12. Applications to a sandy soil of the partially purified surface-active compounds improved soil water retention up to 314.3% compared to untreated soil. Similarly, after 36 h of incubation, the humidity uptake rate of treated sandy soil was up to 607.7% higher than untreated controls. Overall, results revealed that polyextremotolerant bioemulsifiers of bacteria from arid and desert soils represent potential sources to develop new natural soil-wetting agents for improving water retention in arid soils.

Long-term influence of tillage and fertilization on net carbon dioxide exchange rate on two soils with different textures.

PubMed

Feiziene, Dalia; Feiza, Virginijus; Slepetiene, Alvyra; Liaudanskiene, Inga; Kadziene, Grazina; Deveikyte, Irena; Vaideliene, Asta

2011-01-01

The importance of agricultural practices to greenhouse gas mitigation is examined worldwide. However, there is no consensus on soil organic carbon (SOC) content and CO emissions as affected by soil management practices and their relationships with soil texture. No-till (NT) agriculture often results in soil C gain, though, not always. Soil net CO exchange rate (NCER) and environmental factors (SOC, soil temperature [T], and water content [W]), as affected by soil type (loam and sandy loam), tillage (conventional, reduced, and NT), and fertilization, were quantified in long-term field experiments in Lithuania. Soil tillage and fertilization affected total CO flux (heterotrophic and autotrophic) through effect on soil SOC sequestration, water, and temperature regime. After 11 yr of different tillage and fertilization management, SOC content was 23% more in loam than in sandy loam. Long-term NT contributed to 7 to 27% more SOC sequestration on loam and to 29 to 33% more on sandy loam compared with reduced tillage (RT) or conventional tillage (CT). Soil water content in loam was 7% more than in sandy loam. Soil gravimetric water content, averaged across measurement dates and fertilization treatments, was significantly less in NT than CT and RT in both soils. Soil organic carbon content and water storage capacity of the loam and sandy loam soils exerted different influences on NCER. The NCER from the sandy loam soil was 13% greater than that from the loam. In addition, NCER was 4 to 9% less with NT than with CT and RT systems on both loam and sandy loam soils. Application of mineral NPK fertilizers promoted significantly greater NCER from loam but suppressed NCER by 15% from sandy loam. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Responses of soil fungal community to the sandy grassland restoration in Horqin Sandy Land, northern China.

PubMed

Wang, Shao-Kun; Zuo, Xiao-An; Zhao, Xue-Yong; Li, Yu-Qiang; Zhou, Xin; Lv, Peng; Luo, Yong-Qing; Yun, Jian-Ying

2016-01-01

Sandy grassland restoration is a vital process including re-structure of soils, restoration of vegetation, and soil functioning in arid and semi-arid regions. Soil fungal community is a complex and critical component of soil functioning and ecological balance due to its roles in organic matter decomposition and nutrient cycling following sandy grassland restoration. In this study, soil fungal community and its relationship with environmental factors were examined along a habitat gradient of sandy grassland restoration: mobile dunes (MD), semi-fixed dunes (SFD), fixed dunes (FD), and grassland (G). It was found that species abundance, richness, and diversity of fungal community increased along with the sandy grassland restoration. The sequences analysis suggested that most of the fungal species (68.4 %) belonged to the phylum of Ascomycota. The three predominant fungal species were Pleospora herbarum, Wickerhamomyces anomalus, and Deconica Montana, accounting for more than one fourth of all the 38 species. Geranomyces variabilis was the subdominant species in MD, Pseudogymnoascus destructans and Mortierella alpine were the subdominant species in SFD, and P. destructans and Fungi incertae sedis were the dominant species in FD and G. The result from redundancy analysis (RDA) and stepwise regression analysis indicated that the vegetation characteristics and soil properties explain a significant proportion of the variation in the fungal community, and aboveground biomass and C:N ratio are the key factors to determine soil fungal community composition during sandy grassland restoration. It was suggested that the restoration of sandy grassland combined with vegetation and soil properties improved the soil fungal diversity. Also, the dominant species was found to be alternative following the restoration of sandy grassland ecosystems.

BACTERIOPHAGE TRANSPORT IN SANDY SOIL AND FRACTURED TUFF

EPA Science Inventory

Bacteriophage transport was investigated in laboratory column experiments using sandy soil, a controlled field study in a sandy wash, and laboratory experiments using fractured rock. In the soil columns, the phage MS-2 exhibited significant dispersion and was excluded from 35 to ...

Transport of gadolinium- and arsenic-based pharmaceuticals in saturated soil under various redox conditions.

PubMed

Menahem, Adi; Dror, Ishai; Berkowitz, Brian

2016-02-01

The release of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) to the soil-water environment necessitates understanding of PPCP transport behavior under conditions that account for dynamic flow and varying redox states. This study investigates the transport of two organometallic PPCPs, Gd-DTPA and roxarsone (arsenic compound) and their metal salts (Gd(NO3)3, AsNaO2); Gd-DTPA is used widely as a contrasting agent for MRI, while roxarsone is applied extensively as a food additive in the broiler poultry industry. Here, we present column experiments using sand and Mediterranean red sandy clay soil, performed under several redox conditions. The metal salts were almost completely immobile. In contrast, transport of Gd-DTPA and roxarsone was affected by the soil type. Roxarsone was also affected by the different redox conditions, showing delayed breakthrough curves as the redox potential became more negative due to biological activity (chemically-strong reducing conditions did not affect the transport). Mechanisms that include adsorptive retardation for aerobic and nitrate-reducing conditions, and non-adsorptive retardation for iron-reducing, sulfate-reducing and biologically-strong reducing conditions, are suggested to explain the roxarsone behavior. Gd-DTPA is found to be a stable complex, with potential for high mobility in groundwater systems, whereas roxarsone transport through groundwater systems is affected by redox environments, demonstrating high mobility under aerobic and nitrate-reducing conditions and delayed transport under iron-reducing, sulfate-reducing and biologically-strong reducing conditions. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of Pisha sandstone content on solute transport in a sandy soil.

PubMed

Zhen, Qing; Zheng, Jiyong; He, Honghua; Han, Fengpeng; Zhang, Xingchang

2016-02-01

In sandy soil, water, nutrients and even pollutants are easily leaching to deeper layers. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of Pisha sandstone on soil solute transport in a sandy soil. The miscible displacement technique was used to obtain breakthrough curves (BTCs) of Br(-) as an inert non-adsorbed tracer and Na(+) as an adsorbed tracer. The incorporation of Pisha sandstone into sandy soil was able to prevent the early breakthrough of both tracers by decreasing the saturated hydraulic conductivity compared to the controlled sandy soil column, and the impeding effects increased with Pisha sandstone content. The BTCs of Br(-) were accurately described by both the convection-dispersion equation (CDE) and the two-region model (T-R), and the T-R model fitted the experimental data slightly better than the CDE. The two-site nonequilibrium model (T-S) accurately fit the Na(+) transport data. Pisha sandstone impeded the breakthrough of Na(+) not only by decreasing the saturated hydraulic conductivity but also by increasing the adsorption capacity of the soil. The measured CEC values of Pisha sandstone were up to 11 times larger than those of the sandy soil. The retardation factors (R) determined by the T-S model increased with increasing Pisha sandstone content, and the partition coefficient (K(d)) showed a similar trend to R. According to the results of this study, Pisha sandstone can successfully impede solute transport in a sandy soil column. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Rain water transport and storage in a model sandy soil with hydrogel particle additives.

PubMed

Wei, Y; Durian, D J

2014-10-01

We study rain water infiltration and drainage in a dry model sandy soil with superabsorbent hydrogel particle additives by measuring the mass of retained water for non-ponding rainfall using a self-built 3D laboratory set-up. In the pure model sandy soil, the retained water curve measurements indicate that instead of a stable horizontal wetting front that grows downward uniformly, a narrow fingered flow forms under the top layer of water-saturated soil. This rain water channelization phenomenon not only further reduces the available rain water in the plant root zone, but also affects the efficiency of soil additives, such as superabsorbent hydrogel particles. Our studies show that the shape of the retained water curve for a soil packing with hydrogel particle additives strongly depends on the location and the concentration of the hydrogel particles in the model sandy soil. By carefully choosing the particle size and distribution methods, we may use the swollen hydrogel particles to modify the soil pore structure, to clog or extend the water channels in sandy soils, or to build water reservoirs in the plant root zone.

An assessment of the effectiveness and impact of electrokinetic remediation for pyrene-contaminated soil.

PubMed

Xu, Sujuan; Guo, Shuhai; Wu, Bo; Li, Fengmei; Li, Tingting

2014-11-01

The effectiveness of electrokinetic remediation for pyrene-contaminated soil was investigated by an anode-cathode separated system using a salt bridge. The applied constant voltage was 24 V and the electrode gap was 24 cm. Two types of soil (sandy soil and loam soil) were selected because of their different conductive capabilities. The initial concentrations of pyrene in these soil samples were 261.3mg/kg sandy soil and 259.8 mg/kg loam soil. After treatment of the sandy soil and loam soil for seven days, 56.8% and 20.1% of the pyrene had been removed respectively. Under the same power supply voltage, the removal of the pollutant from the sandy soil was greater than that from the loam soil, due to the higher current and lower pH. Further analysis revealed that the effectiveness of electrokinetic remediation was affected by the energy expenditure, and was associated with changes in soil properties. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Effect of moisture and compost on fate of azoxystrobin in soils.

PubMed

Singh, Neera; Singh, Shashi B

2010-10-01

The effect of compost-amendment and moisture status on the persistence of azoxystrobin [methyl (E)-2-{2-(6-(2-cyanophenoxy) pyrimidin-4-yloxy) phenyl}-3-methoxyacrylate], a strobilurin fungicide, in two rice-growing soils was studied. Azoxystrobin is more sorbed in the silt loam (K f – 4.66) soil than the sandy loam (K f – 2.98) soil. Compost-amendment at 5 % levels further enhanced the azoxystrobin sorption and the respective Kf values in silt loam and sandy loam soils were 8.48 and 7.6. Azoxystrobin was more persistent in the sandy loam soil than the silt loam soil. The half–life values of azoxystrobin in nonflooded and flooded silt loam soil were 54.7 and 46.3 days, respectively. The corresponding half–life values in the sandy loam soils were 64 and 62.7 days, respectively. Compost application enhanced persistence of azoxystrobin in the silt loam soil under both moisture regimes and half-life values in non–flooded and flooded soils were 115.7 and 52.8 days, respectively. However, compost enhanced azoxystrobin degradation in the sandy loam soil and half-life values were 59 (nonflooded) and 54.7 days (flooded). The study indicates that compost amendment enhanced azoxystrobin sorption in the soils. Azoxystrobin is more persistent in non-flooded soils than the flooded soils. Compost applications to soils had mixed effect on the azoxystrobin degradation.

Analyzing the Sand-fixing Effect of Feldspathic Sandstone from the Texture Characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, lu; Ban, Jichang

2018-01-01

The purpose of this research was aimed to study the sand fixing effect of feldspathic sandstone in Mu Us Sandy Land, to provide a scienticic basis for desertification control, soil and water conservation and development of farming there. Methods of mixing feldspathic sandstone and aeolian sandy soil according to 1: 0, 1: 1, 1: 2, 1: 5, and 0: 1 mass ratioes, the graded composition and characteristics were studied with laser particle size analyzer. The result showed that these features of sand-based, loosely structured, easy to wind erosion of aeolian sandy soil were changed before feldspathic sandstone and aeolian sandy soil compounding. The <0.05 mm particle mass increased with feldspathic sandstone mass increasing. The texture presented this kind of change from sand to sandy loam to loam to silt loam. The small particle size distribution, good homogeneity and other features of aeolian sandy soil were improved to a certain degree, and the particle size distribution became broad before feldspathic sandstone and aeolian sandy soil compounding. The particle grading was continuous, and the grading characteristic was good when m(F): m(S) was 1: 5(Cu was 54.71 and Cc was 2.54) or when m(F): m(S) was 1: 2(Cu was 76.21, Cc was 1.12). The conclusion is that feldspathic sandstone has sand-fixing effect in texture characteristics, which heightens with feldspathic sandstone mass increasing, and when the mass ratio of feldspathic sandstone: aeolian sandy soil is 1: 2 or 1: 5 which compound better.

Jatropha curcas L. Root Structure and Growth in Diverse Soils

PubMed Central

Valdés-Rodríguez, Ofelia Andrea; Sánchez-Sánchez, Odilón; Pérez-Vázquez, Arturo; Caplan, Joshua S.; Danjon, Frédéric

2013-01-01

Unlike most biofuel species, Jatropha curcas has promise for use in marginal lands, but it may serve an additional role by stabilizing soils. We evaluated the growth and structural responsiveness of young J. curcas plants to diverse soil conditions. Soils included a sand, a sandy-loam, and a clay-loam from eastern Mexico. Growth and structural parameters were analyzed for shoots and roots, although the focus was the plasticity of the primary root system architecture (the taproot and four lateral roots). The sandy soil reduced the growth of both shoot and root systems significantly more than sandy-loam or clay-loam soils; there was particularly high plasticity in root and shoot thickness, as well as shoot length. However, the architecture of the primary root system did not vary with soil type; the departure of the primary root system from an index of perfect symmetry was 14 ± 5% (mean ± standard deviation). Although J. curcas developed more extensively in the sandy-loam and clay-loam soils than in sandy soil, it maintained a consistent root to shoot ratio and root system architecture across all types of soil. This strong genetic determination would make the species useful for soil stabilization purposes, even while being cultivated primarily for seed oil. PMID:23844412

Jatropha curcas L. root structure and growth in diverse soils.

PubMed

Valdés-Rodríguez, Ofelia Andrea; Sánchez-Sánchez, Odilón; Pérez-Vázquez, Arturo; Caplan, Joshua S; Danjon, Frédéric

2013-01-01

Unlike most biofuel species, Jatropha curcas has promise for use in marginal lands, but it may serve an additional role by stabilizing soils. We evaluated the growth and structural responsiveness of young J. curcas plants to diverse soil conditions. Soils included a sand, a sandy-loam, and a clay-loam from eastern Mexico. Growth and structural parameters were analyzed for shoots and roots, although the focus was the plasticity of the primary root system architecture (the taproot and four lateral roots). The sandy soil reduced the growth of both shoot and root systems significantly more than sandy-loam or clay-loam soils; there was particularly high plasticity in root and shoot thickness, as well as shoot length. However, the architecture of the primary root system did not vary with soil type; the departure of the primary root system from an index of perfect symmetry was 14 ± 5% (mean ± standard deviation). Although J. curcas developed more extensively in the sandy-loam and clay-loam soils than in sandy soil, it maintained a consistent root to shoot ratio and root system architecture across all types of soil. This strong genetic determination would make the species useful for soil stabilization purposes, even while being cultivated primarily for seed oil.

Effect of soil texture on phytoremediation of arsenic-contaminated soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pallud, C. E.; Matzen, S. L.; Olson, A.

2015-12-01

Soil arsenic (As) contamination is a global problem, resulting in part from anthropogenic activities, including the use of arsenical pesticides and treated wood, mining, and irrigated agriculture. Phytoextraction using the hyperaccumulating fern Pteris vittata is a promising new technology to remediate soils with shallow arsenic contamination with minimal site disturbance. However, many challenges still lie ahead for a global application of phytoremediation. For example, remediation times using P. vittata are on the order of decades. In addition, most research on As phytoextraction with P. vittata has examined As removal from sandy soils, where As is more available, with little research focusing on As removal from clayey soils, where As is less available. The objective of this study is to determine the effects of soil texture and soil fertilization on As extraction by P. vittata, to optimize remediation efficiency and decrease remediation time under complex field conditions. A field study was established 2.5 years ago in an abandoned railroad grade contaminated with As (average 85.5 mg kg-1) with texture varying from sandy loam to silty clay loam. Organic N, inorganic N, organic P, inorganic P, and compost were applied to separate sub-plots; control ferns were grown in untreated soil. In a parallel greenhouse experiment, ferns were grown in sandy loam soil extracted from the field (180 mg As kg-1), with similar treatments as those used at the field site, plus a high phosphate treatment and treatments with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. In the field study, fern mortality was 24% higher in clayey soil than in sandy soil due to waterlogging, while As was primarily associated with sandy soil. Results from the sandy loam soil indicate that soil treatments did not significantly increase As phytoextraction, which was lower in phosphate-treated ferns than in control ferns, both in the field and greenhouse study. Under greenhouse conditions, ferns treated with organic N were largest and accumulated the most total As, while under field conditions, control and compost-treated ferns accumulated the most total As. Under greenhouse conditions, leaching appeared to account for most As removed from sandy loam soil. Results from a similar greenhouse study now underway in clayey soil will be discussed.

Analysis of volatile organic compound from Elaeis guineensis inflorescences planted on different soil types in Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muhamad Fahmi, M. H.; Ahmad Bukhary, A. K.; Norma, H.; Idris, A. B.

2016-11-01

The main attractant compound for Eleidobius kamerunicus to male spikelet Elaeis guineensis (oil palm) were determined by analyzing volatile organic compound extracted from E. guineenses inflorescences planted on different soil types namely peat soil, clay soil and sandy soil. Anthesizing male oil palm inflorescences were randomly choosen from palm aged between 4-5 years old age. Extraction of the volatiles from the oil palm inflorescences were performed by Accelerated Solvent Extraction method (ASE). The extracted volatile compound were determined by using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Out of ten identified compound, estragole was found to be a major compound in sandy soil (37.49%), clay soil (30.71%) and peat soil (27.79%). Other compound such as 9,12-octadecadieonic acid and n-hexadecanoic acid were found as major compound in peat soil (27.18%) and (7.45%); sandy soil (14.15 %) and (9.31%); and clay soil (30.23%) and (4.99%). This study shows that estragole was the predominant volatile compound detected in oil palm inflorescences with highly concentrated in palm planted in sandy soil type.

Emerging organic pollutants in the vadose zone of a soil aquifer treatment system: Pore water extraction using positive displacement.

PubMed

Sopilniak, Alexander; Elkayam, Roy; Rossin, Anna Voloshenko; Lev, Ovadia

2018-01-01

Trace organic compounds in effluents, water streams and aquifers are amply reported. However, the mobile pool of Emerging Organic Contaminants (EOCs) in the deep parts of the vadose zone is hard to estimate, due to difficulties in extraction of sufficient quantity of pore water. Here, we present a new methodology for depth profiling of EOCs in pore water by Positive Displacement Extraction (PDE): Pore water extraction from unsaturated soil samples is carried out by withdrawal of soil cores by direct-push drilling and infiltrating the core by organics free water. We show that EOC concentrations in the water eluted in the plateau region of the inverse breakthrough curve is equal to their pore water concentrations. The method was previously validated for DOC extraction, and here the scope of the methodology is extended to pore water extraction for organic pollutants analysis. Method characteristics and validation were carried out with atrazine, simazine, carbamazepine, venlafaxine, O-desmethylvenlafaxine and caffeine in the concentration range of several ng to several μg/liter. Validation was carried out by laboratory experiments on three different soils (sandy, sandy-clayey and clayey). Field studies in the vadose zone of a SAT system provided 27 m deep EOC profiles with less than 1.5 m spatial resolution. During the percolation treatment, carbamazepine remained persistent, while the other studied EOCs were attenuated to the extent of 50-99%.The highest degradation rate of all studied EOCs was in the aerobic zone. EOC levels based on PDE and extraction by centrifugation were compared, showing a positive bias for centrifugation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Influence of soil texture on hydraulic properties and water relations of a dominant warm-desert phreatophyte.

PubMed

Hultine, K R; Koepke, D F; Pockman, W T; Fravolini, A; Sperry, J S; Williams, D G

2006-03-01

We investigated hydraulic constraints on water uptake by velvet mesquite (Prosopis velutina Woot.) at a site with sandy-loam soil and at a site with loamy-clay soil in southeastern Arizona, USA. We predicted that trees on sandy-loam soil have less negative xylem and soil water potentials during drought and a lower resistance to xylem cavitation, and reach E(crit) (the maximum steady-state transpiration rate without hydraulic failure) at higher soil water potentials than trees on loamy-clay soil. However, minimum predawn leaf xylem water potentials measured during the height of summer drought were significantly lower at the sandy-loam site (-3.5 +/- 0.1 MPa; all errors are 95% confidence limits) than at the loamy-clay site (-2.9 +/- 0.1 MPa). Minimum midday xylem water potentials also were lower at the sandy-loam site (-4.5 +/- 0.1 MPa) than at the loamy-clay site (-4.0 +/- 0.1 MPa). Despite the differences in leaf water potentials, there were no significant differences in either root or stem xylem embolism, mean cavitation pressure or Psi(95) (xylem water potential causing 95% cavitation) between trees at the two sites. A soil-plant hydraulic model parameterized with the field data predicted that E(crit) approaches zero at a substantially higher bulk soil water potential (Psi(s)) on sandy-loam soil than on loamy-clay soil, because of limiting rhizosphere conductance. The model predicted that transpiration at the sandy-loam site is limited by E(crit) and is tightly coupled to Psi(s) over much of the growing season, suggesting that seasonal transpiration fluxes at the sandy-loam site are strongly linked to intra-annual precipitation pulses. Conversely, the model predicted that trees on loamy-clay soil operate below E(crit) throughout the growing season, suggesting that fluxes on fine-textured soils are closely coupled to inter-annual changes in precipitation. Information on the combined importance of xylem and rhizosphere constraints to leaf water supply across soil texture gradients provides insight into processes controlling plant water balance and larger scale hydrologic processes.

Lasting effects of soil health improvements with management changes in cotton-based cropping systems in a sandy soil

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The soil microbial component is essential for sustainable agricultural systems and soil health. This study evaluated the lasting impacts of 5 years of soil health improvements from alternative cropping systems compared to intensively tilled continuous cotton (Cont. Ctn) in a low organic matter sandy...

Different Behavior of Enteric Bacteria and Viruses in Clay and Sandy Soils after Biofertilization with Swine Digestate

PubMed Central

Fongaro, Gislaine; García-González, María C.; Hernández, Marta; Kunz, Airton; Barardi, Célia R. M.; Rodríguez-Lázaro, David

2017-01-01

Enteric pathogens from biofertilizer can accumulate in the soil, subsequently contaminating water and crops. We evaluated the survival, percolation and leaching of model enteric pathogens in clay and sandy soils after biofertilization with swine digestate: PhiX-174, mengovirus (vMC0), Salmonella enterica Typhimurium and Escherichia coli O157:H7 were used as biomarkers. The survival of vMC0 and PhiX-174 in clay soil was significantly lower than in sandy soil (iT90 values of 10.520 ± 0.600 vs. 21.270 ± 1.100 and 12.040 ± 0.010 vs. 43.470 ± 1.300, respectively) and PhiX-174 showed faster percolation and leaching in sandy soil than clay soil (iT90 values of 0.46 and 2.43, respectively). S. enterica Typhimurium was percolated and inactivated more slowly than E. coli O157:H7 (iT90 values of 9.340 ± 0.200 vs. 6.620 ± 0.500 and 11.900 ± 0.900 vs. 10.750 ± 0.900 in clay and sandy soils, respectively), such that E. coli O157:H7 was transferred more quickly to the deeper layers of both soils evaluated (percolation). Our findings suggest that E. coli O157:H7 may serve as a useful microbial biomarker of depth contamination and leaching in clay and sandy soil and that bacteriophage could be used as an indicator of enteric pathogen persistence. Our study contributes to development of predictive models for enteric pathogen behavior in soils, and for potential water and food contamination associated with biofertilization, useful for risk management and mitigation in swine digestate recycling. PMID:28197137

Effects of plant cover on soil N mineralization during the growing season in a sandy soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yao, Y.; Shao, M.; Wei, X.; Fu, X.

2017-12-01

Soil nitrogen (N) mineralization and its availability plays a vital role in regulating ecosystem productivity and C cycling, particularly in semiarid and desertified ecosystems. To determine the effect of plant cover on N turnover in a sandy soil ecosystem, we measured soil N mineralization and inorganic N pools in soil solution during growing season in a sandy soil covered with various plant species (Artemisia desertorum, Salix psammophila, and Caragana korshinskii). A bare sandy soil without any plant was selected as control. Inorganic N pools and N mineralization rates decreased overtime during the growing season, and were not affected by soil depth in bare land soils, but were significantly higher at the 0-10 cm layer than those at the 10-20 cm soil layer under any plant species. Soil inorganic N pool was dominated by ammonium, and N mineralization was dominated by nitrification regardless of soil depth and plant cover. Soils under C. korshinskii have significant higher inorganic N pools and N mineralization rate than soils under bare land and A. desertorum and S. psammophila, and the effects of plant cover were greater at the 0-10 cm soil layer than at the 10-20 cm layer. The effects of C. korshinskii on soil inorganic N pools and mineralization rate varied with the stage of growing season, with greater effects on N pools in the middle growing season, and greater effects on mineralization rate at the last half of the growing season. The results from this study indicate that introduction of C. korshinskii has the potential to increase soil N turnover and availability in sandy soils, and thus to decrease N limitation. Caragana korshinskii is therefore recommend for the remediation of the desertified land.

Switchgrass and pecan biochar amendments to a sandy coastal soil

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sandy soils of the wet, warm SE Coastal Plain have poor physical characteristics and low carbon contents. To improve soil properties, we added switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) and non-activated pecan (Carya illinoinensis) biochar. Switchgrass was ground to a fine powder and added to soil at rates of 0...

Garlic mustard and its effects on soil microbial communities in a sandy pine forest in central Illinois

Treesearch

Alexander B. Faulkner; Brittany E. Pham; Truc-Quynh D. Nguyen; Kenneth E. Kitchell; Daniel S. O' Keefe; Kelly D. McConnaughay; Sherri J. Morris

2014-01-01

This study evaluated the impacts of garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), an invasive species, on soil microbial community dynamics in a pine plantation on sandy soils in central Illinois. In situ soil carbon dioxide efflux was significantly greater in invaded sites. Similarly, in vitro carbon mineralization was significantly greater for soils...

Analysis of Long Wave Infrared (LWIR) Soil Data to Predict Reflectance Response

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-08-01

Aridisol red-orange sandy soil 6% x 16% 61 12% smectite Aridisol grey calcareous silty soil x 19% 49 22% smectite ...trace 16% 59 20% smectite ; grain size analysis of fraction finer than 2 mm indicates 35% finer than 20 micrometer (12% finer than 5 micrometer...Entisol red-orange sandy loam/alluvium see comment 8% x 10% 72 7% smectite ; 47% finer than 20 μm (22% finer than 5 μm) Entisol sandy

Features of Scots pine radial growth in conditions of provenance trial

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuzmin, S.

2012-12-01

Provenance trial of Scots pine in Boguchany forestry of Krasnoyarsk krai is conducted on two different soils - dark-grey loam forest soil and sod-podzol sandy soil. Complex of negative factors for plant growth and development appears in dry conditions of sandy soil. It could results in decrease of resistance to diseases. Sandy soils in different climatic zones have such common traits as low absorbing capacity, poorness of elemental nutrition, low microbiological activity and moisture capacity, very high water permeability. But Scots pine trees growing in such conditions could have certain advantages and perspectives of use. In the scope of climate change (global warming) the study of Scots pine growth on sandy soil become urgent because of more frequent appearance of dry seasons. Purpose of the work is revelation of radial growth features of Scots pine with different origin in dry conditions of sandy soil and assessment of external factors influence. The main feature of radial growth of majority of studied pine provenances in conditions of sandy soil is presence of significant variation of increment with distinct decline in 25-years old with loss of tree rings in a number of cases. The reason of it is complex of factors: deficit of June precipitation and next following outbreak of fungal disease. Found «frost rings» for all trees of studied clymatypes in 1992 are the consequence of temperature decline from May 21 to June 2 - from 23 C degrees up to 2 C. Perspective climatypes with biggest radial increments and least sensitivity to fungal disease were revealed.

Growth patterns of red pine on fine-textured soils.

Treesearch

David H. Alban; Donald H. Prettyman; Gary J. Brand

1987-01-01

Compares growth of 28- to 49-year-old red pine plantations on sandy and fine-textured soils. Red pine growing on these two contrasting soils did not differ in bole form, live crown ratio, or mortality, and tree growth predicted by models (STEMS and REDPINE) developed from trees growing on sandy soils worked equally well for trees growing on fine-textured soils.

[The influence of straw, particularly rice straw, together with calcium-cyanamide on the microbiological activity of two Portuguese soils (author's transl)].

PubMed

Glathe, H; El Din, A; Scheuer, A

1976-01-01

The influence of calcium-cyanamide upon the microbiological activity was tested in pot experiments under controlled conditions in two Portuguese soils (sandy and loamy) after the addition of rice or wheat straw (rice straw 0.275% N, wheat straw 0.307% N). The amount of straw was equalled to 100 dz/ha, the application of calcium-cyanamide to 25, 50 and 100 kg N/ha. In the containers treated with straw the total amount of microorganisms (Koch-method) was higher in sandy than in loamy soil after 30 days, but after 70 days it was higher in loamy soil. The content of active nitrogen (NH4 + NO3) increased, when calcium-cyanamide was added, but decreased after the application of straw. After 70 days sandy soil again showed an increase of active nitrogen. Straw increased the rates of CO2-production considerably, wheat straw was superior to rice straw. Calcium-cyanamide increased the CO2-production more in sandy than in loamy soil or German loess, which was also used for this experiment. Only in the case of rice straw higher doses of calcium-cyanamide had a positive effect. After 70 days the CO2-production rose only when rice straw was applied. The dehydrogenase-activity was increased in both soils, but a superiority of wheat straw occurred in sandy soil only. The microbiological activity in the pots with straw was higher in sandy than in loamy soil, the addition of calcium-cyanamide accelerated it. Doses of 25-50 kg N/ha are sufficient generally. The period of the formation of insoluble organic N-compounds, usually connected with the application of organic matter with a wide N:C-ratio, seems to be reduced by the addition of calcium-cyanamide.

Development and survival of Anopheles gambiae eggs in drying soil: influence of the rate of drying, egg age, and soil type.

PubMed

Shililu, J I; Grueber, W B; Mbogo, C M; Githure, J I; Riddiford, L M; Beier, J C

2004-09-01

Little is known about the contribution made by the egg stage of African malaria vectors to the rapid rise in adult populations following the onset of seasonal rains. To examine this issue, we evaluated the viability of Anopheles gambiae eggs in drying soil in the laboratory. Survival data were collected from field-caught mosquitoes kept in sandy loam soil and laboratory-reared colonies kept in sandy loam soil and black cotton soil. Under high, medium, and low soil-moisture regimes, egg viability declined sharply with increased duration of drying. Eggs remained viable in drying sandy loam soil for 1, 5, and 10 days, but not after 15 or 20 days. The most dramatic decline in hatching success occurred between drying days 1 (78-83% hatch) and 5 (20-23% hatch). In contrast, eggs reared in high-moisture black cotton soil remained viable for up to 15 days. Furthermore, after 5 drying days, high-, medium-, and low-moisture soils averaged 59, 47, and 31% hatching success, respectively. We recovered unhatched eggs from sandy loam soils to examine the developmental status of the embryos. A majority of the unhatched eggs that were recovered from days 15 and 20 in sandy loam soils contained fully developed late-stage embryos. Thus, unhatched eggs completed embryonic development but probably died before receiving an appropriate hatching stimulus. Our results suggest that the absolute moisture content of the soil does not alone determine hatching success of anopheline eggs. Rather, soil moisture, together with the rate of drying, physiological factors associated with the age of the egg, and the type of soil in which the egg rests likely influence survival.

The dielectric properties of soil-water mixtures at microwave frequencies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, J. R.

1979-01-01

Recent measurements on the dielectric constants of soil-water mixtures show the existence of two frequency regions in which the dielectric behavior of these mixtures was quite different. At the frequencies of 1.4 GHz to 5 GHz, there were strong evidences that the variations of the dielectric (epsilon) with water content (W) depended on soil type. While the real part of epsilon for sandy soils rose rapidly with the increase in W, epsilon for the high-clay content soils rose only slowly with W. As a consequence, epsilon was generally higher for the sandy soils than for the high-clay content soils at a given W. On the other hand, most of the measurements at frequencies 1 GHz indicated the increase of epsilon with W independent of soil types. At a given W, epsilon' (sandy soil) approximately equals epsilon (high-clay content soil) within the precision of the measurements. These observational features can be satisfactorily interpreted in terms of a simple dielectric relaxation model, with an appropriate choice of the mean relaxation frequency f(m) and the range of the activation energy (beta). It was found that smaller f(m) and larger beta were required for the high-clay content soils than the sandy soils in order to be consistent with the measured data.

Influence of soil texture, moisture, and surface cracks on the performance of a root-feeding flea beetle, Longitarsus bethae (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), a biological control agent for Lantana camara (Verbenaceae).

PubMed

Simelane, David O

2007-06-01

Laboratory studies were conducted to determine the influence of soil texture, moisture and surface cracks on adult preference and survival of the root-feeding flea beetle, Longitarsus bethae Savini and Escalona (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), a natural enemy of the weed, Lantana camara L. (Verbenaceae). Adult feeding, oviposition preference, and survival of the immature stages of L. bethae were examined at four soil textures (clayey, silty loam, sandy loam, and sandy soil), three soil moisture levels (low, moderate, and high), and two soil surface conditions (with or without surface cracks). Both soil texture and moisture had no influence on leaf feeding and colonization by adult L. bethae. Soil texture had a significant influence on oviposition, with adults preferring to lay on clayey and sandy soils to silty or sandy loam soils. However, survival to adulthood was significantly higher in clayey soils than in other soil textures. There was a tendency for females to deposit more eggs at greater depth in both clayey and sandy soils than in other soil textures. Although oviposition preference and depth of oviposition were not influenced by soil moisture, survival in moderately moist soils was significantly higher than in other moisture levels. Development of immature stages in high soil moisture levels was significantly slower than in other soil moisture levels. There were no variations in the body size of beetles that emerged from different soil textures and moisture levels. Females laid almost three times more eggs on cracked than on noncracked soils. It is predicted that clayey and moderately moist soils will favor the survival of L. bethae, and under these conditions, damage to the roots is likely to be high. This information will aid in the selection of suitable release sites where L. bethae would be most likely to become established.

[Ecological distribution and antimicrobial effects of soil actinomycetes in artificial vegetation systems in Shazhuyu of Qinghai, China].

PubMed

Yang, Bin; Xue, Quan-hong; Chen, Zhan-quan; Guo, Zhi-ying; Zhang, Xiao-lu; Zhou, Yong-qiang; Xu, Ying-jun; Sun, De-fu

2008-08-01

In order to probe into the effects of artificial vegetation rehabilitation on soil actinomycetes, dilution plate and agar block methods were used to investigate the ecological distribution and antimicrobial effects of actinomycetes in sandy soil in Shazhuyu area of Qinghai after artificial vegetation restoration. The results showed that with the vegetation rehabilitation and the improvement of vegetation coverage on alpine sandy dry land, the quantity of soil actinomycetes increased significantly, being 145.4% higher in the grassland transferred from farmland than in sandy land. The quantity of soil Micromonospora in grassland transferred from farmland was about six times as much as that in sandy land. The average selection rate of antimicrobial actinomycetes was increased greatly, with the antimicrobial actinomycetes in the soil of grassland transferred from farmland, the antibacterial actinomycetes in the soil of natural grassland, and the pathogenic fungus resistant aetinomycetes in the soil of forestland being approximately 2, 3.2 and 1.5 times as much as those in the soil of sandy land, respectively. Vegetation coverage and soil nutrients had great influences on the quantities of actinomycetes and antimicrobial actinomycetes. The contents of soil organic matter and alkali-hydrolyzable nitrogen and the yield of fresh grasses had significant correlations with the quantities of actinomycetes (P < 0.01), and the content of soil organic matter and the yield of fresh grasses significantly correlated with the strain numbers of antimicrobial actinomycetes (P < 0.01). Furthermore, vegetation coverage and the contents of soil total nitrogen, total phosphorous, total potassium, total salt, and available potassium had significant correlations with the total quantities of actinomycetes, Streptomycetes, and Micromonospora (P < 0.05).

[Correlation Among Soil Organic Carbon, Soil Inorganic Carbon and the Environmental Factors in a Typical Oasis in the Southern Edge of the Tarim Basin].

PubMed

Gong, Lu; Zhu, Mei-ling; Liu, Zeng-yuan; Zhang, Xue-ni; Xie, Li-na

2016-04-15

We analyzed the differentiation among the environmental factors and soil organic/inorganic carbon contents of irrigated desert soil, brown desert soil, saline soil and aeolian sandy soil by classical statistics methods, and studied the correlation between soil carbon contents and the environmental factor by redundancy analysis (RDA) in a typical oasis of Yutian in the southern edge of the Tarim Basin. The results showed that the average contents of soil organic carbon and soil inorganic carbon were 2.51 g · kg⁻¹ and 25.63 g · kg⁻¹ respectively. The soil organic carbon content of the irrigated desert soil was significantly higher than those of brown desert soil, saline soil and aeolian sandy soil, while the inorganic carbon content of aeolian sandy soil was significantly higher than those of other soil types. The soil moisture and nutrient content were the highest in the irrigated desert soil and the lowest in the aeolian sandy sail. All soil types had high degree of salinization except the irrigated desert soil. The RDA results showed that the impacts of environmental factors on soil carbon contents ranked in order of importance were total nitrogen > available phosphorus > soil moisture > ground water depth > available potassium > pH > total salt. The soil carbon contents correlated extremely significantly with total nitrogen, available phosphorus, soil moisture and ground water depth (P < 0.01), and it correlated significantly with available potassium and pH (P < 0.05). There was no significant correlation between soil carbon contents and other environmental factors (P > 0.05).

Microfungi diversity isolation from sandy soil of Acapulco touristic beaches

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Microscopic fungi diversity in marine sandy soil habitats is associated with key functions of beach ecosystems. There are few reports on their presence in Mexican beaches. Although standard methods to obtain the fungi from soil samples are established, the aim of this pilot study was to test the pla...

Impact of treated wastewater on growth, respiration and hydraulic conductivity of citrus root systems in light and heavy soils.

PubMed

Paudel, Indira; Cohen, Shabtai; Shaviv, Avi; Bar-Tal, Asher; Bernstein, Nirit; Heuer, Bruria; Ephrath, Jhonathan

2016-06-01

Roots interact with soil properties and irrigation water quality leading to changes in root growth, structure and function. We studied these interactions in an orchard and in lysimeters with clay and sandy loam soils. Minirhizotron imaging and manual sampling showed that root growth was three times lower in the clay relative to sandy loam soil. Treated wastewater (TWW) led to a large reduction in root growth with clay (45-55%) but not with sandy loam soil (<20%). Treated wastewater increased salt uptake, membrane leakage and proline content, and decreased root viability, carbohydrate content and osmotic potentials in the fine roots, especially in clay. These results provide evidence that TWW challenges and damages the root system. The phenology and physiology of root orders were studied in lysimeters. Soil type influenced diameter, specific root area, tissue density and cortex area similarly in all root orders, while TWW influenced these only in clay soil. Respiration rates were similar in both soils, and root hydraulic conductivity was severely reduced in clay soil. Treated wastewater increased respiration rate and reduced hydraulic conductivity of all root orders in clay but only of the lower root orders in sandy loam soil. Loss of hydraulic conductivity increased with root order in clay and clay irrigated with TWW. Respiration and hydraulic properties of all root orders were significantly affected by sodium-amended TWW in sandy loam soil. These changes in root order morphology, anatomy, physiology and hydraulic properties indicate rapid and major modifications of root systems in response to differences in soil type and water quality. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Critical evaluation of the use of the hydroxyapatite as a stabilizing agent to reduce the mobility of Zn and Ni in sewage sludge amended soils.

PubMed

Zupancic, Marija; Bukovec, Peter; Milacic, Radmila; Scancar, Janez

2006-01-01

The leachability of zinc (Zn) and nickel (Ni) was investigated in various soil types amended with sewage sludge and sewage sludge treated with hydroxyapatite. Sandy, clay and peat soils were investigated. For leachability tests, plastic columns (diameter 9 cm, height 50 cm) were filled with moist samples up to a height of 25 cm. Sewage sludge (1 kg) was mixed with 4.6 kg of clay and sandy soils and with 6.7 kg of peat soil. For sewage sludge mixtures treated with hydroxyapatite, 0.5 kg of the hydroxyapatite was added to 1 kg of the sewage sludge. Neutral (pH 7) and acid precipitation (pH 3.5) were applied. Acid precipitation was prepared from concentrated HNO(3), H(2)SO(4) and fresh doubly distilled water. The amount of precipitation corresponded to the average annual precipitation for the city of Ljubljana, Slovenia. It was divided into eight equal portions and applied sequentially on the top of the columns. The results indicated that the leachabilities of Zn in sewage sludge amended peat and clay soils were low (below 0.3% of total Zn content) and of Ni in sewage sludge amended sandy, clay and peat soil below 1.9% of total Ni content. In sewage sludge amended sandy soil, the leachability of Zn was higher (11% of Zn content). The pH of precipitation had no influence on the leachability of either metal. Treatment of sewage sludge with hydroxyapatite efficiently reduced the leachability of Zn in sewage sludge amended sandy soil (from 11% to 0.2% of total Zn content). In clay and peat sewage sludge amended soils, soil characteristics rather than hydroxyapatite treatment dominate Zn mobility.

The Effects of Soil Texture on the Ability of Human Remains Detection Dogs to Detect Buried Human Remains.

PubMed

Alexander, Michael B; Hodges, Theresa K; Wescott, Daniel J; Aitkenhead-Peterson, Jacqueline A

2016-05-01

Despite technological advances, human remains detection (HRD) dogs still remain one of the best tools for locating clandestine graves. However, soil texture may affect the escape of decomposition gases and therefore the effectiveness of HDR dogs. Six nationally credentialed HRD dogs (three HRD only and three cross-trained) were evaluated on novel buried human remains in contrasting soils, a clayey and a sandy soil. Search time and accuracy were compared for the clayey soil and sandy soil to assess odor location difficulty. Sandy soil (p < 0.001) yielded significantly faster trained response times, but no significant differences were found in performance accuracy between soil textures or training method. Results indicate soil texture may be significant factor in odor detection difficulty. Prior knowledge of soil texture and moisture may be useful for search management and planning. Appropriate adjustments to search segment sizes, sweep widths and search time allotment depending on soil texture may optimize successful detection. © 2016 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Expanded uncertainty estimation methodology in determining the sandy soils filtration coefficient

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rusanova, A. D.; Malaja, L. D.; Ivanov, R. N.; Gruzin, A. V.; Shalaj, V. V.

2018-04-01

The combined standard uncertainty estimation methodology in determining the sandy soils filtration coefficient has been developed. The laboratory researches were carried out which resulted in filtration coefficient determination and combined uncertainty estimation obtaining.

Effect of soil and vegetation on growth of planted white spruce.

Treesearch

Donald A. Perala

1987-01-01

White spruce container stock grew better on a sandy loam soil than on a silty clay, and much better without herbaceous competitions. Herbaceous competition was less vigorous on the sandy loam soil following glyphosate treatment, but was more vigorous on the silty clay. Certain spruce genotypes excelled under different field environments.

Estimating water retention curves for sandy soils at the Doñana National Park, SW Spain

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The determination of soil water retention curves (SWRC) in the laboratory is a slow and tedious task, which is especially challenging for sandy soils due to their low water retention capacity and large water content changes for small pressure head differences. Due to spatial variability within larg...

Effects of sodium polyacrylate on water retention and infiltration capacity of a sandy soil.

PubMed

Zhuang, Wenhua; Li, Longguo; Liu, Chao

2013-01-01

Based on the laboratory study, the effects of sodium polyacrylate (SP) was investigated at 5 rates of 0, 0.08, 0.2, 0.5, and 1%, on water retention, saturated hydraulic conductivity(Ks), infiltration characteristic and water distribution profiles of a sandy soil. The results showed that water retention and available water capacity effectively increased with increasing SP rate. The Ks and the rate of wetting front advance and infiltration under certain pond infiltration was significantly reduced by increasing SP rate, which effectively reduced water in a sandy soil leaking to a deeper layer under the plough layer. The effect of SP on water distribution was obviously to the up layer and very little to the following deeper layers. Considering both the effects on water retention and infiltration capacity, it is suggested that SP be used to the sandy soil at concentrations ranging from 0.2 to 0.5%.

[Monitoring of water and salt transport in silt and sandy soil during the leaching process].

PubMed

Fu, Teng-Fei; Jia, Yong-Gang; Guo, Lei; Liu, Xiao-Lei

2012-11-01

Water and salt transport in soil and its mechanism is the key point of the saline soil research. The dynamic rule of water and transport in soil during the leaching process is the theoretical basis of formation, flush, drainage and improvement of saline soil. In this study, a vertical infiltration experiment was conducted to monitor the variation in the resistivity of silt and sandy soil during the leaching process by the self-designed automatic monitoring device. The experimental results showed that the peaks in the resistivity of the two soils went down and faded away in the course of leaching. It took about 30 minutes for sandy soil to reach the water-salt balance, whereas the silt took about 70 minutes. With the increasing leaching times, the desalination depth remained basically the same, being 35 cm for sandy soil and 10 cm for the silt from the top to bottom of soil column. Therefore, 3 and 7 leaching processes were required respectively for the complete desalination of the soil column. The temporal and spatial resolution of this monitoring device can be adjusted according to the practical demand. This device can not only achieve the remote, in situ and dynamic monitoring data of water and salt transport, but also provide an effective method in monitoring, assessment and early warning of salinization.

Passive Microwave Observation of Soil Water Infiltration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jackson, Thomas J.; Schmugge, Thomas J.; Rawls, Walter J.; ONeill, Peggy E.; Parlange, Marc B.

1997-01-01

Infiltration is a time varying process of water entry into soil. Experiments were conducted here using truck based microwave radiometers to observe small plots during and following sprinkler irrigation. Experiments were conducted on a sandy loam soil in 1994 and a silt loam in 1995. Sandy loam soils typically have higher infiltration capabilities than clays. For the sandy loam the observed brightness temperature (TB) quickly reached a nominally constant value during irrigation. When the irrigation was stopped the TB began to increase as drainage took place. The irrigation rates in 1995 with the silt loam soil exceeded the saturated conductivity of the soil. During irrigation the TB values exhibited a pattern that suggests the occurrence of coherent reflection, a rarely observed phenomena under natural conditions. These results suggested the existence of a sharp dielectric boundary (wet over dry soil) that was increasing in depth with time.

[Effects of Different Residue Part Inputs of Corn Straws on CO2 Efflux and Microbial Biomass in Clay Loam and Sandy Loam Black Soils].

PubMed

Liu, Si-yi; Liang, Ai-zhen; Yang, Xue-ming; Zhang, Xiao-ping; Jia, Shu-xia; Chen, Xue-wen; Zhang, Shi-xiu; Sun, Bing-jie; Chen, Sheng-long

2015-07-01

The decomposed rate of crop residues is a major determinant for carbon balance and nutrient cycling in agroecosystem. In this study, a constant temperature incubation study was conducted to evaluate CO2 emission and microbial biomass based on four different parts of corn straw (roots, lower stem, upper stem and leaves) and two soils with different textures (sandy loam and clay loam) from the black soil region. The relationships between soil CO2 emission, microbial biomass and the ratio of carbon (C) to nitrogen (N) and lignin of corn residues were analyzed by the linear regression. Results showed that the production of CO2 was increased with the addition of different parts of corn straw to soil, with the value of priming effect (PE) ranged from 215. 53 µmol . g-1 to 335. 17 µmol . g -1. Except for corn leaves, the cumulative CO2 production and PE of clay loam soil were significantly higher than those in sandy loam soil. The correlation of PE with lignin/N was obviously more significant than that with lignin concentration, nitrogen concentration and C/N of corn residue. The addition of corn straw to soil increased the contents of MBC and MBN and decreased MBC/MBN, which suggested that more nitrogen rather than carbon was conserved in microbial community. The augmenter of microbial biomass in sandy loam soil was greater than that in clay loam soil, but the total dissolved nitrogen was lower. Our results indicated that the differences in CO2 emission with the addition of residues to soils were primarily ascribe to the different lignin/N ratio in different corn parts; and the corn residues added into the sandy loam soil could enhance carbon sequestration, microbial biomass and nitrogen holding ability relative to clay loam soil.

Evaluation of propargyl bromide for control of barnyardgrass and Fusarium oxysporum in three soils.

PubMed

Ma, Q; Gan, J; Becker, J O; Papiernik, S K; Yates, S R

2001-09-01

With the scheduled phasing out of methyl bromide, there is an urgent need for alternatives. We evaluated the efficacy of propargyl bromide as a potential replacement for methyl bromide for the control of barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli) and Fusarium oxysporum in an Arlington sandy loam, a Carsitas loamy sand and a Florida muck soil. Soil was mixed with barnyardgrass seeds or F oxysporum colonized on millet seeds, and treated with propargyl bromide at a range of concentrations. The mortality of the fungi and weed seeds was determined after 24 h of exposure at 30 degrees C. The concentrations required to inhibit 50% barnyard seed germination (LC50) were 2.8, 2.4 and 48.5 micrograms g-1 in the sandy loam, loamy sand and muck soil, respectively. In contrast, the LC50 values for F oxysporum were 11.2, 10.8 and 182.1 micrograms g-1 in the sandy loam, loamy sand and muck soil, respectively. The low efficacy of propargyl bromide in the muck soil was a result of the rapid degradation and high adsorption of the compound in the soil. The degradation half-life (t1/2) was only 7 h in the muck soil at an initial concentration of 6.8 micrograms g-1, compared to 60 and 67 h in the sandy loam and loamy sand, respectively. The adsorption coefficients (Kd) were 0.96, 0.87 and 5.6 cm3 g-1 in the sandy loam, loamy sand and muck soil, respectively. These results suggest that registration agencies should consider site-specific properties in recommending application rates for propargyl bromide.

Biological soil crust formation under artificial vegetation effect and its properties in the Mugetan sandy land, northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Y. F.; Li, Z. W.; Jia, Y. H.; Zhang, K.

2016-08-01

Mugetan sandy land is an inland desertification area of about 2,065 km2 in the northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. In the ecological restoration region of the Mugetan sandy land, different crusts have formed under the action of vegetation in three types of sandy soil (i.e. semi-fixed sand dune, fixed sand dune and ancient fixed aeolian sandy soil). The surface sand particle distribution, mineral component and vegetation composition of moving sand dunes and three types of sandy soil were studied in 2010-2014 to analyze the biological crust formation properties in the Mugetan sandy land and the effects of artificial vegetation. Results from this study revealed that artificial vegetation increases the clay content and encourages the development of biological curst. The fine particles (i.e. clay and humus) of the surface layer of the sand dunes increased more than 15% ten years after the artificial vegetation planting, and further increased up to 20% after one hundred years. The interaction of clay, humus, and other fine particles formed the soil aggregate structure. Meanwhile, under the vegetation effect from the microbes, algae, and moss, the sand particles stuck together and a biological crust formed. The interconnection of the partial crusts caused the sand dunes to gradually be fixed as a whole. Maintaining the integrity of the biological crust plays a vital role in fixing the sand under the crust. The precipitation and temperature conditions in the Mugetan sandy land could satisfy the demand of biological crust formation and development. If rational vegetation measures are adopted in the region with moving sand dunes, the lichen-moss-algae biological curst will form after ten years, but it still takes more time for the sand dunes to reach the nutrient enrichment state. If the biological curst is partly broken due to human activities, reasonable closure and restoration measures can shorten the restoration time of the biological crust.

FIELD SAMPLING OF RESIDUAL AVIATION GASOLINE IN SANDY SOIL

EPA Science Inventory

Two complimentary field sampling methods for the determination of residual aviation gasoline content in the contaminated capillary fringe of a fine, uniform, sandy soil were investigated. The first method featured filed extrusion of core barrels into pint size Mason jars, while ...

Biodegradation and bioremediation potential of diazinon-degrading Serratia marcescens to remove other organophosphorus pesticides from soils.

PubMed

Cycoń, Mariusz; Żmijowska, Agnieszka; Wójcik, Marcin; Piotrowska-Seget, Zofia

2013-03-15

The ability of diazinon-degrading Serratia marcescens to remove organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs), i.e. chlorpyrifos (CP), fenitrothion (FT), and parathion (PT) was studied in a mineral salt medium (MSM) and in three soils of different characteristics. This strain was capable of using all insecticides at concentration of 50 mg/l as the only carbon source when grown in MSM, and 58.9%, 70.5%, and 82.5% of the initial dosage of CP, FT, and PT, respectively was degraded within 14 days. The biodegradation experiment showed that autochthonous microflora in all soils was characterized by a degradation potential of all tested OPPs; however, the initial lag phases for degradation of CP and FT, especially in sandy soil, were observed. During the 42-day experiment, 45.3%, 61.4% and 72.5% of the initial dose of CP, FT, and PT, respectively, was removed in sandy soil whereas the degradation of CP, FT, and PT in the same period, in sandy loam and silty soils reached 61.4%, 79.7% and 64.2%, and 68.9%, 81.0% and 63.6%, respectively. S. marcescens introduced into sterile soils showed a higher degradation potential (5-13%) for OPPs removal than those observed in non-sterile soil with naturally occurring attenuation. Inoculation of non-sterile soils with S. marcescens enhanced the disappearance rates of all insecticides, and DT50 for CP, FT, and PT was reduced by 20.7, 11.3 and 13.0 days, and 11.9, 7.0 and 8.1 days, and 9.7, 14.5 and 12.6 days in sandy, sandy loam, and silty soils, respectively, in comparison with non-sterile soils with only indigenous microflora. This ability of S. marcescens makes it a suitable strain for bioremediation of soils contaminated with OPPs. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of Simulated Weathering and Aging of TNT in Amended Sandy Loam Soil on Toxicity to the Enchytraeid Worm, Enchytreaeus Crypticus

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-05-01

high bioavailability of organic compounds. However, amended SSL soil was analyzed for presence of metabolic transformation products from nitroaromatic...Phillips, C.; Checkai, R. 1999. Comparison of malathion toxicity using enchytraeid reproduction test and earthworm toxicity test in different soil ...OF TNT IN AMENDED SANDY LOAM SOIL ON TOXICITY TO THE ENCHYTRAEID WORM, ENCHYTRAEUS CRYPTICUS Roman G. Kuperman Ronald T. Checkai Michael Simini

Study on the water retention effect of compound soil of arsenic sandstone and sand under the condition of typical crop planting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, S. Y.; Wang, N.; Xie, J. C.; Jiang, R. G.; Zhao, M. L.

2017-08-01

Arsenic sandstone is the main reason of soil erosion in the Mu Us Sandy Land, simultaneously was proved to be a kind of good water retaining agent. In order to provide references for the utilization of water and soil resources and the prevention and control of desertification and soil erosion of the southern margin of Mu Us Sandy Land, on the basis of earlier studies the farmland experiments of compound soil with three ratios of 1:1, 1:2 and 1:5 between arsenic sandstone and sand under maize planting patterns were designed, whose experimental process was divided into six stages according to the crop growth status. The results showed that the soil moisture content was highest in the layer of 0˜40cm where the compound soil mainly concentrated in, which was related to the potent water retention of arsenic sandstone and strong water permeability of undisturbed sandy soil. The variation coefficients in the soil of 1:1 and 1:2 were more stable and evenly distributed. The compound soil can effectively improve the soil water retention capacity, and prolong the storage time of soil water. Among them, water loss rate in soil of 1:1 and 1:2 were lower. The coefficient of variation also confirms that the water distributions of the two types of soil were more uniform and stable. Besides illustrating the effects of the soil amelioration measures on spatial and temporal variation of soil moisture content and the improvement of soil water regime, the study provides some references for the development and utilization of agriculture in Mu Us Sandy Land.

Retardation of iron-cyanide complexes in the soil of a former manufactured gas plant site.

PubMed

Sut, Magdalena; Repmann, Frank; Raab, Thomas

2015-01-01

The soil in the vicinities of former Manufactured Gas Plant (MGP) sites is commonly contaminated with iron-cyanide complexes (ferric ferrocyanide). The phenomenon of cyanide mobility in soil, according to the literature, is mainly governed by the dissolution and precipitation of ferric ferrocyanide, which is only slightly soluble (<1 mg L(-1)) under acidic conditions. In this paper, retention properties of the sandy loam soil and the potential vertical movement of the solid iron-cyanide complexes, co-existing with the dissolution, sorption and precipitation reactions were investigated. Preliminary research conducted on a former MGP site implied colloidal transport of ferric ferricyanide from the initial deposition in the wastes layer towards the sandy loam material (secondary accumulation), which possibly retarded the mobility of cyanide (CN). A series of batch and column experiments were applied in order to investigate the retardation of iron-cyanide complexes by the sandy loam soil. Batch experiments revealed that in circumneutral pH conditions sandy loam material decreases the potassium ferro- and ferricyanide concentration. In column experiments a minor reduction in CN concentration was observed prior to addition of iron sulfide (FeS) layer, which induced the formation of the Prussian blue colloids in circumneutral pH conditions. Precipitated solid iron-cyanide complexes were mechanically filtered by the coherent structure of the investigated soil. Additionally, the reduction of the CN concentration of the percolation solutions by the sandy loam soil was presumably induced due to the formation of potassium manganese iron-cyanide (K2Mn[Fe(CN)6]).

[Soil sandy desertification and salinization and their interrelationships in Yanghuang irrigated area of Hongsipu, Ningxia of northwest China].

PubMed

Yang, Xin-guo; Song, Nai-ping

2011-09-01

By the methods of controlled and typical sampling, this paper analyzed the texture, salinization characteristics, cation exchange capacity (CEC), and their correlations in the 0-40 cm soil profiles of corn land, medlar land, and non-utilized land in Yanghuang irrigated area of Hongsipu, Northwest China. Under controlled sampling, the salt content in the soil profiles was 0.69-1.30 g x kg(-1) (except in non-utilized land where the 0-10 cm soil salt content was up to 1.74 g x kg(-1)), with no obvious salinization. The sodium adsorption ratio and exchangeable sodium percentage in the 20-40 cm soil layer of medlar land were 12.18 and 14.1%, respectively, and the total content of clay and silt in the 0-40 cm soil profile of medlar land was up to 37.3% whereas that in the 0-20 cm soil layer of corn land was only 13.5%. In the 20-40 cm soil layer of corn land, the indices of sandy desertification and salinization had significant correlations under controlled sampling but no correlations under typical sampling, while the CEC and the sandy desertification and salinization indices had significant correlations under typical sampling. In different land use types in the study area, soil sandy desertification and salinization had complicated interrelationships, and CEC could be used as the indicator for the changes in soil environmental quality.

Hydrological Components of a Young Loblolly Pine Plantation on a Sandy Soil with Estimates of Water Use and Loss

Treesearch

Deborah A. Abrahamson; Phillip M. Dougherty; Stanley J. Zarnoch

1998-01-01

Fertilizer and irrigation treatments were applied in a 7- to l0-year-old loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantation on a sandy soil near Laurinburg, North Carolina. Rainfall, throughfall, stemflow, and soil water content were measured throughout the study period. Monthly interception losses ranged from 4 to 15% of rainfall. Stemflow ranged from 0.2...

Responses of 1-year-old cottonwood to increasing soil moisture tension

Treesearch

F.T. Bonner

1967-01-01

Cottonwood cuttings planted in sandy loam and clay soils showed a sensitive control of water loss as soil moisture tension increased. Transpiration rates began decreasing at leaf water deficits of 2.5 percent in sandy loam and 4.5 percent in clay. There were no significant differences in rates per unit of leaf area or shoot dry weight between plants grown in the two...

Effects of a novel poly (AA-co-AAm)/AlZnFe₂O₄/potassium humate superabsorbent hydrogel nanocomposite on water retention of sandy loam soil and wheat seedling growth.

PubMed

Shahid, Shaukat Ali; Qidwai, Ansar Ahmad; Anwar, Farooq; Ullah, Inam; Rashid, Umer

2012-10-25

A novel poly(acrylic acid-co-acrylamide)AlZnFe₂O₄/potassium humate( )superabsorbent hydrogel nanocomposite (PHNC) was synthesized and its physical properties characterized using SEM, Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) and FTIR spectroscopic techniques. Air dried sandy loam soil was amended with 0.1 to 0.4 w/w% of PHNC to evaluate its soil moisture retention attributes. Effect of PHNC amendment on pH, electrical conductivity (EC), porosity, bulk density and hydraulic conductivity of sandy loam soil was also studied. The soil amendment with 0.1 to 0.4 w/w% of PHNC remarkably enhanced the moisture retention at field capacity as compared to the un-amended soils. Seed germination and seedling growth of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) was considerably increased and a delay by 6-9 days in wilting of seedlings was observed in the soil amended with PHNC, resulting in improved wheat plant establishment and growth.

EVALUATION OF FROST HEAVE ON WASTE TRANSFER LINES WITH SHALLOW DEPTHS IN DST (DOUBLE SHELL TANK) FARMS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

HAQ MA

2009-05-12

The purpose of this document is to evaluate the effect of frost heave on waste transfer lines with shallow depths in DST farms. Because of the insulation, well compacted sandy material around waste transfer lines, the type of sandy and gravel soil, and relatively low precipitation at Hanford site, it is concluded that waste transfer lines with one foot of soil covers (sandy cushion material and insulation) are not expected to undergo frost heave damaging effects.

[Soil moisture dynamics of artificial Caragana microphylla shrubs at different topographical sites in Horqin sandy land].

PubMed

Huang, Gang; Zhao, Xue-yong; Huang, Ying-xin; Su, Yan-gui

2009-03-01

Based on the investigation data of vegetation and soil moisture regime of Caragana microphylla shrubs widely distributed in Horqin sandy land, the spatiotemporal variations of soil moisture regime and soil water storage of artificial sand-fixing C. microphylla shrubs at different topographical sites in the sandy land were studied, and the evapotranspiration was measured by water balance method. The results showed that the soil moisture content of the shrubs was the highest in the lowland of dunes, followed by in the middle, and in the crest of the dunes, and increased with increasing depth. No water stress occurred during the growth season of the shrubs. Soil moisture content of the shrubs was highly related to precipitation event, and the relationship of soil moisture content with precipitation was higher in deep soil layer (50-180 cm) than in shallow soil layer (0-50 cm). The variation coefficient of soil moisture content was also higher in deep layer than in shallow layer. Soil water storage was increasing in the whole growth season of the shrubs, which meant that the accumulation of soil water occurred in this area. The evapotranspiriation of the shrubs occupied above 64% of the precipitation.

SOIL AND HYDROLOGY OF A WET-SANDY CATENA IN EAST-CENTRAL MINNESOTA

EPA Science Inventory

Sail properties are strongly related to the retention and movement of water within the soil system. The purposes of this study were to document the near-surface hydrology of a wetland-upland hillslope on a sandy glacial outwash plain in east-central Minnesota and to describe the ...

Irrigation initiation timing in soybean grown on sandy soils in Northeast Arkansas

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Irrigation initiation timing was evaluated in furrow-irrigated soybean field with sandy soils in Mississippi County, AR. A major objective of this 2015 study was to validate and expand irrigation timing recommendations that pair plant growth measures with weather cues including use of local weather ...

Influence of soil types and osmotic pressure on growth and 137Cs accumulation in blackgram (Vigna mungo L.).

PubMed

Win, Khin Thuzar; Oo, Aung Zaw; Bellingrath-Kimura, Sonoko Dorothea

2017-04-01

A pot experiment was conducted to study the effects of soil types and osmotic levels on growth and 137 Cs accumulation in two blackgram varieties differing in salinity tolerance grown in Fukushima contaminated soils. The contamination levels of the sandy clay loam and clay soil were 1084 and 2046 Bq kg -1 DW, respectively. The 137 Cs activity was higher in both plants grown on the sandy clay loam than on the clay soil regardless of soil 137 Cs activity concentration. No significant differences were observed in all measured growth parameters between the two varieties under optimal water conditions for both types of soil. However, the growth, leaf water contents and 137 Cs activity concentrations in both plants were lower in both soil types when there was water stress induced by addition of polyethylene glycol. Water stress-induced reduction in total leaf area and total biomass, in addition to leaf relative water content, were higher in salt sensitive 'Mut Pe Khaing To' than in salt tolerant 'U-Taung-2' plants for both soil types. Varietal difference in decreased 137 Cs uptake under water stress was statically significant in the sandy clay loam soil, however, it was not in the clay soil. The transfer of 137 Cs from soil to plants (i.e., root, stem and leaf) was higher for the sandy clay loam for both plants when compared with those of the clay soil. The decreased activity of 137 Cs in the above ground samples (leaf and stem) in both plants in response to osmotic stress suggested that plant available 137 Cs decreased when soil water is limited by osmotic stress. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Study of sandy soil grain-size distribution on its deformation properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Antropova, L. B.; Gruzin, A. V.; Gildebrandt, M. I.; Malaya, L. D.; Nikulina, V. B.

2018-04-01

As a rule, new oil and gas fields' development faces the challenges of providing construction objects with material and mineral resources, for example, medium sand soil for buildings and facilities footings of the technological infrastructure under construction. This problem solution seems to lie in a rational usage of the existing environmental resources, soils included. The study was made of a medium sand soil grain-size distribution impact on its deformation properties. Based on the performed investigations, a technique for controlling sandy soil deformation properties was developed.

Toxicity of Nitro-Heterocyclic and Nitroaromatic Energetic Materials to Folsomia candida in a Natural Sandy Loam Soil

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-04-01

held in place with a rubber band. The mass of each container was then recorded to monitor soil - moisture loss during the test. Five replicates were used...relative humidity of 88 ± 5%. During the course of the study, the containers were weighed and misted weekly to maintain soil moisture levels. To...FOLSOMIA CANDIDA IN A NATURAL SANDY LOAM SOIL ECBC-TR-1272 Carlton T. Phillips Ronald T. Checkai Roman G. Kuperman Michael Simini Jan E

Plant-uptake of uranium: Hydroponic and soil system studies

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ramaswami, A.; Carr, P.; Burkhardt, M.

2001-01-01

Limited information is available on screening and selection of terrestrial plants for uptake and translocation of uranium from soil. This article evaluates the removal of uranium from water and soil by selected plants, comparing plant performance in hydroponic systems with that in two soil systems (a sandy-loam soil and an organic-rich soil). Plants selected for this study were Sunflower (Helianthus giganteus), Spring Vetch (Vicia sativa), Hairy Vetch (Vicia villosa), Juniper (Juniperus monosperma), Indian Mustard (Brassica juncea), and Bush Bean (Phaseolus nanus). Plant performance was evaluated both in terms of the percent uranium extracted from the three systems, as well as the biological absorption coefficient (BAC) that normalized uranium uptake to plant biomass. Study results indicate that uranium extraction efficiency decreased sharply across hydroponic, sandy and organic soil systems, indicating that soil organic matter sequestered uranium, rendering it largely unavailable for plant uptake. These results indicate that site-specific soils must be used to screen plants for uranium extraction capability; plant behavior in hydroponic systems does not correlate well with that in soil systems. One plant species, Juniper, exhibited consistent uranium extraction efficiencies and BACs in both sandy and organic soils, suggesting unique uranium extraction capabilities.

[Simulation of effects of soil properties and plants on soil water-salt movement with reclaimed water irrigation by ENVIRO-GRO model].

PubMed

Lü, Si-Dan; Chen, Wei-Ping; Wang, Mei-E

2012-12-01

In order to promote safe irrigation with reclaimed water and prevent soil salinisation, the dynamic transport of salts in urban soils of Beijing under irrigation of reclaimed water was simulated by ENVIRO-GRO model in this study. The accumulation trends and profile distribution of soil salinity were predicted. Simultaneously, the effects of different soil properties and plants on soil water-salt movement and salt accumulation were investigated. Results indicated that soil salinity in the profiles reached uniform equilibrium conditions by repeated simulation, with different initial soil salinity. Under the conditions of loam and clay loam soil, salinity in the profiles increased over time until reaching equilibrium conditions, while under the condition of sandy loam soil, salinity in the profiles decreased over time until reaching equilibrium conditions. The saturated soil salinity (EC(e)) under equilibrium conditions followed an order of sandy loam < loam < clay loam. Salt accumulations in Japan euonymus and Chinese pine were less than that in Blue grass. The temporal and spatial distributions of soil salinity were also different in these three types of plants. In addition, the growth of the plants was not influenced by soil salinity (except clay loam), but mild soil salinization occurred under all conditions (except sandy loam).

Toluene removal from sandy soils via in situ technologies with an emphasis on factors influencing soil vapor extraction.

PubMed

Amin, Mohammad Mehdi; Hatamipour, Mohammad Sadegh; Momenbeik, Fariborz; Nourmoradi, Heshmatollah; Farhadkhani, Marzieh; Mohammadi-Moghadam, Fazel

2014-01-01

The integration of bioventing (BV) and soil vapor extraction (SVE) appears to be an effective combination method for soil decontamination. This paper serves two main purposes: it evaluates the effects of soil water content (SWC) and air flow rate on SVE and it investigates the transition regime between BV and SVE for toluene removal from sandy soils. 96 hours after air injection, more than 97% removal efficiency was achieved in all five experiments (carried out for SVE) including 5, 10, and 15% for SWC and 250 and 500 mL/min for air flow rate on SVE. The highest removal efficiency (>99.5%) of toluene was obtained by the combination of BV and SVE (AIBV: Air Injection Bioventing) after 96 h of air injection at a constant flow rate of 250 mL/min. It was found that AIBV has the highest efficiency for toluene removal from sandy soils and can remediate the vadose zone effectively to meet the soil guideline values for protection of groundwater.

Toluene Removal from Sandy Soils via In Situ Technologies with an Emphasis on Factors Influencing Soil Vapor Extraction

PubMed Central

Amin, Mohammad Mehdi; Hatamipour, Mohammad Sadegh; Nourmoradi, Heshmatollah; Farhadkhani, Marzieh; Mohammadi-Moghadam, Fazel

2014-01-01

The integration of bioventing (BV) and soil vapor extraction (SVE) appears to be an effective combination method for soil decontamination. This paper serves two main purposes: it evaluates the effects of soil water content (SWC) and air flow rate on SVE and it investigates the transition regime between BV and SVE for toluene removal from sandy soils. 96 hours after air injection, more than 97% removal efficiency was achieved in all five experiments (carried out for SVE) including 5, 10, and 15% for SWC and 250 and 500 mL/min for air flow rate on SVE. The highest removal efficiency (>99.5%) of toluene was obtained by the combination of BV and SVE (AIBV: Air Injection Bioventing) after 96 h of air injection at a constant flow rate of 250 mL/min. It was found that AIBV has the highest efficiency for toluene removal from sandy soils and can remediate the vadose zone effectively to meet the soil guideline values for protection of groundwater. PMID:24587723

Effects of sewage sludge amendment on the properties of two Brazilian oxisols and their humic acids.

PubMed

Bertoncini, E I; D'Orazio, V; Senesi, N; Mattiazzo, M E

2008-07-01

The effect of sewage sludge (SS) amendment on the general properties of the top layers of a sandy and a clayey oxisols and on the nature of their humic acid (HA) fractions was evaluated by chemical and physico-chemical techniques. The amended soils, especially the sandy soil, benefited of SS amendment by increasing their pH to above neutrality and enhancing the contents of C, N, P, and Ca and cation exchange capacity. The SS-HA-like sample showed larger H and N contents and a greater aliphatic character and humification degree than the HAs isolated from non-amended soils. The composition and structure of amended soil HAs were affected by SS application as a function of soil type and layer. In particular, N-containing groups and aliphatic structures of SS-HA-like sample appears to be partially incorporated in the amended soil HAs, and these effects were more evident in the HAs from the sandy oxisol.

Winter Survival of Meloidogyne incognita in Six Soil Types

PubMed Central

Windham, G. L.; Barker, K. R.

1988-01-01

Winter survival of Meloidogyne incognita in six soil types (Fuquay sand, Norfolk loamy sand, Portsmouth loamy sand, muck, Cecil sandy clay loam, and Cecil sandy clay) was determined in microplots at one location from November 1981 to May 1982 and from November 1982 to March 1983. Survival, based on second-stage juveniles (J2) of M. incognita, from November 1981 until May 1982 ranged from 1% in the muck soil to 6% in a Cecil sandy clay loam, but survival rates were much higher the next year following a winter with higher average temperatures. Survival rates of J2 from November to March ranged from 20 to 40% the first winter and from 38 to 87% the second. Soil type did not have a striking effect on the overwintering capabilities ofM. incognita. There were no differences between clay and sand soils, whereas survival of J2 in the muck tended to be lower than in the mineral soils. PMID:19290193

Winter Survival of Meloidogyne incognita in Six Soil Types.

PubMed

Windham, G L; Barker, K R

1988-01-01

Winter survival of Meloidogyne incognita in six soil types (Fuquay sand, Norfolk loamy sand, Portsmouth loamy sand, muck, Cecil sandy clay loam, and Cecil sandy clay) was determined in microplots at one location from November 1981 to May 1982 and from November 1982 to March 1983. Survival, based on second-stage juveniles (J2) of M. incognita, from November 1981 until May 1982 ranged from 1% in the muck soil to 6% in a Cecil sandy clay loam, but survival rates were much higher the next year following a winter with higher average temperatures. Survival rates of J2 from November to March ranged from 20 to 40% the first winter and from 38 to 87% the second. Soil type did not have a striking effect on the overwintering capabilities ofM. incognita. There were no differences between clay and sand soils, whereas survival of J2 in the muck tended to be lower than in the mineral soils.

Decreasing Nitrogen Fertilizer Input Had Little Effect on Microbial Communities in Three Types of Soils

PubMed Central

Yu, Hailing; Gao, Qiang; Shao, Zeqiang; Ying, Anning; Sun, Yuyang; Liu, Jingwei; Mao, Wei; Zhang, Bin

2016-01-01

In this study, we examined the influence of different nitrogen (N) application rates (0, 168, 240, 270 and 312 kg N ha-1) on soil properties, maize (Zea mays L.) yields and microbial communities of three types of soils (clay, alluvial and sandy soils). Phospholipid fatty acid analysis was used to characterize soil microbial communities. Results indicated that N fertilization significantly decreased microbial biomass in both clay and sandy soils regardless of application rate. These decreases were more likely a result of soil pH decreases induced by N fertilization, especially in the sandy soils. This is supported by structural equation modeling and redundancy analysis results. Nitrogen fertilization also led to significant changes in soil microbial community composition. However, the change differences were gradually dismissed with increase in N application rate. We also observed that N fertilization increased maize yields to the same level regardless of application rate. This suggests that farmers could apply N fertilizers at a lower rate (i.e. 168 kg N ha-1), which could achieve high maize yield on one hand while maintain soil microbial functions on the other hand. PMID:26992097

Light Gray Surface-Gleyed Loamy Sandy Soils of the Northern Part of Tambov Plain: Agroecology, Properties, and Diagnostics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaidel'man, F. R.; Stepantsova, L. V.; Nikiforova, A. S.; Krasin, V. N.; Dautokov, I. M.; Krasina, T. V.

2018-04-01

Light gray soils of Tambov oblast mainly develop from sandy and loamy sandy parent materials; these are the least studied soils in this region. Despite their coarse texture, these soils are subjected to surface waterlogging. They are stronger affected by the agrogenic degradation in comparison with chernozems and dark gray soils. Morphology, major elements of water regime, physical properties, and productivity of loamy sandy light gray soils with different degrees of gleyzation have been studied in the northern part of Tambov Plain in order to substantiate the appropriate methods of their management. The texture of these soils changes at the depth of 70-100 cm. The upper part is enriched in silt particles (16-30%); in the lower part, the sand content reaches 80-85%. In the nongleyed variants, middle-profile horizons contain thin iron-cemented lamellae (pseudofibers); in surface-gleyed variants, iron nodules are present in the humus horizon. The removal of clay from the humus horizon and its accumulation at the lithological contact and in pseudofibers promote surface subsidence and formation of microlows in the years with moderate and intense winter precipitation. The low range of active moisture favors desiccation of the upper horizons to the wilting point in dry years. The yield of cereal crops reaches 3.5-4.5 t/ha in the years with high and moderate summer precipitation on nongleyed and slightly gleyed light gray soils and decreases by 20-50% on strongly gleyed light gray soils. On light gray soils without irrigation, crop yields are unstable, and productivity of pastures is low. High yields of cereals and vegetables can be obtained on irrigated soils. In this case, local drainage measures should be applied to microlows; liming can be recommended to improve soil productivity.

Effects of nursery fertilizer and irrigation on ponderosa and lodgepole pine seedling size. Forest Service research note

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sloan, J.P.

1992-12-01

Eight fertilizer treatments combined with three irrigation regimes were used when growing lodgepole and ponderosa pine seedlings on two soil types at Lucky Peak Nursery near Biose, ID. Seedlings of both species were larger on the sandy loam than the clay loam soil. Milorganite, an organic fertilizer derived from sewage sludge, reduced initial seedbeed densities but had no further effects. Ammonium nitrate increased seedling size on the clay loam, but not on the sandy loam soil. Increased irrigation was more effective in increasing seedling size on the sandy loam than on the clay loam soil. However, ponderosa pine receiving themore » least irrigation in the nursery grew the fastest for 3 years after being transplanted in the field, possibly because of drought conditioning.« less

Fates of nickel and fluoranthene during the bioremediation by Pleurotus eryngii in three different soils.

PubMed

Tang, Xia; Dong, Shunwen; Shi, Wenjin; Gao, Ni; Zuo, Lei; Xu, Heng

2016-11-01

This study focused on the bioremediation role of Pleurotus eryngii in different characteristics soils contaminated with nickel (Ni) and fluoranthene. The results of bioremediation experiments showed that fluoranthene had a positive effect on the growth of P. eryngii, whereas Ni exerted a negative influence. The concentration of fluoranthene significantly decreased in inoculated soil accounting for 86.39-91.95% of initial concentration in soils and 71.46-81.76% in non-inoculated soils, which showed that the dissipation of fluoranthene was enhanced by mushroom inoculating. The highest removal rates of fluoranthene in sandy loam, loamy clay, and sandy soils reached to 87.81, 86.39, and 91.95%, respectively, which demonstrated that P. eryngii was more suitable for the bioremediation of sandy soil contaminated with fluoranthene. In addition, the presence of Ni tended to decrease the dissipation of fluoranthene in inoculated soil. Higher ligninolytic enzymes activities were detected in inoculated soils, resulting in the enhanced dissipation of fluoranthene in inoculated soils. Furthermore, P. eryngii had the ability to uptake Ni (4.88-39.53 mg kg -1 ) in co-contamination soil. In conclusion, the inoculating of P. eryngii was effective in remediating of Ni-fluoranthene co-contaminated soils. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

The mathematical model accuracy estimation of the oil storage tank foundation soil moistening

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gildebrandt, M. I.; Ivanov, R. N.; Gruzin, AV; Antropova, L. B.; Kononov, S. A.

2018-04-01

The oil storage tanks foundations preparation technologies improvement is the relevant objective which achievement will make possible to reduce the material costs and spent time for the foundation preparing while providing the required operational reliability. The laboratory research revealed the nature of sandy soil layer watering with a given amount of water. The obtained data made possible developing the sandy soil layer moistening mathematical model. The performed estimation of the oil storage tank foundation soil moistening mathematical model accuracy showed the experimental and theoretical results acceptable convergence.

Assessment of physical and chemical indicators of sandy soil quality for sustainable crop production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lipiec, Jerzy; Usowicz, Boguslaw

2017-04-01

Sandy soils are used in agriculture in many regions of the world. The share of sandy soils in Poland is about 55%. The aim of this study was to assess spatial variability of soil physical and chemical properties affecting soil quality and crop yields in the scale of field (40 x 600 m) during three years of different weather conditions. The experimental field was located on the post glacial and acidified sandy deposits of low productivity (Szaniawy, Podlasie Region, Poland). Physical soil quality indicators included: content of sand, silt, clay and water, bulk density and those chemical: organic carbon, cation exchange capacity, acidity (pH). Measurements of the most soil properties were done at spring and summer each year in topsoil and subsoil layer in 150 points. Crop yields were evaluated in places close to measuring points of the soil properties. Basic statistics including mean, standard deviation, skewness, kurtosis minimal, maximal and correlations between the soil properties and crop yields were calculated. Analysis of spatial dependence and distribution for each property was performed using geostatistical methods. Mathematical functions were fitted to the experimentally derived semivariograms that were used for mapping the soil properties and crop yield by kriging. The results showed that the largest variations had clay content (CV 67%) and the lowest: sand content (5%). The crop yield was most negatively correlated with sand content and most positively with soil water content and cation exchange capacity. In general the exponential semivariogram models fairly good matched to empirical data. The range of semivariogram models of the measured indicators varied from 14 m to 250 m indicate high and moderate spatial variability. The values of the nugget-to-sill+nugget ratios showed that most of the soil properties and crop yields exhibited strong and moderate spatial dependency. The kriging maps allowed identification of low yielding sub-field areas that correspond with low soil organic carbon and cation exchange capacity and high content of sand. These areas are considered as management zones to improve crop productivity and soil properties responsible for soil quality and functions. We conclude that soil organic carbon, cation exchange capacity and pH should be included as indicators of soil quality in sandy soils. The study was funded by HORIZON 2020, European Commission, Programme H2020-SFS-2015-2: Soil Care for profitable and sustainable crop production in Europe, project No. 677407 (SoilCare, 2016-2021).

Sorption and mobility of metronidazole, olaquindox, oxytetracycline and tylosin in soil.

PubMed

Rabølle, M; Spliid, N H

2000-04-01

Laboratory studies were conducted to characterise four different antibiotic compounds with regard to sorption and mobility in various soil types. Distribution coefficients (Kd values) determined by a batch equilibrium method varied between 0.5 and 0.7 for metronidazole, 0.7 and 1.7 for olaquindox and 8 and 128 for tylosin. Tylosin sorption seems to correlate positively with the soil clay content. No other significant interactions between soil characteristics and sorption were observed. Oxytetracycline was particularly strongly sorbed in all soils investigated, with Kd values between 417 in sand soil and 1026 in sandy loam, and no significant desorption was observed. Soil column leaching experiments indicated large differences in the mobility of the four antibiotic substances, corresponding to their respective sorption capabilities. For the weakly adsorbed substances metronidazole and olaquindox the total amounts added were recovered in the leachate of both sandy loam and sand soils. For the strongly adsorbed oxytetracyline and tylosin nothing was detected in the leachate of any of the soil types, indicating a much lower mobility. Results from defractionation and extraction of the columns (30 cm length) showed that 60-80% of the tylosin added had been leached to a depth of 5 cm in the sandy loam soil and 25 cm in the sand soil.

Temperature effect on mineralization of SOM, plant litter and priming: modified by soil type?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Azzaroli Bleken, Marina; Berland Frøseth, Randi

2015-04-01

The purpose of this study was to provide improved temperature response functions to be used in models of soil organic carbon (SOC) and litter mineralization, with focus on the winter period. Our working hypothesis were: 1) decomposition of SOM and plant residue occurs also at temperature close to the freezing point; 2) the effect of temperature on SOC decomposition is stronger in clayey than in sandy soil; 3) decomposition and response to temperature of added plant litter is not affected by soil type. A silty clay loam (27% clay, 3% sand) and a sandy loam (6% clay, 51% sand) with similar weather and cultivation history were pre-incubated at about 15° C for about 4.5 months. Clover leaves labelled with 13C were added to half of the samples, and soil with and without clover was incubated for 142 days at 0, 4, 8.5 or 15 °C. Mineralization of SOC and clover leaves was observed also at 0° C. In the absence of added plant material, SOC decomposition followed a first order reaction which was twice as fast in the sandy soil as in the clay soil. The decomposition rate of clover leaves was also higher in the sandy soil than in the clay soil. However, the influence of temperature on SOC and on clover decomposition was the same in both soils. In presence of plant material, there was a positive priming effect on SOC, which initially correlated with decomposition of plant litter. There was a progressively lower priming effect at higher temperatures, particularly in the sandy soil, that could be understood as substrates exhaustion in a restricted volume of influence around the added clover leaves. We provide parameterised Arrhenius and alternative modifying linear temperature functions together with decay rates at reference temperature, which can be used for predicting decay rates of SOC per se and of the labile pool of clover leaves. We also show the superiority of these functions compared to the use of Q10 as temperature factor. Further, we suggest approaches for modelling the priming effect caused by plant litter. Reference: Frøseth RB, Bleken MA(2015) Effect of low temperature and soil type on the decomposition rate of soil organic carbon and clover leaves, and related priming effect. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 80:156-166.

[Effects of biochar addition into soils in semiarid land on water infiltration under the condition of the same bulk density].

PubMed

Qi, Rui-Peng; Zhang, Lei; Yan, Yong-Hao; Wen, Man; Zheng, Ji-Yong

2014-08-01

Making clear the effects of biochar addition on soil water infiltration process can provide the scientific basis for the evaluation of the influence of biochar application on soil hydrology in semi-arid region. In this paper, through the soil column simulation method in laboratory, the effects of biochar of three sizes (1-2 mm, 0.25-1 mm and ≤ 0.25 mm) at 4 doses (10, 50, 100 and 150 g x kg(-1)) on the cumulative infiltration, the permeability and the stable infiltration rate of two different soils (anthrosol and aeolian sandy soil) were studied. The results showed that the infiltration capacity of the anthrosol was obviously increased compared to the control, however, the one in the aeolian sandy soil was decreased due to the biochar addition. At 100 minutes after infiltration starting, the averaged cumulative infiltration was increased by 25.1% in the anthrosol with comparison to the control. Contrarily, the averaged cumulative infiltration was decreased by 11.1% in the aeolian sandy soil at 15 minutes after infiltration starting. When the dose was the same, biochar with different particle sizes improved the infiltration for the anthrosol, but for the different dose treatments, the particle size of biochar which showed the greatest improvement was different. As for the aeolian sandy soil, the infiltration increased at the dose of 10 g x kg(-1) after the addition of biochar with different particle sizes, while decreased at the higher dose of 50, 100 and 150 g x kg(-1). The cumulative infiltration of the aeolian sandy soil was decreased with the increase in addition amount of biochar with the same particle size, while it was not so for the anthrosol. The determination coefficient fitted by the Philip infiltration model ranged from 0.965 to 0.999, suggesting this model was suitable for the simulation of soil water infiltration process after biochar application. Statistical analysis of main effects showed that the biochar particle size, the biochar addition amount, and the interactive effect had statistically significant effect on the soil permeability and stable infiltration rate in the two soils. In conclusion, the biochar had different effects on the soils with different textures, moreover, there was a positive correlation relationship between the impact and the addition amount.

High-quality permanent draft genome sequence of the Lebeckia - nodulating Burkholderia dilworthii strain WSM3556T

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

De Meyer, Sofie E.; Tian, Rui; Seshadri, Rekha

Burkholderia dilworthii strain WSM3556T is an aerobic, motile, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming rod that was isolated from an effective N2-fixing root nodule of Lebeckia ambigua collected near Grotto Bay Nature Reserve, in the Western Cape of South Africa, in October 2004. This plant persists in infertile and deep sandy soils with acidic pH, and is therefore an ideal candidate for a perennial based agriculture system in Western Australia. WSM3556T thus represents a potential inoculant quality strain for L. ambigua for which we describe the general features, together with genome sequence and annotation. Lastly, the 7,679,067 bp high-quality permanent draft genome is arrangedmore » in 140 scaffolds of 141 contigs, contains 7,059 protein-coding genes and 64 RNA-only encoding genes, and is part of the GEBA-RNB project proposal.« less

High-quality permanent draft genome sequence of the Lebeckia ambigua-nodulating Burkholderia sp. strain WSM4176

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

De Meyer, Sofie E.; Tian, Rui; Seshadri, Rekha

We report that Burkholderia sp. strain WSM4176 is an aerobic, motile, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming rod that was isolated from an effective N2-fixing root nodule of Lebeckia ambigua collected in Nieuwoudtville, Western Cape of South Africa, in October 2007. This plant persists in infertile, acidic and deep sandy soils, and is therefore an ideal candidate for a perennial based agriculture system in Western Australia. Here we describe the features of Burkholderia sp. strain WSM4176, which represents a potential inoculant quality strain for L. ambigua, together with sequence and annotation. The 9,065,247 bp high-quality-draft genome is arranged in 13 scaffolds of 65 contigs,more » contains 8369 protein-coding genes and 128 RNA-only encoding genes, and is part of the GEBA-RNB project proposal (Project ID 882).« less

High-quality permanent draft genome sequence of the Lebeckia - nodulating Burkholderia dilworthii strain WSM3556T

DOE PAGES

De Meyer, Sofie E.; Tian, Rui; Seshadri, Rekha; ...

2015-09-19

Burkholderia dilworthii strain WSM3556T is an aerobic, motile, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming rod that was isolated from an effective N2-fixing root nodule of Lebeckia ambigua collected near Grotto Bay Nature Reserve, in the Western Cape of South Africa, in October 2004. This plant persists in infertile and deep sandy soils with acidic pH, and is therefore an ideal candidate for a perennial based agriculture system in Western Australia. WSM3556T thus represents a potential inoculant quality strain for L. ambigua for which we describe the general features, together with genome sequence and annotation. Lastly, the 7,679,067 bp high-quality permanent draft genome is arrangedmore » in 140 scaffolds of 141 contigs, contains 7,059 protein-coding genes and 64 RNA-only encoding genes, and is part of the GEBA-RNB project proposal.« less

High-quality permanent draft genome sequence of the Lebeckia ambigua-nodulating Burkholderia sp. strain WSM4176

DOE PAGES

De Meyer, Sofie E.; Tian, Rui; Seshadri, Rekha; ...

2015-10-16

We report that Burkholderia sp. strain WSM4176 is an aerobic, motile, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming rod that was isolated from an effective N2-fixing root nodule of Lebeckia ambigua collected in Nieuwoudtville, Western Cape of South Africa, in October 2007. This plant persists in infertile, acidic and deep sandy soils, and is therefore an ideal candidate for a perennial based agriculture system in Western Australia. Here we describe the features of Burkholderia sp. strain WSM4176, which represents a potential inoculant quality strain for L. ambigua, together with sequence and annotation. The 9,065,247 bp high-quality-draft genome is arranged in 13 scaffolds of 65 contigs,more » contains 8369 protein-coding genes and 128 RNA-only encoding genes, and is part of the GEBA-RNB project proposal (Project ID 882).« less

Sorption and biodegradability of sludge bacterial extracellular polymers in soil and their influence on soil copper behavior.

PubMed

Zhou, L X; Zhou, S G; Zhan, X H

2004-01-01

Bacterial extracellular polymers (BEP) affect the translocation and fate of organic and inorganic pollutants in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. In this study, BEP from activated sludge was compared with sludge dissolved organic matter (DOM) in terms of behavior and effects on the mobilization and bioavailability of Cu in a well-aged Cu-contaminated orchard sandy loam. Addition of sludge BEP (10-200 mg dissolved organic carbon [DOC] L(-1)) to the soil resulted in 1.6- to 12.8-fold-higher soil soluble Cu concentration over the control and 1.3- to 2.2-fold over sludge DOM of the same concentration. Consequently, the Cu uptake by the ryegrass (Lolium perenne L., cv. Target) grown in the soil was increased by 31% due to interval watering of 100 mg DOC L(-1) of sludge BEP solution in a 35-d period. The influence of sludge BEP on mobilizing soil Cu could be maintained as long as 60 d or more, depending on BEP biodegradation status. The findings that sludge BEP promoted Cu mobilization and bioavailability could be attributed to less adsorption of BEP by soil, slow degradation, and higher affinity with Cu. For example, after 3 wk of aerobic incubation, the soluble Cu present in the sludge DOM-treated soil was reduced to about the level of the control, while the concentration of soluble Cu in BEP-treated soil was 6.2 times higher than that in the control. Therefore, sludge BEP could act as a facilitated-transport carrier of Cu. The environmental risk of Cu should receive much attention if BEP is incorporated into soils.

Fate of trace organic compounds during vadose zone soil treatment in an onsite wastewater system

USGS Publications Warehouse

Conn, K.E.; Siegrist, R.L.; Barber, L.B.; Meyer, M.T.

2010-01-01

During onsite wastewater treatment, trace organic compounds are often present in the effluents applied to subsurface soils for advanced treatment during vadose zone percolation and groundwater recharge. The fate of the endocrine-disrupting surfactant metabolites 4-nonylphenol (NP), 4-nonylphenolmonoethoxylate (NP1EO), and 4-nonylphenolmonoethoxycarboxylate (NP1EC), metal-chelating agents ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA), antimicrobial agent triclosan, stimulant caffeine, and antibiotic sulfamethoxazole during transport through an unsaturated sandy loam soil was studied at a field-scale test site. To assess the effects of effluent quality and hydraulic loading rate (HLR) on compound fate in the soil profile, two effluents (septic tank or textile biofilter) were applied at two design HLRs (2 or 8 cm/d). Chemical concentrations were determined in the two effluents and soil pore water at 60, 120, and 240 cm below the soil infiltrative surface. Concentrations of trace organic compounds in septic tank effluent were reduced by more than 90% during transport through 240 cm (often within 60 cm) of soil, likely due to sorption and biotransformation. However, the concentration of NP increased with depth in the shallow soil profile. Additional treatment of anaerobic septic tank effluent with an aerobic textile biofilter reduced effluent concentrations of many compounds, but generally did not affect any changes in pore water concentrations. The soil profile receiving septic tank effluent (vs. textile biofilter effluent) generally had greater percent removal efficiencies. EDTA, NP, NP1EC, and sulfamethoxazole were measured in soil pore water, indicating the ability of some trace organic compounds to reach shallow groundwater. Risk is highly dependent on the degree of further treatment in the saturated zone and the types and proximity of uses for the receiving groundwater environment. ?? 2009 SETAC.

Fate of trace organic compounds during vadose zone soil treatment in an onsite wastewater system.

PubMed

Conn, Kathleen E; Siegrist, Robert L; Barber, Larry B; Meyer, Michael T

2010-02-01

During onsite wastewater treatment, trace organic compounds are often present in the effluents applied to subsurface soils for advanced treatment during vadose zone percolation and groundwater recharge. The fate of the endocrine-disrupting surfactant metabolites 4-nonylphenol (NP), 4-nonylphenolmonoethoxylate (NP1EO), and 4-nonylphenolmonoethoxycarboxylate (NP1EC), metal-chelating agents ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA), antimicrobial agent triclosan, stimulant caffeine, and antibiotic sulfamethoxazole during transport through an unsaturated sandy loam soil was studied at a field-scale test site. To assess the effects of effluent quality and hydraulic loading rate (HLR) on compound fate in the soil profile, two effluents (septic tank or textile biofilter) were applied at two design HLRs (2 or 8 cm/d). Chemical concentrations were determined in the two effluents and soil pore water at 60, 120, and 240 cm below the soil infiltrative surface. Concentrations of trace organic compounds in septic tank effluent were reduced by more than 90% during transport through 240 cm (often within 60 cm) of soil, likely due to sorption and biotransformation. However, the concentration of NP increased with depth in the shallow soil profile. Additional treatment of anaerobic septic tank effluent with an aerobic textile biofilter reduced effluent concentrations of many compounds, but generally did not affect any changes in pore water concentrations. The soil profile receiving septic tank effluent (vs. textile biofilter effluent) generally had greater percent removal efficiencies. EDTA, NP, NP1EC, and sulfamethoxazole were measured in soil pore water, indicating the ability of some trace organic compounds to reach shallow groundwater. Risk is highly dependent on the degree of further treatment in the saturated zone and the types and proximity of uses for the receiving groundwater environment. Copyright 2009 SETAC.

Soil properties affect the toxicities of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) and hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) to the enchytraeid worm Enchytraeus crypticus.

PubMed

Kuperman, Roman G; Checkai, Ronald T; Simini, Michael; Phillips, Carlton T; Kolakowski, Jan E; Lanno, Roman

2013-11-01

The authors investigated individual toxicities of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) and hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) to the potworm Enchytraeus crypticus using the enchytraeid reproduction test. Studies were designed to generate ecotoxicological benchmarks that can be used for developing ecological soil-screening levels for ecological risk assessments of contaminated soils and to identify and characterize the predominant soil physicochemical parameters that can affect the toxicities of TNT and RDX to E. crypticus. Soils, which had a wide range of physicochemical parameters, included Teller sandy loam, Sassafras sandy loam, Richfield clay loam, Kirkland clay loam, and Webster clay loam. Analyses of quantitative relationships between the toxicological benchmarks for TNT and soil property measurements identified soil organic matter content as the dominant property mitigating TNT toxicity for juvenile production by E. crypticus in freshly amended soil. Both the clay and organic matter contents of the soil modulated reproduction toxicity of TNT that was weathered and aged in soil for 3 mo. Toxicity of RDX for E. crypticus was greater in the coarse-textured sandy loam soils compared with the fine-textured clay loam soils. The present studies revealed alterations in toxicity to E. crypticus after weathering and aging TNT in soil, and these alterations were soil- and endpoint-specific. © 2013 SETAC.

[Soil moisture dynamics and water balance of Salix psammophila shrubs in south edge of Mu Us Sandy Land].

PubMed

An, Hui; An, Yu

2011-09-01

Taking the artificial sand-fixing Salix psammophila shrubs with different plant density (0.2, 0.6, and 0.8 plants x m(-2)) in Mu Us Sandy Land as test objects, this paper studied the soil moisture dynamics and evapotranspiration during growth season. There existed obvious differences in the soil moisture dynamics and evapotranspiration among the shrubs. The soil moisture content changed in single-hump-shape with the increase of plant density, and in "S" shape during growth season, being closely correlated with precipitation. The evapotranspiration was the highest (114.5 mm) in the shrubs with a density 0.8 plants x m(-1), accounting for 90.8% of the total precipitation during growth season, and the lowest (109.7 mm) in the shrubs with a density 0.6 plants x m(-2) Based on the soil moisture dynamics and water balance characteristics, the appropriate planting density of S. psammophila shrubs in Mu Us Sandy Land could be 0.6 plants x m(-2).

Changes in labile soil organic matter fractions following land use change from monocropping to poplar-based agroforestry systems in a semiarid region of Northeast China.

PubMed

Mao, Rong; Zeng, De-Hui; Li, Lu-Jun; Hu, Ya-Lin

2012-11-01

Labile fractions of soil organic matter (SOM) respond rapidly to land management practices and can be used as a sensitive indicator of changes in SOM. However, there is little information about the effect of agroforestry practices on labile SOM fractions in semiarid regions of China. In order to test the effects of land use change from monocropping to agroforestry systems on labile SOM fractions, we investigated soil microbial biomass C (MBC) and N, particulate organic matter C (POMC) and N (POMN), as well as total organic C (TOC) and total N (TN) in the 0- to 15-cm and the 15- to 30-cm layers in 4-year-old poplar-based agroforestry systems and adjoining monocropping systems with two different soil textures (sandy loam and sandy clay loam) in a semiarid region of Northeast China. Our results showed that poplar-based agroforestry practices affected soil MBC, POMC, and POMN, albeit there was no significant difference in TOC and TN. Agroforestry practices increased MBC, POMC, and POMN in sandy clay loam soils. However, in sandy loam soils, agroforestry practices only increased MBC and even decreased POMC and POMN at the 0- to 15-cm layer. Our results suggest that labile SOM fractions respond sensitively to poplar-based agroforestry practices and can provide early information about the changes in SOM in semiarid regions of Northeast China and highlight that the effects of agroforestry practices on labile SOM fractions vary with soil texture.

Sandy Soil Microaggregates: Rethinking Our Understanding of Hydraulic Function

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Paradiś, Ashley; Brueck, Christopher; Meisenheimer, Douglas

2017-01-01

This study investigated the peculiar structure of microaggregates in coarse sandy soils that exhibit only external porosity and investigated their control on soil hydrology. The microstructure underpins a hydrologic existence that differs from finer textured soils where aggregates have internal porosity. Understanding the impact of these microaggregates on soil hydrology will permit improved agricultural irrigation management and estimates associated with ecosystem capacity and resiliency. Microstructure was investigated using a digital microscope, and aspects of the structure were quantified by sedimentation and computed microtomography. Sandy soil microaggregates were observed to be comprised of a solid sand-grain core that is coated withmore » fines, presumably cemented by organic media. This microstructure leads to three distinct water pools during drainage: capillary water, followed by thick films (1–20 μm) enveloping the outer surfaces of the crusted microaggregates, followed by adsorbed thin films (<1 μm). The characteristics of the thick films were investigated using an analytical model. These films may provide as much as 10 to 40% saturation in the range of plant-available water. Using lubrication theory, it was predicted that thick film drainage follows a power law function with an exponent of 2. Thick films may also have a role in the geochemical evolution of soils and in ecosystem function because they provide contiguous water and gas phases at relatively high moisture contents. And, because the rough outer crust of these microaggregates can provide good niches for microbial activity, biofilm physics will dominate thick film processes, and consequently hydrologic, biologic, and geochemical functions for coarse sandy soils.« less

Changes in physical properties of sandy soil after long-term compost treatment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aranyos, József Tibor; Tomócsik, Attila; Makádi, Marianna; Mészáros, József; Blaskó, Lajos

2016-07-01

Studying the long-term effect of composted sewage sludge application on chemical, physical and biological properties of soil, an experiment was established in 2003 at the Research Institute of Nyíregyháza in Hungary. The applied compost was prepared from sewage sludge (40%), straw (25%), bentonite (5%) and rhyolite (30%). The compost was ploughed into the 0-25 cm soil layer every 3rd year in the following amounts: 0, 9, 18 and 27 Mg ha-1 of dry matter. As expected, the compost application improved the structure of sandy soil, which is related with an increase in the organic matter content of soil. The infiltration into soil was improved significantly, reducing the water erosion under simulated high intensity rainfall. The soil compaction level was reduced in the first year after compost re-treatment. In accordance with the decrease in bulk density, the air permeability of soil increased tendentially. However, in the second year the positive effects of compost application were observed only in the plots treated with the highest compost dose because of quick degradation of the organic matter. According to the results, the sewage sludge compost seems to be an effective soil improving material for acidic sandy soils, but the beneficial effect of application lasts only for two years.

Study on reinforcement of soil for suppressing fugitive dust by bio-cementitious material

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhan, Qiwei; Qian, Chunxiang

2017-06-01

Microbial-induced reinforcement of soil, as a new green and environmental-friendly method, is being paid extensive attention to in that it has low cost, simple operation and rapid effects. In this research, reinforcement of soil for suppressing fugitive dust by bio-cementitious material was investigated. Soil cemented by bio-cementitious material had superior mechanical properties, such as hardness, compressive strength, microstructure, wind-erosion resistance, rainfall-erosion resistance and freeze-thaw resistance. The average hardness of sandy soil, floury soil and clay soil is 18.9 º, 25.2 º and 26.1 º, while average compressive strength of samples is 0.43 MPa, 0.54 MPa and 0.69 MPa, respectively; meanwhile, the average calcite content of samples is 6.85 %, 6.09 %, and 5.96 %, respectively. Compared with the original sandy soil, floury soil and clay soil, the porosity decreases by 38.5 %, 33.7 % and 29.2 %. When wind speed is 12 m/s, the mass loss of sandy soil, floury soil and clay soil cemented by bio-cementitious material are all less than 30 g/(m2·h). After three cycles of rainfall erosion of 2.5 mm/h, the mass loss are less than 25 g/(m2·h) and the compressive strength residual ratio are more than 98.0 %. Under 25 cycles of freeze-thaw, the mass loss ratio are less than 3.0 %.

Dynamic chemical characteristics of soil solution after pig manure application: a column study.

PubMed

Hao, Xiuzhen; Zhou, Dongmei; Sun, Lei; Li, Lianzhen; Zhang, Hailin

2008-06-01

When manures from intensive livestock operations are applied to agricultural or vegetable fields at a high rate, large amounts of salts and metals will be introduced into soils. Using a column leaching experiment, this study assessed the leaching potential of the downward movement of Cu and Zn as well as some salt ions after an intensive farm pig manure at rates of 0%, 5% and 10% (w/w) were applied to the top 20 cm of two different textured soils (G soil -sandy loam soil; H soil-silty clay loam soil), and investigated the growth of amaranth and Cu and Zn transfer from soil to amaranth (Amaranthus tricolor). Soil solutions were obtained at 20, 40 and 60 cm depth of the packed column and analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity (EC), dissolved organic matter (DOC) and Cu and Zn concentrations. The results indicated that application of pig manure containing Cu and Zn to sandy loam soil might cause higher leaching and uptake risk than silty clay loam soil, especially at high application rates. And manure amendment at 5% and 10% significantly decreased the biomass of amaranth, in which the salt impact rather than Cu and Zn toxicity from manures played more important role in amaranth growth. Thus the farmer should avoid application the high rate of pig manure containing metal and salt to soil at a time, especially in sandy soil.

[Influence of a new phosphoramide urease inhibitor on urea-N transformation in different texture soil].

PubMed

Zhou, Xuan; Wu, Liang Huan; Dai, Feng

2016-12-01

Addition of urease inhibitors is one of the important measures to increase nitrogen (N) use efficiency of crop, due to retardant of urea hydrolysis and reduction of ammonia volatilization loss. An incubation experiment was conducted to investigate the urease inhibition effect of a new phosphoramide urease inhibitor, NPPT (N-(n-propyl) thiophosphoric triamide) in different texture soils under dark condition at 25 ℃, and NBPT (N-(n-butyl) thiophosphoric triamide) was obtained to compare the inhibition effect on urease in different soil textures by different dosages of urea adding. Results showed that the effective reaction time of urea was less than 9 d in the loamy and clay soil. Addition of inhibitors for retardation of urea hydrolysis was more than 3 d. In sandy soil, urea decomposition was relatively slow, and adding inhibitor significantly inhibited soil urease acti-vity, and reduced NH 4 + -N content. During the incubation time, the inhibition effect of high dosage urea in the soil was better than that of low dosage. At day 6, the urease inhibition rate of NBPT and NPPT (N 250 mg·kg -1 ) were 56.3% and 53.0% in sandy soil, 0.04% and 0.3% in loamy soil, 4.1% and 6.2% in clay soil; the urease inhibition rate of NBPT and NPPT (N 500 mg·kg -1 ) were 59.4% and 65.8% in sandy soil, 14.5% and 15.1% in loamy soil, 49.1% and 48.1% in clay soil. The urease inhibition effects in different texture soil were in order of sandy soil > clay soil> loamy soil. The soil NH 4 + -N content by different inhibitors during incubation time increased at first and then decreased, while soil NO 3 - -N content and apparent nitrification rate both showed rising trends. Compared with urea treatment, addition of urease inhibitors (NBPT and NPPT) significantly increased urea-N left in the soil and reduced NH 4 + -N content. In short, new urease inhibitor NPPT in different texture is an effective urease inhibitor.

Features of Scots pine radial growth in conditions of provenance trial.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuzmin, Sergey; Kuzmina, Nina

2013-04-01

Provenance trial of Scots pine in Boguchany forestry of Krasnoyarsk krai is conducted on two different soils - dark-grey loam forest soil and sod-podzol sandy soil. Complex of negative factors for plant growth and development appears in dry conditions of sandy soil. It could results in decrease of resistance to diseases. Sandy soils in different climatic zones have such common traits as low absorbing capacity, poorness of elemental nutrition, low microbiological activity and moisture capacity, very high water permeability. But Scots pine trees growing in such conditions could have certain advantages and perspectives of use. In the scope of climate change (global warming) the study of Scots pine growth on sandy soil become urgent because of more frequent appearance of dry seasons. Purpose of the work is revelation of radial growth features of Scots pine with different origin in dry conditions of sandy soil and assessment of external factors influence. The main feature of radial growth of majority of studied pine provenances in conditions of sandy soil is presence of significant variation of increment with distinct decline in 25-years old with loss of tree rings in a number of cases. The reason of it is complex of factors: deficit of June precipitation and next following outbreak of fungal disease. Found «frost rings» for all trees of studied clymatypes in 1992 are the consequence of temperature decline from May 21 to June 2 - from 23 down to 2 degree Celsius. Perspective climatypes with biggest radial increments and least sensitivity to fungal disease were revealed. Eniseysk and Vikhorevka (from Krasnoyarsk krai and Irkutsk oblast)provenances of pine have the biggest radial increments, the least sensitivity to Cenangium dieback and smallest increments decline. These climatypes are in the group of perspective provenances and in present time they are recommended for wide trial in the region for future use in plantation forest growing. Kandalaksha (Murmansk oblast) climatype from northern taiga with good resistance to pathogen have nonsignificant decline in radial increment during epiphytoty in comparison with local and southern climatypes. Southern Chemal provenance (Altai) after influence of Cenangium dieback has more than others losses of tree rings as the result of nonresistance to this fungal disease.

Soil nitrous oxide emissions after deposition of dairy cow excreta in eastern Canada.

PubMed

Rochette, Philippe; Chantigny, Martin H; Ziadi, Noura; Angers, Denis A; Bélanger, Gilles; Charbonneau, Édith; Pellerin, Doris; Liang, Chang; Bertrand, Normand

2014-05-01

Urine and dung deposited by grazing dairy cows are a major source of nitrous oxide (NO), a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to stratospheric ozone depletion. In this study, we quantified the emissions of NO after deposition of dairy cow excreta onto two grassland sites with contrasting soil types in eastern Canada. Our objectives were to determine the impact of excreta type, urine-N rate, time of the year, and soil type on annual NO emissions. Emissions were monitored on sandy loam and clay soils after spring, summer, and fall urine (5 and 10 g N patch) and dung (1.75 kg fresh weight dung) applications to perennial grasses in two successive years. The mean NO emission factor (EF) for urine was 1.09% of applied N in the clay soil and 0.31% in the sandy loam soil, estimates much smaller than the default Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) default value for total excreta N (2%). Despite variations in urine composition and in climatic conditions, these soil-specific EFs were similar for the two urine-N application rates. The time of the year when urine was applied had no impact on emissions from the sandy loam soil, but greater EFs were observed after summer (1.59%) than spring (1.14%) and fall (0.55%) applications in the clay soil. Dung deposition impact on NO emission was smaller than that of urine, with a mean EF of 0.15% in the sandy loam soil and 0.08% in the clay soil. Our results suggest (i) that the IPCC default EF overestimates NO emissions from grazing cattle excreta in eastern Canada by a factor of 4.3 and (ii) that a region-specific inventory methodology should account for soil type and should use specific EFs for urine and dung. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Mobilization of phenol and dichlorophenol in unsaturated soils by non-uniform electrokinetics.

PubMed

Luo, Qishi; Zhang, Xihui; Wang, Hui; Qian, Yi

2005-06-01

The poor mobility of organic pollutants in contaminated sites frequently results in slow remediation processes. Organics, especially hydrophobic compounds, are generally retained strongly in soil matrix as a result of sorption, sequestration, or even formation into non-aqueous-phase liquids and their mobility is thus greatly reduced. The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of using non-uniform electrokinetic transport processes to enhance the mobility of organic pollutants in unsaturated soils with no injection reagents. Phenol and 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP), and kaolin and a natural sandy loam soil were selected as model organics and soils, respectively. The results showed that non-uniform electrokinetics can accelerate the desorption and movement of phenol and 2,4-DCP in unsaturated soils. Electromigration and electroosmotic flow were the main driving forces, and their role in the mobilization of phenol and 2,4-DCP varied with soil pH. The movement of 2,4-DCP in the sandy loam towards the anode (about 1.0 cmd(-1)V(-1)) was 1.0-1.5 cmd(-1)V(-1) slower than that in the kaolin soil, but about 0.5 cmd(-1)V(-1) greater than that of phenol in the sandy loam. When the sandy loam was adjusted to pH 9.3, the movement of phenol and 2,4-DCP towards the anode was about twice and five times faster than that at pH 7.7, respectively. The results also demonstrated that the movement of phenol and 2,4-DCP in soils can be easily controlled by regulating the operational mode of electric field. It is believed that non-uniform electrokinetics has the potential for practical application to in situ remediation of organics-contaminated sites.

Project environmental microbiology as related to planetary quarantine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pflug, I. J.

1974-01-01

Microbiological analyses of soil particles allow for the following conclusions: (1) there is a considerable range in the values of aerobic, mesophilic microbial counts associated with different size soil fractions; (2) as soil particle size increases, there is an increase in the mean microbial concentration per particle; (3) plate counts of aerobic, mesophilic organisms in unheated soils yielded a mean concentration of about six organisms per particle for the smallest soil fraction; (4) aerobic, mesophilic counts for sonicated particles heated at 80 C for 20 minutes yielded mean values of about two organisms per particle for the smallest particles; (5) some actinomycetes associated with the soil fractions could survive dry heat treatment at 110 C for one hour; and (6) soil particles stored under ambient laboratory conditions for 2.5 years aerobic, mesophilic plate counts which were comparable or slightly greater than the counts for more recently collected soil.

Seasonal Dynamics of Water Use Strategy of Two Salix Shrubs in Alpine Sandy Land, Tibetan Plateau.

PubMed

Zhu, Yajuan; Wang, Guojie; Li, Renqiang

2016-01-01

Water is a limiting factor for plant growth and vegetation dynamics in alpine sandy land of the Tibetan Plateau, especially with the increasing frequency of extreme precipitation events and drought caused by climate change. Therefore, a relatively stable water source from either deeper soil profiles or ground water is necessary for plant growth. Understanding the water use strategy of dominant species in the alpine sandy land ecosystem is important for vegetative rehabilitation and ecological restoration. The stable isotope methodology of δD, δ18O, and δ13C was used to determine main water source and long-term water use efficiency of Salix psammophila and S. cheilophila, two dominant shrubs on interdune of alpine sandy land in northeastern Tibetan Plateau. The root systems of two Salix shrubs were investigated to determine their distribution pattern. The results showed that S. psammophila and S. cheilophila absorbed soil water at different soil depths or ground water in different seasons, depending on water availability and water use strategy. Salix psammophila used ground water during the growing season and relied on shallow soil water recharged by rain in summer. Salix cheilophila used ground water in spring and summer, but relied on shallow soil water recharged by rain in spring and deep soil water recharged by ground water in fall. The two shrubs had dimorphic root systems, which is coincident with their water use strategy. Higher biomass of fine roots in S. psammophila and longer fine roots in S. cheilophila facilitated to absorb water in deeper soil layers. The long-term water use efficiency of two Salix shrubs increased during the dry season in spring. The long-term water use efficiency was higher in S. psammophila than in S. cheilophila, as the former species is better adapted to semiarid climate of alpine sandy land.

Seasonal Dynamics of Water Use Strategy of Two Salix Shrubs in Alpine Sandy Land, Tibetan Plateau

PubMed Central

Zhu, Yajuan; Wang, Guojie; Li, Renqiang

2016-01-01

Water is a limiting factor for plant growth and vegetation dynamics in alpine sandy land of the Tibetan Plateau, especially with the increasing frequency of extreme precipitation events and drought caused by climate change. Therefore, a relatively stable water source from either deeper soil profiles or ground water is necessary for plant growth. Understanding the water use strategy of dominant species in the alpine sandy land ecosystem is important for vegetative rehabilitation and ecological restoration. The stable isotope methodology of δD, δ18O, and δ13C was used to determine main water source and long-term water use efficiency of Salix psammophila and S. cheilophila, two dominant shrubs on interdune of alpine sandy land in northeastern Tibetan Plateau. The root systems of two Salix shrubs were investigated to determine their distribution pattern. The results showed that S. psammophila and S. cheilophila absorbed soil water at different soil depths or ground water in different seasons, depending on water availability and water use strategy. Salix psammophila used ground water during the growing season and relied on shallow soil water recharged by rain in summer. Salix cheilophila used ground water in spring and summer, but relied on shallow soil water recharged by rain in spring and deep soil water recharged by ground water in fall. The two shrubs had dimorphic root systems, which is coincident with their water use strategy. Higher biomass of fine roots in S. psammophila and longer fine roots in S. cheilophila facilitated to absorb water in deeper soil layers. The long-term water use efficiency of two Salix shrubs increased during the dry season in spring. The long-term water use efficiency was higher in S. psammophila than in S. cheilophila, as the former species is better adapted to semiarid climate of alpine sandy land. PMID:27243772

Sorption-desorption of indaziflam and its three metabolites in sandy soils.

PubMed

Trigo, Carmen; Koskinen, William C; Kookana, Rai S

2014-01-01

Indaziflam is a relatively new herbicide for which sorption-desorption information is lacking, and nothing is available on its metabolites. Information is needed on the multiple soil and pesticide characteristics known to influence these processes. For four soils, the order of sorption was indaziflam (N-[1R,2S)-2,3-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-1H-inden-1-yl]-6-[(1R)-1-fluoroethyl]-1,3,5-triazine-2,4-diamine) (sandy clay loam: Kf = 5.9, 1/nf = 0.7, Kfoc = 447; sandy loam: Kf = 3.9, 1/nf = 0.9, Kfoc = 276) > triazine indanone metabolite (N-[(1R,2S)-2,3-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-3-oxo-1H-inden-1-yl]-6-[(1R)-1-fluoroethyl]-1,3,5-triazine-2,4-diamine) (sandy clay loam: Kf = 2.1, 1/nf = 0.8, Kfoc = 177; sandy loam: Kf = 1.7, 1/nf = 0.9, Kfoc = 118) > fluoroethyldiaminotriazine metabolite (6-[(1R-1-Fluoroethyl]-1,3,5-triazine-2,4-diamine) (sandy clay loam: Kf = 0.3, 1/nf = 0.9, Kfoc = 28; sandy loam: Kf = 0.3, 1/nf = 0.9, Kfoc = 22) = indaziflam carboxylic acid metabolite (2S,3R)-3-[[4-amino-6-[(1R)-1-fluoroethyl]-1,3,5-triazin-2-yl]amino]-2,3-dihydro-2-methyl-1H-indene-5-carboxylic acid) (sandy clay loam: Kf = 0.3, 1/nf = 0.9, Kfoc = 22; sandy loam: Kf = 0.5, 1/nf = 0.8, Kfoc = 32). The metabolites being more polar than the parent compound showed lower sorption. Desorption was hysteretic for indaziflam and triazine indanone metabolite, but not for the other two metabolites. Unsaturated transient flow Kd's were lower than batch Kd's for indaziflam, but similar for fluoroethyldiaminotriazine metabolite. Batch Kd's would overpredict potential offsite transport if desorption hysteresis is not taken into account.

Influence of wood-derived biochar on the physico-mechanical and chemical characteristics of agricultural soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmed, Ahmed S. F.; Raghavan, Vijaya

2018-01-01

Amendment of soil with biochar has been shown to enhance fertility and increase crop productivity, but the specific influence of biochar on soil workability remains unclear. Select physico-mechanical and chemical properties of clay loam and sandy loam soils were measured after amendment with wood-derived biochar of two particle size ranges (0.5-425 and 425-850 µm) at five dosages ranging from 0.5 to 10% dry weight. Whereas the clay loam soil workability decreased when the finer wood-derived biochar was applied at rates of 6 or 10%, soil fertility was not enhanced. The sandy loam soil, due to Proctor compaction, significantly decreased in bulk density with 6 and 10% wood-derived biochar amendments indicating higher soil resistance to compaction.

Effect of peat on the accumulation and translocation of heavy metals by maize grown in contaminated soils.

PubMed

Stanislawska-Glubiak, Ewa; Korzeniowska, Jolanta; Kocon, Anna

2015-03-01

Incorporation of organic materials into soil improves the soil sorption capacity, while limiting the mobility of metals in soil and their availability to plants. These effects can be taken advantage for remediation of soils polluted with heavy metals. The objective of this study is to assess the remediatory potential of peat applied to soils with concomitant pollution with Cd, Pb, and Zn. Two 1-year experiments were run in microplots in which maize was grown as the test plant. The following treatments were compared on two soils (sandy soil and loess): (1) control, (2) heavy metals (HM), (3) HM + peat in a single dose, and (4) HM + peat in a double dose. Maize was harvested in the maturity stage; the biomass of roots and aerial parts, including grain and cobs, was measured. Besides, concentration of metals in all those plant parts and the net photosynthetic rate and transpiration rate were determined. The approach of using peat in soil remediation led to satisfactory results on sandy soil only. The application of peat to sandy soil caused significant changes in the accumulation of the metals and their translocation from roots to other parts of plants, which resulted in a higher intensity of photosynthesis and an increase in the maize biomass compared to the HM treatment.

Evaluation of alternative landfill cover soils for attenuating hydrogen sulfide from construction and demolition (C&D) debris landfills.

PubMed

Plaza, Cristine; Xu, Qiyong; Townsend, Timothy; Bitton, Gabriel; Booth, Matthew

2007-08-01

Hydrogen sulfide (H(2)S) generated from C&D debris landfills has emerged as a major environmental concern due to odor problems and possible health impacts to landfill employees and surrounding residents. Research was performed to evaluate the performance of various cover materials as control measures for H(2)S emissions from C&D debris landfills. Twelve laboratory-scale simulated landfill columns containing gypsum drywall were operated under anaerobic conditions to promote H(2)S production. Five different cover materials were placed on top of the waste inside duplicate columns: (1) sandy soil, (2) sandy soil amended with lime, (3) clayey soil, (4) fine concrete (particle size less than 2.5 cm), and (5) coarse concrete (particle size greater than 2.5 cm). No cover was placed on two of the columns, which were used as controls. H(2)S concentrations measured from the middle of the waste layer ranged from 50,000 to 150,000 ppm. The different cover materials demonstrated varying H(2)S removal efficiencies. The sandy soil amended with lime and the fine concrete were the most effective for the control of H(2)S emissions. Both materials exhibited reduction efficiencies greater than 99%. The clayey and sandy soils exhibited lower reduction efficiencies, with average removal efficiencies of 65% and 30%, respectively. The coarse concrete was found to be the least efficient material as a result of its large particle size.

Effect of pH on bacteriophage transport through sandy soils

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kinoshita, Takashi; Bales, Roger C.; Maguire, Kimberley M.; Gerba, Charles P.

1993-01-01

Effects of pH and hydrophobicity on attachment and detachment of PRD-1 and MS-2 in three different sandy soils were investigated in a series of laboratory-column experiments. Concentrations of the lipid-containing phage PRD-1 decreased 3–4 orders of magnitude during passage through the 10–15-cm-long columns. Attachment of the lipid-containing phage PRD-1 was insensitive to pH and was apparently controlled by hydrophobic interactions in soil media. The less-hydrophobic phage MS-2 acted conservatively; it was not removed in the columns at pH's 5.7–8.0. The sticking efficiency (α) in a colloid-filtration model was between 0.1 and 1 for PRD-1, indicating a relatively high removal efficiency. Phage attachment was reversible, but detachment under steady-state conditions was slow. An increase in pH had a moderate effect on enhancing detachment. Still, these soils should continue to release phage to virus-free water for days to weeks following exposure to virus-containing water. In sandy soils with a mass-fraction organic carbon as low as a few hundredths of a percent, pH changes in the range 5.7–8.0 should have little effect on retention of more-hydrophobic virus (e.g., PRD-1), in that retardation will be dominated by hydrophobic effects. Sharp increases in pH should enhance detachment and transport of virus previously deposited on soil grains. A more hydrophilic virus (e.g., MS-2) will transport as a conservative tracer in low-carbon sandy soil.

Screening identification of aerobic denitrification bacteria with high soil desalinization capacity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jin, H.; Chen, H.; Jin, H.; Qian, Y.; Zhang, K.

2017-08-01

In order to study the mechanism of bacteria used in the saline soil remediation process, the aerobic denitrification bacteria were isolated from an agricultural greenhouse soil in a farm in East China’s Zhejiang Province. The identification, nitrogen reducing characteristics and the denitrification effect of bacteria from different soils at various locations were investigated. The results showed that the NO3- removal rate was 91% with bacteria from the greenhouse soil under aerobic conditions in 52 h, and the bacteria were identified as Gram-positive Castellaniella denitrification bacteria.

The influence of arbuscular mycorrhizae on root precision nutrient foraging of two pioneer plant species during early reclamation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boldt-Burisch, Katja; Naeth, M. Anne

2017-04-01

On many post mining sites in the Lusatian Mining District (East Germany) soil heterogeneity consists of sandy soil with embedded clay-silt fragments. Those clays silt fragments might act as nutrient hotspots. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in an infertile ecosystem could enhance a plant's ability to selectively forage for those nutrients and thus to improve plants nutrient supply. In our study we investigated whether silt-clay fragments within a sandy soil matrix induced preferential root growth of Lotus corniculatus and Calamagrostis epigeios, whether arbuscular mycorrhizae influenced root foraging patterns, and to what extent selective rooting in clay silt fragments influenced plant growth were addressed in this research. Soil types were sterile and non-sterile sandy soil and clay-silt fragments. Treatments were with and without arbuscular mycorrhizae, with and without soil solution, and soil solution and mycorrhizal inoculum combined. Root biomass, root density and intraradical fungal alkaline phosphatase activity and frequency were determined in fragments relative to sandy soil. Furthermore, temporal relationship of number of roots in fragments and plant height was assessed. Lotus corniculatus showed strong selective rooting into fragments especially with those plants treated with commercial cultivated arbuscular mycorrhizae; Calamagrostis epigeios did not. Without arbuscular mycorrhizae, L. corniculatus growth was significantly reduced and selective rooting did not occur. Selective rooting induced significant growth spurts of L. corniculatus. Roots in fragments had higher fungal alkaline phosphatase activity suggesting that mycorrhizal efficiency and related plants phosphorus supply is enhanced in roots in fragments. The application of cultivated arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi significantly and quickly influenced root foraging patterns, especially those of L. corniculatus, suggesting mycorrhizae may also enhance the ability of other plants to selectively forage for nutrients and could therefore play an important role in early plant establishment on infertile reclamation sites.

[Characteristics of soil microorganisms and soil nutrients in different sand-fixation shrub plantations in Kubuqi Desert, China].

PubMed

Zhang, Li-Xin; Duan, Yu Xi; Wang, Bo; Wang, Wei Feng; Li, Xiao Jing; Liu, Jin Jie

2017-12-01

Three types of sand-fixation shrub plantations, including Artemisia ordosica + Hedysarum fruticosum, Caragana korshinskii and Salix psammophila, were selected in the eastern area of Kubuqi Desert to study the changes in soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN), quantities of soil microorganisms, contents of soil nutrients and the relations among these variables under the different plantation types and shifting sandy land. The restoration effects of each plantation type on soil quality were assessed by synthetic index method. The results showed that the contents of soil organic matter, total nitrogen and phosphorus, and available nitrogen and phosphorus under different plantations were all significantly greater than those under shifting sandy land, and the order of increase was A. ordosica + H. fruticosum ＞ C. korshinskii ＞ S. psammophila. The soil nutrient contents decreased with the increase of soil depth under all plantation types. The quantities of soil microorganisms and the contents of soil MBC and MBN under the plantations were higher at different degrees than those under shifting sandy land. MBC, MBN and the relative numbers of bacteria under A. ordosica+H. fruticosum plantation were higher than those under C. korshinskii plantation and S. psammophila plantation. The relative numbers of fungi and actinobacteria decreased in the order of C. korshinskii ＞ S. psammophila ＞ A. ordosica + H. fruticosum. The relative number of bacteria, MBC and MBN under the plantations were mainly affected by the contents of soil organic matter, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, available nitrogen, available phosphorus, as well as C/N, and the relative numbers of actinobacteria and fungi were primarily affected by the contents of soil total phosphorus, available nitrogen and available phosphorus. Soil quality was ranked in the order of A. ordosica + H. fruticosum ＞ C. korshinskii ＞ S. psammophila ＞ shifting sandy land. These results demonstrated that different sand-fixation shrub plantations could improve the quality of the desert soil and the A. ordosica + H. fruticosum plantation was the best for soil restoration and quality improvement in the desert.

Kinetics of biotransformation of chlorpyrifos in aqueous and soil slurry environments.

PubMed

Tiwari, Manoj K; Guha, Saumyen

2014-03-15

The attenuation of chlorpyrifos (CPF) by the enriched indigenous soil microorganism was studied in 15 d aerobic and 60 d anaerobic batch experiments in aqueous and soil slurry (1:3 w/w) media. At the end of the batch experiments, 2.78 ± 0.11 μM of CPF was degraded by 82% in aerobic and 66% in anaerobic aqueous environments, while 12.4 ± 0.5 μM of CPF was degraded by 48% in aerobic and 31% in anaerobic soil slurries. The reduced degradation in the soil slurries was due to the significantly (2-10 times) slower rate of degradation of soil phase CPF compared with its degradation rate in water. The pathways of degradation of CPF were identified, including a partial anaerobic degradation pathway that is constructed for the first time. The simulation of the various conversions in the degradation pathways using first order kinetics was used to analyze relative persistence of metabolites. The common metabolite 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol (TCP) accumulated (increased monotonically during the period of experiments) in aerobic soil slurry and in anaerobic aqueous as well as soil slurry systems but did not accumulate in aerobic aqueous system. The most toxic compound in the pathway, chlorpyrifos oxon (CPFO) was not detected in anaerobic environment. In aerobic environment, CPFO was short lived in aqueous medium, but accumulated slowly in the soils. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Effects of long-term fertilization on pH buffer system of sandy loam calcareous fluvor-aquic soil].

PubMed

Wang, Ji-Dong; Qi, Bing-Jie; Zhang, Yong-Chun; Zhang, Ai-Jun; Ning, Yun-Wang; Xu, Xian-Ju; Zhang, Hui; Ma, Hong-Bo

2012-04-01

Soil samples (0-80 cm) were collected from a 30-year fertilization experimental site in Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province of East China to study the variations of the pH, calcium carbonate and active calcium carbonate contents, and pH buffer capacity of sandy loam calcareous fluvor-aquic soil under different fertilization treatments. Thirty-year continuous application of different fertilizers accelerated the acidification of topsoil (0-20 cm), with the soil pH decreased by 0.41-0.70. Under different fertilization, the soil pH buffer capacity (pHBC) varied from 15.82 to 21.96 cmol x kg(-1). As compared with no fertilization, single N fertilization decreased the pHBC significantly, but N fertilization combined with organic fertilization could significantly increase the pHBC. The soil pHBC had significant positive correlations with soil calcium carbonate and active calcium carbonate contents, but less correlation with soil organic matter content and soil cation exchange capacity, suggesting that after a long-term fertilization, the sandy loam calcareous fluvor-aquic soil was still of an elementary calcium carbonate buffer system, and soil organic matter and cation exchange capacity contributed little to the buffer system. The soil calcium carbonate and active calcium carbonate contents were greater in 0-40 cm than in 40-80 cm soil layer. Comparing with soil calcium carbonate, soil active calcium carbonate was more sensitive to reflect the changes of soil physical and chemical properties, suggesting that the calcium carbonate buffer system could be further classified as soil active calcium carbonate buffer system.

Relationships between Soil and Levels of Meloidogyne incognita and Tobacco Yield and Quality.

PubMed

Barker, K R; Weeks, W W

1991-01-01

A 2-year study with six soils and four levels of Meloidogyne incognita in microplots was designed to determine the effects of these parameters on nematode activity and tobacco yield and quality. Key components under study were affected by soil, nematode level, and season (year-cultivar). In 1980, low initial nematode numbers (1,250) enhanced tobacco yield in Cecil clay loam, but caused slight to moderate yield losses in the other soils. Yield losses to M. incognita were generally greatest in sandy and muck soils. In 1980, regression analyses of the independent parameters Pi - clay-sand vs. yield gave an R(2) of 0.40. Examples of other coefficients of determination for yield vs. selected factors were root-necrosis index, 0.40; root-gall index, 0.18; root-gall index-cation exchange capacity (CEC), 0.34; root-necrosis index-CEC, 0.56; and root-necrosis index-sand-soil acidity-calcium, 0.62. In contrast, the R(2) for Pi alone versus yield in 1981 was 0.84. Soil also affected nematode reproduction with the greatest increases occurring in the sandy soils. In both years, low nematode numbers enhanced the synthesis of sugar in tobacco, whereas leaves from all other nematode treatments had low sugar levels. A low nicotine content was associated with nematode infection. Tobacco from sandy soils had a higher nicotine content than tobacco from clay soils.

Soil catenas on denudation plains in the forest-tundra and northern taiga zones of the Kola Peninsula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Urusevskaya, I. S.

2017-07-01

Morphogenetic features of soils of two catenas developed on sandy to loamy sandy moraine deposits in the forest-tundra and northern taiga zones on denudation plains of the Kola Peninsula are discussed. It is shown that these catenas are similar with respect to the major directions of soil formation, regularities of soil distribution by the elements of mesotopography, and the factors of the soil cover differentiation. The differences between the catenas are of quantitative character and are related to the intensities of manifestation of the particular processes and features. Both catenas are characterized by the pronounced differentiation of soils with respect to their moistening with hydromorphic peat bog soils in the subordinate positions and Al-Fe-humus podzols in the automorphic positions.

Characterization of biomass residues and their amendment effects on water sorption and nutrient leaching in sandy soil.

PubMed

Wang, Letian; Tong, Zhaohui; Liu, Guodong; Li, Yuncong

2014-07-01

In this study, we evaluated the efficiency of two types of biomass residues (fermentation residues from a bioethanol process, FB; brown mill residues from a papermaking process, BM) as amendments for a sandy soil. The characteristics of these residues including specific surface areas, morphologies and nutrient sorption capacity were measured. The effects of biorefinery residues on water and nutrient retention were investigated in terms of different particle sizes and loadings. The results indicated that bio-based wastes FB and BM were able to significantly improve water and nutrient retention of sandy soil. The residues with larger surface areas had better water and nutrient retention capability. Specifically, in the addition of 10% loading, FB and BM was able to improve water retention by approximately 150% and 300%, while reduce 99% of ammonium and phosphate concentration in the leachate compare to the soil control, respectively. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Characterization of the N2O isotopic composition (15N, 18O and N2O isotopomers) emitted from incubated Amazon forest soils. Implications for the global N2O isotope budget

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pérez, T.; García, D.; Trumbore, S.; Tyler, S.; de Camargo, P.; Moreira, M.; Piccolo, M.; Park, S.; Boering, K.; Cerri, C.

2003-04-01

Tropical rain forest soils are the largest natural source of N2O to the atmosphere. Uncertainty in the signature of this source limits the utility of isotopes in constraining the global N2O budget. Differentiating the relative contribution of nitrification and denitrification to the emitted N2O using stable isotopes has been difficult due to the lack of enrichment factors values for each process measured in situ. We have devised a method for measuring enrichment factors using soil incubation experiments. We selected three Amazon rain forest soils: (1) Clay and (2) Sandy from Santarem, Pará State, and (3) Sandy from Nova Vida Farm, Rondonia State, Brazil. The enrichment factor values for nitrification and denitrification are: -97.8±4.2 and -9.9±3.8 per mil for clay Santarem soil, -86.8±4.3 and -45.2±4.5 per mil for sandy Santarem soil and-112.6±3.8 and -10.4±3.5 per mil for Nova Vida Farm soils, respectively. Our results show that enrichment factors for both processes differ with soil texture and location. The enrichment factors for nitrification are significantly smaller than the range reported in the literature (-66 to -42 per mil). Also, the enrichment factors for the Santarem soils (clay and sandy) differ significantly implying that soil texture (which will affect the soil air filled pore space at a given water content) is influencing the bacteria isotopic discrimination. However, the enrichment factors for the Santarem clay sand Nova Vida sandy soils do not differ by much. This suggests that the enrichment factors not only can be affected by texture but also by the microbial fauna present in these soils. We also determined the measurement of the N2O positional dependence. N2O is a linear molecule with two nitrogen atoms. The 15N isotope can be located in either the central nitrogen (alpha position) or in the terminal nitrogen (beta position). The isotopomer site preference (15N alpha - 15N beta) can be used to differentiate processes of production and consumption of N2O as a potential method to determine the contributions of nitrification and denitrification. We measured the isotopomer composition of the incubated soils and calculated the site preference of each process for each soils. The site preference for nitrification and denitrification are: -114.5 and 56.6 per mil for clay Santarem soil, -75.2 and 11.8 per mil for sandy Santarem soil and -209.7 and 28.8 per mil for Nova Vida Farm soils, respectively. To our knowledge these are the first N2O isotopomer characterizations for nitrification and denitrification in soils. The results show that nitrifying bacteria population has 15N site preference fingerprints smaller by up to 200 per mil than denitrifying bacteria. This data set strongly suggests that N2O isotopomers can be used in concert with traditional N2O stable isotope measurements as constraints to differentiate microbial processes producing N2O. We can conclude that nitrifiers produce N2O with a smaller site preference values and more negative del 15N beta than do denitrifiers. These results show a new proxy to differentiate N2O formation processes in soil and will contribute to produce interpretations of the site preference isotopomeric N2O values found in the troposphere.

The lost micro-deserts of the Patuxent River using landscape history, insect and plant specimens, and field work to detect and define a unique community

USGS Publications Warehouse

Droege, S.; Davis, C.A.; Steiner, W.E.; =Mawdsley, J.

2009-01-01

Historical and recent records of both plants and insects are synthesized for uplands along the eastern edge of Maryland?s Patuxent River from the edge of the Piedmont south to Jug Bay. This strip is characterized by deep sandy soils found in the Evesboro and Galestown sandy loams soil series. Within this narrow strip there exists a unique flora and fauna adapted to open dry sandy soils and occurring in small remnant patches associated with old sand mining operations and scattered protected areas. We illustrate the uniqueness of these sites using four groups, vascular plants, tenebrionid beetles (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), tiger beetles (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae), and bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Anthophila). Within each of these groups, rare species were detected whose populations were locally restricted to this soil type and whose nearest known populations were often hundreds of kilometers away. In addition to documenting the direct conservation importance of these small sandy openings along the Patuxent, we contrast the lack of any indication from vertebrate inventories that this region is unique. The combination of plant and insect inventories appears to be a better means of clarifying a site?s importance than does any survey of a single taxonomic group.

Effects of biochar, compost and biochar-compost on growth and nutrient status of maize in two Mediterranean soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manolikaki, Ioanna; Diamadopoulos, Evan

2017-04-01

During the past years, studies have shown that biochar alone or combined with compost, has the potential to improve soil fertility and maize yield mostly on tropical soils whereas experiments on Mediterranean soils are rare. Therefore, the influence of biochar, compost and mixtures of the two, on maize (Zea mays L.) growth and nutrient status were investigated, in this study. Biochars were produced from 2 feedstocks: grape pomace (GP) and rice husks (RH) pyrolyzed at 300°C. Maize was grown for 30 days in a greenhouse pot trial on two Mediterranean soils amended with biochar or/with compost at application rates of 0% and 2% (w/w) (equivalent to 0 and 16 t ha-1) and N fertilization. Total aboveground dry matter yield of maize was significantly improved relative to the control for all organic amendments, with increases in yield 43-60.8%, in sandy loam soil, while, in loam soil a statistically significant increase of 70.6-81.3% was recorded for all the amendments apart from compost. Some morphological traits, such as aboveground height of plants, shoot diameter and belowground dry matter yield were significantly increased by the organic treatments. Aboveground concentration of P was significantly increased from 1.46 mg g-1 at control to 1.69 mg g-1 at 2% GP biochar in sandy loam soil, whereas GP biochar combined with compost gave an increase of 2.03 mg g-1 compared to control 1.23 mg g-1. K and Mn concentrations of above ground tissues were significantly increased only in sandy loam soil, while Fe in both soils. N concentration of aboveground tissues declined for all the amendments in loam soil and in sandy loam soil apart from compost amendment. Significant positive impacts of amended soils on nutrients uptake were observed in both soils as compared to the control related to the improved dry matter yield of plant. The current study demonstrated that maize production could be greatly improved by biochar and compost because of the nutrients they supply and their conditioning effect.

Remediation of sandy soils contaminated with hydrocarbons and halogenated hydrocarbons by soil vapour extraction.

PubMed

Albergaria, José Tomás; Alvim-Ferraz, Maria da Conceição M; Delerue-Matos, Cristina

2012-08-15

This paper presents the study of the remediation of sandy soils containing six of the most common contaminants (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylene, trichloroethylene and perchloroethylene) using soil vapour extraction (SVE). The influence of soil water content on the process efficiency was evaluated considering the soil type and the contaminant. For artificially contaminated soils with negligible clay contents and natural organic matter it was concluded that: (i) all the remediation processes presented efficiencies above 92%; (ii) an increase of the soil water content led to a more time-consuming remediation; (iii) longer remediation periods were observed for contaminants with lower vapour pressures and lower water solubilities due to mass transfer limitations. Based on these results an easy and relatively fast procedure was developed for the prediction of the remediation times of real soils; 83% of the remediation times were predicted with relative deviations below 14%. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Variations of soil fertility level in red soil region under long-term fertilization].

PubMed

Yu, Han-qing; Xu, Ming-gang; Lü, Jia-long; Bao, Yao-xian; Sun, Nan; Gao, Ju-sheng

2010-07-01

Based on the long-term (1982-2007) field experiment of "anthropogenic mellowing of raw soil" at the Qiyang red soil experimental station under Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, and by using numerical theory, this paper studied the variations of the fertility level of granite red soil, quaternary red soil, and purple sandy shale soil under six fertilization patterns. The fertilization patterns included non-fertilization (CK), straw-returning without fertilizers (CKR), chemical fertilization (NPK), NPK plus straw-return (NPKR), rice straw application (M), and M plus straw-return (MR). The soil integrated fertility index (IFI) was significantly positively correlated with relative crop yield, and could better indicate soil fertility level. The IFI values of the three soils all were in the order of NPK, NPKR > M, MR > CK, CKR, with the highest value in treatment NPKR (0.77, 0.71, and 0.71 for granite red soil, quaternary red soil, and purple sandy shale soil, respectively). Comparing with that in the treatments of no straw-return, the IFI value in the treatments of straw return was increased by 6.72%-18.83%. A turning point of the IFI for all the three soils was observed at about 7 years of anthropogenic mellowing, and the annual increasing rate of the IFI was in the sequence of purple sandy shale soil (0.016 a(-1)) > quaternary red clay soil (0.011 a(-1)) > granite red soil (0.006 a(-1)). It was suggested that a combined application of organic and chemical fertilizers and/or straw return could be an effective and fast measure to enhance the soil fertility level in red soil region.

Effects of permafrost thaw on carbon emissions under aerobic and anaerobic environments in the Great Hing'an Mountains, China.

PubMed

Song, Changchun; Wang, Xianwei; Miao, Yuqing; Wang, Jiaoyue; Mao, Rong; Song, Yanyu

2014-07-15

The carbon (C) pool of permafrost peatland is very important for the global C cycle. Little is known about how permafrost thaw could influence C emissions in the Great Hing'an Mountains of China. Through aerobic and anaerobic incubation experiments, we studied the effects of permafrost thaw on CH4 and CO2 emissions. The rates of CH4 and CO2 emissions were measured at -10, 0 and 10°C. Although there were still C emissions below 0°C, rates of CH4 and CO2 emissions significantly increased with permafrost thaw under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. The C release under aerobic conditions was greater than under anaerobic conditions, suggesting that permafrost thaw and resulting soil environment change should be important influences on C emissions. However, CH4 stored in permafrost soils could affect accurate estimation of CH4 emissions from microbial degradation. Calculated Q10 values in the permafrost soils were significantly higher than values in active-layer soils under aerobic conditions. Our results highlight that permafrost soils have greater potential decomposability than soils of the active layer, and such carbon decomposition would be more responsive to the aerobic environment. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Comparison of aerobic and anaerobic [3H]leucine incorporation assays for determining pollution-induced bacterial community tolerance in copper-polluted, irrigated soils.

PubMed

Aaen, Karoline Nolsø; Holm, Peter E; Priemé, Anders; Hung, Ngoc Ngo; Brandt, Kristian Koefoed

2011-03-01

Pollution-induced community tolerance (PICT) constitutes a sensitive and ecologically relevant impact parameter in ecotoxicology. We report the development and application of a novel anaerobic [(3) H]leucine incorporation assay and its comparison with the conventional aerobic [(3) H]leucine incorporation assay for PICT detection in soil bacterial communities. Selection of bacterial communities was performed over 42 d in bulk soil microcosms (no plants) and in rice (Oryza sativa) rhizosphere soil mesocosms. The following experimental treatments were imposed using a full factorial design: two soil types, two soil water regimes, and four Cu application rates (0, 30, 120, or 280 µg g(-1)). Bacterial communities in bulk soil microcosms exhibited similar Cu tolerance patterns when assessed by aerobic and anaerobic PICT assays, whereas aerobic microorganisms tended to be more strongly selected for Cu tolerance than anaerobic microorganisms in rhizosphere soil. Despite similar levels of water-extractable Cu, bacterial Cu tolerance was significantly higher in acid sulfate soil than in alluvial soil. Copper amendment selected for significant PICT development in soils subjected to alternate wetting and drying, but not in continuously flooded soils. Our results demonstrate that soil bacterial communities subjected to alternate wetting and drying may be more affected by Cu than bacterial communities subjected to continuous flooding. We conclude that the parallel use of anaerobic and aerobic [(3) H]leucine PICT assays constitutes a valuable improvement over existing procedures for PICT detection in irrigated soils and other redox gradient environments such as sediments and wetlands. Copyright © 2010 SETAC.

Processing Protocol for Soil Samples Potentially ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Method Operating Procedures This protocol describes the processing steps for 45 g and 9 g soil samples potentially contaminated with Bacillus anthracis spores. The protocol is designed to separate and concentrate the spores from bulk soil down to a pellet that can be used for further analysis. Soil extraction solution and mechanical shaking are used to disrupt soil particle aggregates and to aid in the separation of spores from soil particles. Soil samples are washed twice with soil extraction solution to maximize recovery. Differential centrifugation is used to separate spores from the majority of the soil material. The 45 g protocol has been demonstrated by two laboratories using both loamy and sandy soil types. There were no significant differences overall between the two laboratories for either soil type, suggesting that the processing protocol would be robust enough to use at multiple laboratories while achieving comparable recoveries. The 45 g protocol has demonstrated a matrix limit of detection at 14 spores/gram of soil for loamy and sandy soils.

Processing protocol for soil samples potentially contaminated with Bacillus anthracis spores [HS7.52.02 - 514

USGS Publications Warehouse

Silvestri, Erin E.; Griffin, Dale W.

2017-01-01

This protocol describes the processing steps for 45 g and 9 g soil samples potentially contaminated with Bacillus anthracis spores. The protocol is designed to separate and concentrate the spores from bulk soil down to a pellet that can be used for further analysis. Soil extraction solution and mechanical shaking are used to disrupt soil particle aggregates and to aid in the separation of spores from soil particles. Soil samples are washed twice with soil extraction solution to maximize recovery. Differential centrifugation is used to separate spores from the majority of the soil material. The 45 g protocol has been demonstrated by two laboratories using both loamy and sandy soil types. There were no significant differences overall between the two laboratories for either soil type, suggesting that the processing protocol would be robust enough to use at multiple laboratories while achieving comparable recoveries. The 45 g protocol has demonstrated a matrix limit of detection at 14 spores/gram of soil for loamy and sandy soils.

Development of an extraction method for perchlorate in soils.

PubMed

Cañas, Jaclyn E; Patel, Rashila; Tian, Kang; Anderson, Todd A

2006-03-01

Perchlorate originates as a contaminant in the environment from its use in solid rocket fuels and munitions. The current US EPA methods for perchlorate determination via ion chromatography using conductivity detection do not include recommendations for the extraction of perchlorate from soil. This study evaluated and identified appropriate conditions for the extraction of perchlorate from clay loam, loamy sand, and sandy soils. Based on the results of this evaluation, soils should be extracted in a dry, ground (mortar and pestle) state with Milli-Q water in a 1 ratio 1 soil ratio water ratio and diluted no more than 5-fold before analysis. When sandy soils were extracted in this manner, the calculated method detection limit was 3.5 microg kg(-1). The findings of this study have aided in the establishment of a standardized extraction method for perchlorate in soil.

Fungal Community Responses to Past and Future Atmospheric CO2 Differ by Soil Type

PubMed Central

Ellis, J. Christopher; Fay, Philip A.; Polley, H. Wayne; Jackson, Robert B.

2014-01-01

Soils sequester and release substantial atmospheric carbon, but the contribution of fungal communities to soil carbon balance under rising CO2 is not well understood. Soil properties likely mediate these fungal responses but are rarely explored in CO2 experiments. We studied soil fungal communities in a grassland ecosystem exposed to a preindustrial-to-future CO2 gradient (250 to 500 ppm) in a black clay soil and a sandy loam soil. Sanger sequencing and pyrosequencing of the rRNA gene cluster revealed that fungal community composition and its response to CO2 differed significantly between soils. Fungal species richness and relative abundance of Chytridiomycota (chytrids) increased linearly with CO2 in the black clay (P < 0.04, R2 > 0.7), whereas the relative abundance of Glomeromycota (arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi) increased linearly with elevated CO2 in the sandy loam (P = 0.02, R2 = 0.63). Across both soils, decomposition rate was positively correlated with chytrid relative abundance (r = 0.57) and, in the black clay soil, fungal species richness. Decomposition rate was more strongly correlated with microbial biomass (r = 0.88) than with fungal variables. Increased labile carbon availability with elevated CO2 may explain the greater fungal species richness and Chytridiomycota abundance in the black clay soil, whereas increased phosphorus limitation may explain the increase in Glomeromycota at elevated CO2 in the sandy loam. Our results demonstrate that soil type plays a key role in soil fungal responses to rising atmospheric CO2. PMID:25239904

Impact of land-use on carbon storage as dependent on soil texture: evidence from a desertified dryland using repeated paired sampling design.

PubMed

Ye, Xuehua; Tang, Shuangli; Cornwell, William K; Gao, Shuqin; Huang, Zhenying; Dong, Ming; Cornelissen, Johannes H C

2015-03-01

Desertification resulting from land-use affects large dryland areas around the world, accompanied by carbon loss. However it has been difficult to interpret different land-use contributions to carbon pools owing to confounding factors related to climate, topography, soil texture and other original soil properties. To avoid such confounding effects, a unique systematic and extensive repeated design of paired sampling plots of different land-use types was adopted on Ordos Plateau, N China. The sampling enabled to quantify the effects of the predominant land-use types on carbon storage as dependent on soil texture, and to define the most promising land-use choices for carbon storage, both in grassland on sandy soil and in desert grassland on brown calcareous soil. The results showed that (1) desertification control should be an effective measure to improve the carbon sequestration in sandy grassland, and shrub planting should be better than grass planting; (2) development of man-made grassland should be a good choice to solve the contradictions of ecology and economy in desert grassland; (3) grassland on sandy soil is more vulnerable to soil degradation than desert grassland on brown calcareous soil. The results may be useful for the selection of land-use types, aiming at desertification prevention in drylands. Follow-up studies should directly investigate the role of soil texture on the carbon storage dynamic caused by land-use change. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Influence of Lumbricus terrestris and Folsomia candida on N2 O formation pathways in two different soils - with particular focus on N2 emissions.

PubMed

Schorpp, Quentin; Riggers, Catharina; Lewicka-Szczebak, Dominika; Giesemann, Anette; Well, Reinhard; Schrader, Stefan

2016-11-15

The gaseous N losses mediated by soil denitrifiers are generally inferred by measuring N 2 O fluxes, but should include associated N 2 emissions, which may be affected by abiotic soil characteristics and biotic interactions. Soil fauna, particularly anecic earthworms and euedaphic collembola, alter the activity of denitrifiers, creating hotspots for denitrification. These soil fauna are abundant in perennial agroecosystems intended to contribute to more sustainable production of bioenergy. Two microcosm experiments were designed to evaluate gaseous N emissions from a silty loam and a sandy soil, both provided with litter from the bioenergy crop Silphium perfoliatum (cup-plant) and inoculated with an anecic earthworm (Lumbricus terrestris), which was added alone or together with an euedaphic collembola (Folsomia candida). In experiment 1, litter-derived N flux was determined by adding 15 N-labelled litter, followed by mass spectrometric analysis of N 2 and N 2 O isotopologues. In experiment 2, the δ 18 O values and 15 N site preference of N 2 O were determined by isotope ratio mass spectrometry to reveal underlying N 2 O formation pathways. Lumbricus terrestris significantly increased litter-derived N 2 emissions in the loamy soil, from 174.5 to 1019.3 μg N 2 -N kg -1 soil, but not in the sandy soil (non-significant change from 944.7 to 1054.7 μg N 2 -N kg -1 soil). Earthworm feeding on plant litter resulted in elevated N 2 O emissions in both soils, derived mainly from turnover of the soil mineral N pool during denitrification. Folsomia candida did not affect N losses but showed a tendency to redirect N 2 O formation pathways from fungal to bacterial denitrification. The N 2 O/(N 2  + N 2 O) product ratio was predominantly affected by abiotic soil characteristics (loamy soil: 0.14, sandy soil: 0.26). When feeding on S. perfoliatum litter, the anecic L. terrestris, but not the euedaphic F. candida, has the potential to cause substantial N losses. Biotic interactions between the species are not influential, but abiotic soil characteristics have an effect. The coarse-textured sandy soil had lower gaseous N losses attributable to anecic earthworms. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Variation in microbial activity in histosols and its relationship to soil moisture.

PubMed

Tate, R L; Terry, R E

1980-08-01

Microbial biomass, dehydrogenase activity, carbon metabolism, and aerobic bacterial populations were examined in cropped and fallow Pahokee muck (a lithic medisaprist) of the Florida Everglades. Dehydrogenase activity was two- to sevenfold greater in soil cropped to St. Augustinegrass (Stenotaphrum secundatum (Walt) Kuntz) compared with uncropped soil, whereas biomass ranged from equivalence in the two soils to a threefold stimulation in the cropped soil. Biomass in soil cropped to sugarcane (Saccharum spp. L) approximated that from the grass field, whereas dehydrogenase activities of the cane soil were nearly equivalent to those of the fallow soil. Microbial biomass, dehydrogenase activity, aerobic bacterial populations, and salicylate oxidation rates all correlated with soil moisture levels. These data indicate that within the moisture ranges detected in the surface soils, increased moisture stimulated microbial activity, whereas within the soil profile where moisture ranges reached saturation, increased moisture inhibited aerobic activities and stimulated anaerobic processes.

Variation in Microbial Activity in Histosols and Its Relationship to Soil Moisture †

PubMed Central

Tate, Robert L.; Terry, Richard E.

1980-01-01

Microbial biomass, dehydrogenase activity, carbon metabolism, and aerobic bacterial populations were examined in cropped and fallow Pahokee muck (a lithic medisaprist) of the Florida Everglades. Dehydrogenase activity was two- to sevenfold greater in soil cropped to St. Augustinegrass (Stenotaphrum secundatum (Walt) Kuntz) compared with uncropped soil, whereas biomass ranged from equivalence in the two soils to a threefold stimulation in the cropped soil. Biomass in soil cropped to sugarcane (Saccharum spp. L) approximated that from the grass field, whereas dehydrogenase activities of the cane soil were nearly equivalent to those of the fallow soil. Microbial biomass, dehydrogenase activity, aerobic bacterial populations, and salicylate oxidation rates all correlated with soil moisture levels. These data indicate that within the moisture ranges detected in the surface soils, increased moisture stimulated microbial activity, whereas within the soil profile where moisture ranges reached saturation, increased moisture inhibited aerobic activities and stimulated anaerobic processes. PMID:16345610

Influence of red mud on soil microbial communities: Application and comprehensive evaluation of the Biolog EcoPlate approach as a tool in soil microbiological studies.

PubMed

Feigl, Viktória; Ujaczki, Éva; Vaszita, Emese; Molnár, Mónika

2017-10-01

Red mud can be applied as soil ameliorant to acidic, sandy and micronutrient deficient soils. There are still knowledge gaps regarding the effects of red mud on the soil microbial community. The Biolog EcoPlate technique is a promising tool for community level physiological profiling. This study presents a detailed evaluation of Biolog EcoPlate data from two case studies. In experiment "A" red mud from Ajka (Hungary) was mixed into acidic sandy soil in soil microcosms at 5-50 w/w%. In experiement "B" red mud soil mixture was mixed into low quality subsoil in a field experiment at 5-50 w/w%. According to average well color development, substrate average well color development and substrate richness 5-20% red mud increased the microbial activity of the acidic sandy soil over the short term, but the effect did not last for 10months. Shannon diversity index showed that red mud at up to 20% did not change microbial diversity over the short term, but the diversity decreased by the 10th month. 30-50% red mud had deteriorating effect on the soil microflora. 5-20% red mud soil mixture in the low quality subsoil had a long lasting enhancing effect on the microbial community based on all Biolog EcoPlate parameters. However, 50% red mud soil mixture caused a decrease in diversity and substrate richness. With the Biolog EcoPlate we were able to monitor the changes of the microbial community in red mud affected soils and to assess the amount of red mud and red mud soil mixture applicable for soil treatment in these cases. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

AEROBIC SOIL MICROCOSMS FOR LONG-TERM BIODEGRADATION OF HYDROCARBON VAPORS

EPA Science Inventory

The aims of this research project included the development of laboratory protocols for the preparation of aerobic soil microcosms using aseptic field soil samples, and for the gas chromatographic analysis of hydrocarbon vapor biodegradation based on vapor samples obtained from th...

Root morphology, hydraulic conductivity and plant water relations of high-yielding rice grown under aerobic conditions.

PubMed

Kato, Yoichiro; Okami, Midori

2011-09-01

Increasing physical water scarcity is a major constraint for irrigated rice (Oryza sativa) production. 'Aerobic rice culture' aims to maximize yield per unit water input by growing plants in aerobic soil without flooding or puddling. The objective was to determine (a) the effect of water management on root morphology and hydraulic conductance, and (b) their roles in plant-water relationships and stomatal conductance in aerobic culture. Root system development, stomatal conductance (g(s)) and leaf water potential (Ψ(leaf)) were monitored in a high-yielding rice cultivar ('Takanari') under flooded and aerobic conditions at two soil moisture levels [nearly saturated (> -10 kPa) and mildly dry (> -30 kPa)] over 2 years. In an ancillary pot experiment, whole-plant hydraulic conductivity (soil-leaf hydraulic conductance; K(pa)) was measured under flooded and aerobic conditions. Adventitious root emergence and lateral root proliferation were restricted even under nearly saturated conditions, resulting in a 72-85 % reduction in total root length under aerobic culture conditions. Because of their reduced rooting size, plants grown under aerobic conditions tended to have lower K(pa) than plants grown under flooded conditions. Ψ(leaf) was always significantly lower in aerobic culture than in flooded culture, while g(s) was unchanged when the soil moisture was at around field capacity. g(s) was inevitably reduced when the soil water potential at 20-cm depth reached -20 kPa. Unstable performance of rice in water-saving cultivations is often associated with reduction in Ψ(leaf). Ψ(leaf) may reduce even if K(pa) is not significantly changed, but the lower Ψ(leaf) would certainly occur in case K(pa) reduces as a result of lower water-uptake capacity under aerobic conditions. Rice performance in aerobic culture might be improved through genetic manipulation that promotes lateral root branching and rhizogenesis as well as deep rooting.

Research on chemical characteristics of soil salt crusts with saline groundwater drip-irrigation in the Tarim Desert Highway Shelterbelt.

PubMed

Zhang, Jianguo; Xu, Xinwen; Lei, Jiaqiang; Li, Shengyu

2013-01-01

Soil salt crusts are special layers at soil surface which are widely distributed in the Trim Desert Highway Shelterbelt under drip-irrigation with high salinity groundwater. In order to reveal annual variation of their chemical characteristics, soil salt crusts in shelterbelt of different ages in hinterland of the Taklimakan Desert were sampled. SOM, total salt, inions and pH were analyzed. Following results were obtained. SOM of salt crusts increased with the shelterbelt ages, but increasing trend became lower gradually. Total salt, ions, and pH of salt crusts reduced gradually with the shelterbelt ages. Total salt of salt crusts in shelterbelt of different ages was much higher than shifting sandy land. Ions were higher than shifting sandy land, Cl(-), Na(+), and SO4 (2-) increased more obvious, then Mg(2+), K(+), Ca(2+) and HCO3 (-), CO3 (2-) was little and nearly had no change. pH was all alkaline, pH of salt crusts in shelterbelt of 11 years was even lower than shifting sandy land. We can include that the quality of shallow soil (0~30 cm) in the Trim Desert Highway Shelterbelt becomes better gradually.

Vulnerability of tropical forest ecosystems and forest dependent communities to droughts.

PubMed

Vogt, D J; Vogt, K A; Gmur, S J; Scullion, J J; Suntana, A S; Daryanto, S; Sigurðardóttir, R

2016-01-01

Energy captured by and flowing through a forest ecosystem can be indexed by its total Net Primary Productivity (NPP). This forest NPP can also be a reflection of its sensitivity to, and its ability to adapt to, any climate change while also being harvested by humans. However detecting and identifying the vulnerability of forest and human ecosystems to climate change requires information on whether these coupled social and ecological systems are able to maintain functionality while responding to environmental variability. To better understand what parameters might be representative of environmental variability, we compiled a metadata analysis of 96 tropical forest sites. We found that three soil textural classes (i.e., sand, sandy loam and clay) had significant but different relationships between NPP and precipitation levels. Therefore, assessing the vulnerability of forests and forest dependent communities to drought was carried out using data from those sites that had one of those three soil textural classes. For example, forests growing on soil textures of sand and clay had NPP levels decreasing as precipitation levels increased, in contrast to those forest sites that had sandy loam soils where NPP levels increased. Also, forests growing on sandy loam soil textures appeared better adapted to grow at lower precipitation levels compared to the sand and clay textured soils. In fact in our tropical database the lowest precipitation level found for the sandy loam soils was 821 mm yr(-1) compared to sand at 1739 mm yr(-1) and clay at 1771 mm yr(-1). Soil texture also determined the level of NPP reached by a forest, i.e., forest growing on sandy loam and clay reached low-medium NPP levels while higher NPP levels (i.e., medium, high) were found on sand-textured soils. Intermediate precipitation levels (>1800-3000 mm yr(-1)) were needed to grow forests at the medium and high NPP levels. Low thresholds of NPP were identified at both low (∼750 mm) and high precipitation (>3500 mm) levels. By combining data on the ratios of precipitation to the amount of biomass produced in a year with how much less precipitation input occurs during a drought year, it is possible to estimate whether productivity levels are sufficient to support forest growth and forest dependent communities following a drought. In this study, the ratios of annual precipitation inputs required to produce 1 Mg ha(-1) yr(-1) biomass by soil texture class varied across the three soil textural classes. By using a conservative estimate of 20% of productivity collected or harvested by people and 30% precipitation reduction level as triggering a drought, it was possible to estimate a potential loss of annual productivity due to a drought. In this study, the total NPP unavailable due to drought and harvest by forest dependent communities per year was 10.2 Mg ha(-1) yr(-1) for the sandy textured soils (64% of NPP still available), 8.4 Mg ha(-1) yr(-1) for the sandy loam textured soils (60% available) and 12.7 Mg ha(-1) yr(-1) for the clay textured soils (29% available). Forests growing on clay textured soils would be most vulnerable to drought triggered reductions in productivity so NPP levels would be inadequate to maintain ecosystem functions and would potentially cause a forest-to-savanna shift. Further, these forests would not be able to provide sufficient NPP to satisfy the requirements of forest dependent communities. By predicting the productivity responses of different tropical forest ecosystems to changes in precipitation patterns coupled with edaphic data, it could be possible to spatially identify where tropical forests are most vulnerable to climate change impacts and where mitigation efforts should be concentrated. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Statistical process control applied to mechanized peanut sowing as a function of soil texture.

PubMed

Zerbato, Cristiano; Furlani, Carlos Eduardo Angeli; Ormond, Antonio Tassio Santana; Gírio, Lucas Augusto da Silva; Carneiro, Franciele Morlin; da Silva, Rouverson Pereira

2017-01-01

The successful establishment of agricultural crops depends on sowing quality, machinery performance, soil type and conditions, among other factors. This study evaluates the operational quality of mechanized peanut sowing in three soil types (sand, silt, and clay) with variable moisture contents. The experiment was conducted in three locations in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The track-sampling scheme was used for 80 sampling locations of each soil type. Descriptive statistics and statistical process control (SPC) were used to evaluate the quality indicators of mechanized peanut sowing. The variables had normal distributions and were stable from the viewpoint of SPC. The best performance for peanut sowing density, normal spacing, and the initial seedling growing stand was found for clayey soil followed by sandy soil and then silty soil. Sandy or clayey soils displayed similar results regarding sowing depth, which was deeper than in the silty soil. Overall, the texture and the moisture of clayey soil provided the best operational performance for mechanized peanut sowing.

Statistical process control applied to mechanized peanut sowing as a function of soil texture

PubMed Central

Furlani, Carlos Eduardo Angeli; da Silva, Rouverson Pereira

2017-01-01

The successful establishment of agricultural crops depends on sowing quality, machinery performance, soil type and conditions, among other factors. This study evaluates the operational quality of mechanized peanut sowing in three soil types (sand, silt, and clay) with variable moisture contents. The experiment was conducted in three locations in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The track-sampling scheme was used for 80 sampling locations of each soil type. Descriptive statistics and statistical process control (SPC) were used to evaluate the quality indicators of mechanized peanut sowing. The variables had normal distributions and were stable from the viewpoint of SPC. The best performance for peanut sowing density, normal spacing, and the initial seedling growing stand was found for clayey soil followed by sandy soil and then silty soil. Sandy or clayey soils displayed similar results regarding sowing depth, which was deeper than in the silty soil. Overall, the texture and the moisture of clayey soil provided the best operational performance for mechanized peanut sowing. PMID:28742095

[Dynamic changes of surface soil organic carbon and light-fraction organic carbon after mobile dune afforestation with Mongolian pine in Horqin Sandy Land].

PubMed

Shang, Wen; Li, Yu-qiang; Wang, Shao-kun; Feng, Jing; Su, Na

2011-08-01

This paper studied the dynamic changes of surface (0-15 cm) soil organic carbon (SOC) and light-fraction organic carbon (LFOC) in 25- and 35-year-old sand-fixing Mongolian pine (Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica) plantations in Horqin Sandy Land, with a mobile dune as a comparison site. After the afforestation on mobile dune, the content of coarse sand in soil decreased, while that of fine sand and clay-silt increased significantly. The SOC and LFOC contents also increased significantly, but tended to decrease with increasing soil depth. Afforestation increased the storages of SOC and LFOC in surface soil, and the increment increased with plantation age. In the two plantations, the increment of surface soil LFOC storage was much higher than that of SOC storage, suggesting that mobile dune afforestation had a larger effect on surface soil LFOC than on SOC.

Urease activity in different soils of Egypt.

PubMed

el-Shinnawi, M M

1978-01-01

Samples from two depths (0--15 and 15--30 cm) of five Egyptian soils: sandy, calcareous, fertile alluvial, saline alluvial, and alkali alluvial were tested for urease activity. Samples were treated with farmyard manure at rates of 0 and 0.5% C, and moisture at levels of 50, 65, and 80% of the water holding capacity. The studied Egyptian soils showed different activities of urease. Decreases in the values were shown by depth of sampling and varied in their intensities according to soil type, except for saline soil which revealed an opposite trend by the higher activity of its sub-surface layer. Order of activity was the following: fertile, saline, alkali, calcareous, and sandy soil. Farmyard manure slightly increased the activity of the enzyme. Incubation of moistened samples revealed that the optimum moisture content was 50% of W.H.C. for the tested soils, except for saline which showed best results at 65% of W.H.C.

Fit-for-purpose phosphorus management: do riparian buffers qualify in catchments with sandy soils?

PubMed

Weaver, David; Summers, Robert

2014-05-01

Hillslope runoff and leaching studies, catchment-scale water quality measurements and P retention and release characteristics of stream bank and catchment soils were used to better understand reasons behind the reported ineffectiveness of riparian buffers for phosphorus (P) management in catchments with sandy soils from south-west Western Australia (WA). Catchment-scale water quality measurements of 60 % particulate P (PP) suggest that riparian buffers should improve water quality; however, runoff and leaching studies show 20 times more water and 2 to 3 orders of magnitude more P are transported through leaching than runoff processes. The ratio of filterable reactive P (FRP) to total P (TP) in surface runoff from the plots was 60 %, and when combined with leachate, 96 to 99 % of P lost from hillslopes was FRP, in contrast with 40 % measured as FRP at the large catchment scale. Measurements of the P retention and release characteristics of catchment soils (<2 mm) compared with stream bank soil (<2 mm) and the <75-μm fraction of stream bank soils suggest that catchment soils contain more P, are more P saturated and are significantly more likely to deliver FRP and TP in excess of water quality targets than stream bank soils. Stream bank soils are much more likely to retain P than contribute P to streams, and the in-stream mixing of FRP from the landscape with particulates from stream banks or stream beds is a potential mechanism to explain the change in P form from hillslopes (96 to 99 % FRP) to large catchments (40 % FRP). When considered in the context of previous work reporting that riparian buffers were ineffective for P management in this environment, these studies reinforce the notion that (1) riparian buffers are unlikely to provide fit-for-purpose P management in catchments with sandy soils, (2) most P delivered to streams in sandy soil catchments is FRP and travels via subsurface and leaching pathways and (3) large catchment-scale water quality measurements are not good indicators of hillslope P mobilisation and transport processes.

Long-term grazing effects on vegetation characteristics and soil properties in a semiarid grassland, northern China.

PubMed

Zhang, Jing; Zuo, Xiaoan; Zhou, Xin; Lv, Peng; Lian, Jie; Yue, Xiyuan

2017-05-01

Understanding the responses of vegetation characteristics and soil properties to grazing disturbance is useful for grassland ecosystem restoration and management in semiarid areas. Here, we examined the effects of long-term grazing on vegetation characteristics, soil properties, and their relationships across four grassland types (meadow, Stipa steppe, scattered tree grassland, and sandy grassland) in the Horqin grassland, northern China. Our results showed that grazing greatly decreased vegetation cover, aboveground plant biomass, and root biomass in all four grassland types. Plant cover and aboveground biomass of perennials were decreased by grazing in all four grasslands, whereas grazing increased the cover and biomass of shrubs in Stipa steppe and of annuals in scattered tree grassland. Grazing decreased soil carbon and nitrogen content in Stipa steppe and scattered tree grassland, whereas soil bulk density showed the opposite trend. Long-term grazing significantly decreased soil pH and electrical conductivity (EC) in annual-dominated sandy grassland. Soil moisture in fenced and grazed grasslands decreased in the following order of meadow, Stipa steppe, scattered tree grassland, and sandy grassland. Correlation analyses showed that aboveground plant biomass was significantly positively associated with the soil carbon and nitrogen content in grazed and fenced grasslands. Species richness was significantly positively correlated with soil bulk density, moisture, EC, and pH in fenced grasslands, but no relationship was detected in grazed grasslands. These results suggest that the soil carbon and nitrogen content significantly maintains ecosystem function in both fenced and grazed grasslands. However, grazing may eliminate the association of species richness with soil properties in semiarid grasslands.

Stratigraphic and microfossil evidence for a 4500-year history of Cascadia subduction zone earthquakes and tsunamis at Yaquina River estuary, Oregon, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Graehl, Nicholas A; Kelsey, Harvey M.; Witter, Robert C.; Hemphill-Haley, Eileen; Engelhart, Simon E.

2015-01-01

The Sallys Bend swamp and marsh area on the central Oregon coast onshore of the Cascadia subduction zone contains a sequence of buried coastal wetland soils that extends back ∼4500 yr B.P. The upper 10 of the 12 soils are represented in multiple cores. Each soil is abruptly overlain by a sandy deposit and then, in most cases, by greater than 10 cm of mud. For eight of the 10 buried soils, times of soil burial are constrained through radiocarbon ages on fine, delicate detritus from the top of the buried soil; for two of the buried soils, diatom and foraminifera data constrain paleoenvironment at the time of soil burial.We infer that each buried soil represents a Cascadia subduction zone earthquake because the soils are laterally extensive and abruptly overlain by sandy deposits and mud. Preservation of coseismically buried soils occurred from 4500 yr ago until ∼500–600 yr ago, after which preservation was compromised by cessation of gradual relative sea-level rise, which in turn precluded drowning of marsh soils during instances of coseismic subsidence. Based on grain-size and microfossil data, sandy deposits overlying buried soils accumulated immediately after a subduction zone earthquake, during tsunami incursion into Sallys Bend. The possibility that the sandy deposits were sourced directly from landslides triggered upstream in the Yaquina River basin by seismic shaking was discounted based on sedimentologic, microfossil, and depositional site characteristics of the sandy deposits, which were inconsistent with a fluvial origin. Biostratigraphic analyses of sediment above two buried soils—in the case of two earthquakes, one occurring shortly after 1541–1708 cal. yr B.P. and the other occurring shortly after 3227–3444 cal. yr B.P.—provide estimates that coseismic subsidence was a minimum of 0.4 m. The average recurrence interval of subduction zone earthquakes is 420–580 yr, based on an ∼3750–4050-yr-long record and seven to nine interearthquake intervals.The comparison of the Yaquina Bay earthquake record to similar records at other Cascadia coastal sites helps to define potential patterns of rupture for different earthquakes, although inherent uncertainty in dating precludes definitive statements about rupture length during earthquakes. We infer that in the first half of the last millennia, the northern Oregon part of the subduction zone had a different rupture history than the southern Oregon part of the subduction zone, and we also infer that at ca. 1.6 ka, two earthquakes closely spaced in time together ruptured a length of the megathrust that extends at least from southwestern Washington to southern Oregon.

Spatial pattern of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen, and analysis of related factors in an agro-pastoral zone in Northern China

PubMed Central

Wang, Xuyang; Chen, Yinping; Lian, Jie; Luo, Yongqing; Niu, Yayi; Gong, Xiangwen

2018-01-01

The spatial pattern of soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) densities plays a profound important role in estimating carbon and nitrogen budgets. Naiman Banner located in northern China was chosen as research site, a total of 332 soil samples were taken in a depth of 100 cm from the low hilly land in the southern part, sandy land in the middle part and an alluvial plain in the northern part of the county. The results showed that SOC and TN density initially decreased and then increased from the north to the south, The highest densities, were generally in the south, with the lowest generally in the middle part. The SOC and TN densities in cropland were significantly greater than those in woodland and grassland in the alluvial plains and for Naiman as a whole. The woodland SOC and TN density were higher than those of grassland in the low hilly land, and higher densities of SOC and TN in grassland than woodland in the sandy land and low hilly land. There were significant differences in SOC and TN densities among the five soil types of Cambisols, Arenosols, Gleysols, Argosols, and Kastanozems. In addition, SOC and TN contents generally decreased with increasing soil depth, but increased below a depth of 40 cm in the Cambisols and became roughly constant at this depth in the Kastanozems. There is considerable potential to sequester carbon and nitrogen in the soil via the conversion of degraded sandy land into woodland and grassland in alluvial plain, and more grassland should be established in sandy land and low hilly land. PMID:29771979

Sensitivity and uncertainty analysis for Abreu & Johnson numerical vapor intrusion model.

PubMed

Ma, Jie; Yan, Guangxu; Li, Haiyan; Guo, Shaohui

2016-03-05

This study conducted one-at-a-time (OAT) sensitivity and uncertainty analysis for a numerical vapor intrusion model for nine input parameters, including soil porosity, soil moisture, soil air permeability, aerobic biodegradation rate, building depressurization, crack width, floor thickness, building volume, and indoor air exchange rate. Simulations were performed for three soil types (clay, silt, and sand), two source depths (3 and 8m), and two source concentrations (1 and 400 g/m(3)). Model sensitivity and uncertainty for shallow and high-concentration vapor sources (3m and 400 g/m(3)) are much smaller than for deep and low-concentration sources (8m and 1g/m(3)). For high-concentration sources, soil air permeability, indoor air exchange rate, and building depressurization (for high permeable soil like sand) are key contributors to model output uncertainty. For low-concentration sources, soil porosity, soil moisture, aerobic biodegradation rate and soil gas permeability are key contributors to model output uncertainty. Another important finding is that impacts of aerobic biodegradation on vapor intrusion potential of petroleum hydrocarbons are negligible when vapor source concentration is high, because of insufficient oxygen supply that limits aerobic biodegradation activities. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Consumption of methane by soils.

PubMed

Dueñas, C; Fernández, M C; Carretero, J; Pérez, M; Liger, E

1994-05-01

Measurements of the methane flux and methane concentration profiles in soil air are presented. The flux of methane from the soil is calculated by two methods: a) Direct by placing a static open chamber at the soil surface. b) Indirect, using the (222)Rn concentrations profile and the (222)Rn flux in the soil surface in parallel with the methane concentration ((222)Rn calibrated fluxes). The methane flux has been determined in two kinds of soils (sandy and loamy) in the surroundings of Málaga (SPAIN). The directly measured methane fluxes at all investigated sites is higher than methane fluxes derived from "Rn calibrated fluxes". Atmospheric methane is consumed by soils, mean direct flux to the atmosphere were - 0.33 g m(-2)yr-1. The direct methane flux is the same within the measuring error in sandy and loamy soils. The influence of the soil parameters on the methane flux indicates that microbial decomposition of methane is primarily controlled by the transport of methane.

Ecological risk assessment: influence of texture on background concentration of microelements in soils of Russia.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beketskaya, Olga

2010-05-01

In Russia quality standards of contaminated substances values in environment consist of ecological and sanitary rate-setting. The sanitary risk assessment base on potential risk that contaminants pose to protect human beings. The main purpose of the ecological risk assessment is to protect ecosystem. To determine negative influence on living organisms in the sanitary risk assessment in Russia we use MPC. This value of contaminants show how substances affected on different part of environment, biological activity and soil processes. The ecological risk assessment based on comparison compounds concentration with background concentration for definite territories. Taking into account high interval of microelements value in soils, we suggest using statistic method for determination of concentration levels of chemical elements concentration in soils of Russia. This method is based on determination middle levels of elements content in natural condition. The top limit of middle chemical elements concentration in soils is value, which exceed middle regional background level in three times standard deviation. The top limit of natural concentration excess we can explain as anthropogenic impact. At first we study changing in the middle content value of microelements in soils of geographic regions in European part of Russia on the basis of cartographical analysis. Cartographical analysis showed that the soil of mountainous and mountain surrounding regions is enriched with microelements. On the plain territory of European part of Russia for most of microelements was noticed general direction of increasing their concentration in soils from north to south, also in the same direction soil clay content rise for majority of soils. For all other territories a clear connection has been noticed between the distribution of sand sediment. By our own investigation and data from scientific literature data base was created. This data base consist of following soil properties: texture, organic matter content, concentration of microelements and pH value. On the basis of this data base massive of data for Forest-steppe and Steppe regions was create, which was divided by texture. For all data statistics method was done and was calculated maximum level natural microelements content for soils with different texture (?+3*δ). As a result of our statistic calculation we got middle and the top limit of background concentration of microelements in sandy and clay soils (conditional border - sandy loam) of two regions. We showed, that for all territory of European part of Russia and for Forest-steppe and Steppe regions separately middle content and maximum level natural microelements concentrations (?+3*σ) are higher in clay soils, rather then in sandy soils. Data characterizing soils, in different regions, of similar texture differs less than the data collected for sandy and clay soils of the same region. After all this calculation we can notice, that data of middle and top limit of background microelements concentration in soils, based on statistic method, can be used in the aim of ecological risk assessment. Using offered method allow to calculate top limit of background concentration for sandy and clay soils for large-scale geographic regions, exceeding which will be evidence of anthropogenic contamination of soil.

Interactions between soil texture and placement of dairy slurry application: II. Leaching of phosphorus forms.

PubMed

Glaesner, Nadia; Kjaergaard, Charlotte; Rubaek, Gitte H; Magid, Jakob

2011-01-01

Managing phosphorus (P) losses in soil leachate folllowing land application of manure is key to curbing eutrophication in many regions. We compared P leaching from columns of variably textured, intact soils (20 cm diam., 20 cm high) subjected to surface application or injection of dairy cattle (Bos taurus L.) manure slurry. Surface application of slurry increased P leaching losses relative to baseline losses, but losses declined with increasing active flow volume. After elution of one pore volume, leaching averaged 0.54 kg P ha(-1) from the loam, 0.38 kg P ha(-1) from the sandy loam, and 0.22 kg P ha(-1) from the loamy sand following surface application. Injection decreased leaching of all P forms compared with surface application by an average of 0.26 kg P ha(-1) in loam and 0.23 kg P ha(-1) in sandy loam, but only by 0.03 kg P ha(-1) in loamy sand. Lower leaching losses were attributed to physical retention of particulate P and dissolved organic P, caused by placing slurry away from active flow paths in the fine-textured soil columns, as well as to chemical retention of dissolved inorganic P, caused by better contact between slurry P and soil adsorption sites. Dissolved organic P was less retained in soil after slurry application than other P forms. On these soils with low to intermediate P status, slurry injection lowered P leaching losses from clay-rich soil, but not from the sandy soils, highlighting the importance of soil texture in manageing P losses following slurry application.

MEASUREMENTS OF INFILTRATION RATES IN COMPACTED URBAN SOILS

EPA Science Inventory

Previous research hs identified significant reductions in infiltration rates in disturbed urban soils, More than 150 prior tests were conducted in predominately sandy and clayey urban soils in the Birmingham and Mobile, AL areas. Infiltration in Clayey soils ws found to be affect...

Mitigation of Liquefaction in Sandy Soils Using Stone Columns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Selcuk, Levent; Kayabalı, Kamil

2010-05-01

Soil liquefaction is one of the leading causes of earthquake-induced damage to structures. Soil improvement methods provide effective solutions to reduce the risk of soil liquefaction. Thus, soil ground treatments are applied using various techniques. However, except for a few ground treatment methods, they generally require a high cost and a lot of time. Especially in order to prevent the risk of soil liquefaction, stone columns conctructed by vibro-systems (vibro-compaction, vibro-replacement) are one of the traditional geotechnical methods. The construction of stone columns not only enhances the ability of clean sand to drain excess pore water during an earthquake, but also increases the relative density of the soil. Thus, this application prevents the development of the excess pore water pressure in sand during earthquakes and keeps the pore pressure ratio below a certain value. This paper presents the stone column methods used against soil liquefaction in detail. At this stage, (a) the performances of the stone columns were investigated in different spacing and diameters of columns during past earthquakes, (b) recent studies about design and field applications of stone columns were presented, and (c) a new design method considering the relative density of soil and the capacity of drenage of columns were explained in sandy soil. Furthermore, with this new method, earthquake performances of the stone columns constructed at different areas were investigated before the 1989 Loma Prieta and the 1994 Northbridge earthquakes, as case histories of field applications, and design charts were compiled for suitable spacing and diameters of stone columns with consideration to the different sandy soil parameters and earhquake conditions. Key Words: Soil improvement, stone column, excess pore water pressure

Effects of slaking and mechanical breakdown on disaggregation and splash erosion

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The contributions of different aggregate breakdown mechanisms to splash erosion are still obscure. This study was designed to investigate the effects of different soil disaggregation mechanisms on splash erosion. Loam clay soil, clay loam soil, and sandy loam soil were used in this study. Soil aggre...

Effects of biosolid amendment on populations of Meloidogyne hapla and soils with different textures and pHs.

PubMed

Mennan, Sevilhan; Melakeberhan, Haddish

2010-09-01

Temperate vegetable and nursery industries face significant challenges in managing Meloidogyne hapla, a plant-parasite for which few resistant cultivars and/or viable alternatives to methyl bromide exist. N-Viro Soil(R) (NVS), an alkaline-stabilized biosolid product, has soil nutrition enrichment capacity and potential for plant-parasitic nematode suppression. In three sets of experiments, we investigated the effects of NVS on M. hapla populations from Rhode Island (RI), Connecticut (CT), New York, Geneva (NYG) and Lyndonville (NYL), and Michigan (MI), and growth of tomato cv 'Rutgers' in five soils commonly used for vegetable and nursery crop production in the Great Lakes Region of the USA. Either 0 (control) or 600 eggs/100 cm(3) of soil per M. hapla population were added in all experiments. In the first set, NVS was applied at rates of 0, 1, 2 and 4 g/100 cm(3) of sandy loam soil (pH 7) and resulted in variable responses on the numbers of nematodes recovered and plant growth at 30 and 90 days (25+/-2 degrees C); however, the 2g NVS treatment consistently increased plant growth. Either 0 or 2 NVS/100 cm(3) were applied to a coarse loamy (pH 4.5) and sandy loam (pH 8, second set of experiments), and muck (pH 5.5), loamy sand (pH 7.1) and sandy loam (pH 7.5, third set of experiments) soils and experiments terminated four weeks after nematode inoculation. Across experiments, the effect of NVS on the M. hapla populations varied. Generally nematode infection decreased plant growth. NVS increased soil pH the most in muck and the least in sandy loam soil. The most consistent interaction effects of NVS*soil, NVS*M. hapla, soil*M. hapla and/or NVS*soil*M. hapla across the experiments indicate that NVS affects M. hapla populations in different ways in different soil types, suggesting that NVS application is likely to be site-specific. These findings further provide basis that may potentially explain reports of variable effects of NVS on nematodes and how future studies may account in furthering our understanding of NVS activities for M. hapla management. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Interactive effects of vegetation and sediment properties on erosion of salt marshes in the Northern Adriatic Sea.

PubMed

Lo, V B; Bouma, T J; van Belzen, J; Van Colen, C; Airoldi, L

2017-10-01

We investigated how lateral erosion control, measured by novel photogrammetry techniques, is modified by the presence of Spartina spp. vegetation, sediment grain size, and the nutrient status of salt marshes across 230 km of the Italian Northern Adriatic coastline. Spartina spp. vegetation reduced erosion across our study sites. The effect was more pronounced in sandy soils, where erosion was reduced by 80% compared to 17% in silty soils. Erosion resistance was also enhanced by Spartina spp. root biomass. In the absence of vegetation, erosion resistance was enhanced by silt content, with mean erosion 72% lower in silty vs. sandy soils. We found no relevant relationships with nutrient status, likely due to overall high nutrient concentrations and low C:N ratios across all sites. Our results contribute to quantifying coastal protection ecosystem services provided by salt marshes in both sandy and silty sediments. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of differently pelletized digestate on the plant growth of spring wheat

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dietrich, Nils; Knoop, Christine; Raab, Thomas

2017-04-01

In Germany, biowaste is used in more than 100 biogas plants and has increasing potential as a fermentation substrate. To optimise waste cycle management organic digestates should be redistributed and innovative products for soil amendment of agricultural areas could be developed. The BMBF-funded VeNGA project seeks to find answers on how to improve the properties of soil amendments produced from fermentation residues. Here, we report findings from our study that focuses on plant growth and soil development. Within a three-month rhizotron experiment, the influence of differently prepared fermentation residues on the root development of summer wheat was investigated. The four variants of the prepared digestate (rolled pellet, pressed pellet, shredded, loose) were tested under constant conditions in the greenhouse on two soils with different textures (sandy and loamy-sand). All fermentation residues originated from the same batch and were composted before the preparation to ensure adequate hygienisation. Depending on preparation type and soil substrate significant differences in root growth and root development have been observed. Plant growth was most intense in the rhizotron experiment with the loose digestate, indicating high nutrient availability due to the large surface area of the organic matter. Plant growth in the substrate with the rolled and pressed pellets was less pronounced, indicating a more persistent stability of the pellets. In rhizotrons applied with rolled and pressed pellets root growth into the mineral fabric was significantly lower in sandy substrate than in the loamy-sand. However, in the sandy substrate root growth within the rolled pellets was more intense than in the substrate with the pressed pellets. Obviously, the different production techniques of the pellets seem to have an influence on the rooting of the pellets and facilitate the long term stability of soil organic carbon. Furthermore, the comparison of the two different textures indicate, that sandy substrates benefit more from the positive effects of soil amendments on increased water retention than loamy substrates.

Sorption of thiabendazole in sub-tropical Brazilian soils.

PubMed

de Oliveira Neto, Odilon França; Arenas, Alejandro Yopasa; Fostier, Anne Hélène

2017-07-01

Thiabendazole (TBZ) is an ionizable anthelmintic agent that belongs to the class of benzimidazoles. It is widely used in veterinary medicine and as a fungicide in agriculture. Sorption and desorption are important processes influencing transport, transformation, and bioavailability of xenobiotic compounds in soils; data related to sorption capacity are therefore needed for environmental risk assessments. The aim of this work was to assess the sorption potential of TBZ in four Brazilians soils (sandy, sandy-clay, and clay soils), using batch equilibrium experiments at three pH ranges (2.3-3.0, 3.8-4.2, and 5.5-5.7). The Freundlich sorption coefficient (K F ) ranged from 9.0 to 58 μg 1-1/n  (mL) 1/n  g -1 , with higher values generally observed at the lower pH ranges (2.3-3.0 and 3.8-4.2) and for clay soils. The highest organic carbon-normalized sorption coefficients (K OC ) obtained at pH 3.8-5.7 (around the natural pH range of 4.1-5.0) for both clay soils and sandy-clay soil were 3255 and 2015 mL g -1 , respectively. The highest correlations K F vs SOM (r = 0.70) and K F vs clay content (r = 0.91) were observed at pH 3.8-4.2. Our results suggest that TBZ sorption/desorption is strongly pH dependent and that its mobility could be higher in the studied soils than previously reported in soils from temperate regions.

Detection of Viable Cryptosporidium parvum in Soil by Reverse Transcription–Real-Time PCR Targeting hsp70 mRNA ▿

PubMed Central

Liang, Zhanbei; Keeley, Ann

2011-01-01

Extraction of high-quality mRNA from Cryptosporidium parvum is a key step in PCR detection of viable oocysts in environmental samples. Current methods for monitoring oocysts are limited to water samples; therefore, the goal of this study was to develop a rapid and sensitive procedure for Cryptosporidium detection in soil samples. The efficiencies of five RNA extraction methods were compared (mRNA extraction with the Dynabeads mRNA Direct kit after chemical and physical sample treatments, and total RNA extraction methods using the FastRNA Pro Soil-Direct, PowerSoil Total RNA, E.Z.N.A. soil RNA, and Norgen soil RNA purification kits) for the direct detection of Cryptosporidium with oocyst-spiked sandy, loamy, and clay soils by using TaqMan reverse transcription-PCR. The study also evaluated the presence of inhibitors by synthesis and incorporation of an internal positive control (IPC) RNA into reverse transcription amplifications, used different facilitators (bovine serum albumin, yeast RNA, salmon DNA, skim milk powder, casein, polyvinylpyrrolidone, sodium hexametaphosphate, and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi) to mitigate RNA binding on soil components, and applied various treatments (β-mercaptoethanol and bead beating) to inactivate RNase and ensure the complete lysis of oocysts. The results of spiking studies showed that Salmonella cells most efficiently relieved binding of RNA. With the inclusion of Salmonella during extraction, the most efficient mRNA method was Dynabeads, with a detection limit of 6 × 102 oocysts g−1 of sandy soil. The most efficient total RNA method was PowerSoil, with detection limits of 1.5 × 102, 1.5 × 103, and 1.5 × 104 C. parvum oocysts g−1 soil for sandy, loamy, and clay samples, respectively. PMID:21803904

Vertical movement of iron-cyanide complexes in soils of a former Manufactured Gas Plant site

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sut, Magdalena; Repmann, Frank; Raab, Thomas

2015-04-01

In Germany, soil and groundwater at more than a thousand sites are contaminated with iron-cyanide complexes. These contaminations originate from the gas purification process that was conducted in Manufactured Gas Plants (MGP). The phenomenon of iron-cyanide complexes mobility in soil, according to the literature, is mainly governed by the dissolution and precipitation of ferric ferrocyanide, which is only slightly soluble (< 1 mg L-1) under acidic conditions. This study suggests vertical transport of a colloidal ferric ferrocyanide, in the excess of iron and circum-neutral pH conditions, as an alternative process that influences the retardation of the pollutant movement through the soil profile. Preliminary in situ investigations of the two boreholes implied transport of ferric ferricyanide from the initial deposition in the wastes layer towards the sandy loam material (secondary accumulation), which possibly retarded the mobility of cyanide (CN). The acidic character of the wastes and the accumulation of the blue patches suggested the potential filter function of a sandy loam material due to colloidal transport of the ferric ferricyanide. Series of batch and column experiments, using sandy loam soil, revealed reduction of CN concentration due to mechanical filtration of precipitated solid iron-cyanide complexes and due to the formation of potassium manganese iron-cyanide (K2Mn[Fe(CN)6]).

Analysis of MASTER Thermal Data in the Greeley Area of the Front Range Urban Corridor, Colorado--Delineation of Sites for Infrastructure Resource Characterization

USGS Publications Warehouse

Livo, K. Eric; Watson, Ken

2002-01-01

Sand and soils southwest of Greeley, Colorado, were characterized for mineral composition and industrial quality. Radi-ance data from the thermal channels of the MASTER simulator were calibrated using estimated atmospheric parameters. Chan-nel emissivities were approximated using an estimated ground temperature. Subsequently, a decorrelation algorithm was used to calculate inverse wave emissivity images. Six soil classes, one vegetation class, water, and several small classes were defined using an unsupervised classification algorithm. Ground covered by each of the derived emissivity spectral classes was studied using color-infrared air photos, color-infrared composite MAS-TER data, geologic maps, NASA/JPL Airborne Visible and Infra-red Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) data, and field examination. Spectral classes were characterized by their responses and related to their mineral content through field examination. Classes with a minimum at channel 44, and having a similar spectral shape to quartz, field checked as containing abundant quartz. Classes with a minimum at channel 45, and having a spectral shape similar to the sheet minerals, were found in the field to contain abundant mica and clay. Sandy soil was found to have a positive slope at the longer wavelengths; the more clay rich soils had a negative slope. Spectra with a strong downturn at channel 50 generally indicated low vegetation cover, whereas an upturn indicated more vegetation cover. Mapping revealed a range of classified soils with varying amounts of quartz, silt, clay, and plant humus. Sand and gravel operations along the St. Vrain River, gravel lots, and some fields spectrally classified as quartz-rich sands were confirmed through field examination. Other fields mapped as sandy soils, ranging from quartz-rich sandy soil to quartz-rich silt-sand soil with clay. Flood plains mapped as sandy-silty-organic-rich clay. The city of Greeley contained all classes of materials, with the sand classes mapping as various types of asphalt. Abundant quartz gravel was apparent within the asphalt during field check-ing. The clay classes mapped silt-clay soils in areas of irrigated grass landscaping, some fields, and roofing materials.

Termite infestation associated with type of soil in pulau pinang, malaysia (isoptera: rhinotermitidae).

PubMed

Majid, Abdul Hafiz Ab; Ahmad, Abu Hassan

2013-12-01

Nine soil samples from nine buildings infested with Coptotermes gestroi in Pulau Pinang, Malaysia, were tested for the type of soil texture. The soil texture analysis procedures used the hydrometer method. Four of nine buildings (44%) yielded loamy sand-type soil, whereas five of nine buildings (56%) contained sandy loam-type soil.

Termite Infestation Associated with Type of Soil in Pulau Pinang, Malaysia (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae)

PubMed Central

Majid, Abdul Hafiz Ab; Ahmad, Abu Hassan

2013-01-01

Nine soil samples from nine buildings infested with Coptotermes gestroi in Pulau Pinang, Malaysia, were tested for the type of soil texture. The soil texture analysis procedures used the hydrometer method. Four of nine buildings (44%) yielded loamy sand-type soil, whereas five of nine buildings (56%) contained sandy loam-type soil. PMID:24575252

ON-SITE ENGINEERING REPORT OF THE SLURRY-PHASE BIOLOGICAL REACTOR FOR PILOT-SCALE TESTING ON CONTAMINATED SOIL

EPA Science Inventory

The performance of pilot-scale bioslurry treatment on creosote-contaminated soil was evaluated. Five reactors containing 66 L of slurry (30% soil by weight), were operated in parallel. The soil was a sandy soil with minor gravel content. The pilot-scale phase utilized an inoculum...

Duripan effect on soil water availability: study case in North-Central Namibia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prudat, Brice; Bloemertz, Lena; Kuhn, Nikolaus J.

2016-04-01

Soils with duripan and other hardpans are frequently disregarded for agriculture. However, in North-Central Namibia, farmers cultivate a type of sandy soil with a developing duripan at few decimetres of depth. This soil is particularly valuable for Pearl Millet cultivation during years with limited rainfall. Understanding the water dynamic and the role of the duripan in the soil moisture dynamic will improve livelihood and secure food production in North-Central Namibia, in Southern Angola and other areas in the world where similar soils appear. We recorded soil water content during five months at different depth in one of these sandy soil. The comparison of the recorded data with values calculated with models based on e.g. texture indicate that the duripan plays a very important role as water reservoir. Our results demonstrate that soils with duripans should not be disregarded for agricultural development, especially in context with irregular rainfall patterns. Understanding the role of duripans based on this study will thus help to anticipate and alleviate the effect of climate change in northern Namibia and other semi-arid regions, where similar soils occur.

Regional prediction of carbon isotopes in soil carbonates for Asian dust source tracer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Bing; Cui, Xinjuan; Wang, Yaqiang

2016-10-01

Dust particles emitted from deserts and semi-arid lands in northern China cause particulate pollution that increases the burden of disease particularly for urban population in East Asia. The stable carbon isotopes (δ13C) of carbonates in soils and dust aerosols in northern China were investigated. We found that the δ13C of carbonates in surface soils in northern China showed clearly the negative correlation (R2 = 0.73) with Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). Using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite-derived NDVI, we predicted the regional distribution of δ13C of soil carbonates in deserts, sandy lands, and steppe areas. The predictions show the mean δ13C of -0.4 ± 0.7‰ in soil carbonates in Taklimakan Desert and Gobi Deserts, and the isotope values decrease to -3.3 ± 1.1‰ in sandy lands. The increase in vegetation coverage depletes 13C in soil carbonates, thus the steppe areas are predicted by the lowest δ13C levels (-8.1 ± 1.7‰). The measurements of atmospheric dust samples at eight sites showed that the Asian dust sources were well assigned by the 13C mapping in surface soils. Predicting 13C in large geographical areas with fine resolution offers a cost-effective tracer to monitor dust emissions from sandy lands and steppe areas which show an increasing role in Asian dust loading driven by climate change and human activities.

Influence of 20–Year Organic and Inorganic Fertilization on Organic Carbon Accumulation and Microbial Community Structure of Aggregates in an Intensively Cultivated Sandy Loam Soil

PubMed Central

Zhang, Huanjun; Ding, Weixin; He, Xinhua; Yu, Hongyan; Fan, Jianling; Liu, Deyan

2014-01-01

To evaluate the long–term effect of compost (CM) and inorganic fertilizer (NPK) application on microbial community structure and organic carbon (OC) accumulation at aggregate scale, soils from plots amended with CM, NPK and no fertilizer (control) for 20 years (1989–2009) were collected. Soil was separated into large macroaggregate (>2,000 μm), small macroaggregate (250–2,000 μm), microaggregate (53–250 μm), silt (2–53 μm) and clay fraction (<2 μm) by wet-sieving, and their OC concentration and phospholipid fatty acids (PLFA) were measured. The 20-year application of compost significantly (P<0.05) increased OC by 123–134% and accelerated the formation of macroaggregates, but decreased soil oxygen diffusion coefficient. NPK mainly increased OC in macroaggregates and displayed weaker influence on aggregation. Bacteria distributed in all aggregates, while fungi and actinobacteria were mainly in macroaggregates and microaggregates. The ratio of monounsaturated to branched (M/B) PLFAs, as an indicator for the ratio of aerobic to anaerobic microorganisms, increased inversely with aggregate size. Both NPK and especially CM significantly (P<0.05) decreased M/B ratios in all aggregates except the silt fraction compared with the control. The increased organic C in aggregates significantly (P<0.05) negatively correlated with M/B ratios under CM and NPK. Our study suggested that more efficient OC accumulations in aggregates under CM–treated than under NPK–treated soil was not only due to a more effective decrease of actinobacteria, but also a decrease of monounsaturated PLFAs and an increase of branched PLFAs. Aggregations under CM appear to alter micro-habitats to those more suitable for anaerobes, which in turn boosts OC accumulation. PMID:24667543

Spatial Dependence of Physical Attributes and Mechanical Properties of Ultisol in a Sugarcane Field.

PubMed

Tavares, Uilka Elisa; Rolim, Mário Monteiro; de Oliveira, Veronildo Souza; Pedrosa, Elvira Maria Regis; Siqueira, Glécio Machado; Magalhães, Adriana Guedes

2015-01-01

This study investigates the effect of conventional tillage and application of the monoculture of sugar cane on soil health. Variables like density, moisture, texture, consistency limits, and preconsolidation stress were taken as indicators of soil quality. The measurements were made at a 120 × 120 m field cropped with sugar cane under conventional tillage. The objective of this work was to characterize the soil and to study the spatial dependence of the physical and mechanical attributes. Then, undisturbed soil samples were collected to measure bulk density, moisture content and preconsolidation stress and disturbed soil samples for classification of soil texture, and consistency limits. The soil texture indicated that soil can be characterized as sandy clay soil and a sandy clay loam soil, and the consistency limits indicated that the soil presents an inorganic low plasticity clay. The preconsolidation tests tillage in soil moisture content around 19% should be avoided or should be chosen a management of soil with lighter vehicles in this moisture content, to avoid risk of compaction. Using geostatistical techniques mapping was possible to identify areas of greatest conservation soil and greater disturbance of the ground.

Spatial Dependence of Physical Attributes and Mechanical Properties of Ultisol in a Sugarcane Field

PubMed Central

Tavares, Uilka Elisa; Monteiro Rolim, Mário; Souza de Oliveira, Veronildo; Maria Regis Pedrosa, Elvira; Siqueira, Glécio Machado; Guedes Magalhães, Adriana

2015-01-01

This study investigates the effect of conventional tillage and application of the monoculture of sugar cane on soil health. Variables like density, moisture, texture, consistency limits, and preconsolidation stress were taken as indicators of soil quality. The measurements were made at a 120 × 120 m field cropped with sugar cane under conventional tillage. The objective of this work was to characterize the soil and to study the spatial dependence of the physical and mechanical attributes. Then, undisturbed soil samples were collected to measure bulk density, moisture content and preconsolidation stress and disturbed soil samples for classification of soil texture, and consistency limits. The soil texture indicated that soil can be characterized as sandy clay soil and a sandy clay loam soil, and the consistency limits indicated that the soil presents an inorganic low plasticity clay. The preconsolidation tests tillage in soil moisture content around 19% should be avoided or should be chosen a management of soil with lighter vehicles in this moisture content, to avoid risk of compaction. Using geostatistical techniques mapping was possible to identify areas of greatest conservation soil and greater disturbance of the ground. PMID:26167528

Infinite slope stability under steady unsaturated seepage conditions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lu, Ning; Godt, Jonathan W.

2008-01-01

We present a generalized framework for the stability of infinite slopes under steady unsaturated seepage conditions. The analytical framework allows the water table to be located at any depth below the ground surface and variation of soil suction and moisture content above the water table under steady infiltration conditions. The framework also explicitly considers the effect of weathering and porosity increase near the ground surface on changes in the friction angle of the soil. The factor of safety is conceptualized as a function of the depth within the vadose zone and can be reduced to the classical analytical solution for subaerial infinite slopes in the saturated zone. Slope stability analyses with hypothetical sandy and silty soils are conducted to illustrate the effectiveness of the framework. These analyses indicate that for hillslopes of both sandy and silty soils, failure can occur above the water table under steady infiltration conditions, which is consistent with some field observations that cannot be predicted by the classical infinite slope theory. A case study of shallow slope failures of sandy colluvium on steep coastal hillslopes near Seattle, Washington, is presented to examine the predictive utility of the proposed framework.

A Constitutive Relationship for Gravelly Soil Considering Fine Particle Suffusion

PubMed Central

Zhang, Yuning; Chen, Yulong

2017-01-01

Suffusion erosion may occur in sandy gravel dam foundations that use suspended cutoff walls. This erosion causes a loss of fine particles, degrades the soil strength and deformation moduli, and adversely impacts the cutoff walls of the dam foundation, as well as the overlying dam body. A comprehensive evaluation of these effects requires models that quantitatively describe the effects of fine particle losses on the stress-strain relationships of sandy gravels. In this work, we propose an experimental scheme for studying these types of models, and then perform triaxial and confined compression tests to determine the effects of particle losses on the stress-strain relationships. Considering the Duncan-Chang E-B model, quantitative expressions describing the relationship between the parameters of the model and the particle losses were derived. The results show that particle losses did not alter the qualitative stress-strain characteristics of the soils; however, the soil strength and deformation moduli were degraded. By establishing the relationship between the parameters of the model and the losses, the same model can then be used to describe the relationship between sandy gravels and erosion levels that vary in both time and space. PMID:29065532

Cone penetration tests and soil borings at the Mason Road site in Green Valley, Solano County, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bennett, Michael J.; Noce, Thomas E.; Lienkaemper, James J.

2011-01-01

In support of a study to investigate the history of the Green Valley Fault, 13 cone penetration test soundings and 3 auger borings were made at the Mason Road site in Green Valley, Solano County, California. Three borings were made at or near two of the cone penetration test soundings. The soils are mostly clayey with a few sandy layers or lenses. Fine-grained soils range from low plasticity sandy lean clay to very plastic fat clay. Lack of stratigraphic correlation in the subsurface prevented us from determining whether any channels had been offset at this site. Because the soils are generally very clayey and few sand layers or lenses are loose, the liquefaction potential at the site is very low.

Microbial community structure of sandy intertidal sediments in the North Sea, Sylt-Rømø Basin, Wadden Sea.

PubMed

Musat, Niculina; Werner, Ursula; Knittel, Katrin; Kolb, Steffen; Dodenhof, Tanja; van Beusekom, Justus E E; de Beer, Dirk; Dubilier, Nicole; Amann, Rudolf

2006-06-01

Molecular biological methods were used to investigate the microbial diversity and community structure in intertidal sandy sediments near the island of Sylt (Wadden Sea) at a site which was characterized for transport and mineralization rates in a parallel study (D. de Beer, F. Wenzhöfer, T. Ferdelman, S.E. Boehme, M. Huettel, J.E.E. van Beusekom, M.E. Böttcher, N. Musat, N. Dubilier, Transport and mineralization rates in North Sea sandy intertidal sediments, Sylt-Romo Basin, Wadden Sea, Limnol. Oceanogr. 50 (2005) 113-127). Comparative 16S rRNA sequence analysis revealed a high bacterial diversity. Most sequences retrieved by PCR with a general bacterial primer set were affiliated with Bacteroidetes, Gammaproteobacteria, Deltaproteobacteria and the Pirellula cluster of Planctomycetales. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and slot-blot hybridization with group-specific rRNA-targeted oligonucleotide probes were used to characterize the microbial community structure over depth (0-12 cm) and seasons (March, July, October). We found high abundances of bacteria with total cell numbers up to 3 x 10(9) cells ml(-1) and a clear seasonal variation, with higher values in July and October versus March. The microbial community was dominated by members of the Planctomycetes, the Cytophaga/Flavobacterium group, Gammaproteobacteria, and bacteria of the Desulfosarcina/Desulfococcus group. The high abundance (1.5 x 10(7)-1.8 x 10(8) cells ml(-1) accounting for 3-19% of all cells) of presumably aerobic heterotrophic polymer-degrading planctomycetes is in line with the high permeability, deep oxygen penetration, and the high rates of aerobic mineralization of algal biomass measured in the sandy sediments by de Beer et al. (2005). The high and stable abundance of members of the Desulfosarcina/Desulfococcus group, both over depth and season, suggests that these bacteria may play a more important role than previously assumed based on low sulfate reduction rates in parallel cores (de Beer et al., 2005).

Aerobic and anaerobic biosynthesis of nano-selenium for remediation of mercury contaminated soil.

PubMed

Wang, Xiaonan; Zhang, Daoyong; Pan, Xiangliang; Lee, Duu-Jong; Al-Misned, Fahad A; Mortuza, M Golam; Gadd, Geoffrey Michael

2017-03-01

Selenium (Se) nanoparticles are often synthesized by anaerobes. However, anaerobic bacteria cannot be directly applied for bioremediation of contaminated top soil which is generally aerobic. In this study, a selenite-reducing bacterium, Citrobacter freundii Y9, demonstrated high selenite reducing power and produced elemental nano-selenium nanoparticles (nano-Se 0 ) under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. The biogenic nano-Se 0 converted 45.8-57.1% and 39.1-48.6% of elemental mercury (Hg 0 ) in the contaminated soil to insoluble mercuric selenide (HgSe) under anaerobic and aerobic conditions, respectively. Addition of sodium dodecyl sulfonate enhanced Hg 0 remediation, probably owing to the release of intracellular nano-Se 0 from the bacterial cells for Hg fixation. The reaction product after remediation was identified as non-reactive HgSe that was formed by amalgamation of nano-Se 0 and Hg 0 . Biosynthesis of nano-Se 0 both aerobically and anaerobically therefore provides a versatile and cost-effective remediation approach for Hg 0 -contaminated surface and subsurface soils, where the redox potential often changes dramatically. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

An approach to revegetation of Egyptian deserts. III. Chemical processing of low quality dolomite rock for production of granulated compound fertilizer

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Estefan, S.F.; Awadalla, F.T.

1989-01-01

The low quality dolomite rock from Abu-Rawash, Giza, was reacted with sulfuric acid to prepare a compound fertilizer comprising all secondary nutrient and micronutrient elements. The fertilizer product was mixed with 20 weight percent of ground bentonite ore, and was granulated using potassium sulfate solution as binder. Application of the new fertilizer for cultivating maize in sandy soil was very effective in improving the morphology of the plant. The compound fertilizer is recommended for reclamation of sandy soil.

Laboratory evaluation of dual-frequency multisensor capacitance probes to monitor soil water and salinity

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Real-time information on salinity levels and transport of fertilizers are generally missing from soil profile knowledge bases. A dual-frequency multisensor capacitance probe (MCP) is now commercially available for sandy soils that simultaneously monitor volumetric soil water content (VWC, ') and sa...

Soil suitability for hardwoods in Coastal Plains

Treesearch

W. M. Broadfoot; J. S. McKnight

1962-01-01

The Coastal Plain soil area occupies the major portion of Mississippi east of the Delta and Loess areas. In general, the soils are sandy, acid, and lacking in natural fertility, but on the alluvial soils moisture and drainage relations appear sufficient to support good growth of some tree species.

Analysis of the inhibitory effects of chloropicrin fumigation on nitrification in various soil types.

PubMed

Yan, Dongdong; Wang, Qiuxia; Li, Yuan; Ouyang, Canbin; Guo, Meixia; Cao, Aocheng

2017-05-01

Chloropicrin retards the conversion of ammonia to nitrite during the nitrification process in soil. In our study, the dynamic effect of chloropicrin fumigation on soil nitrification was evaluated in five different soil types to identify relationships between soil properties and the effect of fumigation on nitrification. Chloropicrin significantly inhibited nitrification in all soils; however, the recovery of nitrification varied greatly between the soils. Following chloropicrin fumigation, nitrification recovered to the control level in all soils, except in the acidic Guangxi soil. Nitrification recovered faster in fumigated sandy loam Beijing soil than in the other four fumigated soils. Soil texture and pH were two important factors that influenced chloropicrin's inhibitory effect on nitrification. An S-shaped function was fitted to soil NO 3 - -N content to assess the nitrification recovery tendency in different soils. The time taken to reach maximum nitrification (t max ) ranged from 2.4 to 3.0 weeks in all unfumigated soils. Results demonstrated that t max was greater in all fumigated soils than in untreated soils. Correlation calculations showed that t max was strongly correlated to soil texture. The correlation analysis results indicated that the recovery rate of nitrification after chloropicrin fumigation is much faster in sandy loam soil than silty loam soil. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Amending soils with sediment material from constructed wetlands increases phosphorus sorption

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laakso, Johanna; Uusitalo, Risto; Leppänen, Janette; Yli-Halla, Markku

2017-04-01

Sediment of agricultural constructed wetlands (CWs) is comprised of matter eroded from surrounding fields. This material is rich in aluminium (Al) and iron (Fe) (hydr)oxides that have a high affinity for phosphorus (P). Sediment material returned to fields could therefore affect soil P retention characteristics. We incubated a clay soil with a high soil test P (STP, 24 mg PAc l-1; extracted with pH 4.65 ammonium acetate buffer) and a sandy loam with excessive STP (210 mg PAc l-1) for three weeks with increasing amounts of CW sediment: 0, 2, 5, 10 and 50% of the sample volume. After incubation, the soil-sediment mixtures were studied with the quantity/intensity (Q/I) technique, using chemical extractions and by exposing the mixtures to simulated rainfall. Sorption affinity for P regularly increased with increasing the sediment share of the mixtures, the 0% sediment content having the lowest and 50% sediment content the highest P sorption. With 0% sediment application, the value of equilibrium P concentration (EPC0) determined by Q/I technique, was 0.69 and 44.3 mg l-1 for clay soil and sandy loam, respectively. With 2-5% sediment amendment, the EPC0 decreased 13-36% for clay soil and 13-54% for sandy loam. The 50% sediment mixtures had EPC0 of 0.05 mg l-1 for both soils. At a practically feasible sediment addition rate of 5%, dissolved reactive P (DRP) in percolating water from simulated rainfall decreased by 55% in the clay soil and 54% in sandy loam (p<0.001 in both cases). Particulate-P (PP) also showed a decreasing trend with increasing sediment addition rate. Upon prolonged simulated rainfall, the decreasing effect of sediment on DRP and PP declined somewhat. The effects of sediment addition can be attributed partly to increased salt concentrations in the sediment, which have a short-term effect on P mobilisation, but mostly to increased concentrations of Al and Fe (hydr)oxides, increasing long-term P sorption capacity. Amending the soils with sediment material would decrease P solubility and might at large application rates hamper P uptake by plants or, on the other hand, the sediment amendment in the soil might reduce P losses by runoff.

Effect of biochar or activated carbon amendment on the volatilisation and biodegradation of organic soil pollutants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Werner, David; Meynet, Paola; Bushnaf, Khaled

2013-04-01

Biochar or activated carbon added to contaminated soil may temporarily reduce the volatilisation of organic pollutants by enhanced sorption. The long-term effect of sorbent amendments on the fate of volatile petroleum hydrocarbon mixtures (VPHs) will depend on the responses of the soil bacterial community members, especially those which may utilize VPHs as carbon substrates. We investigated the volatilisation and biodegradation of VPHs emanating from NAPL sources and migrating through one meter long columns containing unsaturated sandy soil with and without 2% biochar or activated carbon amendment. After 420 days, VPH volatilisation from AC amended soil was less than 10 percent of the cumulative VPH volatilisation flux from unamended soil. The cumulative CO2 volatilisation flux increased more slowly in AC amended soil, but was comparable to the untreated soil after 420 days. This indicated that the pollution attenuation over a 1 meter distance was improved by the AC amendment. Biochar was a weaker VPH sorbent than AC and had a lesser effect on the cumulative VPH and CO2 fluxes. We also investgated the predominant bacterial community responses in sandy soil to biochar and/or VPH addition with a factorially designed batch study, and by analyzing preserved soil samples. Biochar addition alone had only weak effects on soil bacterial communities, while VPH addition was a strong community structure shaping factor. The bacterial community effects of biochar-enhanced VPH sorption were moderated by the limited biomass carrying capacity of the sandy soil investigated which contained only low amounts of inorganic nitrogen. Several Pseudomonas spp., including Pseudomonas putida strains, became dominant in VPH polluted soil with and without biochar. The ability of these versatile VPH degraders to effectively regulate their metabolic pathways according to substrate availabilities may additionally have moderated bacterial community structure responses to the presence of biochar in VPH polluted soil.

Incorporation of digestate selectively affects physical, chemical and biochemical properties along with CO2 emissions in two contrasting agricultural soils in the Mediterranean area.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Badagliacca, Giuseppe; Petrovičová, Beatrix; Zumbo, Antonino; Romeo, Maurizio; Gullì, Tommaso; Martire, Luigi; Monti, Michele; Gelsomino, Antonio

2017-04-01

Soil incorporation of digestate represents a common practice to dispose the solid residues from biogas producing plants. Although the digestate constitutes a residual biomass rich in partially decomposed organic matter and nutrients, whose content is often highly variable and unbalanced, its potential fertilizer value can vary considerably depending on the recipient soil properties. The aim of the work was to assess short-term changes in the fertility status of two contrasting agricultural soils in Southern Italy (Calabria), olive grove on a clay acid soil (Typic Hapludalfs) and citrus grove on a sandy loam slightly calcareous soil (Typic Xerofluvents), respectively located along the Tyrrhenian or the Ionian coast. An amount of 30 t ha-1 digestate was incorporated into the soil by ploughing. Unamended tilled soil was used as control. The following soil physical, chemical and biochemical variables were monitored during the experimental period: aggregate stability, pH, electrical conductivity, organic C, total N, Olsen-P, N-NH4+, N-NO3-, microbial biomass carbon (MBC), microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) and the mineralization quotient (qM). Moreover, in the olive grove soil CO2 emissions have been continuously measured at field scale for 5 months after digestate incorporation. Digestate application in both site exerted a significant positive effect on soil aggregate stability with a greater increase in clay than in sandy loam soil. Over the experimental period, digestate considerably affected the nutrient availability, namely Olsen-P, N-NH4+, N-NO3-, along with the electrical conductivity. The soil type increased significantly the soil N-NH4+ content, which was always higher in the olive than in citrus grove soil. N-NO3- content was markedly increased soon after the organic amendment, followed by a seasonal decline more evident in the sandy loam soil. Moreover, soil properties as CaCO3 content and the pH selectively affected the Olsen-P dynamics. No appreciable variation was recorded in total C and N pools. Interestingly, amendment with digestate altered the soil microbial community size in both soils as MBC and MBN were increased, although the response was more evident in the clay soil (olive) than in the sandy loam (citrus) one. The considerably higher qM observed in the clay soil suggests that the C mineralization was selectively stimulated in this soil. This finding was confirmed by the increase of CO2 emissions. As a whole our results show that digestate application selectively stimulated soil C dynamics and determined an unbalanced nutrient release, strongly depending on the soil physical-chemical properties. The use of digestate can therefore represent an interesting strategy for managing the soil fertility in Mediterranean agroecosystem soils, provided that digestate and recipient soil properties are carefully taken into account.

The effects of the African Green Revolution on nitrogen losses from two contrasting soil types in sub-Saharan Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tully, K. L.; Russo, T.; Hickman, J. E.; Palm, C.

2013-12-01

Nearly 80% of countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) face problems of nitrogen (N) scarcity, which together with poverty causes food insecurity and malnutrition. The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa has set a goal of increasing fertilizer use in the region six-fold by 2015. While there is substantial evidence that greater N fertilizer use will improve crop yields, it could lead to increased N leaching and elevated nitrate (NO3-) concentrations in surface water and groundwater reservoirs. However, it is unclear what the magnitude of impacts will be in SSA given historically low nutrient additions (of less than 5 kg N/ha/yr), highly degraded soils (due to years of nutrient and soil organic matter depletion), and a wide range of soil types on which increased fertilizer use is occurring. Current estimates of N dynamics and balances in SSA agriculture now rely on data from other regions with different soil types, soil fertility, and land management practices. To understand the influence of increased fertilizer use on water quality requires data from representative areas in SSA. Experimental maize plots were established in a randomized complete block design in both western Kenya (clayey soil) and mid-western Tanzania (sandy soil). Plots were amended with 0, 50, 75, and 200 kg N/ha/yr as mineral fertilizer. Tension lysimeters were installed at three depths in each treatment, and water was collected throughout the maize growing season. Soil water solutions were analyzed for NO3--N. Flow through the soil column at each soil depth, was modeled using VS2DT, a variably saturated flow and solute transport model, and water flux values were multiplied by measured NO3--N concentrations to estimate seasonal N leaching flux. Soil texture was a major driver of N losses, altering both the pathways and magnitude of losses. Clayey soils in western Kenya show an enormous potential for loss of NO3--N immediately following the onset of rains as they trigger high rates of N mineralization and nitrification in the topsoil (known as the 'birch effect'). We did not observe this pulse in the sandy soils of central Tanzania. However, NO3- N concentrations in leachate were three times lower at 200 cm in clayey soils compared to sandy soils as a result of higher anion exchange capacity in clays. We show that while clayey soils lose NO3--N in a large pulse at the onset of rains, sandy soils lose large quantities of NO3--N over the course of the maize growing season. Results from this study can help inform recommended N application rates in similar soils (tropical Ultisols and Oxisols), to optimize yields while minimizing N leaching losses.

Ethnopedology and soil quality of bamboo (Bambusa sp.) based agroforestry system.

PubMed

Arun Jyoti, Nath; Lal, Rattan; Das, Ashesh Kumar

2015-07-15

It is widely recognized that farmers' hold important knowledge of folk soil classification for agricultural land for its uses, yet little has been studied for traditional agroforestry systems. This article explores the ethnopedology of bamboo (Bambusa sp.) based agroforestry system in North East India, and establishes the relationship of soil quality index (SQI) with bamboo productivity. The study revealed four basic folk soil (mati) types: kalo (black soil), lal (red soil), pathal (stony soil) and balu (sandy soil). Of these, lal mati soil was the most predominant soil type (~ 40%) in bamboo-based agroforestry system. Soil physio-chemical parameters were studied to validate the farmers' soil hierarchal classification and also to correlate with productivity of the bamboo stand. Farmers' hierarchal folk soil classification was consistent with the laboratory scientific analysis. Culm production (i.e. measure of productivity of bamboo) was the highest (27culmsclump(-1)) in kalo mati (black soil) and the lowest (19culmsclump(-1)) in balu mati (sandy soil). Linear correlation of individual soil quality parameter with bamboo productivity explained 16 to 49% of the variability. A multiple correlation of the best fitted linear soil quality parameter (soil organic carbon or SOC, water holding capacity or WHC, total nitrogen) with productivity improved explanatory power to 53%. Development of SQI from ten relevant soil quality parameters and its correlation with bamboo productivity explained the 64% of the variation and therefore, suggest SQI as the best determinant of bamboo yield. Data presented indicate that the kalo mati (black soil) is sustainable or sustainable with high input. However, the other three folk soil types (red, stony and sandy soil) are also sustainable but for other land uses. Therefore, ethnopedological studies may move beyond routine laboratory analysis and incorporate SQI for assessing the sustainability of land uses managed by the farmers'. Additional research is required to incorporate principal component analysis for improving the SQI and site potential assessment. It is also important to evaluate the minimum data set (MDS) required for SQI and productivity assessment in agroforestry systems. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Production of PFOS from aerobic soil biotransformation of two perfluoroalkyl sulfonamide derivatives.

PubMed

Mejia Avendaño, Sandra; Liu, Jinxia

2015-01-01

The continuous production and use in certain parts of the world of perfluoroalkyl sulfonamide derivatives that can degrade to perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) has called for better understanding of the environmental fate of these PFOS precursors. Aerobic soil biotransformation of N-ethyl perfluorooctane sulfonamide (EtFOSA, also known as Sulfluramid) was quantitatively investigated in semi-closed soil microcosms over 182 d for the first time. The apparent soil half-life of EtFOSA was 13.9±2.1 d and the yield to PFOS by the end of incubation was 4.0 mol%. A positive identification of a previously suspected degradation product, EtFOSA alcohol, provided strong evidence to determine degradation pathways. The lower mass balance in sterile soil than live soil suggested likely strong irreversible sorption of EtFOSA to the test soil. The aerobic soil biotransformation of a technical grade N-ethyl perfluorooctane sulfonamidoethanol (EtFOSE) was semi-quantitatively examined, and the degradation pathways largely followed those in activated sludge and marine sediments. Aside from PFOS, major degradation products included N-Ethyl perfluorooctane sulfonamidoacetic acid (EtFOSAA), perfluorooctane sulfonamide (FOSA) and perfluorooctane sulfonamide acetic acid (FOSAA). This study confirms that aerobic soil biotransformation of EtFOSE and EtFOSA contributes significantly to the PFOS observed in soil environment, as well as to several highly persistent sulfonamide derivatives frequently detected in biosolid-amended soils and landfill leachates. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dynamics of the Entomogenous Nematode Steinernema feltiae Applied to Soil with and without Nematicide Treatment

PubMed Central

Ishibashi, N.; Kondo, E.

1987-01-01

The dynamics of Steinernema feltiae strain DD-136 in soils with different fauna was investigated to determine the best method for the biological control of soil insects. Infective juveniles (J3) were applied to field plots with and without 1,3-D (Telone II) fumigation. Recovery of J3 and changes in native nematode fauna were monitored until the applied J3 were no longer recovered by Baermann funnel (BF). Recovery of J3 by BF or by a two-step extraction procedure from steam-sterilized or nonsterilized sandy or silty soil with different fauna was investigated. More DD-136 J3 were recovered from the 1,3-D treated soil than from nontreated soil, while native nematodes in the treated soil fluctuated more with the addition of DD-136 than those in nontreated soil. The J3 persisted longer in silty than in sandy soils. The inundative soil application of DD-136 increased native rhabditids and decreased plant-parasitic nematodes. DD-136 in chemically treated soil not only effectively attacked the invading soil insect pests but also suppressed the recovery of plant nematodes. PMID:19290163

Soil moisture-soil temperature interrelationships on a sandy-loam soil exposed to full sunlight

Treesearch

David A. Marquis

1967-01-01

In a study of birch regeneration in New Hampshire, soil moisture and temperature were found to be intimately related. Not only does low moisture lead to high temperature, but high temperature undoubtedly accelerates soil drying, setting up a vicious cycle of heating and drying that may prevent seed germination or kill seedlings.

Warming intensify CO2 flux and nutrient release from algal wrack subsidies on sandy beaches.

PubMed

Lastra, Mariano; López, Jesús; Rodil, Iván F

2018-04-18

Algal wrack subsidies underpin most of the food web structure of exposed sandy beaches and are responsible of important biogeochemical processes that link marine and terrestrial ecosystems. The response in decomposition of algal wrack deposits to global warming has not been studied in ocean-exposed sandy beaches to date. With this aim, passive open top chambers (OTCs) were used to increase soil temperature within the range predicted by the IPCC for western Europe (between 0.5 and 1.5°C), following the hypothesis that the biogeochemical processing of macroalgal wrack subsidies would accelerate in response to temperature increase. The effect of temperature manipulation on three target substrates: fresh and aged macroalgae, and bare sand, was tested. Results indicated that a small warming (<0.5°C) affected the wrack decomposition process through traceable increases in soil respiration through CO 2 flux, inorganic nutrients within the interstitial environment (N and P), sediment organic contents measured through the amount of proteins and microbial pool through the total soil DNA. The different responses of soil variables in the studied substrates indicated that the decomposition stage of stranded macroalgae influences the biogeochemical processing of organic matter in sandy beaches. Thus, CO 2 fluxes, releases of organic and inorganic nutrients and microbial activity intensify in aged wrack deposits. Our results predict that expected global warming will increase the release of inorganic nutrients to the coastal ocean by 30% for the N (21 Gg/year) and 5.9% for P (14 Gg/year); that increase for the flow of C to the atmosphere as CO 2 was estimated in 8.2% (523 Gg/year). This study confirms the key role of sandy beaches in recycling ocean-derived organic matter, highlighting their sensitivity to a changing scenario of global warming that predicts significant increases in temperature over the next few decades. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effects of foliage litter of a pioneer shrub (Artemisia halodendron) on germination from the soil seedbank in a semi-arid sandy grassland in China.

PubMed

Luo, Yongqing; Zhao, Xueyong; Li, Yuqiang; Wang, Tao

2017-11-01

Vegetation recovery during succession is an important process for ecological restoration of the soil, especially in degraded sandy land. However, the driving mechanisms, such as how a pioneer species competes with other species, is uncertain. In China's Horqin Sandy Land, Artemisia halodendron is an important shrub that is common on semi-fixed dunes, where it replaces Agriophyllum squarrosum during succession, and is an important indicator species of the second stage of dune stabilization. However, how it outcompetes other species is still unclear. In this study, we conducted a seed bank germination experiment using soil from the native habitats of A. halodendron on semi-fixed dunes. We covered the soil with foliage litter of A. halodendron at a range of concentrations. Seed germination and seedling growth were strongly affected by the foliage litter. Seed germination and seedling growth were not harmed by a low concentration (≤50 g m -2 ) of the foliage litter but severely inhibited by high concentrations (≥100 g m -2 ). Strong allelopathy, indicated by decreased germination, increased seedling loss, and decreased plant biomass, appeared during the later stages of germination (after about 20 days of incubation). Our results suggest that as a pioneer shrub during the vegetation succession that occurs during dune stabilization, A. halodendron outcompeted other species through the allelopathic effect of its foliage litter. This helps to explain the patchy distribution and heterogeneity of vegetation communities in the Horqin Sandy Land.

Mitigation of Water Stress on Apple Trees under Rotational Irrigation Conditions by Increasing the Application Rate of Organic Fertilizers to Sandy Soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamed, Lamy Mamdoh Mohamed; Ramadan Eid, Abdelraouf; Mohsmed Rabie Abdellatif Abdelaziz, Adel; Fathy Abdelsalam Essa, El-Sayed

2016-04-01

Egypt, as part of Mediterranean regions, is characterized by irregular and low rainfall amount which varies between (30-150 mm.year-1), and characterized also by high temperature which increase the rate of evapotranspiration from the cultivated soil. On the other hand, New reclaimed soils are mostly occupies around 84 % of total area of Egypt, which is mainly sandy soils. These soils generally characterized by low water capacity holding, soil organic matter, and weak in nutrients retention. Under these conditions which have a great influence on crop production, there is a great needing to increase the crop water use efficiency and increasing of nutrient retention in sandy soils. In this context, two field experiments were carried out on sand soil located in north Cairo-Egypt at the experimental farm of National Research Center, El-NUBARIA, (latitude 30° 30' N, and longitude 30° 19' E). The effect of compost rates on soil hydraulic characteristics, fruit yields, quality traits, and water use efficiency and productivity of apple tree (Apple Anna Cultivar), was studied under deficit irrigation conditions. Four rates of compost [I1: control, I2: 12 ton.ha-1., I3: 24 ton.ha-1., I4: 36 ton.ha-1. and I5:48 ton.ha-1.] were applied under irrigation frequencies of (IF1 :once per week; IF2 :twice per week, IF3 :three times per week). The obtained results indicated that by increasing the application rate of compost, the available water capacity and saturated water content of sandy soil have been enhanced. In the same time, the fruit yield, quality traits and water productivity were increased by increasing the application rate of compost. It is worthy to mention that the I5IF3 treatment gave the highest values of fruit yield, quality traits and water productivity, whereas I1IF1 treatment gave the lowest values of all the above mentioned variables. As result, for apple cultivation in El-NUBARIA region, the recommended rate of compost is 48 ton.ha-1 and irrigation frequency must be three times per week (IF3) under drip irrigation system to mitigate the negative effect of water stress on apple trees.

Diffusion and emissions of 1,3-dichloro propene in Florida sandy soil in microplots affected by soil moisture, organic matter, and plastic film.

PubMed

Thomas, John E; Allen, L Hartwell; McCormack, Leslie A; Vu, Joseph C; Dickson, Donald W; Ou, Li-Tse

2004-04-01

The main objective of this study was to determine the influence of soil moisture, organic matter amendment and plastic cover (a virtually impermeable film, VIF) on diffusion and emissions of (Z)- and (E)-1,3-dichloropropene (1,3-D) in microplots of Florida sandy soil (Arredondo fine sand). Upward diffusion of the two isomers in the Arredondo soil without a plastic cover was greatly influenced by soil-water content and (Z)-1,3-D diffused faster than (E)-1,3-D. In less than 5 h after 1,3-D injection to 30 cm depth, (Z)- and (E)-1,3-D in air dry soil had diffused to a 10 cm depth, whereas diffusion for the two isomers was negligible in near-water-saturated soil, even 101 h after injection. The diffusion rate of (Z)- and (E)-1,3-D in near-field-capacity soil was between the rates in the two water regimes. Yard waste compost (YWC) amendment greatly reduced diffusion of (Z)- and (E)-1,3-D, even in air-dry soil. Although upward diffusion of (Z)- and (E)-1,3-D in soil with VIF cover was slightly less than in the corresponding bare soil; the cover promoted retention of vapors of the two isomers in soil pore air in the shallow subsurface. More (Z)-1,3-D vapor was found initially in soil pore air than (E)-1,3-D although the difference declined thereafter. As a result of rapid upward movement in air-dry bare soil, (Z)- and (E)-1,3-D were rapidly volatilized into the atmosphere, but emissions from the near-water-saturated soil were minimal. Virtually impermeable film and YWC amendment retarded emissions. This study indicated that adequate soil water in this sandy soil is needed to prevent rapid emissions, but excess soil water slows diffusion of (Z)- and (E)-1,3-D. Thus, management for optimum water in soil is critical for pesticidal efficacy and the environment.

Rapid Consumption of Low Concentrations of Methyl Bromide by Soil Bacteria

PubMed Central

Hines, Mark E.; Crill, Patrick M.; Varner, Ruth K.; Talbot, Robert W.; Shorter, Joanne H.; Kolb, Charles E.; Harriss, Robert C.

1998-01-01

A dynamic dilution system for producing low mixing ratios of methyl bromide (MeBr) and a sensitive analytical technique were used to study the uptake of MeBr by various soils. MeBr was removed within minutes from vials incubated with soils and ∼10 parts per billion by volume of MeBr. Killed controls did not consume MeBr, and a mixture of the broad-spectrum antibiotics chloramphenicol and tetracycline inhibited MeBr uptake by 98%, indicating that all of the uptake of MeBr was biological and by bacteria. Temperature optima for MeBr uptake suggested a biological sink, yet soil moisture and temperature optima varied for different soils, implying that MeBr consumption activity by soil bacteria is diverse. The eucaryotic antibiotic cycloheximide had no effect on MeBr uptake, indicating that soil fungi were not involved in MeBr removal. MeBr consumption did not occur anaerobically. A dynamic flowthrough vial system was used to incubate soils at MeBr mixing ratios as low as those found in the remote atmosphere (5 to 15 parts per trillion by volume [pptv]). Soils consumed MeBr at all mixing ratios tested. Temperate forest and grassy lawn soils consumed MeBr most rapidly (rate constant [k] = 0.5 min−1), yet sandy temperate, boreal, and tropical forest soils also readily consumed MeBr. Amendments of CH4 up to 5% had no effect on MeBr uptake even at CH4:MeBr ratios of 107, and depth profiles of MeBr and CH4 consumption exhibited very different vertical rate optima, suggesting that methanotrophic bacteria, like those presently in culture, do not utilize MeBr when it is at atmospheric mixing ratios. Data acquired with gas flux chambers in the field demonstrated the very rapid in situ consumption of MeBr by soils. Uptake of MeBr at mixing ratios found in the remote atmosphere occurs via aerobic bacterial activity, displays first-order kinetics at mixing ratios from 5 pptv to ∼1 part per million per volume, and is rapid enough to account for 25% of the global annual loss of atmospheric MeBr. PMID:9572964

Effect of treated wastewater application on soil water repellency of sandy soil with olive trees and grass cover

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diamantis, V.; Ziogas, A.; Giougis, J.; Pliakas, F.; Diamantis, I.

2009-04-01

Soil water repellency has received significant attention due to water scarcity and increasing demand of irrigation water worldwide. The objective of this study was to examine the effects of treated wastewater application on soil water repellency of a repellent sandy soil with olive trees and grass cover. Secondary effluent from a municipal wastewater treatment plant was applied directly on the field on a 4×2 m plot. Freshwater and a mixture of freshwater:wastewater (1:1) were used in subsequent plots for comparison. A total of 62 water applications were performed between March 2006 and July 2008. The soil receiving the mixture of freshwater:wastewater exhibited the highest wettability. The soil water repellency after the first year of wastewater application decreased in the respective plot compared with the soil under natural conditions. The higher values of the WDPT were determined on the freshwater irrigated plot. The field-moist samples on all plots revealed high wettability because the moisture content of the soil was maintained above the critical soil water content. The results of this study reveal that short-term application of treated municipal wastewater does not induce soil water repellency.

Genome sequence of "Pedosphaera parvula" Ellin514, an aerobic Verrucomicrobial isolate from pasture soil.

PubMed

Kant, Ravi; van Passel, Mark W J; Sangwan, Parveen; Palva, Airi; Lucas, Susan; Copeland, Alex; Lapidus, Alla; Glavina del Rio, Tijana; Dalin, Eileen; Tice, Hope; Bruce, David; Goodwin, Lynne; Pitluck, Sam; Chertkov, Olga; Larimer, Frank W; Land, Miriam L; Hauser, Loren; Brettin, Thomas S; Detter, John C; Han, Shunsheng; de Vos, Willem M; Janssen, Peter H; Smidt, Hauke

2011-06-01

"Pedosphaera parvula" Ellin514 is an aerobically grown verrucomicrobial isolate from pasture soil. It is one of the few cultured representatives of subdivision 3 of the phylum Verrucomicrobia. Members of this group are widespread in terrestrial environments.

CORRELATIONS BETWEEN PESTICIDE TRANSFORMATION RATE AND MICROBIAL RESPIRATION ACTIVITY IN SOIL OF DIFFERENT ECOSYSTEMS

EPA Science Inventory

Cecil sandy loam soils (ultisol) from forest (coniferous and deciduous), pasture, and arable ecosystems were sampled (0-10 cm) in the vicinity of Athens, GA, USA. Soil from each site was subdivided into three portions, consisting of untreated soil (control) as well as live and s...

Relationship of grapevine yield and growth to nematode densities.

PubMed

Ferris, H; McKenry, M V

1975-07-01

Yield, growth, and vigor of individual grape vines were correlated with nematode population densities in a series of California vineyards. In a Hanford sandy loam soil, Xiphinema americanum densities showed negative correlations with yield, growth, and vigor of vines. When vines were categorized according to vigor, X. americanurn densities had little relationship to yield of high-vigor vines, but were negatively correlated with yield of low-vigor vines. Densities of Paratylenchus harnatus were positively correlated with yield, growth, and vigor of vines. Correlations between Meloidogyne spp. densities and vine performance were variable, even when the vines were separated according to soil type and plant vigor. Densities of Meloidogyne spp. populations were generally higher on coarser-textured, sandy soils and the vines were less vigorous there. Densities of P. hamatus were greater in fine-textured soils.

[Distribution of potentially nitrogen-fixing bacteria and its relationship with physicochemical parameters in soils with three vegetation types in the southern Colombian Amazon region].

PubMed

Mantilla-Paredes, Andrea J; Cardona, Gladys I; Peña-Venegas, Clara P; Murcia, Uriel; Rodríguez, Mariana; Zambrano, Maria M

2009-12-01

Potentially nitrogen-fixing microaerobic and aerobic bacteria were isolated from several Colombian Amazon soils (forest, pastures and chagras) and two landscapes (floodable and non floodable areas). The abundance and distribution of bacteria were evaluated, as well as their relationship with soil physical and chemical characteristics. Landscape had a direct influence on the abundance of the microaerobic bacteria, with higher numbers in forest and pasture soils in non-floodable zones. The aerobic isolates (N=51) were grouped into 19 morphologies, with the highest numbers found in forest soil in floodable zones. A higher number of aerobic morphologies was shared among forest sites (Nonmetric Multidimensional Scaling and Analysis of Similarity p<0.05), and 40% of the distribution was explained by lime percentage and Al concentration.

Manure-amended soil characteristics affecting the survival of E. coli O157:H7 in 36 Dutch soils.

PubMed

Franz, Eelco; Semenov, Alexander V; Termorshuizen, Aad J; de Vos, O J; Bokhorst, Jan G; van Bruggen, Ariena H C

2008-02-01

The recent increase in foodborne disease associated with the consumption of fresh vegetables stresses the importance of the development of intervention strategies that minimize the risk of preharvest contamination. To identify risk factors for Escherichia coli O157:H7 persistence in soil, we studied the survival of a Shiga-toxin-deficient mutant in a set of 36 Dutch arable manure-amended soils (organic/conventional, sand/loam) and measured an array of biotic and abiotic manure-amended soil characteristics. The Weibull model, which is the cumulative form of the underlying distribution of individual inactivation kinetics, proved to be a suitable model for describing the decline of E. coli O157:H7. The survival curves generally showed a concave curvature, indicating changes in biological stress over time. The calculated time to reach the detection limit ttd ranged from 54 to 105 days, and the variability followed a logistic distribution. Due to large variation among soils of each management type, no differences were observed between organic and conventional soils. Although the initial decline was faster in sandy soils, no significant differences were observed in ttd between both sandy and loamy soils. With sandy, loamy and conventional soils, the variation in ttd was best explained by the level of dissolved organic carbon per unit biomass carbon DOC/biomC, with prolonged survival at increasing DOC/biomC. With organic soils, the variation in ttd was best explained by the level of dissolved organic nitrogen (positive relation) and the microbial species diversity as determined by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (negative relation). Survival increased with a field history of low-quality manure (artificial fertilizer and slurry) compared with high-quality manure application (farmyard manure and compost). We conclude that E. coli O157:H7 populations decline faster under more oligotrophic soil conditions, which can be achieved by the use of organic fertilizer with a relatively high C/N ratio and consequently a relatively low rate of nutrient release.

Comparison of soil organic matter dynamics at five temperate deciduous forests with physical fractionation and radiocarbon measurements

Treesearch

Karis J. McFarlane; Margaret S. Torn; Paul J. Hanson; Rachel C. Porras; Christopher W. Swanston; Mac A. Callaham; Thomas P. Guilderson

2013-01-01

Forest soils represent a significant pool for carbon sequestration and storage, but the factors controlling soil carbon cycling are not well constrained.We compared soil carbon dynamics at five broadleaf forests in the Eastern US that vary in climate, soil type, and soil ecology: two sites at the University of Michigan Biological Station (MI-Coarse, sandy;MI-Fine,...

Microbial and physical properties as indicators of sandy soil quality under cropland and grassland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frac, Magdalena; Lipiec, Jerzy; Usowicz, Boguslaw; Oszust, Karolina; Brzezinska, Malgorzata

2017-04-01

Land use is one of the key factor driving changes in soil properties influencing on soil health and quality. Microbial diversity and physical properties are sensitive indicators for assessing soil health and quality. The alterations of microbial diversity and physical properties following land use changes have not been sufficiently elucidated, especially for sandy soils. We investigated microbial diversity indicators including fungal communities composition and physical properties of sandy acid soil under cropland and more than 20-yr-old grassland (after cropland) in Trzebieszów, Podlasie Region, Poland (N 51° 59' 24", E 22° 33' 37"). The study included four depths within 0-60 cm. Microbial genetic diversity was assessed by terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (t-RFLP) analysis, fungal community composition was evaluated by next generation sequencing (NGS) analysis and functional diversity was determined by Biolog EcoPlate method. Overall microbial activity was assessed by soil enzymes (dehydrogenases, β-glucosidase) and respiration test. At the same places soil texture, organic carbon content, pH, bulk density, water holding capacity were determined. Our results showed that grassland soil was characterized by higher activity of soil enzymes than cropland. The average well color development of soil microorganisms, the microbial functional diversity and the number of carbon source utilization were significantly affected by land use type and were differentiated among soil depths. In grassland compared to cropland soil a significant increase of carboxylic acids and decrease of amino acids utilization was observed. The quantitative and qualitative differences were found in community of ammonia oxidizing archaea in cropland and grassland soil. The results of fungal community composition help to explain the soil health of grassland and cropland based on the appearance of phytopathogenic and antagonistic fungi. In general bulk density and field water capacity were greater and saturated hydraulic conductivity was lower under grassland than cropland soil. The study was funded by HORIZON 2020, European Commission, Programme: H2020-SFS-4-2014: Soil quality and function, project No. 635750, Interactive Soil Quality Assessment in Europe and China for Agricultural Productivity and Environmental Resilience (iSQAPER, 2015-2020).

Field-measured, hourly soil water evaporation stages in relation to reference evapotranspiration rate and soil to air temperature ratio

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Soil water evaporation takes critical water supplies away from crops, especially in areas where both rainfall and irrigation water are limited. This study measured bare soil water evaporation from clay loam, silt loam, sandy loam, and fine sand soils. It found that on average almost half of the ir...

Interaction Among Machine Traffic, Soil Physical Properties and Loblolly Pine Root Prolifereation in a Piedmont Soil

Treesearch

Emily A. Carter; Timothy P. McDonald

1997-01-01

The impact of forwarder traffic on soil physical properties was evaluated on a Gwinnett sandy loam, a commonly found soil of the Piedmont. Soil strength and saturated hydraulic conductivity were significantly altered by forwarder traffic, but reductions in air-filled porosity also occurred. Bulk density did not increase significantly in trafficked treatments. The...

Research Highlight: Water-extractable organic matter from sandy loam soils

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Labile organic matter plays important roles in soil health and nutrient cycling because of its dynamic nature. Water-extractable organic matter is part of the soil labile organic matter. In an article recently published in Agricultural & Environmental Letters, researchers report on the level and na...

EPA COMPARES THREE SOIL-GAS SAMPLING SYSTEMS FOR VAPOR INTRUSION INVESTIGATIONS

EPA Science Inventory

This newsletter article summarizes the finding of "U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Comparison of Geoprobe PRT, AMS GVP Soil-Gas Sampling Systems with Dedicated Vapor Probes in Sandy Soils at the Raymark Superfund Site, EPA/600/R-06/11, November 2006. "

Effects of biochars on the bioaccessibility of phenanthrene/pyrene/zinc/lead and microbial community structure in a soil under aerobic and anaerobic conditions.

PubMed

Ni, Ni; Shi, Renyong; Liu, Zongtang; Bian, Yongrong; Wang, Fang; Song, Yang; Jiang, Xin

2018-01-01

The immobilization of co-contaminants of organic and inorganic pollutants by biochar is an efficient remediation strategy. However, the effect of biochar amendments on the bioaccessibility of the co-contaminants in dry versus flooded soils has rarely been compared. In batch experiments, bamboo-derived biochar (BB) had a higher sorption capacity for phenanthrene (Phe)/pyrene (Pyr)/zinc (Zn) than corn straw-derived biochar (CB), while CB had a higher sorption capacity for lead (Pb) than BB. After 150days of incubation, the amendments of 2% CB, 0.5% BB and 2% BB effectively suppressed the dissipation and reduced the bioaccessibility of Phe/Pyr by 15.65%/18.02%, 17.07%/18.31% and 25.43%/27.11%, respectively, in the aerobic soils. This effectiveness was more significant than that in the anaerobic soils. The accessible Zn/Pb concentrations were also significantly lower in the aerobic soils than in the anaerobic soils, regardless of treatments. The Gram-negative bacterial biomass and the Shannon-Weaver index in the aerobic soil amended with 2% CB were the highest. The soil microbial community structure was jointly affected by changes in the bioaccessibility of the co-contaminants and the soil physiochemical properties caused by biochar amendments under the two conditions. Therefore, dry land farming may be more reliable than paddy soil cultivation at reducing the bioaccessibility of Phe/Pyr/Zn/Pb and enhancing the soil microbial diversity in the short term. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Cadmium dynamics in soil pore water and uptake by rice: Influences of soil-applied selenite with different water managements.

PubMed

Wan, Yanan; Camara, Aboubacar Younoussa; Yu, Yao; Wang, Qi; Guo, Tianliang; Zhu, Lina; Li, Huafen

2018-05-11

Cadmium (Cd) in rice grains is a potential threat to human health. This study investigated the effects of selenite fertilisation (0 mg kg -1 , 0.5 mg kg -1 , and 1.0 mg kg -1 ) on soil solution Cd dynamics and rice uptake. Rice was grown in two Cd-contaminated soils in Jiangxi and Hunan Provinces under two different sets of conditions: aerobic and flooded. The experiments were conducted in pots. The plants were harvested at the seedling stage and at maturity to determine their Cd levels. Soil solutions were also extracted during the growing season to monitor Cd dynamics. The results showed that in the Jiangxi soil (pH 5.25), Cd concentrations in the soil solutions, seedlings, and mature rice plants were higher under aerobic than under flooded water management conditions. In the Hunan soil (pH 7.26), however, flooding decreased Cd levels in the rice seedlings but not in mature plants. Selenite additions to the Hunan soil decreased Cd concentrations in the soil solutions and in the mature rice plants. These effects were not observed for the solutions or the plants from Jiangxi soil amended with selenite. Relative to the control treatment, 0.5 mg kg -1 selenite decreased the rice grain Cd content by 45.2% and 67.7% under aerobic and flooding conditions, respectively. The results demonstrated that water management regimes affected rice Cd uptake more effectively in Jiangxi than in Hunan soil, whereas selenite addition was more effective in Hunan than in Jiangxi soil. Selenite addition was also more effective at reducing rice grain Cd levels when it was applied under flooding than under aerobic conditions. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Various soil amendments and environmental wastes affect the (im)mobilization and phytoavailability of potentially toxic elements in a sewage effluent irrigated sandy soil.

PubMed

Shaheen, Sabry M; Shams, Mohamed S; Khalifa, Mohamed R; El-Dali, Mohamed A; Rinklebe, Jörg

2017-08-01

Contamination of long-term sewage effluent irrigated soils by potentially toxic elements (PTEs) is a serious concern due to its high environmental and health risk. Our scientific hypothesis is that soil amendments can cause contradictory effects on the element mobilization and phytoavailability depending on the type of element and amendment. Therefore, we aimed to assess the impact of the application (1%) of several low cost amendments and environmental wastes on the (im)mobilization, availability, and uptake of Al, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, and Zn by sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) in a long term sewage effluent irrigated sandy soils collected from Egypt. The used materials include activated charcoal (AC), potassium humate (KH), phosphate rock (PR), phosphogypsum (PG), triple superphosphate (TSP), phosphoric acid (PA), sulfur (S), sugar beet factory lime (SBFL), cement bypass kiln dust (CBD), egg shell (ES), bone mill (BM), brick factory residual (BFR), ceramic powder (CP), and drinking water treatment residual (WTR). The mobilization and availability of the elements in the soil were extracted using NH 4 NO 3 and ammonium bicarbonate- diethylene triamine penta acetic acid (AB-DTPA), respectively. The above-ground biomass samples were analyzed for the elements studied. The results confirmed our hypothesis and concluded that although some amendments like S, PA, and TSP can be used for reducing the plant uptake of Al, Cr, and Fe, they might be used with KH for enhancing the phytoextraction of Cd, Cu, Mn, and Ni. Moreover, several wastes such as BFR and WTR might be used for enhancing the phytoextraction of Al, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, and Ni and reducing the uptake of Mn from the studied soil. Although SBFL decreased the plant uptake of Al, Fe, Mn, and Zn, it's increased the plant uptake of Cd, Cu, and Ni. Therefore, the amendments which reduce the plant uptake of an element might be suitable candidates for its immobilization, while the amendments which increase the plant uptake of an element might be used for enhancing its phytoextraction when using bioenergy crops like sorghum in similar contaminated sandy soils. The studied materials offered the potential for effective and low cost media for the treatment of PTEs contaminated sewage effluent irrigated sandy soils. These results should be verified in a field study. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Critical soil bulk density for soybean growth in Oxisols

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keisuke Sato, Michel; Veras de Lima, Herdjania; Oliveira, Pedro Daniel de; Rodrigues, Sueli

2015-10-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the critical soil bulk density from the soil penetration resistance measurements for soybean root growth in Brazilian Amazon Oxisols. The experiment was carried out in a greenhouse using disturbed soil samples collected from the northwest of Para characterized by different texture. The treatments consisted of a range of soil bulk densities for each soil textural class. Three pots were used for soybean growth of and two for the soil penetration resistance curve. From the fitted model, the critical soil bulk density was determined considering the penetration resistance values of 2 and 3 MPa. After sixty days, plants were cut and root length, dry mass of root, and dry mass of shoots were determined. At higher bulk densities, the increase in soil water content decreased the penetration resistance, allowing unrestricted growth of soybean roots. Regardless of soil texture, the penetration resistance of 2 and 3 MPa had a slight effect on root growth in soil moisture at field capacity and a reduction of 50% in the soybean root growth was achieved at critical soil bulk density of 1.82, 1.75, 1.51, and 1.45 Mg m-3 for the sandy loam, sandy clay loam, clayey, and very clayey soil.

Evaporation as the transport mechanism of metals in arid regions.

PubMed

Lima, Ana T; Safar, Zeinab; Loch, J P Gustav

2014-09-01

Soils of arid regions are exposed to drought and drastic temperature oscillations throughout the year. Transport mechanisms in these soils are therefore very different from the ones in temperate regions, where rain dictates the fate of most elements in soils. Due to the low rainfall and high evaporation rates in arid regions, groundwater quality is not threatened and all soil contamination issues tend to be overlooked. But if soil contamination happens, where do contaminants go? This study tests the hypothesis of upward metal movement in soils when evaporation is the main transport mechanism. Laboratory evaporation tests were carried out with heavy metal spiked Saudi soil, using circulation of air as the driving force (Fig. 1). Main results show that loamy soil retains heavy metals quite well while evaporation drives heavy metals to the surface of a sandy soil. Evaporation transports heavy metals upward in sandy soils of arid regions, making them accumulate at the soil surface. Sand being the dominating type of soil in arid regions, soils can then be a potential source of contaminated aerosols and atmospheric pollution - a transboundary problem. Some other repercussions for this problem are foreseen, such as the public ingestion or inhalation of dust. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An obligately aerobic soil bacterium activates fermentative hydrogen production to survive reductive stress during hypoxia.

PubMed

Berney, Michael; Greening, Chris; Conrad, Ralf; Jacobs, William R; Cook, Gregory M

2014-08-05

Oxygen availability is a major factor and evolutionary force determining the metabolic strategy of bacteria colonizing an environmental niche. In the soil, conditions can switch rapidly between oxia and anoxia, forcing soil bacteria to remodel their energy metabolism accordingly. Mycobacterium is a dominant genus in the soil, and all its species are obligate aerobes. Here we show that an obligate aerobe, the soil actinomycete Mycobacterium smegmatis, adopts an anaerobe-type strategy by activating fermentative hydrogen production to adapt to hypoxia. This process is controlled by the two-component system DosR-DosS/DosT, an oxygen and redox sensor that is well conserved in mycobacteria. We show that DosR tightly regulates the two [NiFe]-hydrogenases: Hyd3 (MSMEG_3931-3928) and Hyd2 (MSMEG_2719-2718). Using genetic manipulation and high-sensitivity GC, we demonstrate that Hyd3 facilitates the evolution of H2 when oxygen is depleted. Combined activity of Hyd2 and Hyd3 was necessary to maintain an optimal NAD(+)/NADH ratio and enhanced adaptation to and survival of hypoxia. We demonstrate that fermentatively-produced hydrogen can be recycled when fumarate or oxygen become available, suggesting Mycobacterium smegmatis can switch between fermentation, anaerobic respiration, and aerobic respiration. Hydrogen metabolism enables this obligate aerobe to rapidly meet its energetic needs when switching between microoxic and anoxic conditions and provides a competitive advantage in low oxygen environments.

Persistence and mobility of nitrofen (niclofen, TOK) in mineral and organic soils.

PubMed

Murty, A S; Miles, J R; Tu, C M

1982-01-01

Residues of nitrofen in farm soils, persistence of nitrofen in field microplots, mobility of nitrofen in natural soils and the role of microbial flora in its degradation were studied. Muck soils from vegetable farms in southwestern Ontario contained up to 35 ppm nitrofen in mid-season (August), which decreased to 18 ppm by October. The herbicide was less persistent in sand than in muck. Degradation was slightly faster in sand and muck soils receiving two sprays, than in those sprayed once. From an initial deposit of ca. 2 and 10 ppm resp., in sand and muck field microplots, ca. 2 and 15% persisted after 16 wk. Leaching of nitrofen by water through sand was negligible, and it was even more strongly adsorbed onto organic soil. Natural microbial flora seemed to play an important role in the degradation of nitrofen in soil. Ca. 15 and 38% resp., of the initial concentration persisted in natural sandy loam and muck 16 wk after treatment at 10 ppm, whereas about 94 and 82% resp., persisted in sterilized sandy loam and muck at the same period.

Solubility of lead and copper in biochar-amended small arms range soils: influence of soil organic carbon and pH.

PubMed

Uchimiya, Minori; Bannon, Desmond I

2013-08-14

Biochar is often considered a strong heavy metal stabilizing agent. However, biochar in some cases had no effects on, or increased the soluble concentrations of, heavy metals in soil. The objective of this study was to determine the factors causing some biochars to stabilize and others to dissolve heavy metals in soil. Seven small arms range soils with known total organic carbon (TOC), cation exchange capacity, pH, and total Pb and Cu contents were first screened for soluble Pb and Cu concentrations. Over 2 weeks successive equilibrations using weak acid (pH 4.5 sulfuric acid) and acetate buffer (0.1 M at pH 4.9), Alaska soil containing disproportionately high (31.6%) TOC had nearly 100% residual (insoluble) Pb and Cu. This soil was then compared with sandy soils from Maryland containing significantly lower (0.5-2.0%) TOC in the presence of 10 wt % (i) plant biochar activated to increase the surface-bound carboxyl and phosphate ligands (PS450A), (ii) manure biochar enriched with soluble P (BL700), and (iii) unactivated plant biochars produced at 350 °C (CH350) and 700 °C (CH500) and by flash carbonization (corn). In weak acid, the pH was set by soil and biochar, and the biochars increasingly stabilized Pb with repeated extractions. In pH 4.9 acetate buffer, PS450A and BL700 stabilized Pb, and only PS450A stabilized Cu. Surface ligands of PS450A likely complexed and stabilized Pb and Cu even under acidic pH in the presence of competing acetate ligand. Oppositely, unactivated plant biochars (CH350, CH500, and corn) mobilized Pb and Cu in sandy soils; the putative mechanism is the formation of soluble complexes with biochar-borne dissolved organic carbon. In summary, unactivated plant biochars can inadvertently increase dissolved Pb and Cu concentrations of sandy, low TOC soils when used to stabilize other contaminants.

Alum amendment effects on phosphorus release and distribution in poultry litter-amended sandy soils

USGS Publications Warehouse

Staats, K.E.; Arai, Y.; Sparks, D.L.

2004-01-01

Increased poultry production has contributed to excess nutrient problems in Atlantic Coastal Plain soils due to land application of poultry litter (PL). Aluminum sulfate [alum, Al2(SO4)3?? 14H2O] amendment of PL effectively reduces soluble phosphorus (P) in the PL; however, the effects of these litters when added to acidic, sandy soils are not well understood. The objective of this study was to investigate the efficacy of alum-amended poultry litter in reducing P release from three Delaware Coastal Plain soils: Evesboro loamy sand (Ev; excessively drained, mesic, coated Typic Quartzipsamments), Rumford loamy sand (Ru; well drained, coarse-loamy, siliceous, subactive, thermic Typic Hapludults), and Pocomoke sandy loam (Pm; very poorly drained, coarse-loamy, siliceous, active, thermic Typic Umbraquults). Long-term (25 d) and short-term (24 h) desorption studies were conducted, in addition to chemical extractions and kinetic modeling, to observe the changes that alum-amended versus unamended PL caused in the soils. The Ev, Ru, and Pm soils were incubated with 9 Mg ha-1 of alum-amended or unamended PL. Long-term desorption (25 d) of the incubated material resulted in approximately 13.5% (Ev), 12.7% (Ru), and 13.3% (Pm) reductions in cumulative P desorbed when comparing soil treated with unamended and alum-amended PL. In addition, the P release from the soil treated with alum-amended litter was not significantly different from the control (soil alone). Short-term desorption (24 h) showed 7.3% (Ev), 15.4% (Ru), and 20% (Pm) reductions. The overall implication from this study is that the use of alum as a PL amendment is useful in coarse-textured soils of the Coastal Plain. With increased application of alum-amended PL, more significant decreases may be possible with little or no effect on soil quality.

Soil bacterial and fungal community responses across a conservation reserve program chronosequence in Texas high plains region

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

We investigated changes in soil bacterial and fungal communities with increasing restoration time across a Conservation Reserve Program chronosequence (CRP) on fine sandy loam soils in the Texas high plains region. Soil samples (0-10cm) were collected in 2012 and 2014 from seven dryland croplands (0...

Contrasting effects of deep ploughing of croplands and forests on SOC stocks and SOC bioavailability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alcántara, Viridiana; Don, Axel; Vesterdal, Lars; Well, Reinhard; Nieder, Rolf

2016-04-01

Subsoils are essential within the global C cycle since they have a high soil organic carbon (SOC) storage capacity due to a high SOC saturation deficit. However, measures for enhancing SOC stocks commonly focus on topsoils. We assessed the long-term stability of topsoil SOC buried in cropland and forest subsoils by deep ploughing. Deep ploughing was promoted until the 1970s for breaking up hardpan and improving soil structure to optimize crop growth conditions. In forests deep ploughing is performed as a site preparation measure for afforestation of sandy soil aiming at increasing water availability in deeper layers and decreasing weed competition by burial of seeds. An effect of deep ploughing was the translocation of topsoil SOC into subsoils, with a concomitant mixing of SOC-poor subsoil material into the "new" topsoil horizon. Deep ploughed croplands and forests represent unique long-term "in-situ incubations" of SOC-rich material in subsoils in order to assess the effect of soil depth on SOC turnover. In this study, we sampled soil from five loamy and five sandy cropland sites as well as from five sandy forest sites, which were ploughed to 55-127 cm depth 25 to 53 years ago. Adjacent, equally managed but conventionally ploughed or not ploughed (forests) subplots were sampled as reference. On average 45 years after the deep ploughing operation, at the cropland sites, the deep ploughed soils contained 42±13 Mg ha-1 more SOC than the reference subplots down to 100 cm depth. On the contrary, at the forest sites, the SOC stocks of the deep ploughed soils contained 18±9 Mg ha-1 less SOC compared to the reference soils on average 38 years deep ploughing. These contrasting results can be explained, on the one hand, by the slower SOC accumulation in the newly formed topsoils of the deep ploughed forest soil (on average 48% lower SOC stocks in topsoil) compared to the croplands (on average 15% lower SOC stocks in topsoil). On the other hand, the buried topsoils at the forest sites exhibited similar bioavailability of SOC (measured as net C mineralization rates from short-term in-vitro incubations) as compared to the reference topsoils. In contrast, at the sandy cropland sites, net C mineralization rates were significantly lower (67%) in the buried topsoil material compared to the reference topsoil. Buried SOC in the sandy soils is thus highly stable. Together with these results, we will present data on SOC fractions and discuss their implications for our view on stability of buried SOC in croplands and forests. Our results show that deep ploughing contributes to SOC sequestration by enlarging the storage space for SOC-rich material but only under the preconditions that i) burial is accompanied by decrease in SOC bioavailability and ii) SOC accumulates considerably in the newly formed topsoil.

Directed evolution of adaptive traits

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

As a species, switchgrass is adapted to an amazingly broad range of environments, spanning hardiness zones ranging from HZ3 to HZ9 (Canada to Mexico), from the mid-grass prairie to the Atlantic Seaboard, from sandy soils to heavy clay soils, from acid to alkaline soils, and from wetland to dryland h...

Water Storage and Related Physical Characteristics of Four Mineral Soils in North Central Minnesota

Treesearch

E. S. Verry

1969-01-01

Soil water storage in a 7.5 foot profile varied nearly 100 percent (7.9 to 15.5 inches) among four mineral soils ranging from a sand to sandy loam. Bulk density, size fractions, and four water retention values are tabulated for each horizon.

Seasonal variations in phosphorus fractions in semiarid sandy soils under different vegetation types

Treesearch

Qiong Zhao; Dehui Zeng; Zhiping Fan; Zhanyuan Yu; Yalin Hu; Jianwei Zhang

2009-01-01

We investigated the seasonal patterns of soil phosphorus (P) fractions under five vegetation types – Ulmus macrocarpa savanna, grassland, Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica plantation, Pinus tabulaeformis plantation, and Populus simonii plantation ...

Liquefaction-induced downdrag on drilled shafts.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2017-04-01

Sandy soil layers reduce in volume during and following liquefaction. The downward relative movement of the overlying soil layers around drilled shafts induces shear stress along the shaft and changes the axial load distribution. Depending on the sit...

[Characteristics of soil nematode community along an age sequence of sandy desert soil cultivation in a marginal oasis of middle reaches of Heihe River].

PubMed

Wang, Xue-Feng; Su, Yong-Zhong; Yang, Rong

2010-08-01

This paper studied the characteristics of soil nematode community following the conversion of native sandy desert soil to irrigated farmland in a marginal oasis of the middle reaches of Heihe River basin, aimed to approach the bioindicating function of soil nematodes in soil evolution process. A total of 27921 soil nematode individuals were captured, belonging to 25 families and 34 genera. The total number of nematodes increased gradually with increasing age of cultivation. At all sampling sites, bacterivores and plant parasites were the dominant trophic groups, and made up the main parts of nematode community in oasis farmland. Through the analysis of the evenness index (J) and dominance index (lambda) of nematode community, the ecosystems were found to be fragile for the farmlands having cultivated for 0, 10, and > 50 years. The maturity index MI2-5 and MMI decreased with increasing cultivation age, suggesting that the practice of agricultural use enhanced the disturbance on farmland. The soil properties changed significantly after 10 years of cultivation, which was at a significant change stage for the structure stability of soil ecosystems. The characteristics of soil nematode community could be used as the bioindicator of soil evolution following the conversion of native desert soil to irrigated farmland.

Genome Sequence of "Pedosphaera parvula" Ellin514, an Aerobic Verrucomicrobial Isolate from Pasture Soil

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kant, Ravi; Van Passel, Mark W.J.; Palva, Airi

2011-01-01

Pedosphaera parvula Ellin514 is an aerobically grown verrucomicrobial isolate from pasture soil. In contrast to the high abundance of members of Verrucomicrobia subdivision 3 based on molecular surveys in terrestrial environments, Ellin514 is one of the few cultured representatives of this group.

Variation and significance of surface heat after the mechanical sand control of Qinghai-Tibet Railway was covered with sandy sediments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, Shengbo; Qu, Jianjun; Mu, Yanhu; Xu, Xiangtian

Mechanical control of drifting sand used to protect the Qinghai-Tibet Railway from sand damage inevitably results in sand deposition, and the change in radiation and heat flux after the ground surface is covered with sandy sediments remains unclear. These variations were studied in this work through field observations along with laboratory analyses and tests. After the ground surface was covered with sandy sediments produced by the mechanical control of sand in the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, the reflectivity increased, and the annual average reflectivity on the surface covered with sandy sediments was higher than that without sandy sediments, with the value increasing by 0.043. Moreover, the surface shortwave radiation increased, whereas the surface net radiation decreased. The annual average value of the surface shortwave radiant flux density on the sandy sediments was higher than that without sandy sediments, with the value increasing by 7.291 W·m-2. The annual average value of the surface net radiant flux density on the sandy sediments decreased by 9.639 W·m-2 compared with that without sandy sediments. The soil heat flux also decreased, and the annual average value of the heat flux in the sandy sediments decreased by 0.375 W·m-2 compared with that without sandy sediments. These variations caused the heat source on the surface of sandy sediments underground to decrease, which is beneficial for preventing permafrost from degradation in the section of sand control of the railway.

Pupation Behaviors and Emergence Successes of Ectropis grisescens (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) in Response to Different Substrate Types and Moisture Contents.

PubMed

Wang, Huifang; Ma, Tao; Xiao, Qiang; Cao, Panrong; Chen, Xuan; Wen, Yuzhen; Xiong, Hongpeng; Qin, Wenquan; Liang, Shiping; Jian, Shengzhe; Li, Yanjun; Sun, Zhaohui; Wen, Xiujun; Wang, Cai

2017-12-08

Ectropis grisescens Warren (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) is one of the most severe pests of tea plants in China. This species commonly pupates in soil; however, little is known about its pupation ecology. In the present study, choice and no-choice tests were conducted to investigate the pupation behaviors and emergence success of E. grisescens in response to different substrates (sand, sandy loam 1, sandy loam 2, and silt loam) and moisture contents (5, 20, 35, 50, 65, and 80%). Moisture-choice bioassays showed that significantly more E. grisescens individuals pupated in or on soil (sandy loam 1 and 2 and silt loam) that was at the intermediate moisture levels, whereas 5%- and 35%-moisture sand was significantly more preferred over 80%-moisture sand for pupating. Substrate-choice bioassays showed that sand was most preferred by E. grisescens individuals at 20%- and 80%-moisture levels, but no preference was detected among the four substrates at 50%-moisture content. No-choice tests showed that the percentage of burrowed E. grisescens individuals and pupation depth were significantly lower when soil was dry (20% moisture) or wet (80% moisture). In addition, 20%-moisture sandy loam 2 and silt loam significantly decreased the body water content of pupae and emergence success of adults compared to 50%-moisture content. However, each measurement (percentage of burrowed individuals, pupation depth, body water content, or emergence success) was similar when compared among different moisture levels of sand. Interestingly, pupae buried with 80%-moisture soil exhibited significantly lower emergence success than that were unburied. © The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Essentials of Chemical Fertilizer Use in PRC.

DTIC Science & Technology

1978-09-06

fertilizer contains even more effective nutrient. So proper amounts of chemical fertilizer in each mou in addition to farmyard manure, according to soil ...learn about soil composition and characteristics and their effect on fertilizing power. Composition and Function of Soil The soil is composed of matter...fertilizing effect is still good. Sandy soil has low water-retaining capability, so nutrients are easily leached. When easily-soluble fast- release

15N-CPMAS nuclear magnetic resonace spectroscopy and biological stability of soil organic nitrogen in whole soil and particle-size fractions

Treesearch

R.J. DiCosty; D.P. Weliky; S.J. Anderson; E.A. Paul

2003-01-01

Soil organic nitrogen was quantified by solid-state 15N cross-polarization nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) during a 14-month laboratory incubation of a sandy loam soil amended with 15N-clover. In whole soil and particle-size fractions, the clover-derived N was always 85-90% amide, 5 10% guanidinium N of...

Soil physical effects on longleaf pine performance in the West Gulf Coastal Plain

Treesearch

Mary Anne S. Sayer; James D. Haywood; Shi-Jean Susana Sung

2015-01-01

We summarize 8 years of soil physical property responses to herbicide manipulation of the understory in two young longleaf pine stands growing on either Ruston fine sandy loam or Beauregard silt loam soils. We also describe relationships between pine sapling vigor and the soil physical environment across a 3-year period on the Ruston soil and a 2-year period on the...

Toxicity of Fipronil in Mississippi Soil Types Against Reticulitermes flavipes (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae)

Treesearch

J. E. Mulrooney; P. D. Gerard

2007-01-01

Three soils (a silt loam, loamy sand, sandy loam) found in Mississippi and pure silica sand were treated with fipronil and bioassayed using eastern subterranean termites, Reticulitermes flavipes. Soils were treated with aqueous solutions of Termidor (fipronil) at concentrations of 0, 0.12, 0.25,2.5, 5.0 and 20.0 ppm (wt AI: wt soil) that brought the soils to 15%...

Impact of glycerin and lignosulfonate on biodegradation of high explosives in soil.

PubMed

Won, Jongho; Borden, Robert C

2016-11-01

Soil microcosms were constructed and monitored to evaluate the impact of substrate addition and transient aerobic and anaerobic conditions on TNT, RDX and HMX biodegradation in grenade range soils. While TNT was rapidly biodegraded under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions with and without organic substrate, substantial biodegradation of RDX, HMX, and RDX daughter products was not observed under aerobic conditions. However, RDX and HMX were significantly biodegraded under anaerobic conditions, without accumulation of TNT or RDX daughter products (2-ADNT, 4-ADNT, MNX, DNX, and TNX). In separate microcosms containing grenade range soil, glycerin and lignosulfonate addition enhanced oxygen consumption, increasing the consumption rate >200% compared to untreated soils. Mathematical model simulations indicate that oxygen consumption rates of 5 to 20g/m 3 /d can be achieved with reasonable amendment loading rates. These results indicate that glycerin and lignosulfonate can be potentially used to stimulate RDX and HMX biodegradation by increasing oxygen consumption rates in soil. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Patterns of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal Distribution on Mainland and Island Sandy Coastal Plain Ecosystems in Brazil.

PubMed

da Silva, Iolanda Ramalho; de Souza, Francisco Adriano; da Silva, Danielle Karla Alves; Oehl, Fritz; Maia, Leonor Costa

2017-10-01

Although sandy coastal plains are important buffer zones to protect the coast line and maintain biological diversity and ecosystem services, these ecosystems have been endangered by anthropogenic activities. Thus, information on coastal biodiversity and forces shaping coastal biological diversity are extremely important for effective conservation strategies. In this study, we aimed to compare arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal communities from soil samples collected on the mainland and nearby islands located in Brazilian sandy coastal plain ecosystems (Restingas) to get information about AM fungal biogeography and identify factors shaping these communities. Soil samples were collected in 2013 and 2014 on the beachfront of the tropical sandy coastal plain at six sites (three island and three mainland locations) across the northeast, southeast, and south regions of Brazil. Overall, we recorded 53 AM fungal species from field and trap culture samples. The richness and diversity of AM fungal species did not differ between mainland and island locations, but AM fungal community assemblages were different between mainland and island environments and among most sites sampled. Glomeromycota communities registered from island samples showed higher heterogeneity than communities from mainland samples. Sandy coastal plains harbor diverse AM fungal communities structured by climatic, edaphic, and spatial factors, while the distance from the colonizing source (mainland environments) does not strongly affect the AM fungal communities in Brazilian coastal environments.

Arsenic uptake and accumulation in rice (Oryza sativa L.) with selenite fertilization and water management.

PubMed

Wan, Yanan; Camara, Aboubacar Younoussa; Huang, Qingqing; Yu, Yao; Wang, Qi; Li, Huafen

2018-07-30

The accumulation of arsenic (As) in rice grain is a potential threat to human health. Our study investigated the possible mediatory role of selenite fertilization on As uptake and accumulation by rice (Oryza sativa L.) under different water management regimes (aerobic or flooded) in a pot experiment. Soil solutions were also extracted during the growing season to monitor As dynamics. Results showed that As contents in the soil solutions, seedlings, and mature rice were higher under flooded than under aerobic water management. Under aerobic conditions, selenite additions slightly increased As concentrations in soil solutions (in the last two samplings), but decreased As levels in rice plants. Relative to the control, 0.5 mg kg -1 selenite decreased rice grain As by 27.5%. Under flooded conditions, however, selenite additions decreased As in soil solutions, while increased As in rice grain. Tendencies also showed that selenite additions decreased the proportion of As in rice shoots both at the seedling stage and maturity, and were more effective in aerobic soil. Our results demonstrate that the effect of selenite fertilizer on As accumulation by rice is related to water management. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Laboratory study on leachability of five herbicides in South Australian soils.

PubMed

Ying, G G; Williams, B

2000-03-01

Norflurazon, oxadiazon, oxyfluorfen, trifluralin and simazine are herbicides widely used in the vineyards of the Barossa Valley, South Australia. The leaching behaviour of norflurazon, oxadiazon, oxyfluorfen and trifluralin was investigated on four key soils in the Barossa Valley. Leaching potential on packed soil columns and actual mobility using intact soil columns were investigated. On the packed soil columns, norflurazon was the most leachable herbicide. More of the herbicides were detected in the leachates from the sandy soils (Mountadam and Nuriootpa) than from the clayey soils (Lyndoch and Tanunda). Organic matter is generally low in soils in the Barossa region. Porosity and saturated conductivity significantly affect herbicide movement and in the sandy Mountadam and Nuriootpa soils, the water flux is greater than for the higher clay content Lyndoch and Tanunda soils. Increasing the time interval between herbicide application and the incidence of "rainfall" reduced the amounts of herbicides found in the leachates. The use of intact soil columns and including simazine for comparison showed that both norflurazon and simazine were present in the leachates. Simazine was the first herbicide to appear in leachates. Sectioning of the intact soil columns after leaching clearly demonstrated that norflurazon and simazine reached the bottom of the soil columns for all soils studied. Greater amounts of norflurazon were retained in the soil columns compared with simazine. The other herbicides were mostly retained in the initial sections of the soil columns.

Nutrient status of the lowbush blueberry, Lac-Saint-Jean area, Quebec, Canada. [Vaccinium angustifolium

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bouchard, A.R.; Gagnon, M.J.

1987-01-01

The lowbush blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium Ait.) is an important commercial crop of the Lac-Saint-Jean area (Quebec, Canada). The major blueberry fields are located on sandy soils relatively poor in available mineral nutrients. The nutrients originate from a thin organic layer found on the top of these sandy soils. The leaf mineral contents (N, P, K, Mg, Ca, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn and B) were measured in five blueberry fields during 1984 and 1985. Soil pH and soil available P, K, and Mg were also assessed. The results show that the leaf mineral contents are generally adequate. However, K and Znmore » might be occasionally deficient when compared to the actual established standards. The available Mg in soil was significantly correlated with the leaf Mg concentration. The data also suggest that the influence of the pH following the burn pruning seems to influence the nutrition of this species.« less

Influences of composted hazelnut husk on some physical properties of soils.

PubMed

Zeytin, Serhat; Baran, Abdullah

2003-07-01

Some physical properties of clay loam and sandy loam soils amended with hazelnut husk (HH) were investigated. HH collected from hazelnut trees were dried, ground and composted for four months. Before use the composted material obtained was separated to three different aggregate sizes, smaller than 0.84 mm, 0.84-2.38 mm and bigger than 2.38 mm. Then these fractions were mixed with soil samples, at 0%, 1%, 2%, 4% and 8% by weight. Huzelnut husk compost-soil mixtures were placed to plastic pots and kept in an incubator at 25+/-5 degrees C for 45 and 90 days. At the end of incubation periods, water stable aggregate (WSA), hydraulic conductivity, total porosity, aeration porosity and macro- and micro-pore percentages of the mixtures were determined. Results obtained showed that composted HH increased the WSA, hydraulic conductivity, total porosity and macro-pore percentage in both clay loam and sandy loam soils depending on the incubation time and aggregate sizes.

Bioremediation trial on aged PCB-polluted soils--a bench study in Iceland.

PubMed

Lehtinen, Taru; Mikkonen, Anu; Sigfusson, Bergur; Ólafsdóttir, Kristín; Ragnarsdóttir, Kristín Vala; Guicharnaud, Rannveig

2014-02-01

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) pose a threat to the environment due to their high adsorption capacity to soil organic matter, stability and low reactivity, low water solubility, toxicity and ability to bioaccumulate. With Icelandic soils, research on contamination issues has been very limited and no data has been reported either on PCB degradation potential or rate. The goals of this research were to assess the bioavailability of aged PCBs in the soils of the old North Atlantic Treaty Organization facility in Keflavík, Iceland and to find the best biostimulation method to decrease the pollution. The effectiveness of different biostimulation additives (N fertiliser, white clover and pine needles) at different temperatures (10 and 30 °C) and oxygen levels (aerobic and anaerobic) were tested. PCB bioavailability to soil fauna was assessed with earthworms (Eisenia foetida). PCBs were bioavailable to earthworms (bioaccumulation factor 0.89 and 0.82 for earthworms in 12.5 ppm PCB soil and in 25 ppm PCB soil, respectively), with less chlorinated congeners showing higher bioaccumulation factors than highly chlorinated congeners. Biostimulation with pine needles at 10 °C under aerobic conditions resulted in nearly 38 % degradation of total PCBs after 2 months of incubation. Detection of the aerobic PCB degrading bphA gene supports the indigenous capability of the soils to aerobically degrade PCBs. Further research on field scale biostimulation trials with pine needles in cold environments is recommended in order to optimise the method for onsite remediation.

Identification of TCE and PCE sorption and biodegradation parameters in a sandy aquifer for fate and transport modelling: batch and column studies.

PubMed

Kret, E; Kiecak, A; Malina, G; Nijenhuis, I; Postawa, A

2015-07-01

The main aim of this study was to determine the sorption and biodegradation parameters of trichloroethene (TCE) and tetrachloroethene (PCE) as input data required for their fate and transport modelling in a Quaternary sandy aquifer. Sorption was determined based on batch and column experiments, while biodegradation was investigated using the compound-specific isotope analysis (CSIA). The aquifer materials medium (soil 1) to fine (soil 2) sands and groundwater samples came from the representative profile of the contaminated site (south-east Poland). The sorption isotherms were approximately linear (TCE, soil 1, K d = 0.0016; PCE, soil 1, K d = 0.0051; PCE, soil 2, K d = 0.0069) except for one case in which the best fitting was for the Langmuir isotherm (TCE, soil 2, K f = 0.6493 and S max = 0.0145). The results indicate low retardation coefficients (R) of TCE and PCE; however, somewhat lower values were obtained in batch compared to column experiments. In the column experiments with the presence of both contaminants, TCE influenced sorption of PCE, so that the R values for both compounds were almost two times higher. Non-significant differences in isotope compositions of TCE and PCE measured in the observation points (δ(13)C values within the range of -23.6 ÷ -24.3‰ and -26.3 ÷-27.7‰, respectively) indicate that biodegradation apparently is not an important process contributing to the natural attenuation of these contaminants in the studied sandy aquifer.

Fate of Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) in Saturated Soil Under Various Redox Conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dror, I.; Menahem, A.; Berkowitz, B.

2014-12-01

The growing use of PPCPs results in their increasing release to the aquatic environment. Consequently, understanding the fate of PPCPs under environmentally relevant conditions that account for dynamic flow and varying redox states is critical. In this study, the transport of two organometallic PPCPs, Gd-DTPA and Roxarsone (As complex) and their metal salts (Gd(NO3)3, AsNaO2), is investigated. The former is used widely as a contrasting agent for MRI, while the latter is applied extensively as a food additive in the broiler poultry industry. Both of these compounds are excreted from the body, almost unchanged chemically. Gadolinium complexes are not fully eliminated in wastewater treatment and can reach groundwater via irrigation with treated wastewater; Roxarsone can enter groundwater via leaching from manure used as fertilizer. Studies have shown that the transport of PPCPs in groundwater is affected by environmental conditions such as redox states, pH, and soil type. For this study, column experiments using sand or Mediterranean red sandy clay soil were performed under several redox conditions: aerobic, nitrate-reducing, iron-reducing, sulfate-reducing, methanogenic, and very strongly chemical reducing. Batch experiments to determine adsorption isotherms were also performed for the complexes and metal salts. We found that Gd-DTPA transport was affected by the soil type and was not affected by the redox conditions. In contrast, Roxarsone transport was affected mainly by the different redox conditions, showing delayed breakthrough curves as the conditions became more biologically reduced (strong chemical reducing conditions did not affect the transport). We also observed that the metal salts show essentially no transport while the organic complexes display much faster breakthrough. The results suggest that transport of these PPCPs through soil and groundwater is determined by the redox conditions, as well as by soil type and the form of the applied metal (as salt or organic complex).

Effects of soil moisture on dust emission from 2011 to 2015 observed over the Horqin Sandy Land area, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ju, Tingting; Li, Xiaolan; Zhang, Hongsheng; Cai, Xuhui; Song, Yu

2018-06-01

Using the observational data of dust concentrations and meteorological parameters from 2011 to 2015, the effects of soil moisture and air humidity on dust emission were studied at long (monthly) and short (several days or hours) time scales over the Horqin Sandy Land area, Inner Mongolia of China. The results show that the monthly mean dust concentrations and dust fluxes within the near-surface layer had no obvious relationship with the monthly mean soil moisture content but had a slightly negative correlation with monthly mean air relative humidity from 2011 to 2015. The daily mean soil moisture exhibited a significantly negative correlation with the daily mean dust concentrations and dust fluxes, as soil moisture changed obviously. However, such negative correlation between soil moisture and dust emission disappeared on dust blowing days. Additionally, the effect of soil moisture on an important parameter for dust emission, the threshold friction velocity (u∗t), was investigated during several saltation-bombardment and/or aggregation-disintegration dust emission (SADE) events. Under dry soil conditions, the values of u∗t were not influenced by soil moisture content; however, when the soil moisture content was high, the values of u∗t increased with increasing soil moisture content.

Assessment of grass root effects on soil piping in sandy soils using the pinhole test

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bernatek-Jakiel, Anita; Vannoppen, Wouter; Poesen, Jean

2017-10-01

Soil piping is an important land degradation process that occurs in a wide range of environments. Despite an increasing number of studies on this type of subsurface erosion, the impact of vegetation on piping erosion is still unclear. It can be hypothesized that vegetation, and in particular plant roots, may reduce piping susceptibility of soils because roots of vegetation also control concentrated flow erosion rates or shallow mass movements. Therefore, this paper aims to assess the impact of grass roots on piping erosion susceptibility of a sandy soil. The pinhole test was used as it provides quantitative data on pipeflow discharge, sediment concentration and sediment discharge. Tests were conducted at different hydraulic heads (i.e., 50 mm, 180 mm, 380 mm and 1020 mm). Results showed that the hydraulic head was positively correlated with pipeflow discharge, sediment concentration and sediment discharge, while the presence of grass roots (expressed as root density) was negatively correlated with these pipeflow characteristics. Smaller sediment concentrations and sediment discharges were observed in root-permeated samples compared to root-free samples. When root density exceeds 0.5 kg m- 3, piping erosion rates decreased by 50% compared to root-free soil samples. Moreover, if grass roots are present, the positive correlation between hydraulic head and both sediment discharge and sediment concentration is less pronounced, demonstrating that grass roots become more effective in reducing piping erosion rates at larger hydraulic heads. Overall, this study demonstrates that grass roots are quite efficient in reducing piping erosion rates in sandy soils, even at high hydraulic head (> 1 m). As such, grass roots may therefore be used to efficiently control piping erosion rates in topsoils.

Zinc oxide nanoparticles affect carbon and nitrogen mineralization of Phoenix dactylifera leaf litter in a sandy soil.

PubMed

Rashid, Muhammad Imtiaz; Shahzad, Tanvir; Shahid, Muhammad; Ismail, Iqbal M I; Shah, Ghulam Mustafa; Almeelbi, Talal

2017-02-15

We investigated the impact of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs; 1000mgkg -1 soil) on soil microbes and their associated soil functions such as date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) leaf litter (5gkg -1 soil) carbon and nitrogen mineralization in mesocosms containing sandy soil. Nanoparticles application in litter-amended soil significantly decreased the cultivable heterotrophic bacterial and fungal colony forming units (cfu) compared to only litter-amended soil. The decrease in cfu could be related to lower microbial biomass carbon in nanoparticles-litter amended soil. Likewise, ZnO NPs also reduced CO 2 emission by 10% in aforementioned treatment but this was higher than control (soil only). Labile Zn was only detected in the microbial biomass of nanoparticles-litter applied soil indicating that microorganisms consumed this element from freely available nutrients in the soil. In this treatment, dissolved organic carbon and mineral nitrogen were 25 and 34% lower respectively compared to litter-amended soil. Such toxic effects of nanoparticles on litter decomposition resulted in 130 and 122% lower carbon and nitrogen mineralization efficiency respectively. Hence, our results entail that ZnO NPs are toxic to soil microbes and affect their function i.e., carbon and nitrogen mineralization of applied litter thus confirming their toxicity to microbial associated soil functions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Stump sprouting of northern pin oak on nutrient-poor sandy soils in central Wisconsin

Treesearch

Kevin M. Schwartz; Michael C. Demchik

2013-01-01

Coppice with two to three reserve trees per acre is the generally accepted practice (GAP) for rotating oak stands on nutrient-poor, sandy sites (colloquially called "scrub oak sites") in Wisconsin. The future stocking of the stand is therefore dependent predominantly on stump sprouts with varying levels of contribution from advance regeneration. Two groups of...

Biotic and abiotic degradation of CL-20 and RDX in soils.

PubMed

Crocker, Fiona H; Thompson, Karen T; Szecsody, James E; Fredrickson, Herbert L

2005-01-01

The caged cyclic nitramine 2,4,6,8,10,12-hexanitro-2,4,6,8,10,12-hexaazaisowurtzitane (CL-20) is a new explosive that has the potential to replace existing military explosives, but little is known about its environmental toxicity, transport, and fate. We quantified and compared the aerobic environmental fate of CL-20 to the widely used cyclic nitramine explosive hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) in surface and subsurface soil microcosms. Soil-free controls and biologically attenuated soil controls were used to separate abiotic processes from biologically mediated processes. Both abiotic and biological processes significantly degraded CL-20 in all soils examined. Apparent abiotic, first-order degradation rates (k) for CL-20 were not significantly different between soil-free controls (0.018 < k < 0.030 d(-1)) and biologically attenuated soil controls (0.003 < k < 0.277 d(-1)). The addition of glucose to biologically active soil microcosms significantly increased CL-20 degradation rates (0.068 < k < 1.22 d(-1)). Extents of mineralization of (14)C-CL-20 to (14)CO(2) in biologically active soil microcosms were 41.1 to 55.7%, indicating that the CL-20 cage was broken, since all carbons are part of the heterocyclic cage. Under aerobic conditions, abiotic degradation rates of RDX were generally slower (0 < k < 0.032 d(-1)) than abiotic CL-20 degradation rates. In biologically active soil microcosms amended with glucose aerobic RDX degradation rates varied between 0.010 and 0.474 d(-1). Biodegradation was a key factor in determining the environmental fate of RDX, while a combination of biotic and abiotic processes was important with CL-20. Our data suggest that CL-20 should be less recalcitrant than RDX in aerobic soils.

Effects of of habitats and pesticides on aerobic capacity and survival of soil fauna.

PubMed

Tripathi, G; Sharma, B M

2005-06-01

Faunal health is largely dependent on their soil environment and available litter quality. So the effects of different soil habitats and pesticides on citrate synthase (CS) activity of soil fauna and its population were studied. The soil animals were collected from different pedoecosystems for habitat study. Whereas Vigna radiata based system was selected for pesticidal observations. The field was divided into five equal plots for control and treatment of gamma-BHC, quinalphos, carbaryl and cypermethrin. Soil fauna was collected by quadrat method and extracted by Tullgren funnel. Individuals of a species having similar sizes were collected for the estimation of CS activity. They were homogenized and fractions were obtained by differential centrifugation. The activity of CS was assayed spectrophotometrically. Citrate synthase (CS) activity of beetle (Rasphytus fregi), woodlouse (Porcellio laevis) and centipede (Scolopendra morsitans) varied significantly with respect to changes in different soil habitats. Though the CS activity of R. fregi, P. laevis, and S. morsitans differed among themselves but the highest activity of CS in these animals was in V. radiata and lowest in A. nilotica based pedoecosystem. The aerobic capacity of centipede was maximum followed by woodlouse and beetle. The treatment of gamma-BHC, quinalphos, carbaryl and cypermethrin significantly reduced the CS activity of these animals. Gamma-BHC showed maximum reduction in CS activity indicating highly toxic effect of organochlorine on aerobic metabolism of soil fauna. However, minimum reduction was observed in response to carbaryl (in beetle) or cypermethrin (in woodlouse/centipede) leading to impairment of aerobic capacity. The differences in pesticide effects might be assigned to the differences in chemical nature of pesticides and their interactions with below-ground fauna. Treatment of gamma-BHC and quinalphos reduced the population of Acari, Coleoptera, Collembola, other arthropods as well as total soil fauna. Acari was least affected by gamma-BHC and maximally affected (72%) in response to quinalphos. The effect of gamma-BHC was fairly similar on Coleoptera, Collembola, other arthropod and total soil fauna suggesting almost similar sensitivity to this pesticide. Likewise, quinalphos was similarly effective on Collemobola and other soil arthropods. Application of carbaryl decreased Acari and Coleoptera population but increased Collembola, other arthropods and total faunal populations. However, application of cypermethrin significantly reduced the population of Acari, Coleoptera, Collembola and total soil fauna and increased the population of other soil arthropods. In both the cases, acarine population was least affected. The observations show the habitat-specific variation in aerobic capacity of soil fauna. However, pesticide-dependent loss in population might be due to impairment of aerobic capacity of soil inhabiting animals in desert.

Evaporation From Soil Containers With Irregular Shapes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Assouline, Shmuel; Narkis, Kfir

2017-11-01

Evaporation from bare soils under laboratory conditions is generally studied using containers of regular shapes where the vertical edges are parallel to the flow lines in the drying domain. The main objective of this study was to investigate the impact of irregular container shapes, for which the flow lines either converge or diverge toward the surface. Evaporation from initially saturated sand and sandy loam soils packed in cones and inverted cones was compared to evaporation from corresponding cylindrical columns. The initial evaporation rate was higher in the cones, and close to potential evaporation. At the end of the experiment, the cumulative evaporation depth in the sand cone was equal to that in the column but higher than in the inverted cone, while in the sandy loam, the order was cone > column > inverted cone. By comparison to the column, stage 1 evaporation was longer in the cones, and practically similar in the inverted cones. Stage 2 evaporation rate decreased with the increase of the evaporating surface area. These results were more pronounced in the sandy loam. For the sand column, the transition between stage 1 and stage 2 evaporation occurred when the depth of the saturation front was approximately equal to the characteristic length of the soil. However, for the cone and the inverted cone, it occurred for a shallower depth of the saturation front. It seems therefore that the concept of the characteristic length derived from the soil hydraulic properties is related to drying systems of regular shapes.

Soil compaction effects on growth of young ponderosa pine following litter removal in California's Sierra Nevada

Treesearch

A. Gomez; R. F. Powers; M. J. Singer; W. R. Horwath

2002-01-01

Increased use of heavy equipment and more frequent entry into forest stands has increased the potential for soil compaction and decreased productivity. We examined compaction and tree growth relationships on three California soils of contrasting textures (clayey, loamy, and sandy loam) on plots from which the organic soil horizon had been removed. Compacted and...

Optimization of a sample processing protocol for recovery of Bacillus anthracis spores from soil

USGS Publications Warehouse

Silvestri, Erin E.; Feldhake, David; Griffin, Dale; Lisle, John T.; Nichols, Tonya L.; Shah, Sanjiv; Pemberton, A; Schaefer III, Frank W

2016-01-01

Following a release of Bacillus anthracis spores into the environment, there is a potential for lasting environmental contamination in soils. There is a need for detection protocols for B. anthracis in environmental matrices. However, identification of B. anthracis within a soil is a difficult task. Processing soil samples helps to remove debris, chemical components, and biological impurities that can interfere with microbiological detection. This study aimed to optimize a previously used indirect processing protocol, which included a series of washing and centrifugation steps. Optimization of the protocol included: identifying an ideal extraction diluent, variation in the number of wash steps, variation in the initial centrifugation speed, sonication and shaking mechanisms. The optimized protocol was demonstrated at two laboratories in order to evaluate the recovery of spores from loamy and sandy soils. The new protocol demonstrated an improved limit of detection for loamy and sandy soils over the non-optimized protocol with an approximate matrix limit of detection at 14 spores/g of soil. There were no significant differences overall between the two laboratories for either soil type, suggesting that the processing protocol will be robust enough to use at multiple laboratories while achieving comparable recoveries.

Determining photon energy absorption parameters for different soil samples

PubMed Central

Kucuk, Nil; Tumsavas, Zeynal; Cakir, Merve

2013-01-01

The mass attenuation coefficients (μs) for five different soil samples were measured at 661.6, 1173.2 and 1332.5 keV photon energies. The soil samples were separately irradiated with 137Cs and 60Co (370 kBq) radioactive point gamma sources. The measurements were made by performing transmission experiments with a 2″ × 2″ NaI(Tl) scintillation detector, which had an energy resolution of 7% at 0.662 MeV for the gamma-rays from the decay of 137Cs. The effective atomic numbers (Zeff) and the effective electron densities (Neff) were determined experimentally and theoretically using the obtained μs values for the soil samples. Furthermore, the Zeff and Neff values of the soil samples were computed for the total photon interaction cross-sections using theoretical data over a wide energy region ranging from 1 keV to 15 MeV. The experimental values of the soils were found to be in good agreement with the theoretical values. Sandy loam and sandy clay loam soils demonstrated poor photon energy absorption characteristics. However, clay loam and clay soils had good photon energy absorption characteristics. PMID:23179375

Evaluation of designer biochars to ameliorate select chemical and physical characteristics of degraded soils

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Sandy Coastal Plain soils of the southeastern US have low water holding capacities that can reduce crop yields. Water holding capacities and thus potential yields can be improved by amendments of soils with biochar if it has the right characteristics. Biochars were produced by slow and fast pyrolysi...

A field wind tunnel study of fine dust emissions in sandy soils

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

A portable field wind tunnel has been developed to allow measurements of dust emissions from soil surfaces to test the premise that dust concentration and properties are highly correlated with surface soil properties, as modified by crop management system. In this study, we report on the effect of ...

EVALUATION OF RADON EMANATION FROM SOIL WITH VARYING MOISTURE CONTENT IN A SOIL CHAMBER

EPA Science Inventory

The paper describes measurements to quantitatively identify the extent to which moisture affects radon emanation and diffusive transport components of a sandy soil radon concentration gradient obtained in the EPA test chamber. The chamber (2X2X4 m long) was constructed to study t...

Treatability of volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon-contaminated soils of different textures along a vertical profile by mechanical soil aeration: A laboratory test.

PubMed

Ma, Yan; Shi, Yi; Hou, Deyi; Zhang, Xi; Chen, Jiaqi; Wang, Zhifen; Xu, Zhu; Li, Fasheng; Du, Xiaoming

2017-04-01

Mechanical soil aeration is a simple, effective, and low-cost soil remediation technology that is suitable for sites contaminated with volatile chlorinated hydrocarbons (VCHs). Conventionally, this technique is used to treat the mixed soil of a site without considering the diversity and treatability of different soils within the site. A laboratory test was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of mechanical soil aeration for remediating soils of different textures (silty, clayey, and sandy soils) along a vertical profile at an abandoned chloro-alkali chemical site in China. The collected soils were artificially contaminated with chloroform (TCM) and trichloroethylene (TCE). Mechanical soil aeration was effective for remediating VCHs (removal efficiency >98%). The volatilization process was described by an exponential kinetic function. In the early stage of treatment (0-7hr), rapid contaminant volatilization followed a pseudo-first order kinetic model. VCH concentrations decreased to low levels and showed a tailing phenomenon with very slow contaminant release after 8hr. Compared with silty and sandy soils, clayey soil has high organic-matter content, a large specific surface area, a high clay fraction, and a complex pore structure. These characteristics substantially influenced the removal process, making it less efficient, more time consuming, and consequently more expensive. Our findings provide a potential basis for optimizing soil remediation strategy in a cost-effective manner. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Pupal development of Ceratitis capitata (Diptera: Tephritidae) and Diachasmimorpha longicaudata (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) at different moisture values in four soil types.

PubMed

Bento, F de M M; Marques, R N; Costa, M L Z; Walder, J M M; Silva, A P; Parra, J R P

2010-08-01

This study aimed to evaluate adult emergence and duration of the pupal stage of the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), and emergence of the fruit fly parasitoid, Diachasmimorpha longicaudata (Ashmead), under different moisture conditions in four soil types, using soil water matric potential. Pupal stage duration in C. capitata was influenced differently for males and females. In females, only soil type affected pupal stage duration, which was longer in a clay soil. In males, pupal stage duration was individually influenced by moisture and soil type, with a reduction in pupal stage duration in a heavy clay soil and in a sandy clay, with longer duration in the clay soil. As matric potential decreased, duration of the pupal stage of C. capitata males increased, regardless of soil type. C. capitata emergence was affected by moisture, regardless of soil type, and was higher in drier soils. The emergence of D. longicaudata adults was individually influenced by soil type and moisture factors, and the number of emerged D. longicaudata adults was three times higher in sandy loam and lower in a heavy clay soil. Always, the number of emerged adults was higher at higher moisture conditions. C. capitata and D. longicaudata pupal development was affected by moisture and soil type, which may facilitate pest sampling and allow release areas for the parasitoid to be defined under field conditions.

Fate of CL-20 in sandy soils: degradation products as potential markers of natural attenuation.

PubMed

Monteil-Rivera, Fanny; Halasz, Annamaria; Manno, Dominic; Kuperman, Roman G; Thiboutot, Sonia; Ampleman, Guy; Hawari, Jalal

2009-01-01

Hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane (CL-20) is an emerging explosive that may replace the currently used explosives such as RDX and HMX, but little is known about its fate in soil. The present study was conducted to determine degradation products of CL-20 in two sandy soils under abiotic and biotic anaerobic conditions. Biotic degradation was prevalent in the slightly acidic VT soil, which contained a greater organic C content, while the slightly alkaline SAC soil favored hydrolysis. CL-20 degradation was accompanied by the formation of formate, glyoxal, nitrite, ammonium, and nitrous oxide. Biotic degradation of CL-20 occurred through the formation of its denitrohydrogenated derivative (m/z 393 Da) while hydrolysis occurred through the formation of a ring cleavage product (m/z 156 Da) that was tentatively identified as CH(2)=N-C(=N-NO(2))-CH=N-CHO or its isomer N(NO(2))=CH-CH=N-CO-CH=NH. Due to their chemical specificity, these two intermediates may be considered as markers of in situ attenuation of CL-20 in soil.

Electrochemical techniques implementation for corrosion rate measurement in function of humidity level in grounding systems (copper and stainless steel) in soil samples from Tunja (Colombia)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Salas, Y.; Guerrero, L.; Blanco, J.; Jimenez, C.; Vera-Monroy, S. P.; Mejía-Camacho, A.

2017-12-01

In this work, DC electrochemical techniques were used to determine the corrosion rate of copper and stainless-steel electrodes used in grounding, varying the level of humidity, in sandy loam and clay loam soils. The maximum corrosion potentials were: for copper -211 and -236mV and for stainless steel of -252 and -281mV, in sandy loam and clay loam respectively, showing that in sandy loam the values are higher, about 30mV. The mechanism by which steel controls corrosion is by diffusion, whereas in copper it is carried out by transfer of mass and charge, which affects the rate of corrosion, which in copper reached a maximum value of 5mm/yr and in Steel 0.8mm/yr, determined by Tafel approximations. The behaviour of the corrosion rate was mathematically adjusted to an asymptotic model that faithfully explains the C.R. as a function of humidity, however, it is necessary to define the relation between the factor □ established in the model and the precise characteristics of the soil, such as the permeability or quantity of ions present.

An obligately aerobic soil bacterium activates fermentative hydrogen production to survive reductive stress during hypoxia

PubMed Central

Berney, Michael; Greening, Chris; Conrad, Ralf; Jacobs, William R.; Cook, Gregory M.

2014-01-01

Oxygen availability is a major factor and evolutionary force determining the metabolic strategy of bacteria colonizing an environmental niche. In the soil, conditions can switch rapidly between oxia and anoxia, forcing soil bacteria to remodel their energy metabolism accordingly. Mycobacterium is a dominant genus in the soil, and all its species are obligate aerobes. Here we show that an obligate aerobe, the soil actinomycete Mycobacterium smegmatis, adopts an anaerobe-type strategy by activating fermentative hydrogen production to adapt to hypoxia. This process is controlled by the two-component system DosR-DosS/DosT, an oxygen and redox sensor that is well conserved in mycobacteria. We show that DosR tightly regulates the two [NiFe]-hydrogenases: Hyd3 (MSMEG_3931-3928) and Hyd2 (MSMEG_2719-2718). Using genetic manipulation and high-sensitivity GC, we demonstrate that Hyd3 facilitates the evolution of H2 when oxygen is depleted. Combined activity of Hyd2 and Hyd3 was necessary to maintain an optimal NAD+/NADH ratio and enhanced adaptation to and survival of hypoxia. We demonstrate that fermentatively-produced hydrogen can be recycled when fumarate or oxygen become available, suggesting Mycobacterium smegmatis can switch between fermentation, anaerobic respiration, and aerobic respiration. Hydrogen metabolism enables this obligate aerobe to rapidly meet its energetic needs when switching between microoxic and anoxic conditions and provides a competitive advantage in low oxygen environments. PMID:25049411

Interactions between soil texture and placement of dairy slurry application: I. Flow characteristics and leaching of nonreactive components.

PubMed

Glaesner, Nadia; Kjaergaard, Charlotte; Rubaek, Gitte H; Magid, Jakob

2011-01-01

Land application of manure can exacerbate nutrient and contaminant transfers to the aquatic environment. This study examined the effect of injecting a dairy cattle (Bostaurus L.) manure slurry on mobilization and leaching of dissolved, nonreactive slurry components across a range of agricultural soils. We compared leaching of slurry-applied bromide through intact soil columns (20 cm diam., 20 cm high) of differing textures following surface application or injection of slurry. The volumetric fraction of soil pores >30 microm ranged from 43% in a loamy sand to 28% in a sandy loam and 15% in a loam-textured soil. Smaller active flow volumes and higher proportions of preferential flow were observed with increasing soil clay content. Injection of slurry in the loam soil significantly enhanced diffusion of applied bromide into the large fraction of small pores compared with surface application. The resulting physical protection against leaching of bromide was reflected by 60.2% of the bromide tracer was recovered in the effluent after injection, compared with 80.6% recovery after surface application. No effect of slurry injection was observed in the loamy sand and sandy loam soils. Our findings point to soil texture as an important factor influencing leaching of dissolved, nonreactive slurry components in soils amended with manure slurry.

[Effects of desertification on C and N storages in grassland ecosystem on Horqin sandy land].

PubMed

Zhao, Ha-lin; Li, Yu-qiang; Zhou, Rui-lian

2007-11-01

Sandy grassland is widespread in northern China, where desertification is very common because of overgrazing and estrepement. However, little is known about the effects of desertification on grassland C and N storages in this region. A field survey was conducted on Horqin sandy grassland, and desertification gradients were established to evaluate the effects of desertification on C and N storages in soil, plant, and litter. The results showed that desertification had deep effects on the contents and storages of grassland C and N. The C and N contents and storages in the grassland decreased significantly with increasing desertification degree. Comparing with those in un-desertified grassland, the C and N contents in lightly, moderately, heavily, and severely desertified grasslands decreased by 56.06% and 48.72%, 78.43% and 74.36%, 88.95% and 84.62%, and 91.64% and 84.62% in 0-100 cm soil layer, and by 8.61% and 6.43%, 0.05% and 25.71%, 2.58% and 27.14%, and 8. 61% and 27. 86% in plant components, respectively. Relevantly, the C and N storages decreased by 50.95% and 43.38%, 75.19% and 71.04%, 86.76% and 81.48%, and 91.17% and 83.17% in plant underground components in 0-100 cm soil layer, and by 25.08% and 27.62%, 30.90% and 46.55%, 73.84% and 80.62%, and 90.89% and 87.31% in plant aboveground components, respectively. In 2000, the total area of desertified grassland in Horqin sandy land was 30152. 7 km2, and the C and N loss via desertification reached up to 107.53 and 9.97 Mt, respectively. Correlation analysis indicated that the decrease of soil C and N contents was mainly come from the decreased soil fine particles caused by wind erosion in the process of desertification, and the degradation of soil texture- and nutrient status led finally to the rapid decrease of C and N storages in plant biomass and litter.

Soil carbon unlocked from MIS 5 to MIS 1 aged North Siberian permafrost: state and fate of decomposition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwamborn, Georg; Stapel, Janina G.; Mangelsdorff, Kai; Walz, Josefine; Knoblauch, Christian; Wetterich, Sebastian; Schirrmeister, Lutz

2017-04-01

At Bol'shoy Lyakhovsky, New Siberian Archipelago, multiple permafrost cores were obtained providing a Late Quaternary environmental record with deposits from marine isotope stages MIS 5 to MIS 1. This exceptionally long record is used to evaluate the stored potential of the freeze-locked organic matter (OM) to serve as substrate provider for greenhouse gas producing microorganisms. We relate modern signals of OM degradation from MIS 1 deposits to previous glacial-time deposits (MIS 4 and MIS 3) and to interglacial deposits (MIS 5), which may serve as an analogue for a future Arctic warmer than modern. From the oldest to the youngest, the composite record includes re-frozen MIS 5 lake deposits (sandy silt), floodplain deposits (sandy silt) from MIS 4, Ice Complex (i.e. Yedoma) deposits from MIS 4 to 3 (sandy silt), and alas deposits (sandy silt) from a drained and re-frozen thermokarst basin with MIS 1 ages. Whereas glacial-time deposits (MIS 4 and MIS 3) are fairly ice-rich with a median at 43 wt% ice content, interglacial deposits (MIS 5 and MIS 1) are moderately ice-rich with a median at 31 wt% ice content. In terms of total organic carbon content glacial-time deposits have moderate values with a median at 2.4 wt% and interglacial deposits have low values with a median at 0.4 wt%. Deposits from MIS 4 and MIS 3 possess an increased aliphatic character and therefore higher OM quality in terms of biodegradation compared to deposits from MIS 5 and MIS 1. The strongest primal and future substrate potential is stored within the glacial-time deposits, especially in those layers deposited during environmental conditions with increased moisture. The interstadial MIS 3 deposits hold the highest concentrations of pore-water acetate, which serve as optimal substrate for greenhouse gas generating microorganisms once it is unlocked from the perennially frozen ground. MIS 3 deposits also contain the highest concentrations of organic acids ester-bound to the organic matrix, implying an increased and still stored future substrate pool. In contrast, interglacial MIS 5 deposits are distinctly depleted in both primal and future substrate pools, whereas MIS 1 substrates are partly depleted in that sense. Incubation experiments reveal that moderate CO2 and low CH4 concentrations can be generated from the deposits (after 285 days at 4°C). MIS 4 and MIS 3 deposits produce markedly higher amounts of aerobic and anaerobic CO2 than MIS 5 deposits. CH4 production was only observed in MIS 5 and in a few MIS 1 samples. This points to the fact that greenhouse gas production potentials depend on particular soil properties and environmental conditions during OM deposition and the degree of degradation prior to incorporation into permafrost.

Promoting nitrate removal in rain gardens

EPA Science Inventory

Rain gardens are vegetated surface depressions, often located at low points in landscapes, designed to receive stormwater runoff from roads, roofs, and parking lots. The gardens’ sandy soils allow stormwater to drain quickly to the native soils below and eventually to groundwate...

Predicting Impact of Biochar Addition on Soil Hydraulic Properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nakhli, S. A. A.; Yudi, Y.; Imhoff, P. T.

2017-12-01

Biochar has been proposed as a soil amendment to improve soil hydraulic properties, including water retention and saturated and unsaturated hydraulic conductivity, for agricultural and environmental applications. However, its effect on hydraulic properties is difficult to predict and often with mixed results: in some cases biochar enhances soil hydraulic properties, while in other cases it degrades them. Despite several published observational studies, there are no models that can reliably predict biochar's impact on soil hydraulic properties. In this project we developed models to describe the effect of addition of a commercial wood biochar pyrolyzed at 550° on soil hydraulic properties in laboratory-scale experiments. The effects of biochar addition at 2% and 6% (w/w) on water retention and saturated and unsaturated hydraulic conductivity were evaluated for silt loam, sandy loam, and loamy sand. The addition of 6% (w/w) biochar increased the available water content of silt loam, sandy loam and loamy sand by 25, 20 and 70%, respectively. The impact of biochar addition on water retention was predicted reasonably well using information on the intra particle pore volume of biochar (mercury porosimetry, N2 and CO2 sorption) and the particle size distribution of the soil/biochar mixture. When amended with 6% biochar, saturated hydraulic conductivity increased 17% for loamy sand, but decreased 30% and 54% for silt loam and sandy loam, respectively. The Kozeny-Carman equation modified to account for changes in inter pore volume predicted saturated hydraulic conductivities of the biochar-amended soils reasonably well, with RMSE ranging from 0.06 to 5.06 cm h-1 for silt loam and loamy sand, respectively. While intra particle pore volume of biochar contributed significantly to higher water retention, changes in hydraulic conductivity were correlated instead with changes in inter pore volume - the large pores between biochar and soil particles.

Soil and groundwater attenuation factors for nitrogen from septic systems in the Chesapeake Bay TMDL

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Radcliffe, D. E.; Geza, M.; O'Drisoll, M.; Humphrey, C., Jr.

2015-12-01

An expert panel was tasked with estimating the percent of the nitrogen (N) load from septic systems that was lost in the flow path from a typical home to third-order streams as part of the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL). These losses were referred to as attenuation factors. We developed values for the soil (unsaturated) zone and for the Piedmont and Coastal Plain groundwater zones. For the soil zone, we used the Soil Treatment Unit MODel (STUMOD) to estimate loses due to denitrification for all 12 soil textural classes and then averaged the results over three textural groups. Assuming hydraulic loading at the design rate and a conventional system, the attenuation factors were 16% for sand, loamy sand, sandy loam, and loam soils; 34% for silt loam, clay loam, sandy clay loam, silty clay loam, and silt soils; and 54% for sandy clay, silty clay, and clay soils. Attenuation factors increased in the more clayey soils due to wetter conditions and more losses due to denitrification. Attenuation factors were also developed for reduced hydraulic loading rates and for systems using advanced N pre-treatment. For the Piedmont groundwater zone, we used data from a recent study in Georgia of small suburban streams with high-density septic systems. Stream base-flow load was estimated using simultaneous measurements of total N concentration and discharge and compared to the estimated groundwater input load, resulting in an attenuation factor of 81%. For the Coastal Plain groundwater zone, literature values of groundwater N concentrations within septic system plumes in Virginia, North Carolina, and Florida were used to estimate an attenuation factor of approximately 60% at 100m downgradient from the drainfield. These attenuation factors will be used to estimate the contribution of N to the Chesapeake Bay in the Phase 6 TMDL models.

Willow water uptake and shoot extension growth in response to nutrient and moisture on a clay landfill cap soil.

PubMed

Martin, Peter J; Stephens, William

2008-09-01

Extension growth of willow (Salix viminalis L.) and changes in soil water were measured in lysimeters containing clay and sandy loam soils with different amendment and watering treatments. No water uptake was found below 0.3m in the nutritionally poor unamended clay; amendment with organic matter to 0.4m depth resulted in water extraction down to 0.5m depth whereas in the sandy loam, there was greater extraction from all depths down to 0.6m. With water stress, wilting of plants occurred when the volumetric soil water content at 0.1m was about 31% in the clay and 22% in the sandy loam. Compared with shoots on plants in the amended clay, those in the unamended treatment showed reduced extension growth, little increase in stem basal area (SBA) and a small shoot leaf area, resulting from a reduced number of leaves shoot(-1) and a small average area leaf(-1). Water stress also reduced shoot extension growth, SBA gain and the leaf area on extension growth. Shoot growth rates were significantly correlated with air temperature and base temperatures between 2.0 and 7.6 degrees C were indicated for the different treatments. These studies have helped to explain some of the large treatment effects described previously on biomass production and plant leaf area.

Relationships among bulk soil physicochemical, biochemical, and microbiological parameters in an organic alfalfa-rice rotation system.

PubMed

Lopes, Ana R; Bello, Diana; Prieto-Fernández, Ángeles; Trasar-Cepeda, Carmen; Manaia, Célia M; Nunes, Olga C

2015-08-01

The microbial communities of bulk soil of rice paddy fields under an ancient organic agriculture regimen, consisting on an alfalfa-rice rotation system, were characterized. The drained soil of two adjacent paddies at different stages of the rotation was compared before rice seeding and after harvesting. The relationships among the soil microbial, physicochemical, and biochemical parameters were investigated using multivariate analyses. In the first year of rice cropping, aerobic cultivable heterotrophic populations correlated with lineages of presumably aerobic bacteria (e.g., Sphingobacteriales, Sphingomonadales). In the second year of rice cropping, the total C content correlated with presumable anaerobic bacteria (e.g., Anaerolineae). Independently of the year of rice cropping, before rice seeding, proteolytic activity correlated positively with the cultivable aerobic heterotrophic and ammonifier populations, the soil catabolic profile and with presumable aerobes (e.g., Sphingobacteriales, Rhizobiales) and anaerobes (e.g., Bacteroidales, Anaerolineae). After harvesting, strongest correlations were observed between cultivable diazotrophic populations and bacterial groups described as comprising N2 fixing members (e.g., Chloroflexi-Ellin6529, Betaproteobacteria, Alphaproteobacteria). It was demonstrated that chemical parameters and microbial functions were correlated with variations on the total bacterial community composition and structure occurring during rice cropping. A better understanding of these correlations and of their implications on soil productivity may be valid contributors for sustainable agriculture practices, based on ancient processes.

Potential carbon emissions dominated by carbon dioxide from thawed permafrost soils

DOE PAGES

Schadel, Christina; Bader, Martin K. F.; Schuur, Edward; ...

2016-01-01

Increasing temperatures in northern high latitudes are causing permafrost to thaw, making large amounts of previously frozen organic matter vulnerable to microbial decomposition. Permafrost thaw also creates a fragmented landscape of drier and wetter soil conditions that determine the amount and form (carbon dioxide (CO2), or methane (CH4)) of carbon (C) released to the atmosphere. The rate and form of C release control the magnitude of the permafrost C feedback, so their relative contribution with a warming climate remains unclear. We quantified the effect of increasing temperature and changes from aerobic to anaerobic soil conditions using 25 soil incubation studiesmore » from the permafrost zone. Here we show, using two separate meta-analyses, that a 10 C increase in incubation temperature increased C release by a factor of 2.0 (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.8 to 2.2). Under aerobic incubation conditions, soils released 3.4 (95% CI, 2.2 to 5.2) times more C than under anaerobic conditions. Even when accounting for the higher heat trapping capacity of CH4, soils released 2.3 (95% CI, 1.5 to 3.4) times more C under aerobic conditions. These results imply that permafrost ecosystems thawing under aerobic conditions and releasing CO2 will strengthen the permafrost C feedback more than waterlogged systemsreleasingCO2 andCH4 for a given amount of C.« less

Potential carbon emissions dominated by carbon dioxide from thawed permafrost soils

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schädel, Christina; Bader, Martin K.-F.; Schuur, Edward A.G.; Biasi, Christina; Bracho, Rosvel; Čapek, Petr; De Baets, Sarah; Diáková, Kateřina; Ernakovich, Jessica; Estop-Aragones, Cristian; Graham, David E.; Hartley, Iain P.; Iversen, Colleen M.; Kane, Evan S.; Knoblauch, Christian; Lupascu, Massimo; Martikainen, Pertti J.; Natali, Susan M.; Norby, Richard J.; O'Donnell, Jonathan A.; Roy Chowdhury, Taniya; Šantrůčková, Hana; Shaver, Gaius; Sloan, Victoria L.; Treat, Claire C.; Turetsky, Merritt R.; Waldrop, Mark P.; Wickland, Kimberly P.

2016-01-01

Increasing temperatures in northern high latitudes are causing permafrost to thaw, making large amounts of previously frozen organic matter vulnerable to microbial decomposition. Permafrost thaw also creates a fragmented landscape of drier and wetter soil conditions that determine the amount and form (carbon dioxide (CO2), or methane (CH4)) of carbon (C) released to the atmosphere. The rate and form of C release control the magnitude of the permafrost C feedback, so their relative contribution with a warming climate remains unclear. We quantified the effect of increasing temperature and changes from aerobic to anaerobic soil conditions using 25 soil incubation studies from the permafrost zone. Here we show, using two separate meta-analyses, that a 10 °C increase in incubation temperature increased C release by a factor of 2.0 (95% confidence interval (CI), 1.8 to 2.2). Under aerobic incubation conditions, soils released 3.4 (95% CI, 2.2 to 5.2) times more C than under anaerobic conditions. Even when accounting for the higher heat trapping capacity of CH4, soils released 2.3 (95% CI, 1.5 to 3.4) times more C under aerobic conditions. These results imply that permafrost ecosystems thawing under aerobic conditions and releasing CO2 will strengthen the permafrost C feedback more than waterlogged systems releasing CO2 and CH4 for a given amount of C.

Soil heating during burning of forest slash piles and wood piles

Treesearch

Matt D. Busse; Carol J. Shestak; Ken R. Hubbert

2013-01-01

Pile burning of conifer slash is a common fuel reduction practice in forests of the western United States that has a direct, yet poorly quantified effect on soil heating. To address this knowledge gap, we measured the heat pulse beneath hand-built piles ranging widely in fuel composition and pile size in sandy-textured soils of the Lake Tahoe Basin. The soil heat pulse...

Predicting first-year bare-root seedling establishment with soil and community dominance factors

Treesearch

Robin E. Durham; Benjamin A. Zamora; Michael R. Sackschewsky; Jason C. Ritter

2001-01-01

The usefulness of measuring community dominance factors and the soil parameters of geometric mean particle size and percent fines as predictors of first-year bare-root establishment of Wyoming big sagebrush seedlings was investigated. The study was conducted on six sandy soils in south-central Washington. Soil parameters that could affect the distribution of Sandberg’s...

Core Versus Nuclear Gauge Methods of Determining Soil Bulk Density and Moisture Content

Treesearch

Jacqueline G. Steele; Jerry L. Koger; Albert C. Trouse; Donald L. Sirois

1983-01-01

Soil bulk and moisture content measurements were obtained using two nuclear gauge systems and those compared to those obtained from soil cores. The soils, a Hiwassee sandy loam, a Lakeland loamy sand, and a Loyd clay, were free of organic matter and uniform in mechanical composition. The regression equations developed for the nuclear guages for the first phase of the...

Spectral induced polarization (SIP) measurement of NAPL contaminated soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwartz, N.; Huisman, J. A.; Furman, A.

2010-12-01

The potential applicability of spectral induce polarization (SIP) as a tool to map NAPLs (non aqueous phase liquids) contaminants at the subsurface lead researchers to investigate the electric signature of those contaminant on the spectral response. However, and despite the cumulative efforts, the effect of NAPL on the electrical properties of soil, and the mechanisms that control this effect are largely unknown. In this work a novel experiment is designed to further examine the effect of NAPL on the electrical properties of partially saturated soil. The measurement system that used is the ZEL-SIP04 impedance meter developed at the Forschungszentrum Julich, Germany. The system accurately (nominal phase precision of 0.1 mrad below 1 kHz) measures the phase and the amplitude of a material possessing a very low polarization (such as soil). The sample holder has a dimension of 60 cm long and 4.6 cm in diameter. Current and potential electrodes were made of brass, and while the current electrodes were inserted in full into the soil, the contact between the potential electrode and the soil was made through an Agarose bridge. Two types of soils were used: clean quartz sand, and a mixture of sand with clean Bentonite. Each soil (sandy or clayey) was mixed with water to get saturation degree of 30%. Following the mixture with water, NAPL was added and the composite were mixed again. Packing was done by adding and compressing small portions of the soil to the column. A triplicate of each mixture was made with a good reproducible bulk density. Both for the sandy and clayey soils, the results indicate that additions of NAPL decrease the real part of the complex resistivity. Additionally, for the sandy soil this process is time depended, and that a further decrease in resistivity develops over time. The results are analyzed considering geometrical factors: while the NAPL is electrically insulator, addition of NAPL to the soil is expected to increase the connectivity of the water phase, and therefore a decrease in the real part of the complex resistivity occurs.

Response of Soybean to Heterodera glycines Races 1 and 2 in Different Soil Types.

PubMed

Schmitt, D P; Ferris, H; Barker, K R

1987-04-01

Experiments were conducted for 3 years at four locations and 1 year with six soil types at a common location in North Carolina to determine damage and control-cost functions for Heterodera glycines races 1 and 2 on soybean. In the experiments on native loamy sand and sandy soils, tolerance limits for initial population densities were 0 or very low, whereas in a muck, the tolerance limit was 315 eggs/500 cm(3) soil. The aggressive race 2 was more damaging than race 1 in Lakeland sand and Norfolk loamy sand. The crop response was not different between races in the Appling sandy clay loam and Belhaven muck. Soybean yield responses to H. glycines were linear in six soil types in microplots at a common site. The amount of damage varied among these soil types, with lowest yields in the muck because of severe drought stress in this soil. An exponential function adequately described soybean yield response relative to nematode control with increasing rates of aldicarb in Norfolk loamy sand. Treatment with aldicarb in the Lakeland sand decreased the effective egg population of H. glycines but had only a minor effect in the muck.

Comparative Efficiency of the Fenwick Can and Schuiling Centrifuge in Extracting Nematode Cysts from Different Soil Types

PubMed Central

Bellvert, Joaquim; Crombie, Kieran; Horgan, Finbarr G.

2008-01-01

The Fenwick can and Schuiling centrifuge are widely used to extract nematode cysts from soil samples. The comparative efficiencies of these two methods during cyst extraction have not been determined for different soil types under different cyst densities. Such information is vital for statutory laboratories that must choose a method for routine, high-throughput soil monitoring. In this study, samples of different soil types seeded with varying densities of potato cyst nematode (Globodera rostochiensis) cysts were processed using both methods. In one experiment, with 200 ml samples, recovery was similar between methods. In a second experiment with 500 ml samples, cyst recovery was higher using the Schuiling centrifuge. For each method and soil type, cyst extraction efficiency was similar across all densities tested. Extraction was efficient from pure sand (Fenwick 72%, Schuiling 84%) and naturally sandy soils (Fenwick 62%, Schuiling 73%), but was significantly less efficient from clay-soil (Fenwick 42%, Schuiling 44%) and peat-soil with high organic matter content (Fenwick 35%, Schuiling 33%). Residual moisture (<10% w/w) in samples prior to analyses reduced extraction efficiency, particularly for sand and sandy soils. For each soil type and method, there were significant linear relationships between the number of cysts extracted and the numbers of cysts in the samples. We discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each extraction method for cyst extraction in statutory soil laboratories. PMID:19259516

Effects of leachate on geotechnical characteristics of sandy clay soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harun, N. S.; Ali, Z. Rahman; Rahim, A. S.; Lihan, T.; Idris, R. M. W.

2013-11-01

Leachate is a hazardous liquid that poses negative impacts if leaks out into environments such as soil and ground water systems. The impact of leachate on the downgraded quality in terms of chemical characteristic is more concern rather than the physical or mechanical aspect. The effect of leachate on mechanical behaviour of contaminated soil is not well established and should be investigated. This paper presents the preliminary results of the effects of leachate on the Atterberg limit, compaction and shear strength of leachate-contaminated soil. The contaminated soil samples were prepared by mixing the leachate at ratiosbetween 0% and 20% leachate contents with soil samples. Base soil used was residual soil originated from granitic rock and classified as sandy clay soil (CS). Its specific gravity ranged between 2.5 and 2.64 with clay minerals of kaolinite, muscovite and quartz. The field strength of the studied soil ranged between 156 and 207 kN/m2. The effects of leachate on the Atterberg limit clearly indicated by the decrease in liquid and plastic limit values with the increase in the leachate content. Compaction tests on leachate-contaminated soil caused the dropped in maximum dry density, ρdry and increased in optimum moisture content, wopt when the amount of leachate was increased between 0% and 20%. The results suggested that leachate contamination capable to modify some geotechnical properties of the studied residual soils.

Adsorption and degradation of five selected antibiotics in agricultural soil.

PubMed

Pan, Min; Chu, L M

2016-03-01

Large quantities of antibiotics are being added to agricultural fields worldwide through the application of wastewater, manures and biosolids, resulting in antibiotic contamination and elevated environmental risks in terrestrial environments. Most studies on the environmental fate of antibiotics focus on aquatic environments or wastewater treatment plants. Little is known about the behavior of antibiotics at environmentally relevant concentrations in agricultural soil. In this study we evaluated the adsorption and degradation of five different antibiotics (tetracycline, sulfamethazine, norfloxacin, erythromycin, and chloramphenicol) in sterilized and non-sterilized agricultural soils under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. Adsorption was highest for tetracycline (Kd, 1093 L/kg), while that for sulfamethazine was negligible (Kd, 1.365 L/kg). All five antibiotics were susceptible to microbial degradation under aerobic conditions, with half-lives ranging from 2.9 to 43.3 d in non-sterilized soil and 40.8 to 86.6 d in sterilized soil. Degradation occurred at a higher rate under aerobic conditions but was relatively persistent under anaerobic conditions. For all the antibiotics, a higher initial concentration was found to slow down degradation and prolong persistence in soil. The degradation behavior of the antibiotics varied in relation to their physicochemical properties as well as the microbial activities and aeration of the recipient soil. The poor adsorption and relative persistence of sulfamethazine under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions suggest that it may pose a higher risk to groundwater quality. An equation was proposed to predict the fate of antibiotics in soil under different field conditions, and assess their risks to the environment. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Intra-aggregate CO2 enrichment: a modelling approach for aerobic soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schlotter, D.; Schack-Kirchner, H.

2013-02-01

CO2 concentration gradients inside soil aggregates, caused by the respiration of soil microorganisms and fungal hyphae, might lead to variations in the soil solution chemistry on a mm-scale, and to an underestimation of the CO2 storage. But, up to now, there seems to be no feasible method for measuring CO2 inside natural aggregates with sufficient spatial resolution. We combined a one-dimensional model for gas diffusion in the inter-aggregate pore space with a cylinder diffusion model, simulating the consumption/production and diffusion of O2 and CO2 inside soil aggregates with air- and water-filled pores. Our model predicts that for aerobic respiration (respiratory quotient = 1) the intra-aggregate increase in the CO2 partial pressure can never be higher than 0.9 kPa for siliceous, and 0.1 kPa for calcaric aggregates, independent of the level of water-saturation. This suggests that only for siliceous aggregates CO2 produced by aerobic respiration might cause a high small-scale spatial variability in the soil solution chemistry. In calcaric aggregates, however, the contribution of carbonate species to the CO2 transport should lead to secondary carbonates on the aggregate surfaces. As regards the total CO2 storage in aerobic soils, both siliceous and calcaric, the effect of intra-aggregate CO2 gradients seems to be negligible. To assess the effect of anaerobic respiration on the intra-aggregate CO2 gradients, the development of a device for measuring CO2 on a mm-scale in soils is indispensable.

Toxicity of iron oxide nanoparticles to grass litter decomposition in a sandy soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rashid, Muhammad Imtiaz; Shahzad, Tanvir; Shahid, Muhammad; Imran, Muhammad; Dhavamani, Jeyakumar; Ismail, Iqbal M. I.; Basahi, Jalal M.; Almeelbi, Talal

2017-02-01

We examined time-dependent effect of iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) at a rate of 2000 mg kg-1 soil on Cynodon dactylon litter (3 g kg-1) decomposition in an arid sandy soil. Overall, heterotrophic cultivable bacterial and fungal colonies, and microbial biomass carbon were significantly decreased in litter-amended soil by the application of nanoparticles after 90 and 180 days of incubation. Time dependent effect of nanoparticles was significant for microbial biomass in litter-amended soil where nanoparticles decreased this variable from 27% after 90 days to 49% after 180 days. IONPs decreased CO2 emission by 28 and 30% from litter-amended soil after 90 and 180 days, respectively. These observations indicated that time-dependent effect was not significant on grass-litter carbon mineralization efficiency. Alternatively, nanoparticles application significantly reduced mineral nitrogen content in litter-amended soil in both time intervals. Therefore, nitrogen mineralization efficiency was decreased to 60% after 180 days compared to that after 90 days in nanoparticles grass-litter amended soil. These effects can be explained by the presence of labile Fe in microbial biomass after 180 days in nanoparticles amendment. Hence, our results suggest that toxicity of IONPs to soil functioning should consider before recommending their use in agro-ecosystems.

Fluensulfone sorption and mobility as affected by soil type.

PubMed

Morris, Kelly A; Li, Xiao; Langston, David B; Davis, Richard F; Timper, Patricia; Grey, Timothy L

2018-02-01

Fluensulfone is a fluoroalkenyl chemical with activity against multiple genera of plant-parasitic nematodes. The adsorption, desorption, and mobility of fluensulfone were evaluated on multiple soils from the USA in laboratory and column experiments. Adsorption data regressed to the logarithmic Freundlich equation resulted in isotherm values of 1.24 to 3.28. Soil adsorption of fluensulfone correlated positively with organic matter (0.67) and clay (0.34), but negatively with sand (-0.54). Fluensulfone soil desorption correlated to pH (0.38) and cation exchange capacity (0.44). Fluensulfone desorption from Arredondo sand soil was 26%, and from other soils ranged from 43 to 70%. In mobility experiments, fluensulfone in the leachate peaked at 3 h, gradually declining and becoming undetectable after 9 h. Recovery from leachate was 45% of the initial fluensulfone applied to the soil surface. In separate experiments, 30-cm-long soil columns were saturated with 1 L of water, and then segregated into three 10-cm sections. Fluensulfone recovery was 41, 34, 29, and 13% in Chualar sandy loam, Arredondo sand, Greenville sandy clay loam, and Tifton loamy sand, respectively, in the top 10-cm section. Data indicated that soil organic matter and clay contents will affect sorption, mobility, and dissipation of fluensulfone. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Health assessment for Lake Sandy Jo Landfill, Gary, Indiana, Region 5. CERCLIS No. IND980500524. Final report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1985-11-21

The 50-acre Lake Sandy Jo Landfill is located in the Black Oak community (predominantly residential) of southwestern Gary in Lake County, Indiana. From about 1971 until about 1980, the lake was filled in with construction and demolition debris, municipal garbage, industrial wastes, hazardous materials, and possibly drummed wastes. These wastes are partly to completely exposed on the landfill surface. Surface soil, subsurface soil, surface water, sediment, and ground water show a variety of metal and organic chemical carcinogens. Toxic noncarcinogen priority pollutants found were chloromethane, copper, cyanide, lead, mercury, and silver. Inorganic soil levels found on the site for leadmore » and cadmium exceed levels of concern that would permit unrestricted use of the site. Remedial measures would be necessary before the site could be granted unrestricted use.« less

Differences of cadmium absorption and accumulation in selected vegetable crops.

PubMed

Ni, Wu-Zhong; Yang, Xiao-E; Long, Xin-Xian

2002-07-01

A pot experiment and a sandy culture experiment grown with three vegetable crops of Chinese cabbage (B. chinensis L., cv. Zao-Shu 5), winter greens (B. var. rosularis Tsen et Lee, cv. Shang-Hai-Qing) and celery (A. graveolens L. var. dulce DC., cv. Qing-Qin) were conducted, respectively. The initial soil and four incubated soils with different extractable Cd (0.15, 0.89, 1.38, 1.84 and 2.30 mg Cd/kg soil) were used for the pot experiment. Five treatments were designed (0, 0.0625, 0.125, 0.250 and 0.500 mg Cd/L) in nutrient solution in the sandy culture experiment. Each treatment in pot and sandy culture experiments was trireplicated. The objectives of the study were to examine Cd accumulation in edible parts of selected vegetable crops, its correlation with Cd concentrations in vegetable garden soil or in nutrient solution, and evaluate the criteria of Cd pollution in vegetable garden soil and in nutrient solution based on the hygienic limit of Cd in vegetables. Cadmium concentrations in edible parts of the three selected vegetable crops were as follows: 0.01-0.15 mg/kg fresh weight for Chinese cabbage, 0.02-0.17 mg/kg fresh weight for winter greens, and 0.02-0.24 mg/kg fresh weight for celery in the pot experiment, and 0.1-0.4 mg/kg fresh weight for Chinese cabbage, 0.1-1.4 mg/kg fresh weight for winter greens, and 0.05-0.5 mg/kg fresh weight for celery in the pot experiment (except no-Cd treatment). The order of the three test vegetable crops for cadmium accumulation in the edible parts was celery > winter greens > Chinese cabbage in both the pot experiment and the sandy culture experiment. Cadmium accumulation in edible parts or roots of the vegetable crops increased with increasing of cadmium concentration in the medium (soil or nutrient solution). And cadmium concentrations in edible parts of the test vegetable crops were significantly linearly related to the Cd levels in the growth media (soil and nutrient solution). Based on the regression equations established and the limit of cadmium concentration in vegetable products, the thresholds of Cd concentration in the growth medium evaluated was as follows: 0.5 mg/kg soil of extractable Cd for soil and 0.02 mg/L for nutrient solution. The high capacity for cadmium accumulation in the edible parts of different vegetable crops together with the absence of visual symptoms implies a potential danger for humans.

Response of Soil Bulk Density and Mineral Nitrogen to Harvesting and Cultural Treatments

Treesearch

Minyi Zhou; Mason C. Carter; Thomas J. Dean

1998-01-01

The interactive effects of harvest intensity, site preparation, and fertilization on soil compaction and nitrogen mineralization were examined in a loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) stand growing on a sandy, well-drained soil in eastern Texas. The experimental design was 2 by 2 by 2 factorial, consisting of two harvesting treatments (mechanical whole-...

The effects of soil moisture, texture, and nutrient levels on the growth of black walnut.

Treesearch

Richard E. Dickson

1971-01-01

Black walnut seedlings grown in a clay loam and sandy soil were subjected to two soil moisture regimes and three fertility levels. Fertilization increased growth only under most conditions. Under draught, fertilization retarded growth in the sand. Nitrogen was the element primarily responsible for the greater growth under moist conditions.

Improving the efficiency of boron application on the vineyards during NPK fertilization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Magomadov, Andy; Batukaev, Abdulmalik; Kalinitchenko, Valeriy; Minkina, Tatiana; Sushkova, Svetlana

2017-04-01

The effect of different doses and time of boron fertilization on growth and development of grape plants were studied on the soils of Terek-Kumskiy sands of Chechen Republic, Russian Federation. The studies have shown that sandy soils of pilot area have a low content of main macronutrients except of potassium. The boron content in the sandy soils varies within wide limits and characterizes this soil as lack of boron content especially in water-soluble boron distribution through the soil profile. It was developed a technique for roots feeding of grapes for the first time, that allows to control chemical processes the NPK uptake by plant roots. The studied process realized by implementation of optimum amount of boron in plant-available form, introduced in a certain phase of plants growth. It helps to improve the efficiency of nitrogen, phosphate, potassium using. It was found that boron improves the movement of growth substances and ascorbic acid from the leaves to the fertile parts and cannot be replaced by other nutrients. The plants need of boron throughout the growing season. Boron plays an important role in cell division and protein synthesis is an essential component of cell membranes. The use of boric acid as a fertilizer to increase the number of ovaries on grape plants, stimulating the formation of new points of stems and root growth, increased the number of shoots, improved growth, increased the sugar content of the grapes and taste of the fruit, which is a result of more active uptake of boron by grapes. The optimal dose of boron fertilization on the sandy soil and the comparative agroecological and economic evaluation of its application presented in the research. The use of boron fertilizers allowed to increase the sugar content, acidity, tasting score grapes up to 12-38%. The greatest effect of boron fertilization achieved by application to the phase start of sap flow in a dose of 3 kg/ha in the background N90P90K90. The developed technique for sandy soils fertilization allows to increase a quality of grapes, their properties also allow to improve a costs of produced grape material. This research was supported by Project of President of Russian Federation № MK-3476.2017.5, RFBR № 16-35-60051, 16-35-00347.

Degradation pathway and field-scale DT50 determination of Boscalid in a sandy Soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karlsson, Anneli S.; Weihermüller, Lutz; Tappe, Wolfgang; Mukherjee, Santanu; Spielvogel, Sandra

2016-04-01

The research on environmental fate of pesticides has received increasing attention within the last decades and the persistence of several compounds in soil matrices is well documented. However, the fate of the new fungicide Boscalid (introduced in 2003) is not yet completely investigated. The aim of this study was to analyze the environmental fate of Boscalid in a sandy soil. Three years after the second application on a cropland site in Kaldenkirchen, Germany, 65 undisturbed soil samples from the plough layer were derived. Boscalid residues were extracted using Accelerated Solvent Extraction (ASE) and measured with UPLC-MS/MS. The Boscalid residues ranged between 0.12 and 0.53 μg kg-1with a field mean of 0.20 ± 0.09 μg kg-1. These results differed considerably from the predicted field concentration of 16.89 μg kg-1 (calculated from the application rate) and half-lives (DT50) of 104-182 days compared to 345 days reported in literature. Adjusting the extraction efficiency to 20% could not explain the large difference. Therefore, an incubation study with 14C-labeled Boscalid was conducted to measure the DT50 under controlled conditions. Here, the DT50 values were in the range of values stated in literature (297-337 days compared to 345 days) but still much larger than the DT50 based on the field-study values (104-182 days). Our results indicate that Boscalid dissipation under field conditions is much faster at agricultural sites with sandy soil type as expected from laboratory incubation experiments. Future experiments with Boscalid will be conducted in two different soils with different particle size. A laboratory experiment with uniformly 13C-labeled Boscalid will provide insight into the uptake and incorporation in microbial biomass.

Comparison of germination and seed vigor of sunflower in two contaminated soils of different texture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Xin; Han, Jaemaro; Lee, Jong Keun; Kim, Jae Young

2014-05-01

Phytoremediation as an emerging low-cost and ecologically friendly alternative to the conventional soil remediation technologies has gained a great deal of attention and into lots of research. As a kind of the methods that use of green plants to remediate heavy metals contaminated soils, the early growth status of plant seeds in the contaminated environmental directly affects the effect of phytoremediation. Germination test in the water (aqueous solution of heavy metal) is generally used for assessing heavy metal phytotoxicity and possibility of plant growth, but there is a limit. Because soil is commonly main target of phytoremediation, not the water. The bioavailability of heavy metals in the soil also depends on the texture. So soil texture is an important factor of phytoremediation effect. Sunflower is the representative species which have good tolerance to various heavy metals; furthermore, the seeds of sunflower can be used as the raw-material for producing bio-diesel. The objectives of this research were to investigate germination rate of sunflowers in various heavy metal contaminated soils and to compare the seedling vigor index (SVI) of sunflower in two contaminated soils of different texture. Sunflower (Helianthusannuus L.) seeds were obtained from a commercial market. In order to prove the soil texture effect on heavy metal contaminated soil, germination tests in soil were conducted with two different types of soil texture (i.e., loam soil and sandy loam soil) classified by soil textural triangle (defined by USDA) including representative soil texture of Korea. Germination tests in soil were conducted using KS I ISO 11260-1 (2005) for reference that sunflower seeds were incubated for 7 days in dark at 25 ± 1 Celsius degree. The target heavy metals are Nickel (Ni) and Zinc (Zn). The Ni and Zn concentrations were 0, 10, 50, 100, 200, 300, 500 mg-Ni/kg-dry soil, and 0, 10, 50, 100, 300, 500, 900 mg-Zn/kg-dry soil, respectively. After germination test for 7 days, germination rate of sunflower was calculated, and shoot and root lengths were also measured. According to the results of germination tests, the seeds germination rates were reduced with increasing heavy metal concentrations in both loam soil and sandy loam soil. The SVI values in loam soil in more than in sandy loam soil. Keywords: phytoremediation, sunflower, soil texture, germination test ACKNOWLEDGEMENT This work is supported by the Korea Ministry of the Environment as 'The GAIA (Geo-Advanced Innovative Action) Project'.

Hillslope Chromatography in Savannas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hartshorn, A.; Khomo, L.; Chadwick, O.; Rogers, K.; Kurtz, A.; Heimsath, A.

2005-12-01

In semiarid ecosystems, vegetation patterns are controlled in part by soil water availability. Along hillslopes in Kruger National Park, South Africa, water availability is strongly dependent on soil texture and textural differences with depth, which are a function of landscape position (convergent or divergent crests, midslopes, and footslopes) and parent material. We are studying weathering and landscape development on the western side of the park, which is underlain by granitic gneisses. Hillslopes in the park are often described as catenas, where rainfall catalyzes chemical weathering and drives the downslope transport of clays and weathering products, forming a predictable sequence of soil types. Sandy crest soils grade to midslope soils where sandy surface horizons overlie clayey subsurface horizons; footslopes generally have higher volumetric clay contents. The boundary between the sandy and clayey soils is of ecological significance because this is the location where run-on from upslope landscape positions is diverted to the surface, initiating overland flow and reducing infiltration. In a geochemical sense these hillslopes can be thought of as chromatographic columns that accentuate differential solute mobility along the long (~1-2 km) potential flowpaths. We use the compound topographic index (a terrain attribute that indexes soil wetness by dividing the upslope contributing area by the slope) to predict the redistribution of clays across these semiarid hillslopes and hope to demonstrate that landscape positions occupying comparable plan and profile curvatures contain clay and organic carbon in proportion to contributing area. Thus far, we have derived contributing area values for 40 soil pits using LiDAR-based digital elevation models and then tested how well contributing area and other terrain attributes predicted clay and carbon content for 218 horizons at these 40 locations. Depth-weighted soil clay ranged from 3 to 25% and total soil carbon ranged from 0.1 to 2.1%. Our preliminary results suggest that greater contributing area only produces greater soil clay content up to a threshold clay content, after which clay illuviation and in situ clay production slows following the diversion of water to the surface.

ORGANIC COSOLVENT EFFECTS ON THE SORPTION AND TRANSPORT OF NEUTRAL ORGANIC CHEMICALS

EPA Science Inventory

Soil column miscible displacement techniques were used to investigate the effects of an organic cosolvent (methanol) on the sorption and transport of three neutral organic chemicals; naphthalene, phenanthrene, and the herbicide diuron, through a sandy surface soil. A two-domain, ...

Sorption-desorption of indaziflam and its three metabolites in sandy soils

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Indaziflam is a relatively new herbicide for which sorption-desorption information is lacking, and nothing is available on its metabolites. Information is needed on the multiple soil and pesticide characteristics known to influence these processes. Freundlich sorption isotherm slopes were < 1, there...

The collection of clear-water contraction and abutment scour data at selected bridge sites in the coastal plain and piedmont of South Carolina

USGS Publications Warehouse

Benedict, Stephen T.; Caldwell, Andy W.; Edited by Abt, S. R. and others

1998-01-01

Clear-water contraction and abutment scour data were collected at 128 bridge sites in South Carolina. In the sandy soils of the Coastal Plain, clear-water-scour data were collected at 63 sites (scour depths ranged from 0.4 to 7.2 meters.) In the clayey soils of the Piedmont, clear-water-scour data were collected at 47 sites (scour depths ranged from 0 to 1.4 meters.) In the sandy, clayey soils of the Piedmont, clear-water-scour data were collected at 18 sites (scour depths ranged from 0.9 to 5.5 meters.) The field data are to be compiled into a data base that will include bridge age; basin, soil and hydraulic characteristics; and theoretical scour data. The data are planned to be statistically analyzed for significant relations that may help explain and (or) predict maximum scour depths at bridges in South Carolina.

A Case Study of Petroleum Degradation in Different Soil Textural Classes.

PubMed

Kogbara, Reginald B; Ayotamuno, Josiah M; Worlu, Daniel C; Fubara-Manuel, Isoteim

2016-01-01

Patents have been granted for a number of techniques for petroleum biodegradation including use of micro-organisms for degradation of hydrocarbon-based substances and for hydrocarbon degradation in oil reservoirs, but there is a dearth of information on hydrocarbon degradation in different soil textures. Hence, this work investigated the effects of different soil textures on degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons during a six-week period. Five soil textural classes commonly found in Port Harcourt metropolis, Nigeria, namely sand, loamy sand, sandy loam, silty clay and clay, were employed. The soils were contaminated with the same amount of crude oil and then remediated by biostimulation. Selected soil properties were monitored over time. Bacterial numbers declined significantly in the fine soil textures after petroleum contamination, but were either unaffected or increased significantly in the coarser soil textures. Hydrocarbon losses ranged from 42% - 99%; the sandy loam had the highest, while the clay soil had the least total hydrocarbon content (THC) reduction. The total heterotrophic bacterial (THB) counts generally corroborated the THC results. Fold increase in bacterial numbers due to remediation treatment decreased with increasing clay content. The results suggest that higher sand than clay content of soil favours faster hydrocarbon degradation. Hydrocarbon degradation efficiency increased with silt content among soil groupings such as fine and coarse soils but not necessarily with increasing silt content of soil. Thus, there seems to be cut-off sand and clay contents in soil at which the effect of the silt content becomes significant.

Soil Nitrification and N2O Production: the connection with N concentration and Soil Water Content

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu-Barker, X.; Horwath, W. R.

2016-12-01

The development of mitigation strategies to reduce nitrous oxide (N2O) emission from soils is dependent on explicating the biophysical factors affecting different N2O production pathways. Ammonia oxidation and heterotrophic denitrification are the main pathways of N2O production, depending on soil conditions such as soil moisture content, oxygen (O2) content and N substrate. Many researchers have reported that N2O production increased as substrate concentration and soil moisture content increased. However, less understood is how N fertilizer concentration and moisture content interact to affect N2O production pathways. To investigate interaction and its effect on O2 consumption, we incubated three agricultural soils (clay, sandy loam, and peat) with different concentrations of (NH4)2SO4 (0-1000 µg N g-1) under 50 %, 75%, and 100% of water holding capacity. All treatments received 15N -KNO3 to bring the concentrations of NO3-_N in soils to 50 mg kg-1 soil and the NO3- pool to an enrichment of 10 atom% 15N. In all soils, the total amount of O2 consumption and N2O production increased as soil ammonical N concentration increased. The increased soil moisture significantly promoted N2O production in sandy loam and clay loam soils, compared to the peat soil. These results indicate that N2O production increased as substrate concentration increased likely due to the onset of O2 limitation caused by ammonia oxidation.

Dietary crude protein and tannin impact dairy manure chemistry and ammonia emissions from incubated soils.

PubMed

Powell, J M; Aguerre, M J; Wattiaux, M A

2011-01-01

Excess crude protein (CP) in dairy cow diets is excreted mostly as urea nitrogen (N), which increases ammonia (NH) emissions from dairy farms and heightens human health and environmental concerns. Feeding less CP and more tannin to dairy cows may enhance feed N use and milk production, abate NH emissions, and conserve the fertilizer N value of manure. Lab-scale ventilated chambers were used to evaluate the impacts of CP and tannin feeding on slurry chemistry, NH emissions, and soil inorganic N levels after slurry application to a sandy loam soil and a silt loam soil. Slurry from lactating Holstein dairy cows (Bos taurus) fed two levels of dietary CP (low CP [LCP], 155 g kg; high CP [HCP], 168 g kg) each fed at four levels of dietary tannin extract, a mixture from red quebracho (Schinopsis lorentzii) and chestnut (Castanea sativa) trees (0 tannin [0T]; low tannin [LT], 4.5 g kg; medium tannin [MT], 9.0 g kg; and high tannin [HT], 18.0 g kg) were applied to soil-containing lab-scale chambers, and NH emissions were measured 1, 3, 6, 12, 24, 36, and 48 h after slurry application. Emissions from the HCP slurry were 1.53 to 2.57 times greater ( < 0.05) than from the LCP slurry. At trial's end (48 h), concentrations of inorganic N in soils were greater ( < 0.05) in HCP slurry-amended soils than in LCP slurry-amended soils. Emissions from HT slurry were 28 to 49% lower ( < 0.05) than emissions from 0T slurry, yet these differences did not affect soil inorganic N levels. Emissions from the sandy loam soil were 1.07 to 1.15 times greater ( < 0.05) than from silt loam soil, a result that decreased soil inorganic N in the sandy loam compared with the silt loam soil. Larger-scale and longer-term field trails are needed to ascertain the effectiveness of feeding tannin extracts to dairy cows in abating NH loss from land-applied slurry and the impact of tannin-containing slurry on soil N cycles. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Isolation and characterization of aerobic anoxygenic phototrophs from exposed soils from the Sør Rondane Mountains, East Antarctica.

PubMed

Tahon, Guillaume; Willems, Anne

2017-09-01

This study investigated the culturable aerobic phototrophic bacteria present in soil samples collected in the proximity of the Belgian Princess Elisabeth Station in the Sør Rondane Mountains, East Antarctica. Until recently, only oxygenic phototrophic bacteria (Cyanobacteria) were well known from Antarctic soils. However, more recent non-cultivation-based studies have demonstrated the presence of anoxygenic phototrophs and, particularly, aerobic anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria in these areas. Approximately 1000 isolates obtained after prolonged incubation under different growth conditions were studied and characterized by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Representative strains were identified by sequence analysis of 16S rRNA genes. More than half of the isolates grouped among known aerobic anoxygenic phototrophic taxa, particularly with Sphingomonadaceae, Methylobacterium and Brevundimonas. In addition, a total of 330 isolates were tested for the presence of key phototrophy genes. While rhodopsin genes were not detected, multiple isolates possessed key genes of the bacteriochlorophyll synthesis pathway. The majority of these potential aerobic anoxygenic phototrophic strains grouped with Alphaproteobacteria (Sphingomonas, Methylobacterium, Brevundimonas and Polymorphobacter). Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier GmbH.. All rights reserved.

Effects of shrub encroachment on soil organic carbon in global grasslands.

PubMed

Li, He; Shen, Haihua; Chen, Leiyi; Liu, Taoyu; Hu, Huifeng; Zhao, Xia; Zhou, Luhong; Zhang, Pujin; Fang, Jingyun

2016-07-08

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of shrub encroachment on soil organic carbon (SOC) content at broad scales and its controls. We conducted a meta-analysis using paired control data of shrub-encroached grassland (SEG) vs. non-SEG collected from 142 studies worldwide. SOC contents (0-50 cm) were altered by shrub encroachment, with changes ranging from -50% to + 300%, with an effect size of 0.15 (p < 0.01). The SOC contents increased in semi-arid and humid regions, and showed a greater rate of increase in grassland encroached by leguminous shrubs than by non-legumes. The SOC content decreased in silty and clay soils but increased in sand, sandy loam and sandy clay loam. The SOC content increment was significantly positively correlated with precipitation and temperature as well as with soil bulk density but significantly negatively correlated with soil total nitrogen. We conclude the main effects of shrub encroachment would be to increase topsoil organic carbon content. As structural equation model revealed, soils properties seem to be the primary factors responsible for the extent of the changes, coarse textured soils having a greater capacity than fine textured soils to increase the SOC content. This increased effect appears to be secondarily enhanced by climate and plant elements.

Localization and Speciation of Arsenic in Soil and Desert Plant Parkinsonia florida using μXRF and μXANES

PubMed Central

Castillo-Michel, Hiram; Hernandez-Viezcas, Jose; Dokken, Kenneth M.; Marcus, Matthew A.; Peralta-Videa, Jose R.; Gardea-Torresdey, Jorge L.

2011-01-01

Parkinsonia florida is a plant species native to the semi-desert regions of North America. The cultivation characteristics of this shrub/tree suggest that it could be used for phytoremediation purposes in semiarid regions. This work describes, through the use of synchrotron μXRF and μXANES techniques and ICP-OES, the arsenic (As) accumulation and distribution in P. florida plants grown in two soils spiked with As at 20 mg kg-1. Plants grown in a sandy soil accumulated at least twice more As in the roots compared to plants grown in a loamy soil. The lower As accumulation in plants grown in the loamy soil corresponded to a lower concentration of As in the water soluble fraction (WSF) of this soil. LC-ICP-MS speciation analysis showed only As(V) in the WSF from all treatments. In contrast, linear combination XANES speciation analysis from the root tissues showed As mainly present in the reduced As(III) form. Moreover, a fraction of the reduced As was found coordinating to S in a form consistent with As-Cys3. The percentage of As coordinated to sulfur was smaller for plants grown in the loamy soil when compared to the sandy soil. PMID:21842861

Localization and speciation of arsenic in soil and desert plant Parkinsonia florida using μXRF and μXANES.

PubMed

Castillo-Michel, Hiram; Hernandez-Viezcas, Jose; Dokken, Kenneth M; Marcus, Matthew A; Peralta-Videa, Jose R; Gardea-Torresdey, Jorge L

2011-09-15

Parkinsonia florida is a plant species native to the semidesert regions of North America. The cultivation characteristics of this shrub/tree suggest that it could be used for phytoremediation purposes in semiarid regions. This work describes, through the use of synchrotron μXRF and μXANES techniques and ICP-OES, the arsenic (As) accumulation and distribution in P. florida plants grown in two soils spiked with As at 20 mg kg(-1). Plants grown in a sandy soil accumulated at least twice more As in the roots compared to plants grown in a loamy soil. The lower As accumulation in plants grown in the loamy soil corresponded to a lower concentration of As in the water-soluble fraction (WSF) of this soil. LC-ICP-MS speciation analysis showed only As(V) in the WSF from all treatments. In contrast, linear combination XANES speciation analysis from the root tissues showed As mainly present in the reduced As(III) form. Moreover, a fraction of the reduced As was found coordinating to S in a form consistent with As-Cys(3). The percentage of As coordinated to sulfur was smaller for plants grown in the loamy soil when compared to the sandy soil.

Mobility and dissipation of chlorpyriphos and quinalphos in sandy clay loam in an agroecosystem-a laboratory-based soil column study.

PubMed

G P, Bindumol; C C, Harilal

2017-09-15

Leaching potential of pesticides, apart from climatological factors, depends on soil physical properties, soil-pesticide interaction and chemical nature of the molecule. Recent investigations have revealed the presence of various organophosphate pesticides in various agroecosystems. The present study investigated the soil transport mechanism of commonly used organophosphate pesticides in acidic sandy clay loam soils of Kerala State, India. Packed soil column experiment was undertaken under laboratory condition for 30 days. Unsaturated flow was carried out using distilled water/0.01 M CaCl 2 solution after applying chlorpyriphos and quinalphos at the rate of 0.04% a.i.ha -1 and 0.025% a.i.ha -1 , respectively. The study revealed the retention of residues of chlorpyriphos and quinalphos in the top 5-cm layer. Irrespective of the applied concentration of chlorpyriphos and quinalphos, the relative concentration of the pesticides in soil was similar. About 56% of the applied chemicals were dissipated in 30 days of unsaturated flow. A new dissipation compound iron, tricarbonyl [N-(phenyl-2-pyridinylmethyene) benzenamine-N, N'], was detected in GCMS analysis of soil extract from distilled water percolated soil. The dissipation of chlorpyriphos and quinalphos was faster in 0.01 M CaCl 2 -treated soil column. Among the pesticides analysed, the residue of quinalphos was detected in leachate.

The Role of Teak Leaves (Tectona grandis), Rhizobium, and Vesicular-Arbuscular Mycorrhizae on Improving Soil Structure and Soil Nutrition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yuliani; Rahayu, Y. S.

2018-01-01

Calcium is the largest mineral in calcareous soils. High levels of calcium carbonate lead to phosphate deposition. Nutrient deficiencies in calcareous soil (mainly Phosphate and Nitrogen) resulted only certain crops with a wide range of tolerances that can grow. Meanwhile, dynamics nutrient in calcareous soils also depend on the topography and decomposition of the litter in the growing vegetation. The purpose of this study was to describe the pattern of nutrient enhancement and soil-texture structures on calcareous soils after littering the teak leaves, Rhizobium and Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhiza. The research parameters were the concentration of N, P, K; C/N ratio, humid acid content, and soil structure, which measured at days 30, 60, and 85 of soil decomposition process. The results showed that at days 30, the texture and structure of the soil tend to be stable (porosity 31.2, DMR 1.93, moisture content 0.36, sandy clay) while at days 85 has been very stable (porosity 49.8; Water content 0.28, sandy clay). While C and N organic, N and K concentration at days 30 showed low value (C organic 1.03, N 0.12, K 0.49, C / N ratio 9). This condition is almost unchanged at days 85. While the P value shows very high value (60.53) at days 30 although after 60 days the P content showed a decrease.

[Nutrient contents and microbial populations of aeolian sandy soil in Sanjiangyuan region of Qinghai Province].

PubMed

Lin, Chao-feng; Chen, Zhan-quan; Xue, Quan-hong; Lai, Hang-xian; Chen, Lai-sheng; Zhang, Deng-shan

2007-01-01

Sanjiangyuan region (the headstream of three rivers) in Qinghai Province of China is the highest and largest inland alpine wetland in the world. The study on the nutrient contents and microbial populations of aeolian sandy soils in this region showed that soil organic matter content increased with the evolution of aeolian sand dunes from un-stabilized to stabilized state, being 5.9 and 3.8 times higher in stabilized sand dune than in mobile and semi-stabilized sand dunes, respectively. Soil nitrogen and phosphorus contents increased in line with the amount of organic matter, while potassium content and pH value varied slightly. The microbial populations changed markedly with the development of vegetation, fixing of mobile sand, and increase of soil nutrients. The quantities of soil bacteria, fungi and actinomycetes were 4.0 and 2.8 times, 19.6 and 6.3 times, and 12.4 and 2.6 times higher in stabilized and semi-stabilized sand dunes than in mobile sand dune, respectively, indicating that soil microbial bio-diversity was increased with the evolution of aeolian sand dunes from mobile to stabilized state. In addition, the quantities of soil microbes were closely correlated with the contents of soil organic matter, total nitrogen, and available nitrogen and phosphorus, but not correlated with soil total phosphorus, total and available potassium, or pH value.

Degradation of cyflumetofen and formation of its main metabolites in soils and water/sediment systems.

PubMed

Wang, Pingping; Li, Minmin; Liu, Xingang; Xu, Jun; Dong, Fengshou; Wu, Xiaohu; Zheng, Yongquan

2016-11-01

Cyflumetofen is a novel benzoyl acetonitrile acaricide without cross-resistance to existing acaricides. In the present study, for the first time, the environmental behaviors of cyflumetofen and the formation of its main metabolites, 2-(trifluoromethyl) benzoic acid (B-1) and 2-(trifluoromethyl) benzamide (B-3), in the four types of soil (black soil, sierozem, krasnozem, and fluvo-aquic soil) and three types of water/sediment systems (Northeast Lake, Hunan paddy field, and Beijng Shangzhuang reservoir) under aerobic and anaerobic conditions were investigated. The degradation dynamics of cyflumetofen followed first-order kinetics. Under aerobic environment, the half-lives of cyflumetofen in black soil, sierozem, krasnozem and fluvo-aquic soil were 11.2, 10.3, 12.4, and 11.4 days. Under water anaerobic conditions, the half-lives were 13.1, 10.8, 13.9, and 12.8 days. The effects of different conditions and soil types on the half-lives of cyflumetofen were studied using a one-way ANOVA test with post hoc comparison (Tukey's test). It was shown that the differences in black soil, krasnozem, and fluvo-aquic soil were extremely significant difference (p < 0.05) under aerobic and water anaerobic conditions. And there is a strong correlation between half-life and pH. Under aerobic environment, the half-lives of cyflumetofen in Northeast Lake, Hunan paddy field, and Beijng Shangzhuang reservoir were 15.4, 16.9, and 15.1 days. Under anaerobic conditions, they were 16.5, 17.3, and 16.1 days. Analyzing the differences of the half-lives under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, the difference only in Shangzhuang reservoir was extremely significant difference (p < 0.05). In soils, cyflumetofen degraded metabolites B-1 and B-3, from the first day 0.24 % B-1 was generated, while, only very low levels of B-3 generated at the same time. As time increased, B-3 gradually increased, cyflumetofen reduced gradually. Until 100 days, there were about 3.5 % B-1 and B-3 in the soils. In the water/sediment systems, from the first day, it degraded into B-1 in the sediment, and in the water mainly degraded into B-3.

[Virus adsorption from batch experiments as influenced by air-water interface].

PubMed

Zhang, Hui; Zhao, Bing-zi; Zhang, Jia-bao; Zhang, Cong-zhi; Wang, Qiu-ying; Chen, Ji

2007-12-01

The presence of air-water interface in batch sorption experiments may result in inaccurate estimation of virus adsorption onto various soils. A batch sorption experiment was conducted to compare the adsorption results of MS2 in different soils under presence/absence of air-water interface. Soils with sterilization/nonterilization treatment were used. Virus recovery efficiency in a blank experiment (no soil) was also evaluated as affected by different amount of air-water interface. The presence of air-water interface altered the results of virus adsorption in different soils with different extent, with Sandy fluvo-aquic soil being the most considerably affected, followed by Red loam soil, and the least being Red clay soil, probably because of different soil properties associated with virus adsorption/inactivation. Soil sterilization resulted in more significant difference of virus adsorption onto the Sandy fluvo-aquic soil between the presence and absence of air-water interface, while a reduced difference was observed in the Red loam soil. The presence of air-water interface significantly decreased virus recovery efficiency, with the values being decreased with increase in the amount of air-water interface. Soil particles likely prohibit viruses from reaching the air-water interface or alter the forces at the solid-water-air interface so that the results from the blank experiment did not truly represent results from control blank, which probably resulted in adsorption difference between presence and absence of the air-water interface.

Assessment of grass root effects on soil piping in sandy soils using the pinhole test

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bernatek-Jakiel, Anita; Vannoppen, Wouter; Poesen, Jean

2017-04-01

Soil piping is a complex land degradation process, which involves the hydraulic removal of soil particles by subsurface flow. This process is frequently underestimated and omitted in most soil erosion studies. However, during the last decades several studies reported the importance of soil piping in various climatic zones and for a wide range of soil types. Compared to sheet, rill and gully erosion, very few studies focused on the factors controlling piping and, so far, there is no research study dealing with the effects of plant roots on piping susceptibility of soils having a low cohesion. The objective of this study is therefore to assess the impact of grass root density (RD) on soil piping in sandy soils using the pinhole test. The pinhole test involves a water flow passing through a hole of 1 mm diameter in a soil specimen (sampled using a metal ring with a diameter of 5 cm and a length of 8 cm), under varying hydraulic heads (50 mm, 180 mm, 380 mm and 1020 mm; Nadal-Romero et al., 2011). To provide a quantitative assessment piping susceptibility of the soil sample, the pipeflow discharge (cm3 s-1) and the sediment discharge (g s-1) were measured every minute during a five minute test. Bare and root-permeated samples were tested, using a sandy soil with a sand, silt, clay content of respectively, 94%, 4% and 2%. The root-permeated topsoil samples were taken in field plots sown with a mixture of grasses with fibrous roots. All soil samples were placed on a sandbox with a 100 mm head for 24 hours to ensure a similar water content for all samples. In total, 67 pinhole tests (lasting 5 minutes each) were conducted, i.e. 43 root-permeated soil samples with RD ranging from 0.01 to 0.93 kg m-3 and 24 root-free soil samples as a reference. Clear piping erosion could be observed in 65% of the root-free soil samples, whereas only 17% of rooted soil samples revealed clear piping erosion during the tests. Statistical analyses show that there is a negative correlation (-0.41, p < 0.05) between RD and sediment discharge. Mean pipeflow discharge was 1.4 times larger for the root-free samples compared to the root-permeated samples, while mean sediment discharge was 3 times higher for the root-free samples compared to the rooted samples. This indicates that the presence of fibrous roots in topsoils decreases the susceptibility to soil piping significantly. Furthermore, a positive correlation between the hydraulic head (50-1020 mm) and sediment discharge was observed. Overall, our results suggest that root density is a highly relevant factor for decreasing the soil piping erosion rates in the sandy topsoils. The presence of even very low root densities (< 1 kg m3) decrease pipeflow and sediment discharge. A. Bernatek-Jakiel is supported by the ETIUDA doctoral scholarship (UMO-2015/16/T/ST10/00505) financed by the National Science Centre of Poland. Reference: Nadal-Romero, E., Verachtert, E., Maes, R., Poesen, J., 2011. Quantitative assessment of the piping erosion susceptibility of loess-derived soil horizons using the pinhole test. Geomorphology 135, 66-79.

COMPARISON OF GEOPROBE PRT AND AMS GVP SOIL-GAS SAMPLING SYSTEMS WITH DEDICATED VAPOR PROBES IN SANDY SOILS AT THE RAYMARK SUPERFUND SITE

EPA Science Inventory

A study was conducted near the Raymark Superfund Site in Stratford, Connecticut to compare results of soil-gas sampling using dedicated vapor probes, a truck-mounted direct-push technique - the Geoprobe Post-Run-Tubing (PRT) system, and a hand-held rotary hammer technique - the A...

Physical and hydraulic properties of a sandy loam soil under zero, shallow and deep tillage practices

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Over the centuries, tillage has been an important agronomic practice that has been used to mechanically alter soil properties and enhance the soil ecosystem for growth of crops. A 4-yr study investigated the impact of no-tillage (NT), shallow tillage at a 10-cm depth (ST), and deep tillage at a 30-c...

Design of dry sand soil stratified sampler

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Erkang; Chen, Wei; Feng, Xiao; Liao, Hongbo; Liang, Xiaodong

2018-04-01

This paper presents a design of a stratified sampler for dry sand soil, which can be used for stratified sampling of loose sand under certain conditions. Our group designed the mechanical structure of a portable, single - person, dry sandy soil stratified sampler. We have set up a mathematical model for the sampler. It lays the foundation for further development of design research.

Retention and transport of mecoprop on acid sandy-loam soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paradelo Núñez, Remigio; Conde Cid, Manuel; Abad, Elodie Martin; Fernández Calviño, David; Nóvoa Muñoz, Juan Carlos; Arias Estévez, Manuel

2017-04-01

Interaction with soil components is one of the key processes governing the fate of agrochemicals in the environment. In this work, we have studied the adsorption/desorption and transport of mecoprop in four acid sandy-loam soils with different organic matter contents. Kinetics of adsorption and adsorption/desorption at equilibrium have been studied in batch experiments, whereas transport was studied in laboratory columns. Adsorption and desorption are linear or nearly-linear. The kinetics of mecoprop adsorption are relatively fast in all cases (less than 24 h). Adsorption and desorption were adequately described by the linear and Freundlich models, with KF values that ranged from 0.7 to 8.8 Ln µmol1-n kg-1 and KD values from 0.3 to 3.6 L kg-1. High desorption percentages (>50%) were found, indicative of a high reversibility of the adsorption process. The results of the transport experiments showed that the retention of mecoprop by soil was very low (less than 6.2%). The retention of mecoprop by the soils in all experiments increased with organic matter content. Overall, it was observed that mecoprop was weakly adsorbed by the soils, what would result in a high risk of leaching of this compound.

Influence of pecan biochar on physical properties of a Norfolk loamy sand

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Because the southeastern USA Coastal Plain has high temperatures and abundant rainfall, its sandy soils have poor physical characteristics and low carbon contents. To increase soil carbon (C), we added switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) and non-activated recalcitrant pecan biochar. Biochar was developed...

Conservation agriculture improves yield and reduces weeding activity in sandy soils of Cambodia

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Intensive tillage in many less-developed countries, including Cambodia have caused significant decline in agriculture’s natural resources and sustainability. With limited available data, long-term conventional tillage system (CT) and conservation agriculture system (CA) can affect changes in soil pr...

Soil bacterial community responses to revegetation of moving sand dune in semi-arid grassland.

PubMed

Cao, Chengyou; Zhang, Ying; Cui, Zhenbo; Feng, Shuwei; Wang, Tingting; Ren, Qing

2017-08-01

Grasslands in semi-arid Northern China are widely desertified, thus inducing the formation of a large area of moving sand lands. Revegetation of the sandy land is commonly adopted to restore degraded grasslands. The structure of the soil microbial community might dramatically change during degradation and recovery because microorganisms are one of the major drivers of ecological process through their interactions with plants and soil. Assuming that soil properties are the key determinants of the structure of soil bacterial community within the same soil type, whether the vegetation type causes the significant difference in the structure of soil bacterial community during revegetation and restoration of the degraded grasslands remains poorly understood. Our study aimed to (1) investigate the response of soil bacterial communities to the changes during vegetation degradation and recovery and (2) evaluate whether the soil bacterial communities under plantations return to their native state. We detected the shifts in diversities and compositions of the soil bacterial communities and the relative abundance of dominant bacterial taxa by using the high-throughput Illumina MiSeq sequencing technique in an area covered by 32-year-old Caragana microphylla, Artemisia halodendron, Hedysarum fruticosum, Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica, Populus simonii, and Salix gordejevii sand-fixing plantations and in the native community (NC) dominated by elm, and moving sandy dune (MS). We found that the obtained operational taxonomic units by 16S rRNA gene sequencing and diversity index in MS were all significantly lower than those in NC, and the number and composition of dominant genera were significantly different between NC and MS. Interestingly, the compositions of bacterial communities and the dominant genera in different sand-fixation plantations (C. microphylla, A. halodendron, H. fruticosum, P. sylvestris var. mongolica, P. simonii, and S. gordejevii) were all similar to those of the native soil of NC, suggesting that the plantation type and soil properties exhibit a minimal effect on the compositions of soil microbial communities within a continuous landscape. These results revealed that the structure of the soil bacterial community of degraded sandy grassland (even degenerated into a mobile sand dunes) in semi-arid region can be reversibly restored by planting indigenous shrub or semi-shrub plantation on human time scales.

Precipitation pulse use by an invasive woody legume: the role of soil texture and pulse size.

PubMed

Fravolini, Alessandra; Hultine, Kevin R; Brugnoli, Enrico; Gazal, Rico; English, Nathan B; Williams, David G

2005-08-01

Plant metabolic activity in arid and semi-arid environments is largely tied to episodic precipitation events or "pulses". The ability of plants to take up and utilize rain pulses during the growing season in these water-limited ecosystems is determined in part by pulse timing, intensity and amount, and by hydrological properties of the soil that translate precipitation into plant-available soil moisture. We assessed the sensitivity of an invasive woody plant, velvet mesquite (Prosopis velutina Woot.), to large (35 mm) and small (10 mm) isotopically labeled irrigation pulses on two contrasting soil textures (sandy-loam vs. loamy-clay) in semi-desert grassland in southeastern Arizona, USA. Predawn leaf water potential (psi(pd)), the isotopic abundance of deuterium in stem water (deltaD), the abundance of 13C in soluble leaf sugar (delta13C), and percent volumetric soil water content (theta(v)) were measured prior to irrigation and repeatedly for 2 weeks following irrigation. Plant water potential and the percent of pulse water present in the stem xylem indicated that although mesquite trees on both coarse- and fine-textured soils quickly responded to the large irrigation pulse, the magnitude and duration of this response substantially differed between soil textures. After reaching a maximum 4 days after the irrigation, the fraction of pulse water in stem xylem decreased more rapidly on the loamy-clay soil than the sandy-loam soil. Similarly, on both soil textures mesquite significantly responded to the 10-mm pulse. However, the magnitude of this response was substantially greater for mesquite on the sandy-loam soil compared to loamy-clay soil. The relationship between psi(pd) and delta13C of leaf-soluble carbohydrates over the pulse period did not differ between plants at the two sites, indicating that differences in photosynthetic response of mesquite trees to the moisture pulses was a function of soil water availability within the rooting zone rather than differences in plant biochemical or physiological constraints. Patterns of resource acquisition by mesquite during the dynamic wetting-drying cycle following rainfall pulses is controlled by a complex interaction between pulse size and soil hydraulic properties. A better understanding of how this interaction affects plant water availability and photosynthetic response is needed to predict how grassland structure and function will respond to climate change.

Fate of classical faecal bacterial markers and ampicillin-resistant bacteria in agricultural soils under Mediterranean climate after urban sludge amendment.

PubMed

Gondim-Porto, Clarissa; Platero, Leticia; Nadal, Ignacio; Navarro-García, Federico

2016-09-15

The use of sewage sludge or biosolids as agricultural amendments may pose environmental and human health risks related to pathogen or antibiotic-resistant microorganism transmission from soils to vegetables or to water through runoff. Since the survival of those microorganisms in amended soils has been poorly studied under Mediterranean climatic conditions, we followed the variation of soil fecal bacterial markers and ampicillin-resistant bacteria for two years with samplings every four months in a split block design with three replica in a crop soil where two different types of biosolids (aerobically or anaerobically digested) at three doses (low, 40; intermediate, 80; and high, 160Mg·ha(-1)) were applied. Low amounts of biosolids produced similar decay rates of coliform populations than in control soil (-0.19 and -0.27log10CFUs·g(-1)drysoilmonth(-1) versus -0.22) while in the case of intermediate and high doses were close to zero and their populations remained 24months later in the range of 4-5log10CFUs·g(-1)ds. Enterococci populations decayed at different rates when using aerobic than anaerobic biosolids although high doses had higher rates than control (-0.09 and -0.13log10CFUs·g(-1)dsmonth(-1) for aerobic and anaerobic, respectively, vs -0.07). At the end of the experiment, counts in high aerobic and low and intermediate anaerobic plots were 1 log10 higher than in control (4.21, 4.03, 4.2 and 3.11log10CFUs·g(-1) ds, respectively). Biosolid application increased the number of Clostridium spores in all plots at least 1 log10 with respect to control with a different dynamic of decay for low and intermediate doses of aerobic and anaerobic sludge. Ampicillin-resistant bacteria increased in amended soils 4months after amendment and remained at least 1 log10 higher 24months later, especially in aerobic and low and intermediate anaerobic plots due to small rates of decay (in the range of -0.001 to -0.008log10CFUs·g(-1)dsmonth(-1) vs -0.016 for control). Aerobic plots had relative populations of ampicillin-resistant bacteria higher than anaerobic plots with different positive trends. Dose (22%) and time (13%) explained most of the variation of the bacterial populations. Dynamics of fecal markers did not correlate with ampicillin-resistant bacteria thus making necessary to evaluate specifically this trait to avoid possible risks for human and environmental health. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Estimation of Nitrogen Pools in Irrigated Potato Production on Sandy Soil Using the Model SUBSTOR

PubMed Central

Prasad, Rishi; Hochmuth, George J.; Boote, Kenneth J.

2015-01-01

Recent increases in nitrate concentrations in the Suwannee River and associated springs in northern Florida have raised concerns over the contributions of non-point sources. The Middle Suwannee River Basin (MSRB) is of special concern because of prevalent karst topography, unconfined aquifers and sandy soils which increase vulnerability of the ground water contamination from agricultural operations- a billion dollar industry in this region. Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) production poses a challenge in the area due to the shallow root system of potato plants, and low water and nutrient holding capacity of the sandy soils. A four-year monitoring study for potato production on sandy soil was conducted on a commercial farm located in the MSRB to identify major nitrogen (N) loss pathways and determine their contribution to the total environmental N load, using a partial N budget approach and the potato model SUBSTOR. Model simulated environmental N loading rates were found to lie within one standard deviation of the observed values and identified leaching loss of N as the major sink representing 25 to 38% (or 85 to 138 kg ha-1 N) of the total input N (310 to 349 kg ha-1 N). The crop residues left in the field after tuber harvest represented a significant amount of N (64 to 110 kg ha-1N) and posed potential for indirect leaching loss of N upon their mineralization and the absence of subsequent cover crops. Typically, two months of fallow period exits between harvest of tubers and planting of the fall row crop (silage corn). The fallow period is characterized by summer rains which pose a threat to N released from rapidly mineralizing potato vines. Strategies to reduce N loading into the groundwater from potato production must focus on development and adoption of best management practices aimed on reducing direct as well as indirect N leaching losses. PMID:25635904

Application of Potential Phosphate-Solubilizing Bacteria and Organic Acids on Phosphate Solubilization from Phosphate Rock in Aerobic Rice

PubMed Central

Jusop, Shamshuddin; Naher, Umme Aminun; Othman, Radziah; Razi, Mohd Ismail

2013-01-01

A study was conducted at Universiti Putra Malaysia to determine the effect of phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) and organic acids (oxalic & malic) on phosphate (P) solubilization from phosphate rock (PR) and growth of aerobic rice. Four rates of each organic acid (0, 10, 20, and 30 mM), and PSB strain (Bacillus sp.) were applied to aerobic rice. Total bacterial populations, amount of P solubilization, P uptake, soil pH, and root morphology were determined. The results of the study showed significantly high P solubilization in PSB with organic acid treatments. Among the two organic acids, oxalic acid was found more effective compared to malic acid. Application of oxalic acid at 20 mM along with PSB16 significantly increased soluble soil P (28.39 mg kg−1), plant P uptake (0.78 P pot−1), and plant biomass (33.26 mg). Addition of organic acids with PSB and PR had no influence on soil pH during the planting period. A higher bacterial population was found in rhizosphere (8.78 log10 cfu g−1) compared to the nonrhizosphere and endosphere regions. The application of organic acids along with PSB enhanced soluble P in the soil solution, improved root growth, and increased plant biomass of aerobic rice seedlings without affecting soil pH. PMID:24288473

Feasibility of Energy Crops Grown on Army Lands

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-03-01

Figure 11). The soil texture is sandy with a 12-inch A horizon (the top level of soil), and the soil is well drained and acidic. The macronutrient ...strongly acidic. The macronutrient levels are depleted relative to optimum crop production standards, but the organic matter content is relatively good... macronutrient levels are depleted relative to optimum crop production standards, and the organic matter content is low. This site is prime for soil

Biodegradation of insensitive munition formulations IMX101 and IMX104 in surface soils.

PubMed

Indest, Karl J; Hancock, Dawn E; Crocker, Fiona H; Eberly, Jed O; Jung, Carina M; Blakeney, Gary A; Brame, Jon; Chappell, Mark A

2017-07-01

The biodegradation potential of insensitive munition melt cast formulations IMX101 and IMX104 was investigated in two unamended training range soils under aerobic and anaerobic growth conditions. Changes in community profiles in soil microcosms were monitored via high-throughput 16S rRNA sequencing over the course of the experiments to infer key microbial phylotypes that may be linked to IMX degradation. Complete anaerobic biotransformation occurred for IMX101 and IMX104 constituents 2,4-dinitroanisole (DNAN) and 3-nitro-1,2,4-triazol-5-one during the 30-day incubation period with Camp Shelby (CS) soil. By comparison, soil from Umatilla chemical depot demonstrated incomplete DNAN degradation with reduced transformation rates for both IMX101 and IMX104. Aerobic soil microcosms for both soils demonstrated reduced transformation rates compared to anaerobic degradation for all IMX constituents with DNAN the most susceptible to biotransformation by CS soil. Overall, IMX constituents hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine and 1-nitroguanidine did not undergo significant transformation. In CS soil, organisms that have been associated with explosives degradation, namely members of the Burkholderiaceae, Bacillaceae, and Paenibacillaceae phylotypes increased significantly in anaerobic treatments whereas Sphingomonadaceae increased significantly in aerobic treatments. Collectively, these data may be used to populate fate and transport models to provide more accurate estimates for assessing environmental costs associated with release of IMX101 and IMX104.

Degradation and persistence of cotton pesticides in sandy loam soils from Punjab, Pakistan.

PubMed

Tariq, Muhammad Ilyas; Afzal, Shahzad; Hussain, Ishtiaq

2006-02-01

The present study evaluated the influence of temperature, moisture, and microbial activity on the degradation and persistence of commonly used cotton pesticides, i.e., carbosulfan, carbofuran, lambda-cyhalothrin, endosulfan, and monocrotophos, with the help of laboratory incubation and lysimeter studies on sandy loam soil (Typic Ustocurepts) in Pakistan. Drainage from the lysimeters was sampled on days 49, 52, 59, 73, 100, 113, and 119 against the pesticide application on days 37, 63, 82, 108, and 137 after the sowing of cotton. Carbofuran, monocrotophos, and nitrate were detected in the drainage samples, with an average value, respectively, of 2.34, 2.6 microg/L, and 15.6 mg/L for no-tillage and 2.16, 2.3 microg/L, and 13.4 mg/L for tillage. In the laboratory, pesticide disappearance kinetics were measured with sterile and nonsterile soils from 0 to 10 cm in depth at 15, 25, and 35 degrees C and 50% and 90% field water capacities. Monocrotophos and carbosulfan dissipation followed first-order kinetics while others followed second-order kinetics. The results of incubation studies showed that temperature and moisture contents significantly reduced the t(1/2) (half-life) values of pesticides in sterile and nonsterile soil, but the effect of microbial activity was nearly significant that might be due to less organic carbon (0.3%). The presence of carbofuran and monocrotophos in the soil profile (0-10, 10-30, 30-60, 60-90, 90-150 cm) and the higher concentrations of endosulfan and lambda-cyhalothrin in the top layer (0-10 cm) showed the persistence of the pesticides. The detection of endosulfan and lambda-cyhalothrin in the 10-30 cm soil layer might be due to preferential flow. The data generated from this study could be helpful for risk assessment studies of pesticides and for validating pesticide transport models for sandy loam soils in cotton-growing areas of Pakistan.

Biochar reduces copper toxicity in Chenopodium quinoa Willd. In a sandy soil.

PubMed

Buss, Wolfram; Kammann, Claudia; Koyro, Hans-Werner

2012-01-01

Mining, smelting, land applications of sewage sludge, the use of fungicides containing copper (Cu), and other human activities have led to widespread soil enrichment and contamination with Cu and potentially toxic conditions. Biochar (BC) can adsorb several substances, ranging from herbicides to plant-inhibiting allelochemicals. However, the range of potential beneficial effects on early-stage plant growth with regard to heavy metal toxicity is largely unexplored. We investigated the ameliorating properties of a forestry-residue BC under Cu toxicity conditions on early plant growth. Young quinoa plants () were grown in the greenhouse in the presence of 0, 2, and 4% BC application (w/w) added to a sandy soil with 0, 50, or 200 μg g Cu supplied. The plants without BC showed severe stress symptoms and reduced growth shortly after Cu application of 50 μg g and died at 200 μg Cu g. Increasing BC concentrations in the growth medium significantly increased the plant performance without Cu toxicity or under Cu stress. At the 4% BC application rate, the plants with 200 μg g Cu almost reached the same biomass as in the control treatment. In the presence of BC, less Cu entered the plant tissues, which had reduced Cu concentrations in the order roots, shoots, leaves. The amelioration effect also was reflected in the plant-soil system CO gas exchange, which showed clear signs of improvement with BC presence. The most likely ameliorating mechanisms were adsorption of Cu to negatively charged BC surfaces and an improvement of the water supply. Overall, BC seems to be a beneficial amendment with the potential to ameliorate Cu toxicity in sandy soils. Further research with a broad spectrum of different soil types, BCs, and crop plants is required. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Large herbivores promote habitat specialization and beta diversity of African savanna trees.

PubMed

Pringle, Robert M; Prior, Kirsten M; Palmer, Todd M; Young, Truman P; Goheen, Jacob R

2016-10-01

Edaphic variation in plant community composition is widespread, yet its underlying mechanisms are rarely understood and often assumed to be physiological. In East African savannas, Acacia tree species segregate sharply across soils of differing parent material: the ant-defended whistling thorn, A. drepanolobium (ACDR), is monodominant on cracking clay vertisols that are nutrient rich but physically stressful, whereas poorly defended species such as A. brevispica (ACBR) dominate on nutrient-poor but otherwise less-stressful sandy loams. Using a series of field experiments, we show that large-mammal herbivory interacts with soil properties to maintain this pattern. In the absence of large herbivores, transplanted saplings of both species established on both soil types. Browsers strongly suppressed survival and growth of ACDR saplings on sandy soil, where resource limitation constrained defensive investment. On clay soil, ACBR saplings established regardless of herbivory regime, but elephants prevented recruitment to maturity, apparently because trees could not tolerate the combination of biotic and abiotic stressors. Hence, each tree species was filtered out of one habitat by browsing in conjunction with different edaphic factors and at different ontogenetic stages. Browser abundance was greater on sandy soil, where trees were less defended, consistent with predicted feedbacks between plant community assembly and herbivore distributions. By exploring two inversely related axes of soil "quality" (abiotic stress and nutrient content), our study extends the range of mechanisms by which herbivores are known to promote edaphic specialization, illustrates how the high cost of a protection mutualism can constrain the realized niche of host trees, and shows that large-scale properties of savanna ecosystems are shaped by species interactions in cryptic ways that mimic simple abiotic determinism. These results suggest that ongoing declines in large-herbivore populations may relax spatial heterogeneity in plant assemblages and reduce the beta diversity of communities. © 2016 by the Ecological Society of America.

Ethylcellulose formulations for controlled release of the herbicide alachlor in a sandy soil.

PubMed

Sopeña, Fátima; Cabrera, Alegría; Maqueda, Celia; Morillo, Esmeralda

2007-10-03

The development of controlled-release formulations of alachlor to diminish its leaching in sandy soils, avoiding groundwater contamination and maintaining its efficacy, was studied. For this purpose, ethylcellulose (EC) microencapsulated formulations (MEFs) of alachlor were prepared under different conditions and applied to soil columns to study their mobility. The results show that in all cases the release into water of alachlor from MEFs was retarded when compared with commercial formulation. Total leaching losses in soil columns were reduced to 59% from 98%. The mobility of alachlor from EC microspheres into soil columns has been greatly diminished in comparison with its current commercial formulation (CF), above all with increasing EC/herbicide ratios. Distribution of alachlor applied as MEFs at different depths in the soil was higher in the soil surface (66.3-81.3% of herbicide applied at the first 12 cm). In contrast, the residues from CF along the complete soil column were only 20.4%. From the results of bioassays, MEFs showed a higher efficacy than CF at 30 days after the treatment. The use of ME formulations could provide an advantage in minimizing the risk of groundwater contamination by alachlor and reducing the application rates, as a result of maintaining the desired concentration of the herbicide in the top soil layer, obtaining longer periods of weed control.

Altered humin compositions under organic and inorganic fertilization on an intensively cultivated sandy loam soil

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Humin is the largest and also the least understood fraction of soil organic matter. The humin structure and its correlation with microbiological properties are particularly uncertain. We applied advanced solid-state 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to investigate the structural chan...

Fine dust emissions in sandy and silty agricultural soils

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Dust emissions from strong winds are common in arid and semi-arid regions and occur under both natural and managed land systems. A portable field wind tunnel has been developed to allow measurements of dust emissions from soil surfaces to test the premise that dust concentrations are highly correlat...

Evidence For Different Reaction Pathways For Liquid And Granular Micronutrients In A Calcareous Soil

EPA Science Inventory

The benefits of Mn and Zn fluid fertilizers over conventional granular products in calcareous sandy loam soils have been agronomically demonstrated. We hypothesized that the differences in the effectiveness between granular and fluid Mn and Zn fertilizers is due to different Mn ...

Plant, soil and weather based cues for irrigation timing in soybean production 2014

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Expanded use of irrigation management tools are needed to improve irrigation and water use efficiency in eastern Arkansas soybean production. In 2014 we initiated an Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board supported project to examine irrigation initiation timing on a sandy loam soil in a furrow-irrigated ...

Detection of disturbed earth using hyperspectral LWIR imaging data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hubbard, Wendy; Bishop, Gary; Gagnon, Jean-Philippe; Lagueux, Philippe; Hannuna, Sion; Campbell, Neill

2010-10-01

The Reststrahlen effect has been investigated for detecting regions of recently disturbed earth, by taking images where metallic objects had been buried in a sandy soil and comparing with images of undisturbed soil. The images were taken with a Long wave Infrared (LWIR) Hyperspectral Sensor, the Hyper-Cam.

PHYSICOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES AS PREDICTORS OF ORGANIC CHEMICAL EFFECTS ON SOIL MICROBIAL RESPIRATION

EPA Science Inventory

Structure-activity analysis was used to evaluate the effects of 19 hazardous organic chemicals on microbial respiration in two slightly acidic soils (a Captina silt loam from Roane County Tennessee, and a McLaurin sandy loam from Stone County, Mississippi), both low in organic ca...

Evaluation of factors affecting nitrous oxide emission and N transformation in a sandy loam soil

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

A better understanding of the complex factors affecting nitrous oxide (N2O) emission and potential mitigation practices will assist in developing strategies to improve the sustainability of agricultural production systems. Using surface soil collected from a pomegranate orchard, a series of laborato...

Isolation of Acinetobacter from Soil and Water

PubMed Central

Baumann, Paul

1968-01-01

An enrichment culture procedure for isolating members of the genus Acinetobacter from soil and water is described. It involves the use of vigorously aerated mineral media at relative low pH, supplemented with acetate or other suitable carbon source and nitrate as nitrogen source. With this method, virtually all samples of soil and water yielded representatives of this genus. Semiquantitative comparisons of the numbers of Acinetobacter and of all bacteria capable of aerobic growth in a complex medium revealed that Acinetobacter constituted no less than 0.001% of the total heterotrophic aerobic population in soil and water and was one of the predominant organisms in some water samples. PMID:4874313

Microbiological characteristics of a sandy loam soil exposed to tebuconazole and lambda-cyhalothrin under laboratory conditions.

PubMed

Cycoń, M; Piotrowska-Seget, Z; Kaczyńska, A; Kozdrój, J

2006-11-01

Changes in microbiological properties of a sandy loam soil in response to the addition of different concentrations of fungicide tebuconazole and pyrethroid insecticide lambda-cyhalothrin were assessed under laboratory conditions. To ascertain these changes, the potentially active soil microbial biomass, concentrations of ammonium and nitrate ions, numbers of total culturable bacteria, fungi, nitrogen-fixing bacteria, nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria were determined. Substrate-induced respiration (SIR) increased with time in both control (ranged from 13.7 to 23.7 mg/O(2)/kg(-1)/dry soil/h(-1)) and pesticide treated soil portions. For both pesticides, SIR values ranged from 12-13 to 23-25 mg/O(2)/kg(-1)/dry soil/h(-1) on days 1 and 28, respectively. Also, concentrations of nitrate and ammonium ions, numbers of total culturable bacteria, denitrifying bacteria, nitrogen-fixing bacteria (for the insecticide) and fungi (for the insecticide) were either unaffected or even stimulated by the pesticide treatments. The adverse impacts of the pesticides were observed for nitrate concentrations (on days 1 or 7), numbers of nitrifying bacteria (on day 1), denitrifying bacteria (for the insecticide on days 1 and 14), nitrogen-fixing bacteria (for tebuconazole on day 1) as well as numbers of fungi in tebuconazole-treated soil (on days 1 and 14).

Target Soil Impact Verification: Experimental Testing and Kayenta Constitutive Modeling.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Broome, Scott Thomas; Flint, Gregory Mark; Dewers, Thomas

2015-11-01

This report details experimental testing and constitutive modeling of sandy soil deformation under quasi - static conditions. This is driven by the need to understand constitutive response of soil to target/component behavior upon impact . An experimental and constitutive modeling program was followed to determine elastic - plastic properties and a compressional failure envelope of dry soil . One hydrostatic, one unconfined compressive stress (UCS), nine axisymmetric compression (ACS) , and one uniaxial strain (US) test were conducted at room temperature . Elastic moduli, assuming isotropy, are determined from unload/reload loops and final unloading for all tests pre - failuremore » and increase monotonically with mean stress. Very little modulus degradation was discernable from elastic results even when exposed to mean stresses above 200 MPa . The failure envelope and initial yield surface were determined from peak stresses and observed onset of plastic yielding from all test results. Soil elasto - plastic behavior is described using the Brannon et al. (2009) Kayenta constitutive model. As a validation exercise, the ACS - parameterized Kayenta model is used to predict response of the soil material under uniaxial strain loading. The resulting parameterized and validated Kayenta model is of high quality and suitable for modeling sandy soil deformation under a range of conditions, including that for impact prediction.« less

Effect of pH and the role of organic matter in the adsorption of isoproturon on soils.

PubMed

Ertli, Tímea; Marton, Aurél; Földényi, Rita

2004-11-01

Equilibrium measurements were carried out with the herbicide isoproturon on natural adsorbents (brown forest-, chernozem-, sandy soils and quartz) in different buffered media (pH 5, 7, 8 phosphate buffer). Adsorption isotherms were fitted by a multi-step adsorption equation providing numerical information used in the environmental propagation models and risk assessment works. In the adsorption of the slightly polar isoproturon the dissolved organic matter of the soil and the pH play an important role. At molecular level, results are interpreted by taking into consideration the hydrophobic interaction and the formation of hydrogen bonds between the surface and the solute. The observed adsorption behavior indicates that the organic matter content of the soils and its soluble fulvic acid, alkaline soluble humic acid and insoluble humin fractions were considerable different. The chernozem soil containing the highest amount of insoluble organic fraction proved to be a very efficient adsorbent. The brown forest and the sandy soils exhibit rather similar adsorbent properties but at pH 7 the latter containing more fulvic acid adsorbs less isoproturon due to the enhanced solubility of the soil organic matter. In alkaline conditions the negatively charged solute and the surface repel each other and the hydrophobic interactions are also weaker than in neutral media.

Sahelian rangeland response to changes in rainfall over two decades in the Gourma region, Mali

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hiernaux, Pierre; Mougin, Eric; Diarra, Lassine; Soumaguel, Nogmana; Lavenu, François; Tracol, Yann; Diawara, Mamadou

2009-08-01

SummaryTwenty-five rangeland sites were monitored over two decades (1984-2006) first to assess the impact of the 1983-1984 droughts on fodder resources, then to better understand ecosystem functioning and dynamics. Sites are sampled along the south-north bioclimatic gradient in Gourma (Mali), within three main edaphic situations: sandy, loamy-clay and shallow soils. In addition, three levels of grazing pressure where systematically sampled within sandy soils. Located at the northern edge of the area reached by the West African monsoon, the Gourma gradient has recorded extremes in inter-annual variations of rainfall and resulting variations in vegetation growth. Following rainfall variability, inter-annual variability of herbaceous yield increases as climate gets dryer with latitudes at least on the sandy soils sites. Local redistribution of rainfall explains the high patchiness of herbaceous vegetation, especially on shallow soils. Yet spatial heterogeneity of the vegetation does not buffer between year yield variability that increases with spatial heterogeneity. At short term, livestock grazing during the wet season affects plant growth and thus yield in direction and proportions that vary with the timing and intensity of grazing. In the longer term, grazing also impinges upon species composition in many ways. Hence, long histories of heavy grazing promote either long cycle annuals refused by livestock or else short cycle good quality feed species. Primary production is maintained or even increased in the case of refusal such as Sida cordifolia, and is lessened in the case of short cycle species such as Zornia glochidiata. These behaviours explain that the yield anomalies calculated for the rangelands on sandy soils relative to the yield of site less grazed under similar climate tend to be negative in northern Sahel where the scenario of short cycle species dominates, while yield anomalies are close to nil in centre Sahel and slightly positive in South Sahel where the refusal scenario is more frequent. Because grazing promotes short cycle species, grazed rangelands respond faster to droughts. Year to year changes in species composition are abrupt as expected from the transient soil seed stock. However, some decadal trends in species composition are identified, with a wave of pioneer species following the 1983-1984 droughts, and a more progressive diversification and return to typical Sahel flora from 1992 onwards.

Trace metal pyritization variability in response to mangrove soil aerobic and anaerobic oxidation processes.

PubMed

Machado, W; Borrelli, N L; Ferreira, T O; Marques, A G B; Osterrieth, M; Guizan, C

2014-02-15

The degree of iron pyritization (DOP) and degree of trace metal pyritization (DTMP) were evaluated in mangrove soil profiles from an estuarine area located in Rio de Janeiro (SE Brazil). The soil pH was negatively correlated with redox potential (Eh) and positively correlated with DOP and DTMP of some elements (Mn, Cu and Pb), suggesting that pyrite oxidation generated acidity and can affect the importance of pyrite as a trace metal-binding phase, mainly in response to spatial variability in tidal flooding. Besides these aerobic oxidation effects, results from a sequential extraction analyses of reactive phases evidenced that Mn oxidized phase consumption in reaction with pyrite can be also important to determine the pyritization of trace elements. Cumulative effects of these aerobic and anaerobic oxidation processes were evidenced as factors affecting the capacity of mangrove soils to act as a sink for trace metals through pyritization processes. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Response of N2O emissions to biochar amendment in a cultivated sandy loam soil during freeze-thaw cycles

PubMed Central

Liu, Xiang; Wang, Quan; Qi, Zhiming; Han, Jiangang; Li, Lanhai

2016-01-01

In the last decade, an increasing number of studies have reported that soil nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions can be reduced by adding biochar. However, the effect of biochar amendment on soil N2O emissions during freeze-thaw cycle (FTC) is still unknown. In this laboratory study, biochar (0%, 2% and 4%, w/w) was added into a cultivated sandy loam soil and then treated with 15 times of FTC (each FTC consisted of freeze at −5/−10 °C for 24 h and thaw at 5/10 °C for 24 h), to test whether biochar can mitigate soil N2O emissions during FTC, and estimate the relationships between N2O emissions and soil inorganic nitrogen contents/microbial biomass content/enzyme activities. The results showed that biochar amendment suppressed soil N2O emissions by 19.9–69.9% as compared to soils without biochar amendment during FTC. However, N2O emissions were only significantly correlated to soil nitrate nitrogen (NO3−-N) contents, which decreased after biochar amendment, indicating that the decreased soil nitrification by adding biochar played an important role in mitigating N2O emissions during FTC. Further studies are needed to estimate the effectiveness of biochar amendment on reducing freeze-thaw induced N2O emissions from different soils under field conditions. PMID:27748462

An efficient recovery method for enteric viral particles from agricultural soils.

PubMed

Brassard, Julie; Gagné, Marie-Josée

2018-06-24

Enteric viruses have been recognized as the leading cause of non-bacterial gastroenteritis and hepatitis outbreaks around the world. Understanding their prevalence and persistence in the environment is important for the effective control of these infections. The aim of this study was to develop an efficient recovery procedure for viral infectious particles from agricultural soils. Samples (25 g) of soil (black earth soil, loamy soil, and sandy soil) were spiked with murine norovirus (MNV) and feline calicivirus (FCV), mixed with five different buffers and viral genetic material was extracted by 3 commercial kits. The combination consisted by the modified Eagle's medium buffer followed by Dynabeads nucleic acid extraction kit, when the detection is conducted by molecular biology, has been identified as being the most effective procedure to preserve the viral particle infectivity and also to remove PCR inhibitors.The recovery percentages of infectious MNV for the 3 types of soils were 54.3%, 54.4%, and 56.9%. In contrast, the titres of the FCV varied depending on the type of soil, and the recovery percentages were 47.8% in the black soil, 15.6% in the loamy soil, and 17.7% in the sandy soil. Also, the results presented in this study highlight the importance of using an internal process control such as artificial inoculation with MNV at known concentrations during detection by molecular methods, in order to avoid the occurrence of false negative reactions. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Self-purification of agrosoddy-podzolic sandy loamy soils fertilized with sewage sludge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plekhanova, I. O.

2017-04-01

Sandy loamy agrosoddy-podzolic soils and plants growing on them were studied. The soils had been treated with sewage sludge from the Lyubertsy aeration station applied as organic fertilizer for 5-10 years before 1990. Initially, these soils were used for cultivating vegetables and fodder crops. The content and mobility of heavy metal compounds increased in the plow horizons of studied soils under the influence of sewage sludge. The concentrations of Cd and Zn exceeded the tentative permissible concentrations (TPC) for these elements by 8-16 and 2-4 times, respectively. The contaminated layer was found at the depths within 30-50 cm, which attests to a low migration rate of heavy metals added to the studied soils with sewage sludge (SS) 25 years ago. The concentration of Cd exceeded the maximum permissible concentration (MPC) of this element in all vegetable and fodder crops cultivated on the studied soils. The content of heavy metals in plants differed by three-five times in dependence on the capacity of particular plants to accumulate them. The period of soil self-purification from heavy metals was found to depend on the soil contamination level and element mobility, as well as on the element removal with harvested crops and with soil water flows. The maximal time of achieving the normal level of Cd concentration was estimated as 288 years for maximally contaminated soils; the corresponding values for Cu and Zn were estimated as 74 and 64 years, respectively.

Optimization of the Use of His₆-OPH-Based Enzymatic Biocatalysts for the Destruction of Chlorpyrifos in Soil.

PubMed

Senko, Olga; Maslova, Olga; Efremenko, Elena

2017-11-23

Applying enzymatic biocatalysts based on hexahistidine-containing organophosphorus hydrolase (His₆-OPH) is suggested for the decomposition of chlorpyrifos, which is actively used in agriculture in many countries. The application conditions were optimized and the following techniques was suggested to ensure the highest efficiency of the enzyme: first, the soil is alkalinized with hydrated calcitic lime Ca(OH)₂, then the enzyme is introduced into the soil at a concentration of 1000 U/kg soil. Non-equilibrium low temperature plasma (NELTP)-modified zeolite is used for immobilization of the relatively inexpensive polyelectrolyte complexes containing the enzyme His₆-OPH and a polyanionic polymer: poly-l-glutamic acid (PLE 50 ) or poly-l-aspartic acid (PLD 50 ). The soil's humidity is then increased up to 60-80%, the top layer (10-30 cm) of soil is thoroughly stirred, and then exposed for 48-72 h. The suggested approach ensures 100% destruction of the pesticide within 72 h in soils containing as much as 100 mg/kg of chlorpyrifos. It was concluded that using this type of His₆-OPH-based enzyme chemical can be the best approach for soils with relatively low humus concentrations, such as sandy and loam-sandy chestnut soils, as well as types of soil with increased alkalinity (pH 8.0-8.4). Such soils are often encountered in desert, desert-steppe, foothills, and subtropical regions where chlorpyrifos is actively used.

Repeated use of ion-exchange resin membranes in calcareous soils

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sherrod, S.K.; Belnap, Jayne; Miller, M.E.

2003-01-01

This study compared the consistency of nutrient extraction among repeated cycles of ion-exchange resin membrane use. Two sandy calcareous soils and different equilibration temperatures were tested. No single nutrient retained consistent values from cycle to cycle in all treatments, although both soil source and temperature conferred some influence. It was concluded that the most conservative use of resin membranes is single-use.

Effects of application of mill-generated primary sludge and boiler ash on loblolly pine survival and growth

Treesearch

Emily J. Goodwin; Andrew M. Burrow

2006-01-01

Use of Kraft primary sludge and boiler ash in forest production systems holds promise as a cost-effective alternative to landfilling. From a soil quality perspective, particularly in coarse-textured sandy soils, increases in organic matter content from inputs of sludge/ash may improve soil chemical, biological, and physical properties. The objective of this study was...

Effect of tree roots on a shear zone: modeling reinforced shear stress.

Treesearch

Kazutoki Abe; Robert R. Ziemer

1991-01-01

Tree roots provide important soil reinforcement that impoves the stability of hillslopes. After trees are cut and roots begin to decay, the frequency of slope failures can increase. To more fully understand the mechanics of how tree roots reinforce soil, fine sandy soil containing pine roots was placed in a large shear box in horizontal layers and sheared across a...

Effects of biochar on the emissions, soil distribution, and nematode control of 1,3-dichloropropene

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Application of a rice husk-derived biochar to the surface of a sandy loam soil chamber reduced soil-air emissions of 1,3-dichloropropene (1,3-D) from 42% in a control (no biochar) to 8%. The difference in emissions was due to adsorption of 1,3-D onto the biochar, measured as 32.5%. The remaining 1,3...

Fate of the antibiotic sulfadiazine in natural soils: Experimental and numerical investigations.

PubMed

Engelhardt, Irina; Sittig, Stephan; Šimůnek, Jirka; Groeneweg, Joost; Pütz, Thomas; Vereecken, Harry

2015-01-01

Based on small-scale laboratory and field-scale lysimeter experiments, the sorption and biodegradation of sulfonamide sulfadiazine (SDZ) were investigated in unsaturated sandy and silty-clay soils. Sorption and biodegradation were low in the laboratory, while the highest leaching rates were observed when SDZ was mixed with manure. The leaching rate decreased when SDZ was mixed with pure water, and was smallest with the highest SDZ concentrations. In the laboratory, three transformation products (TPs) developed after an initial lag phase. However, the amount of TPs was different for different mixing-scenarios. The TP 2-aminopyrimidine was not observed in the laboratory, but was the most prevalent TP at the field scale. Sorption was within the same range at the laboratory and field scales. However, distinctive differences occurred with respect to biodegradation, which was higher in the field lysimeters than at the laboratory scale. While the silty-clay soil favored sorption of SDZ, the sandy, and thus highly permeable, soil was characterized by short half-lives and thus a quick biodegradation of SDZ. For 2-aminopyrimidine, half-lives of only a few days were observed. Increased field-scale biodegradation in the sandy soil resulted from a higher water and air permeability that enhanced oxygen transport and limited oxygen depletion. Furthermore, low pH was more important than the organic matter and clay content for increasing the biodegradation of SDZ. A numerical analysis of breakthrough curves of bromide, SDZ, and its TPs showed that preferential flow pathways strongly affected the solute transport within shallow parts of the soil profile at the field scale. However, this effect was reduced in deeper parts of the soil profile. Due to high field-scale biodegradation in several layers of both soils, neither SDZ nor 2-aminopyrimidine was detected in the discharge of the lysimeter at a depth of 1m. Synthetic 50 year long simulations, which considered the application of manure with SDZ for general agricultural practices in Germany and humid climate conditions, showed that the concentration of SDZ decreased below 0.1 μg/L in both soils below the depth of 50 cm. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Fate of the antibiotic sulfadiazine in natural soils: Experimental and numerical investigations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Engelhardt, Irina; Sittig, Stephan; Šimůnek, Jirka; Groeneweg, Joost; Pütz, Thomas; Vereecken, Harry

2015-06-01

Based on small-scale laboratory and field-scale lysimeter experiments, the sorption and biodegradation of sulfonamide sulfadiazine (SDZ) were investigated in unsaturated sandy and silty-clay soils. Sorption and biodegradation were low in the laboratory, while the highest leaching rates were observed when SDZ was mixed with manure. The leaching rate decreased when SDZ was mixed with pure water, and was smallest with the highest SDZ concentrations. In the laboratory, three transformation products (TPs) developed after an initial lag phase. However, the amount of TPs was different for different mixing-scenarios. The TP 2-aminopyrimidine was not observed in the laboratory, but was the most prevalent TP at the field scale. Sorption was within the same range at the laboratory and field scales. However, distinctive differences occurred with respect to biodegradation, which was higher in the field lysimeters than at the laboratory scale. While the silty-clay soil favored sorption of SDZ, the sandy, and thus highly permeable, soil was characterized by short half-lives and thus a quick biodegradation of SDZ. For 2-aminopyrimidine, half-lives of only a few days were observed. Increased field-scale biodegradation in the sandy soil resulted from a higher water and air permeability that enhanced oxygen transport and limited oxygen depletion. Furthermore, low pH was more important than the organic matter and clay content for increasing the biodegradation of SDZ. A numerical analysis of breakthrough curves of bromide, SDZ, and its TPs showed that preferential flow pathways strongly affected the solute transport within shallow parts of the soil profile at the field scale. However, this effect was reduced in deeper parts of the soil profile. Due to high field-scale biodegradation in several layers of both soils, neither SDZ nor 2-aminopyrimidine was detected in the discharge of the lysimeter at a depth of 1 m. Synthetic 50 year long simulations, which considered the application of manure with SDZ for general agricultural practices in Germany and humid climate conditions, showed that the concentration of SDZ decreased below 0.1 μg/L in both soils below the depth of 50 cm.

Dissipation of terbuthylazine, metolachlor and mesotrione in soils with contrasting texture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carretta, Laura; Cardinali, Alessandra; Zanin, Giuseppe; Masin, Roberta

2017-04-01

Herbicides play an important role in the crops production, but their use may result in residues with undesirable effects on the environment. The determination of the herbicide dissipation rate in agricultural soil is an important issue for monitoring their environmental fate. As soil composition is one of the factors affecting herbicide persistence, this study aimed to evaluate the dissipation of three herbicides, terbuthylazine (TERB), metolachlor (METO) and mesotrione (MESO) in soils with contrasting texture. The field trial was conducted at the Padua University Experimental Farm (45.3° N, 12.0° E) in the Po Valley, north-east Italy in 2012. The persistence of three herbicides has been studied in three diverse soil textures (clay, sand and loam soil) at two different depths (0-5 and 5-15 cm). A randomized complete block design was used for this experiment with six plots (2 m × 2 m) for each of 3 treatments. TERB, METO and MESO were applied in May on maize as a formulated product (Lumax®) with hand-held field plot sprayer at a dose of 3.5 L/ha. Soil organic carbon content was the highest in clay texture (1.10%) followed by loam soil (0.67%) and sandy soil (0.24%). The soil was sampled with a soil auger before herbicides treatment, and soon after treatment soil samples were taken to assess initial concentration, then at increasing times from spraying to evaluate field dissipation kinetics (t50). The dissipation of the herbicides in the treated plots was followed for nearly 2 months after their application. The herbicides were analysed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. The dissipation of TERB, METO and MESO could be described by a pseudo first order kinetics. Within the herbicides, TERB showed the highest t50, followed by METO and MESO. Considering the tested soil, the highest t50 value was found for clay soil texture for TERB and METO, whereas for MESO there was no difference among different soils. Significant differences were found within the 2 soil depths for TERB and MESO only in sandy soil, for METO only in loam soil. In detail, considering the average of both depths, TERB and METO degraded slowly in clay soil (22 days and 16 days respectively) followed by loam soil (14 days and 7 days) and sandy soil (12 days and 5 days). On the other hand, MESO did not show significant differences (ranging from about 4 days in clay soil to 5 days in loam soil). These results suggest that soil texture have a large influence on the dissipation of TERB and METO, whereas no influence was observed on MESO.

Assessment of tomato and wine processing solid wastes as soil amendments for biosolarization.

PubMed

Achmon, Yigal; Harrold, Duff R; Claypool, Joshua T; Stapleton, James J; VanderGheynst, Jean S; Simmons, Christopher W

2016-02-01

Pomaces from tomato paste and wine production are the most abundant fruit processing residues in California. These residues were examined as soil amendments for solarization to promote conditions conducive to soil disinfestation (biosolarization). Simulated biosolarization studies were performed in both aerobic and anaerobic soil environments and soil temperature elevation, pH, and evolution of CO2, H2 and CH4 gases were measured as metrics of soil microbial activity. Tomato pomace amendment induced conditions associated with soil pest inactivation, including elevation of soil temperature by up to 2°C for a duration of 4days under aerobic conditions and a reduction of soil pH from 6.5 to 4.68 under anaerobic conditions. White wine grape pomace amendment showed similar trends but to a lesser extent. Red wine grape pomace was generally less suitable for biosolarization due to significantly lower soil temperature elevations, reduced acidification relative to the other pomaces and induction of methanogenesis in the soil. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Soil Fertility Gradient in the Restinga Ecosystem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

América Castelar da Cunha, Joana; Casagrande, José Carlos; Soares, Marcio Roberto; Martins Bonilha, Rodolfo

2013-04-01

The restinga ecosystem (coastal plain vegetation) can be termed as a set of plant communities that suffer strong influenced by fluvial and marine factors and is characterized as an ecosystem of great biological diversity, therefore, represents areas of great importance in the context of ecological preservation. The degradation processes from many forms of anthropogenic disturbances that has taken place since the colonization of the country, made studies on the characterization and dynamics of soil fertility of these areas even more important in relation to the maintenance of its biodiversity and conservation. The sites studied were the Cardoso Island and Comprida Island, and in these, we analyzed four physiognomies, restinga, low restinga, dune and antedune (from continent to ocean). Chemical analyses were performed and soil salinity in these areas in depths 0-5; 0-10; 0-20; 20-40; 40-60 cm. In all soils the cationic exchange capacity was intimately associated with the concentration of soil organic matter, which makes this parameter essential to the maintenance of soil fertility of these areas; in more superficial layers (0-20 cm) there was an increase of pH and base saturation and decline of organic matter, aluminum saturation and cationic exchange capacity in the nearby sea, physiognomies what determines the existence of fertility gradient towards the continent-coast; restinga forests showed a chemical standard that is heavily marked by sandy texture, high degree of leaching, nutrient poverty, low base saturation, high saturation by aluminum and acidity, opposite conditions to soils of the dunes and antedunes, with the exception of sandy texture; despite the existence of a chemical gradient of fertility among the physiognomies studied it is possible to determine the soil acts more strongly as a physical support than as provider of fertility; as for salinity, soil collected in Cardoso Island did not present salinity in any depth, a fact which can be explained due to intense washing these soils are exposed and associated with highly sandy texture what favors the leaching of salts throughout the profile. Comprida Island soils presented salinity in some ante dune that can be explained due to the geographical position that determines a system of frequent wetting of the soil by the sea water and thus facilitating the accumulation of salts in the profile.

Reconstructing Mississippi River Deltaic Wetland Hydrostratigraphy Using Compositional Kriging Method - Implications for Groundwater, Groundwater-River Water Interaction, Subsidence and Deltaic Wetland Evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, A.; Tsai, F. T. C.; White, C.; Wang, J.; Bentley, S. J.; Xu, K.

2016-12-01

River deltaic wetlands are formed along coastal area where sediment-laden river water reaches ocean. A river deltaic wetland is a complex system that mainly consists of groundwater, soil and vegetation components. Groundwater makes up a large portion of the system. The wetlands are important to human being and wild life. This research focuses on hydrostratigraphic architecture of the Mississippi River deltaic wetland. Research area includes lower Barataria Bay and lower Breton Sound that located on the Mississippi River Delta in southern Louisiana. In this study, a three dimensional hydrostratigraphy model is constructed using coring survey grain size data and geostatistics approach. A three-dimensional grid system is firstly constructed to cover the whole research domain. Each cell of the grid has a dimension of 100 meters by 100 meters by 1 centimeter (length by width by depth). Then Compositional Kriging and Gaussian Sequential Simulation methods are adopted to estimate soil composition (sand, silt and clay fractions) for each cell. A result has been generated to reveal spatial hydro facies variation by cutting cross sections and extracting soil texture maps at different locations. In the result, bay silt makes a large portion of the sediments body and sandy sediments are shown at different depths in both sides of the river. In Barataria Bay, sand bodies are lenticular, relatively thick and vertical continuous, however, in Breton Sound, sand bodies are sheet-like, relatively thin and vertical non-continuous. It is likely that the sandy sediments in Barataria Bay and Breton Sound are deposited in distal distributary and overbank flow respectively. Larger sandy bodies are prone to form in the distal distributary than in the overbank flow. Sandy units formed in the distal distributary can provide better interconnection between river water and groundwater than that formed in the overbank flow. Larger sandy bodies also provides more space to store groundwater. More silty and clayey sediments in the Breton Sound side make it more subject to compactional subsidence. More sandy sediments occur at the shallow portion of the Breton Sound than Barataria Bay. And these sands are interpreted as transgressive product that is formed by reworking forces such as wind, tide, cold front and storm.

Enantioselectivity in tebuconazole and myclobutanil non-target toxicity and degradation in soils.

PubMed

Li, Yuanbo; Dong, Fengshou; Liu, Xingang; Xu, Jun; Han, Yongtao; Zheng, Yongquan

2015-03-01

Tebuconazole and myclobutanil are two widely used triazole fungicides, both comprising two enantiomers with different fungicidal activity. However, their non-target toxicity and environmental behavior with respect to enantioselectivity have received limited attention. In the present study, tebuconazole and myclobutanil enantiomers were isolated and used to evaluate the occurrence of enantioselectivity in their acute toxicity to three non-target organisms (Scenedesmus obliquus, Daphnia magna, and Danio rerio). Significant differences were found: R-(-)-tebuconazole was about 1.4-5.9 times more toxic than S-(+)-tebuconazole; rac-myclobutanil was about 1.3-6.1 and 1.4-7.3 more toxic than (-)-myclobutanil and (+)-myclobutanil, respectively. Enantioselectivity was further investigated in terms of fungicide degradation in seven soil samples, which were selected to cover a broad range of soil properties. In aerobic or anaerobic soils, the S-(+)-tebuconazole degraded faster than R-(-)-tebuconazole, and the enantioselectivity showed a correlation with soil organic carbon content. (+)-Myclobutanil was preferentially degraded than (-)-myclobutanil in aerobic soils, whereas both enantiomers degraded at similar rates in anaerobic soils. Apparent correlations of enantioselectivity with soil pH and soil texture were observed for myclobutanil under aerobic conditions. In addition, both fungicides were configurationally stable in soils, i.e., no enantiomerization was found. Enantioselectivity may be a common phenomenon in both aquatic toxicity and biodegradation of chiral triazole fungicides, and this should be considered when assessing ecotoxicological risks of these compounds in the environment. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effect of soil type on the bioremediation of petroleum contaminated soils.

PubMed

Haghollahi, Ali; Fazaelipoor, Mohammad Hassan; Schaffie, Mahin

2016-09-15

In this research the bioremediation of four different types of contaminated soils was monitored as a function of time and moisture content. The soils were categorized as sandy soil containing 100% sand (type I), clay soil containing more than 95% clay (type II), coarse grained soil containing 68% gravel and 32% sand (type III), and coarse grained with high clay content containing 40% gravel, 20% sand, and 40% clay (type IV). The initially clean soils were contaminated with gasoil to the concentration of 100 g/kg, and left on the floor for the evaporation of light hydrocarbons. A full factorial experimental design with soil type (four levels), and moisture content (10 and 20%) as the factors was employed. The soils were inoculated with petroleum degrading microorganisms. Soil samples were taken on days 90, 180, and 270, and the residual total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) was extracted using soxhlet apparatus. The moisture content of the soils was kept almost constant during the process by intermittent addition of water. The results showed that the efficiency of bioremediation was affected significantly by the soil type (Pvalue < 0.05). The removal percentage was the highest (70%) for the sandy soil with the initial TPH content of 69.62 g/kg, and the lowest for the clay soil (23.5%) with the initial TPH content of 69.70 g/kg. The effect of moisture content on bioremediation was not statistically significant for the investigated levels. The removal percentage in the clay soil was improved to 57% (within a month) in a separate experiment by more frequent mixing of the soil, indicating low availability of oxygen as a reason for low degradation of hydrocarbons in the clay soil. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Factors Driving Potential Ammonia Oxidation in Canadian Arctic Ecosystems: Does Spatial Scale Matter?

PubMed Central

Banerjee, Samiran

2012-01-01

Ammonia oxidation is a major process in nitrogen cycling, and it plays a key role in nitrogen limited soil ecosystems such as those in the arctic. Although mm-scale spatial dependency of ammonia oxidizers has been investigated, little is known about the field-scale spatial dependency of aerobic ammonia oxidation processes and ammonia-oxidizing archaeal and bacterial communities, particularly in arctic soils. The purpose of this study was to explore the drivers of ammonia oxidation at the field scale in cryosols (soils with permafrost within 1 m of the surface). We measured aerobic ammonia oxidation potential (both autotrophic and heterotrophic) and functional gene abundance (bacterial amoA and archaeal amoA) in 279 soil samples collected from three arctic ecosystems. The variability associated with quantifying genes was substantially less than the spatial variability observed in these soils, suggesting that molecular methods can be used reliably evaluate spatial dependency in arctic ecosystems. Ammonia-oxidizing archaeal and bacterial communities and aerobic ammonia oxidation were spatially autocorrelated. Gene abundances were spatially structured within 4 m, whereas biochemical processes were structured within 40 m. Ammonia oxidation was driven at small scales (<1m) by moisture and total organic carbon, whereas gene abundance and other edaphic factors drove ammonia oxidation at medium (1 to 10 m) and large (10 to 100 m) scales. In these arctic soils heterotrophs contributed between 29 and 47% of total ammonia oxidation potential. The spatial scale for aerobic ammonia oxidation genes differed from potential ammonia oxidation, suggesting that in arctic ecosystems edaphic, rather than genetic, factors are an important control on ammonia oxidation. PMID:22081570

Nitrous oxide production from soils amended with biogas residues and cattle slurry.

PubMed

Abubaker, J; Odlare, M; Pell, M

2013-07-01

The amount of residues generated from biogas production has increased dramatically due to the worldwide interest in renewable energy. A common way to handle the residues is to use them as fertilizers in crop production. Application of biogas residues to agricultural soils may be accompanied with environmental risks, such as increased NO emission. In 24-d laboratory experiments, NO dynamics and total production were studied in arable soils (sandy, clay, and organic) amended with one of two types of anaerobically digested biogas residues (BR-A and BR-B) generated from urban and agricultural waste and nondigested cattle slurry (CS) applied at rates corresponding to 70 kg NH-N ha. Total NO-N losses from the sandy soil were higher after amendment with BR-B (0.32 g NO-N m) than BR-A or CS (0.02 and 0.18 g NO-N m, respectively). In the clay soil, NO-N losses were very low for CS (0.02 g NO-N m) but higher for BR-A and BR-B (0.25 and 0.15 g NO-N m, respectively). In the organic soil, CS gave higher total NO-N losses (0.31 g NO-N m) than BR-A or BR-B (0.09 and 0.08 g NO-N m, respectively). Emission peaks differed considerably between soils, occurring on Day 1 in the organic soil and on Days 11 to 15 in the sand, whereas in the clay the peak varied markedly (Days 1, 6, and 13) depending on residue type. In all treatments, NH concentration decreased with time, and NO concentration increased. Potential ammonium oxidation and potential denitrification activity increased significantly in the amended sandy soil but not in the organic soil and only in the clay amended with CS. The results showed that fertilization with BR can increase NO emissions and that the size is dependent on the total N and organic C content of the slurry and on soil type. In conclusion, the two types of BR and the CS are not interchangeable regarding their effects on NO production in different soils, and, hence, matching fertilizer type to soil type could reduce NO emissions. For instance, it could be advisable to avoid fertilization of organic soils with CS containing high amounts or organic C and instead use BR. In clay soil, however, the risk of NO emissions could be lowered by choosing a CS. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Effect of water management, arsenic and phosphorus levels on rice in a high-arsenic soil-water system: II. Arsenic uptake.

PubMed

Talukder, A S M H M; Meisner, C A; Sarkar, M A R; Islam, M S; Sayre, K D; Duxbury, J M; Lauren, J G

2012-06-01

Rice consumption is one of the major pathways for As intake in populations that depend on a rice diet in several countries of South and South-east Asia. Pot experiments were undertaken to investigate the effects of water management (WM), arsenic (As) contaminated soil-water and Phosphorus (P) rates on As uptake in rice plants. There were 18 treatments comprising of three each of As rates (0, 20 and 40 mg kg(-1) soil) and P rates (0, 12.5 and 25 mg kg(-1) soil) and two WM (aerobic and anaerobic) strategies on winter (boro var. BRRI dhan 29) and monsoon (aman var. BRRI dhan 32) rice at the Wheat Research Center (WRC), Nashipur, Dinajpur, Bangladesh. Arsenic concentrations in rice grain and straw increased significantly (P ≤ 0.01) with the increasing As rates in the soil. Arsenic availability in soil pore-water solution was less (58%) under aerobic WM (redox potential-Eh=+135 to +138 mV; pH-6.50 at 24.3 °C) as compared to anaerobic WM (flooded: Eh=-41 to -76 mV; pH-6.43 at 23 °C). The highest total grain As content 2.23 ± 0.12 mg kg(-1) and 0.623 ± 0.006 mg kg(-1) was found in T(6) (P(12.5)As(40)-anaerobic) and T(9) (P(25)As(40)-anaerobic) in BRRI dhan 29 and BRRI dhan 32, respectively, which was significantly higher (41-45%) than in the same As and P treatments for pots under aerobic WM. The As content in rice straw (up to 24.7 ± 0.49 ppm in BRRI dhan 29, 17.3 ± 0.49 mg kg(-1) in BRRI dhan 32 with the highest As level) suggested that As can more easily be translocated to the shoots under anaerobic conditions than aerobic condition. BRRI dhan 29 was more sensitive to As than BRRI dhan 32. Under aerobic WM, P soil amendments reduced As uptake by rice plants. The study demonstrated that aerobic water management along with optimum P amendment and selection of arsenic inefficient rice varieties are appropriate options that can be applied to minimize As accumulation in rice which can reduce effects on human and cattle health risk as well as soil contamination. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dynamics of carbon pools in post-agrogenic sandy soils of southern taiga of Russia.

PubMed

Kalinina, Olga; Goryachkin, Sergey V; Karavaeva, Nina A; Lyuri, Dmitriy I; Giani, Luise

2010-04-26

Until recently, a lot of arable lands were abandoned in many countries of the world and, especially, in Russia, where about half a million square kilometers of arable lands were abandoned in 1961-2007. The soils at these fallows undergo a process of natural restoration (or self-restoration) that changes the balance of soil organic matter (SOM) supply and mineralization. A soil chronosequence study, covering the ecosystems of 3, 20, 55, 100, and 170 years of self-restoration in southern taiga zone, shows that soil organic content of mineral horizons remains relatively stable during the self-restoration. This does not imply, however, that SOM pools remain steady. The C/N ratio of active SOM reached steady state after 55 years, and increased doubly (from 12.5 - 15.6 to 32.2-33.8). As to the C/N ratio of passive SOM, it has been continuously increasing (from 11.8-12.7 to 19.0-22.8) over the 170 years, and did not reach a steady condition. The results of the study imply that soil recovery at the abandoned arable sandy lands of taiga is incredibly slow process. Not only soil morphological features of a former ploughing remained detectable but also the balance of soil organic matter input and mineralization remained unsteady after 170 years of self-restoration.

Dynamics of carbon pools in post-agrogenic sandy soils of southern taiga of Russia

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Until recently, a lot of arable lands were abandoned in many countries of the world and, especially, in Russia, where about half a million square kilometers of arable lands were abandoned in 1961-2007. The soils at these fallows undergo a process of natural restoration (or self-restoration) that changes the balance of soil organic matter (SOM) supply and mineralization. Results A soil chronosequence study, covering the ecosystems of 3, 20, 55, 100, and 170 years of self-restoration in southern taiga zone, shows that soil organic content of mineral horizons remains relatively stable during the self-restoration. This does not imply, however, that SOM pools remain steady. The C/N ratio of active SOM reached steady state after 55 years, and increased doubly (from 12.5 - 15.6 to 32.2-33.8). As to the C/N ratio of passive SOM, it has been continuously increasing (from 11.8-12.7 to 19.0-22.8) over the 170 years, and did not reach a steady condition. Conclusion The results of the study imply that soil recovery at the abandoned arable sandy lands of taiga is incredibly slow process. Not only soil morphological features of a former ploughing remained detectable but also the balance of soil organic matter input and mineralization remained unsteady after 170 years of self-restoration. PMID:20420668

Composting rice straw with sewage sludge and compost effects on the soil-plant system.

PubMed

Roca-Pérez, L; Martínez, C; Marcilla, P; Boluda, R

2009-05-01

Composting organic residue is an interesting alternative to recycling waste as the compost obtained may be used as organic fertilizer. This study aims to assess the composting process of rice straw and sewage sludge on a pilot-scale, to evaluate both the quality of the composts obtained and the effects of applying such compost on soil properties and plant development in pot experiments. Two piles, with shredded and non-shredded rice straw, were composted as static piles with passive aeration. Throughout the composting process, a number of parameters were determined, e.g. colour, temperature, moisture, pH, electrical conductivity, organic matter, C/N ratio, humification index, cation exchange capacity, chemical oxygen demand, and germination index. Moreover, sandy and clayey soils were amended with different doses of mature compost and strewed with barley in pot experiments. The results show that compost made from shredded rice straw reached the temperatures required to maximise product sanitisation, and that the parameters indicating compost maturity were all positive; however, the humification index and NH(4) content were more selective. Therefore, using compost-amended soils at a dose of 34 Mg ha(-1) for sandy soil, and of 11 Mg ha(-1) for clayey soil improves soil properties and the growth of Hordeum vulgare plants. Under there conditions, the only limiting factor of agronomic compost utilisation was the increased soil salinity.

Transport and fate of estrogenic hormones in slurry-treated soil monoliths.

PubMed

Laegdsmand, Mette; Andersen, Henrik; Jacobsen, Ole Hørbye; Halling-Sørensen, Bent

2009-01-01

The naturally occurring hormones, such as 17-beta-estradiol, 17-alpha-estradiol, and estrone, present in livestock manure may have detrimental environmental effects if released into surface waters. In areas where manure application is intensive, estrogens have been found in surface waters in concentrations known to affect the endocrine system of fish and amphibians. How the estrogens reach the surface waters is unclear. To investigate whether leaching through the soil profile plays a significant role, we conducted leaching experiments on intact soil cores. Lysimeter soil monoliths (60 cm in diameter and 100 cm long) were excavated from two sites in Denmark (one loamy and one sandy soil). The soil monoliths were treated with pig slurry containing estrogenic hormones and amended with an estrogen tracer (17-alpha-ethinylestradiol) and a conservative tracer (bromide). 17-alpha-ethinylestradiol is a synthetic analog of 17-beta-estradiol with sorption characteristics and molecular structure similar to those of the naturally occurring estrogens in slurry. The monoliths were exposed to a short-term irrigation event (12 h) followed by a long-term semi-field experiment (16 wk), during which leaching of natural estrogens and tracers was followed. Estrogens from slurry were transported to a depth of 1 m in loamy soil and sandy soil. The estrogen concentrations in the leachate were at a level known to affect the endocrine system of aquatic organisms.

Iron and zinc isotope fractionation during uptake and translocation in rice (Oryza sativa) grown in oxic and anoxic soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arnold, Tim; Markovic, Tamara; Kirk, Guy J. D.; Schönbächler, Maria; Rehkämper, Mark; Zhao, Fangjie J.; Weiss, Dominik J.

2015-11-01

Stable isotope fractionation is emerging quickly as a powerful novel technique to study metal uptake and translocation in plants. Fundamental to this development is a thorough understanding of the processes that lead to isotope fractionation under differing environmental conditions. In this study, we investigated Zn and Fe isotope fractionation in rice grown to maturity in anaerobic and aerobic soils under greenhouse conditions. The overall Zn isotope fractionation between the soil and above ground plant material was negligible in aerobic soil but significant in anaerobic soil with isotopically lighter Zn in the rice plant. The observed range of fractionation is in line with previously determined fractionations of Zn in rice grown in hydroponic solutions and submerged soils and emphasizes the effect of taking up different chemical forms of Zn, most likely free and organically complexed Zn. The Zn in the grain was isotopically lighter than in the rest of the above ground plant in rice grown in aerobic and anaerobic soils alike. This suggests that in the course of the grain loading and during the translocation within the plant important biochemical and/or biophysical processes occur. The isotope fractionation observed in the grains would be consistent with an unidirectional controlled transport from shoot to grain with a fractionation factor of α ≈ 0.9994. Iron isotopes showed an isotopic lighter signature in shoot and grain compared to the bulk soil or the leachate in aerobic and anaerobic soils alike. The negative direction of isotopic fractionation is consistent with possible changes in the redox state of Fe occurring during the uptake and translocation processes. The isotope fractionation pattern between shoots and grain material are different for Zn and Fe which finally suggests that different mechanisms operate during translocation and grain-loading in rice for these two key micronutrients.

Aflatoxin decomposition in various soils

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Angle, J.S.

The persistence of aflatoxin in the soil environment could potentially result in a number of adverse environmental consequences. To determine the persistence of aflatoxin in soil, /sup 14/C-labeled aflatoxin B1, was added to silt loam, sandy loam, and silty clay loam soils and the subsequent release of /sup 14/CO/sub 2/ was determined. After 120 days of incubation, 8.1% of the original aflatoxin added to the silt loam soil was released as CO/sub 2/. Aflatoxin decomposition in the sandy loam soil proceeded more quickly than the other two soils for the first 20 days of incubation. After this time, the decompositionmore » rate declined and by the end of the study, 4.9% of the aflatoxin was released as CO/sub 2/. Aflatoxin decomposition proceeded most slowly in the silty clay loam soil. Only 1.4% of aflatoxin added to the soil was released as CO/sub 2/ after 120 days incubation. To determine whether aflatoxin was bound to the silty clay loam soil, aflatoxin B1 was added to this soil and incubated for 20 days. The soil was periodically extracted and the aflatoxin species present were determined using thin layer chromatographic (TLC) procedures. After one day of incubation, the degradation products, aflatoxins B2 and G2, were observed. It was also found that much of the aflatoxin extracted from the soil was not mobile with the TLC solvent system used. This indicated that a conjugate may have formed and thus may be responsible for the lack of aflatoxin decomposition.« less

Microbial Community Structure and Enzyme Activities in Semiarid Agricultural Soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Acosta-Martinez, V. A.; Zobeck, T. M.; Gill, T. E.; Kennedy, A. C.

2002-12-01

The effect of agricultural management practices on the microbial community structure and enzyme activities of semiarid soils of different textures in the Southern High Plains of Texas were investigated. The soils (sandy clay loam, fine sandy loam and loam) were under continuous cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) or in rotations with peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) or wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), and had different water management (irrigated or dryland) and tillage (conservation or conventional). Microbial community structure was investigated using fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) analysis by gas chromatography and enzyme activities, involved in C, N, P and S cycling of soils, were measured (mg product released per kg soil per h). The activities of b-glucosidase, b-glucosaminidase, alkaline phosphatase, and arylsulfatase were significantly (P<0.05) increased in soils under cotton rotated with sorghum or wheat, and due to conservation tillage in comparison to continuous cotton under conventional tillage. Principal component analysis showed FAME profiles of these soils separated distinctly along PC1 (20 %) and PC2 (13 %) due to their differences in soil texture and management. No significant differences were detected in FAME profiles due to management practices for the same soils in this sampling period. Enzyme activities provide early indications of the benefits in microbial populations and activities and soil organic matter under crop rotations and conservation tillage in comparison to the typical practices in semiarid regions of continuous cotton and conventional tillage.

Active Distribute Temperature Sensing to Estimate Vertical Water Content Variations in a Loamy-Sandy Soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ciocca, F.; Van De Giesen, N.; Assouline, S.; Huwald, H.; Hopmans, J. W.; Lunati, I.; Parlange, M. B.

2011-12-01

Optical fibers in combination with Raman scattering measurements (Distributed Temperature Sensor: DTS) have recently become more standard for the measurement of soil temperature. A recently developed technique to measure soil moisture called Active DTS (ADTS) is investigated in this study. ADTS consists of an application of a heat pulse for a fixed duration and power along the metal sheath covering the optical fiber placed in the soil. Soil moisture can be inferred from the increased temperature measured during the heating phase and the subsequent temperature decrease during the cooling phase. We assess this technique for a loamy-sandy soil as part of a field campaign that took place during the 2011 summer at EPFL. The measurements were taken within a weighing lysimeter (2.5 m depth and 1.2 m diameter) using an optical fiber arranged in 15 loops for a total measurement length of 52 m in the top 80 cm of the soil profile. Local soil moistures were simultaneously measured using capacity-based probes. Thermocouples, wrapped around the fiber, are used to account for the effects of the insulating cover surrounding the cable. Heat pulses of various duration and power have been applied for a range of soil moistures. Measurements were taken during periods of drainage and evaporation. The accuracy of the technique for the EPFL 2011 field campaign and the experiment are discussed and the soil moisture measurements are presented.

Optimization of the Use of His6-OPH-Based Enzymatic Biocatalysts for the Destruction of Chlorpyrifos in Soil

PubMed Central

Senko, Olga; Efremenko, Elena

2017-01-01

Applying enzymatic biocatalysts based on hexahistidine-containing organophosphorus hydrolase (His6-OPH) is suggested for the decomposition of chlorpyrifos, which is actively used in agriculture in many countries. The application conditions were optimized and the following techniques was suggested to ensure the highest efficiency of the enzyme: first, the soil is alkalinized with hydrated calcitic lime Ca(OH)2, then the enzyme is introduced into the soil at a concentration of 1000 U/kg soil. Non-equilibrium low temperature plasma (NELTP)-modified zeolite is used for immobilization of the relatively inexpensive polyelectrolyte complexes containing the enzyme His6-OPH and a polyanionic polymer: poly-l-glutamic acid (PLE50) or poly-l-aspartic acid (PLD50). The soil’s humidity is then increased up to 60–80%, the top layer (10–30 cm) of soil is thoroughly stirred, and then exposed for 48–72 h. The suggested approach ensures 100% destruction of the pesticide within 72 h in soils containing as much as 100 mg/kg of chlorpyrifos. It was concluded that using this type of His6-OPH-based enzyme chemical can be the best approach for soils with relatively low humus concentrations, such as sandy and loam-sandy chestnut soils, as well as types of soil with increased alkalinity (pH 8.0–8.4). Such soils are often encountered in desert, desert-steppe, foothills, and subtropical regions where chlorpyrifos is actively used. PMID:29168784

Seasonal variations in the diversity and abundance of diazotrophic communities across soils.

PubMed

Pereira e Silva, Michele C; Semenov, Alexander V; van Elsas, Jan Dirk; Salles, Joana Falcão

2011-07-01

The nitrogen (N)-fixing community is a key functional community in soil, as it replenishes the pool of biologically available N that is lost to the atmosphere via anaerobic ammonium oxidation and denitrification. We characterized the structure and dynamic changes in diazotrophic communities, based on the nifH gene, across eight different representative Dutch soils during one complete growing season, to evaluate the amplitude of the natural variation in abundance and diversity, and identify possible relationships with abiotic factors. Overall, our results indicate that soil type is the main factor influencing the N-fixing communities, which were more abundant and diverse in the clay soils (n=4) than in the sandy soils (n=4). On average, the amplitude of variation in community size as well as the range-weighted richness were also found to be higher in the clay soils. These results indicate that N-fixing communities associated with sandy and clay soil show a distinct amplitude of variation under field conditions, and suggest that the diazotrophic communities associated with clay soil might be more sensitive to fluctuations associated with the season and agricultural practices. Moreover, soil characteristics such as ammonium content, pH and texture most strongly correlated with the variations observed in the diversity, size and structure of N-fixing communities, whose relative importance was determined across a temporal and spatial scale. © 2011 Federation of European Microbiological Societies. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improvement in the water retention characteristics of sandy loam soil using a newly synthesized poly(acrylamide-co-acrylic acid)/AlZnFe2O4 superabsorbent hydrogel nanocomposite material.

PubMed

Shahid, Shaukat Ali; Qidwai, Ansar Ahmad; Anwar, Farooq; Ullah, Inam; Rashid, Umer

2012-08-03

The use of some novel and efficient crop nutrient-based superabsorbent hydrogel nanocomposites (SHNCs), is currently becoming increasingly important to improve the crop yield and productivity, due to their water retention properties. In the present study a poly(Acrylamide-co-acrylic acid)/AlZnFe2O4 superabsorbent hydrogel nanocomposite was synthesized and its physical properties characterized using Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX), FE-SEM and FTIR spectroscopic techniques. The effects of different levels of SHNC were studied to evaluate the moisture retention properties of sandy loam soil (sand 59%, silt 21%, clay 19%, pH 7.4, EC 1.92 dS/m). The soil amendment with 0.1, 0.2, 0.3 and 0.4 w/w% of SHNC enhanced the moisture retention significantly at field capacity compared to the untreated soil. Besides, in a separate experiment, seed germination and seedling growth of wheat was found to be notably improved with the application of SHNC. A delay in wilting of seedlings by 5-8 days was observed for SHNC-amended soil, thereby improving wheat plant growth and establishment.

Water quality improvement of treated wastewater by intermittent soil percolation.

PubMed

Castillo, G; Mena, M P; Dibarrart, F; Honeyman, G

2001-01-01

Our research aimed to evaluate intermittent soil infiltration of treated sewage for reuse in the north of Chile. Aerated lagoon effluent was infiltrated in columns packed with native soils (sandy-lime, lime-gravel and limey-sand). Columns were operated for more than a year under different cycles of filling and drying, depths and load pressures depending on soil characteristics. The efficiency of the system was determined through influent-effluent microbiological indicators level (faecal coliforms, E. coli, Salmonella spp, MS2 phage, and protozoan cysts), physicochemical characterisation (TOC, COD, BOD, nitrogen), and hydraulic flow measurement. Results showed: (a) high reduction of enteric bacteria (5-7 log10), some inactivation of phage (2-4 log10) and complete removal of intestinal cyst; (b) stable removal of organic matter (80-90% reduction of TOC, COD, BOD); and (c) partial ammonia reduction through adsorption and nitrification with denitrification mainly occurring in sandy soil. Preliminary data from pilot plant working in the field showed better results that those obtained in the laboratory especially removal of microbiological indicators. Microbiological quality of effluent met Class A regulations for agricultural reuse (WHO, 1989) and the system looks like an attractive alternative to cope with water shortage in the region.

Dissipation and leaching of pyroxasulfone and s-metolachlor

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Pyroxasulfone dissipation and mobility in the soil was evaluated and compared to S-metolachlor in 2009 and 2010 at two field sites in northern Colorado, on a Nunn fine clay loam, and Olney fine sandy loam soil. Pyroxasulfone dissipation half-life (DT50) values varied from 47 to 134 d, and those of S...

INDICATORS OF NITRATE LEACHING LOSS UNDER DIFFERENT LAND USE OF CLAYEY AND SANDY SOILS IN SOUTHEASTERN OKLAHOMA

EPA Science Inventory

Evidence of increasing nitrate (NO₃^-) leaching losses from soils under various land use systems has elevated the interest and need to find better land management practices. An essential step in developing new management practices is understanding of the com...

Adjustments in hydraulic architecture of Pinus palustris maintain similar stomatal conductance in xerix and mesic habitats

Treesearch

R.N. Addington; L.A. Donovan; R.J. Mitchell; J.M. Vose; S.D. Pecot; S.B. Jack; U.G. Hacke; J.S. Sperry; R. Oren

2006-01-01

We investigated relationships between whole-tree hydranlic architecture and stomatal conductance in Pinus palustris Mill. (longleaf pine) across habitats that differed in soil properties and habitat structure. Trees occupying a xeric habitat (characterized by sandy, well-drained soils, higher nitrogen availability and lower overstory tree density)...

THE PHYTOAVAILABILITY OF CADMIUM TO LETTUCE IN LONG-TERM BIOSOLIDS-AMENDED SOILS

EPA Science Inventory

A field study was conducted to assess the phytoavailability of Cd in long-term biosolids-amended field plots managed at high and low pH. The experiment, established 13-15 yr prior to the present cropping, on a Christiana fine sandy loam soil (a clayey, kaolinitic, mesic Typic Pa...

Aspen ecosystem properties in the Upper Great Lakes.

Treesearch

David H. Alban; Donald A. Perala; Martin F. Jurgensen; Michael E. Ostry; John R. Probst

1991-01-01

Describes four ecosystems in Minnesota and Michigan comprised of mature aspen stands on a range of soils from sandy to clay. The ecosystems are part of a long-term study of the effects of harvesting and species conversion on ecosystem properties. Presents data on geology, weather, soils, vegetation, litterfall, nitrogen dynamics, insects, disease, and wildlife.

Off-tarp emissions, distribution, and efficacy of carbonated fumigants in a low permeability film tarped field

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Carbonated fumigants have been shown to distribute quickly and uniformly in sandy soils and improve pest control efficacy for annual crops. Low permeability films, such as VaporSafe® (TIF), could further improve fumigant dispersion by effectively retaining the fumigant in soil; however, there is a c...

Clinoptilolite zeolite influence on inorganic nitrogen in silt loam and sandy agricultural soils

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Development of best management practices can help improve inorganic nitrogen (N) availability to plants and reduce nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) leaching in soils. This study was conducted to determine the influence of the zeolite mineral Clinoptilolite (CL) additions on NO3-N and ammonium-nitrogen (NH4...

Clinoptilolite Zeolite Influence on Inorganic Nitrogen in Silt Loam and Sandy Agricultural Soils

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Development of best management practices can help improve inorganic nitrogen (N) availability to plants and reduce nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) leaching in soils. This study was conducted to determine the influence of the zeolite mineral Clinoptilolite (CL) additions on NO3-N and ammonium-nitrogen (NH4...

Clinoptilolite zeolite influence on nitrogen in a manure-amended sandy agricultural soil

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Development of best management practices can help improve inorganic nitrogen (N) availability to plants and reduce nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) leaching in soils. This study was conducted to determine the influence of the zeolite mineral clinoptilolite (CL) additions on NO3-N and ammonium-nitrogen (NH4-...

Transport of E. coli in a sandy soil as impacted by depth to water table.

PubMed

Stall, Christopher; Amoozegar, Aziz; Lindbo, David; Graves, Alexandria; Rashash, Diana

2014-01-01

Septic systems are considered a source of groundwater contamination. In the study described in this article, the fate of microbes applied to a sandy loam soil from North Carolina coastal plain as impacted by water table depth was studied. Soil materials were packed to a depth of 65 cm in 17 columns (15-cm diameter), and a water table was established at 30, 45, and 60 cm depths using five replications. Each day, 200 mL of an artificial septic tank effluent inoculated with E. coli were applied to the top of each column, a 100-mL sample was collected at the water table level and analyzed for E. coli, and 100 mL was drained from the bottom to maintain the water table. Two columns were used as control and received 200 mL/day of sterilized effluent. Neither 30 nor 45 cm of unsaturated soil was adequate to attenuate bacterial contamination, while 60 cm of separation appeared to be sufficient. Little bacterial contamination moved with the water table when it was lowered from 30 to 60 cm.

Travel of pollution, and purification en route, in sandy soils

PubMed Central

Baars, J. K.

1957-01-01

The travel of pollution in sandy soils, and the extent to which purification takes place en route, are discussed, with special reference to the possible contamination of ground water—a problem which is of particular importance in the Netherlands, where the water-supply for many of the large towns is drawn from the water underneath the dunes. Specifically, two types of soil pollution are considered: (a) severe pollution of the surface layers with matter concentrated in a small volume of water (e.g., faecal matter from pit privies at camping-sites); and (b) moderate pollution of the surface layers with matter contained in large quantities of water (e.g., organic matter and bacteria in river water used for the artificial recharge of ground water). It is shown that in both these types of pollution the self-purification is sufficient to prevent contamination of the ground water, provided that the soil is very fine and—in the case of the first type—dry and well aerated, and provided that the ground-water level is not too high or the rate of infiltration too great. PMID:13472428

A Comparative Study on Safe Pile Capacity as Shown in Table 1 of IS 2911 (Part III): 1980

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pakrashi, Somdev

2017-06-01

Code of practice for design and construction of under reamed pile foundations: IS 2911 (Part-III)—1980 presents one table in respect of safe load for bored cast in situ under reamed piles in sandy and clayey soils including black cotton soils, stem dia. of pile ranging from 20 to 50 cm and its effective length being 3.50 m. A comparative study, was taken up by working out safe pile capacity for one 400 dia., 3.5 m long bored cast in situ under reamed pile based on subsoil properties obtained from soil investigation work as well as subsoil properties of different magnitudes of clayey, sandy soils and comparing the same with the safe pile capacity shown in Table 1 of that IS Code. The study reveals that safe pile capacity computed from subsoil properties, barring a very few cases, considerably differs from that shown in the aforesaid code and looks forward for more research work and study to find out a conclusive explanation of this probable anomaly.

Soil and agronomic factors associated with cadmium accumulations in kidneys of grazing sheep.

PubMed

Morcombe, P W; Petterson, D S; Ross, P J; Edwards, J R

1994-12-01

Mean concentration of cadmium (Cd) in kidneys of hogget sheep from 67 flocks grazing in the Agricultural Region of Western Australia was tested for association with soil, pastoral, climatic and nutritional factors. Hoggets grazing pastures on acidic soils and soils with a sandy-textured surface had higher Cd concentrations in kidneys than hoggets grazing pastures on more alkaline soils or soils with a clay-textured surface. Application of more than 100 kg of phosphatic fertiliser during the past 3 years to loamy soils was also associated with greater Cd concentration in kidneys of the grazing animals.

Mucilage from seeds of chia (Salvia hispanica L.) used as soil conditioner; effects on the sorption-desorption of four herbicides in three different soils.

PubMed

Di Marsico, A; Scrano, L; Amato, M; Gàmiz, B; Real, M; Cox, L

2018-06-01

The objective of this work was to determine the effect of the mucilage extracted from Chia seeds (Salvia hispanica L.) as soil amendment on soil physical properties and on the sorption-desorption behaviour of four herbicides (MCPA, Diuron, Clomazone and Terbuthylazine) used in cereal crops. Three soils of different texture (sandy-loam, loam and clay-loam) were selected, and mercury intrusion porosimetry and surface area analysis were used to examine changes in the microstructural characteristics caused by the reactions that occur between the mucilage and soil particles. Laboratory studies were conducted to characterise the selected herbicides with regard their sorption on tested soils added or not with the mucilage. Mucilage amendment resulted in a reduction in soil porosity, basically due to a reduction in larger pores (radius>10μm) and an important increase in finer pores (radius<10μm) and in partcles' surface. A higher herbicide sorption in the amended soils was ascertained when compared to unamended soils. The sorption percentage of herbicides in soils treated with mucilage increased in the order; sandy-loam

Role of macrofauna on benthic oxygen consumption in sandy sediments of a high-energy tidal beach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Charbonnier, Céline; Lavesque, Nicolas; Anschutz, Pierre; Bachelet, Guy; Lecroart, Pascal

2016-06-01

Sandy beaches exposed to tide and waves are characterized by low abundance and diversity of benthic macrofauna, because of high-energy conditions. This is the reason why there are few studies on benthic communities living in such highly dynamic environments. It has been shown recently that tidal sandy beaches may act as biogeochemical reactors. Marine organic matter that is supplied in the sand during each flood tide is efficiently mineralized through aerobic respiration. In order to quantify the role of macrofauna in the whole beach benthic respiration, we studied the macrofauna and the pore water oxygen content of an exposed sandy beach (Truc Vert, SW of France) during four seasons in 2011. The results showed that macrofauna was characterised by a low number of species of specialized organisms such as the crustaceans Eurydice naylori and Gastrosaccus spp. and the polychaetes Ophelia bicornis and Scolelepis squamata. The distribution and abundance of macrofauna were clearly affected by exposure degree and emersion time. The combined monitoring of benthic macrofauna and pore waters chemistry allowed us to estimate (1) the macrofauna oxygen uptake, calculated with a standard allometric relationship using biomass data, and (2) the total benthic oxygen uptake, calculated from the oxygen deficit measured in pore waters. This revealed that benthic macrofauna respiration represented a variable but low (<10%) contribution to the total benthic oxygen consumption. This suggests that oxygen was mainly consumed by microbial respiration.

Biotransformation of tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) in anaerobic digester sludge, soils, and freshwater sediments.

PubMed

McAvoy, Drew C; Pittinger, Charles A; Willis, Alison M

2016-09-01

The biotransformation of tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) was evaluated in anaerobic digester sludge, soils, and freshwater sediments. In anaerobic digester sludge, TBBPA biotransformed rapidly with a 50% disappearance time (DT50) of 19 days, though little mineralization (1.1%) was observed. In aerobic soils, mineralization of TBBPA ranged from 17.5% to 21.6% with 55.3-83.6% of the TBBPA incorporated into the soils as a non-extractable bound residue. The DT50 for TBBPA in aerobic soils ranged from 5.3 to 7.7 days. In anaerobic soils, 48.3-100% of the TBBPA was incorporated into the soils as non-extractable bound residue with <4% mineralized. The soil fate studies demonstrated extensive incorporation of TBBPA into the solid matrix and this association was related to the amount of organic carbon in the soils (i.e., greater association of TBBPA with soil at higher organic carbon content). In anaerobic sediments the DT50 for TBBPA ranged from 28 to 42 days, whereas in aerobic sediments the DT50 for TBBPA ranged from 48 to 84 days and depended on the initial dose concentration. Most of the TBBPA in the sediment studies was incorporated as a non-extractable bound residue with little mineralization observed. Sediment extracts revealed three unknown biotransformation products and bisphenol A (BPA). These results were consistent with previously published studies where TBBPA biotransformed in anaerobic environments (digester sludge and sediments) by debromination and slowly mineralized in the test environments (anaerobic digester sludge, soils, and freshwater sediments). Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Experimental studies on the physico-mechanical properties of jet-grout columns in sandy and silty soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akin, Muge K.

2016-04-01

The term of ground improvement states to the modification of the engineering properties of soils. Jet-grouting is one of the grouting methods among various ground improvement techniques. During jet-grouting, different textures of columns can be obtained depending on the characteristics of surrounding subsoil as well as the adopted jet-grouting system for each site is variable. In addition to textural properties, strength and index parameters of jet-grout columns are highly affected by the adjacent soil. In this study, the physical and mechanical properties of jet-grout columns constructed at two different sites in silty and sandy soil conditions were determined by laboratory tests. A number of statistical relationships between physical and mechanical properties of soilcrete were established in this study in order to investigate the dependency of numerous variables. The relationship between qu and γd is more reliable for sandy soilcrete than that of silty columns considering the determination coefficients. Positive linear relationships between Vp and γd with significantly high determination coefficients were obtained for the jet-grout columns in silt and sand. The regression analyses indicate that the P-wave velocity is a very dominant parameter for the estimation of physical and mechanical properties of jet-grout columns and should be involved during the quality control of soilcrete material despite the intensive use of uniaxial compressive strength test. Besides, it is concluded that the dry unit weight of jet-grout column is a good indicator of the efficiency of employed operational parameters during jet-grouting.

Can Infrared Spectroscopy Be Used to Measure Change in Potassium Nitrate Concentration as a Proxy for Soil Particle Movement?

PubMed Central

Luleva, Mila Ivanova; van der Werff, Harald; Jetten, Victor; van der Meer, Freek

2011-01-01

Displacement of soil particles caused by erosion influences soil condition and fertility. To date, the cesium 137 isotope (137Cs) technique is most commonly used for soil particle tracing. However when large areas are considered, the expensive soil sampling and analysis present an obstacle. Infrared spectral measurements would provide a solution, however the small concentrations of the isotope do not influence the spectral signal sufficiently. Potassium (K) has similar electrical, chemical and physical properties as Cs. Our hypothesis is that it can be used as possible replacement in soil particle tracing. Soils differing in texture were sampled for the study. Laboratory soil chemical analyses and spectral sensitivity analyses were carried out to identify the wavelength range related to K concentration. Different concentrations of K fertilizer were added to soils with varying texture properties in order to establish spectral characteristics of the absorption feature associated with the element. Changes in position of absorption feature center were observed at wavelengths between 2,450 and 2,470 nm, depending on the amount of fertilizer applied. Other absorption feature parameters (absorption band depth, width and area) were also found to change with K concentration with coefficient of determination between 0.85 and 0.99. Tracing soil particles using K fertilizer and infrared spectral response is considered suitable for soils with sandy and sandy silt texture. It is a new approach that can potentially grow to a technique for rapid monitoring of soil particle movement over large areas. PMID:22163843

Spatial distribution of Eucalyptus roots in a deep sandy soil in the Congo: relationships with the ability of the stand to take up water and nutrients.

PubMed

Laclau, J P; Arnaud, M; Bouillet, J P; Ranger, J

2001-02-01

Spatial statistical analyses were performed to describe root distribution and changes in soil strength in a mature clonal plantation of Eucalyptus spp. in the Congo. The objective was to analyze spatial variability in root distribution. Relationships between root distribution, soil strength and the water and nutrient uptake by the stand were also investigated. We studied three, 2.35-m-wide, vertical soil profiles perpendicular to the planting row and at various distances from a representative tree. The soil profiles were divided into 25-cm2 grid cells and the number of roots in each of three diameter classes counted in each grid cell. Two profiles were 2-m deep and the third profile was 5-m deep. There was both vertical and horizontal anisotropy in the distribution of fine roots in the three profiles, with root density decreasing sharply with depth and increasing with distance from the stump. Roots were present in areas with high soil strength values (> 6,000 kPa). There was a close relationship between soil water content and soil strength in this sandy soil. Soil strength increased during the dry season mainly because of water uptake by fine roots. There were large areas with low root density, even in the topsoil. Below a depth of 3 m, fine roots were spatially concentrated and most of the soil volume was not explored by roots. This suggests the presence of drainage channels, resulting from the severe hydrophobicity of the upper soil.

Degradation kinetics of ptaquiloside in soil and soil solution.

PubMed

Ovesen, Rikke Gleerup; Rasmussen, Lars Holm; Hansen, Hans Christian Bruun

2008-02-01

Ptaquiloside (PTA) is a carcinogenic norsesquiterpene glycoside produced in bracken (Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn), a widespread, aggressive weed. Transfer of PTA to soil and soil solution eventually may contaminate groundwater and surface water. Degradation rates of PTA were quantified in soil and soil solutions in sandy and clayey soils subjected to high natural PTA loads from bracken stands. Degradation kinetics in moist soil could be fitted with the sum of a fast and a slow first-order reaction; the fast reaction contributed 20 to 50% of the total degradation of PTA. The fast reaction was similar in all horizons, with the rate constant k(1F) ranging between 0.23 and 1.5/h. The slow degradation, with the rate constant k(1S) ranging between 0.00067 and 0.029/ h, was more than twice as fast in topsoils compared to subsoils, which is attributable to higher microbial activity in topsoils. Experiments with sterile controls confirmed that nonmicrobial degradation processes constituted more than 90% of the fast degradation and 50% of the slow degradation. The lower nonmicrobial degradation rate observed in the clayey compared with the sandy soil is attributed to a stabilizing effect of PTA by clay silicates. Ptaquiloside appeared to be stable in all soil solutions, in which no degradation was observed within a period of 28 d, in strong contrast to previous studies of hydrolysis rates in artificial aqueous electrolytes. The present study predicts that the risk of PTA leaching is controlled mainly by the residence time of pore water in soil, soil microbial activity, and content of organic matter and clay silicates.

Cadmium phytoextraction from loam soil in tropical southern China by Sorghum bicolor.

PubMed

Wang, Xu; Chen, Can; Wang, Jianlong

2017-06-03

The cadmium (Cd) uptake characteristics by Sorghum bicolor cv. Nengsi 2# and Cowley from the acidic sandy loam soil (pH = 6.1) during the entire growth period (100 days) were investigated in pot outdoors in a tropical district of southern China, Hainan Island. The Cd-spiked levels in soil were set as 3 and 15 mg/kg. Correspondingly, the available Cd levels in soil extracted by Mehlich III solution were 2.71 and 9.41 mg/kg, respectively. Basically, two varieties in a full growth period (100 days) did not show a significant difference in their growth and Cd uptake. Under high Cd stress, the plant growth was inhibited and its biomass weight and height decreased by 38.7-51.5% and 27.6-28.5%, respectively. However, S. bicolor showed higher bioaccumulation capability of Cd from soil to plant [bioconcentration factor (BCF)>4], and higher transfer capability of Cd from roots to shoots [translocation factor (TF)>1] under high Cd stress; Cd contents in the roots, stems, and leaves of S. bicolor reached 43.79-46.07, 63.28-70.60, and 63.10-66.06 mg/kg, respectively. S. bicolor exhibited the potential phytoextraction capability for low or moderate Cd-contamination in acidic sandy loam soil.

Soil salinity and matric potential interaction on water use, water use efficiency and yield response factor of bean and wheat.

PubMed

Khataar, Mahnaz; Mohhamadi, Mohammad Hossien; Shabani, Farzin

2018-02-08

We studied the effects of soil matric potential and salinity on the water use (WU), water use efficiency (WUE) and yield response factor (Ky), for wheat (Triticum aestivum cv. Mahdavi) and bean (Phaseoulus vulgaris cv. COS16) in sandy loam and clay loam soils under greenhouse conditions. Results showed that aeration porosity is the predominant factor controlling WU, WUE, Ky and shoot biomass (Bs) at high soil water potentials. As matric potential was decreased, soil aeration improved, with Bs, WU and Ky reaching maximum value at -6 to -10 kPa, under all salinities. Wheat WUE remained almost unchanged by reduction of matric potential under low salinities (EC ≤ 8 dSm -1 ), but increased under higher salinities (EC ≥ 8 dSm -1 ), as did bean WUE at all salinities, as matric potential decreased to -33 kPa. Wheat WUE exceeds that of bean in both sandy loam and clay loam soils. WUE of both plants increased with higher shoot/root ratio and a high correlation coefficient exists between them. Results showed that salinity decreases all parameters, particularly at high potentials (h = -2 kPa), and amplifies the effects of waterlogging. Further, we observed a strong relationship between transpiration (T) and root respiration (Rr) for all experiments.

Nitroglycerin degradation mediated by soil organic carbon under aerobic conditions.

PubMed

Bordeleau, Geneviève; Martel, Richard; Bamba, Abraham N'Valoua; Blais, Jean-François; Ampleman, Guy; Thiboutot, Sonia

2014-10-01

The presence of nitroglycerin (NG) has been reported in shallow soils and pore water of several military training ranges. In this context, NG concentrations can be reduced through various natural attenuation processes, but these have not been thoroughly documented. This study aimed at investigating the role of soil organic matter (SOM) in the natural attenuation of NG, under aerobic conditions typical of shallow soils. The role of SOM in NG degradation has already been documented under anoxic conditions, and was attributed to SOM-mediated electron transfer involving different reducing agents. However, unsaturated soils are usually well-oxygenated, and it was not clear whether SOM could participate in NG degradation under these conditions. Our results from batch- and column-type experiments clearly demonstrate that in presence of dissolved organic matter (DOM) leached from a natural soil, partial NG degradation can be achieved. In presence of particulate organic matter (POM) from the same soil, complete NG degradation was achieved. Furthermore, POM caused rapid sorption of NG, which should result in NG retention in the organic matter-rich shallow horizons of the soil profile, thus promoting degradation. Based on degradation products, the reaction pathway appears to be reductive, in spite of the aerobic conditions. The relatively rapid reaction rates suggest that this process could significantly participate in the natural attenuation of NG, both on military training ranges and in contaminated soil at production facilities. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Antibiotic Production by Anaerobic Bacteria1

PubMed Central

Sturgen, Nancy O.; Casida, L. E.

1962-01-01

Soils from aerobic and anaerobic sources were investigated for the possible presence of bacteria which produce antibiotics under anaerobic conditions of growth. The screening techniques devised for this study yielded 157 soil bacteria which, during anaerobic growth, produced antibiotic activity against aerobic test bacteria. Studies on choice of media, presence of oxygen, and changes in antibiotic activity during growth indicated that representative strains of these bacteria produced mixtures of antibiotics. The activity was heat labile. PMID:13918037

Aerobic Degradation of N-Methyl-4-Nitroaniline (MNA) by Pseudomonas sp. Strain FK357 Isolated from Soil

PubMed Central

Khan, Fazlurrahman; Vyas, Bhawna; Pal, Deepika; Cameotra, Swaranjit Singh

2013-01-01

N-Methyl-4-nitroaniline (MNA) is used as an additive to lower the melting temperature of energetic materials in the synthesis of insensitive explosives. Although the biotransformation of MNA under anaerobic condition has been reported, its aerobic microbial degradation has not been documented yet. A soil microcosms study showed the efficient aerobic degradation of MNA by the inhabitant soil microorganisms. An aerobic bacterium, Pseudomonas sp. strain FK357, able to utilize MNA as the sole carbon, nitrogen, and energy source, was isolated from soil microcosms. HPLC and GC-MS analysis of the samples obtained from growth and resting cell studies showed the formation of 4-nitroaniline (4-NA), 4-aminophenol (4-AP), and 1, 2, 4-benzenetriol (BT) as major metabolic intermediates in the MNA degradation pathway. Enzymatic assay carried out on cell-free lysates of MNA grown cells confirmed N-demethylation reaction is the first step of MNA degradation with the formation of 4-NA and formaldehyde products. Flavin-dependent transformation of 4-NA to 4-AP in cell extracts demonstrated that the second step of MNA degradation is a monooxygenation. Furthermore, conversion of 4-AP to BT by MNA grown cells indicates the involvement of oxidative deamination (release of NH2 substituent) reaction in third step of MNA degradation. Subsequent degradation of BT occurs by the action of benzenetriol 1, 2-dioxygenase as reported for the degradation of 4-nitrophenol. This is the first report on aerobic degradation of MNA by a single bacterium along with elucidation of metabolic pathway. PMID:24116023

Aerobic degradation of N-methyl-4-nitroaniline (MNA) by Pseudomonas sp. strain FK357 isolated from soil.

PubMed

Khan, Fazlurrahman; Vyas, Bhawna; Pal, Deepika; Cameotra, Swaranjit Singh

2013-01-01

N-Methyl-4-nitroaniline (MNA) is used as an additive to lower the melting temperature of energetic materials in the synthesis of insensitive explosives. Although the biotransformation of MNA under anaerobic condition has been reported, its aerobic microbial degradation has not been documented yet. A soil microcosms study showed the efficient aerobic degradation of MNA by the inhabitant soil microorganisms. An aerobic bacterium, Pseudomonas sp. strain FK357, able to utilize MNA as the sole carbon, nitrogen, and energy source, was isolated from soil microcosms. HPLC and GC-MS analysis of the samples obtained from growth and resting cell studies showed the formation of 4-nitroaniline (4-NA), 4-aminophenol (4-AP), and 1, 2, 4-benzenetriol (BT) as major metabolic intermediates in the MNA degradation pathway. Enzymatic assay carried out on cell-free lysates of MNA grown cells confirmed N-demethylation reaction is the first step of MNA degradation with the formation of 4-NA and formaldehyde products. Flavin-dependent transformation of 4-NA to 4-AP in cell extracts demonstrated that the second step of MNA degradation is a monooxygenation. Furthermore, conversion of 4-AP to BT by MNA grown cells indicates the involvement of oxidative deamination (release of NH2 substituent) reaction in third step of MNA degradation. Subsequent degradation of BT occurs by the action of benzenetriol 1, 2-dioxygenase as reported for the degradation of 4-nitrophenol. This is the first report on aerobic degradation of MNA by a single bacterium along with elucidation of metabolic pathway.

Arsenic redox transformation by Pseudomonas sp. HN-2 isolated from arsenic-contaminated soil in Hunan, China.

PubMed

Zhang, Zhennan; Yin, Naiyi; Cai, Xiaolin; Wang, Zhenzhou; Cui, Yanshan

2016-09-01

A mesophilic, Gram-negative, arsenite[As(III)]-oxidizing and arsenate[As(V)]-reducing bacterial strain, Pseudomonas sp. HN-2, was isolated from an As-contaminated soil. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing indicated that the strain was closely related to Pseudomonas stutzeri. Under aerobic conditions, this strain oxidized 92.0% (61.4μmol/L) of arsenite to arsenate within 3hr of incubation. Reduction of As(V) to As(III) occurred in anoxic conditions. Pseudomonas sp. HN-2 is among the first soil bacteria shown to be capable of both aerobic As(III) oxidation and anoxic As(V) reduction. The strain, as an efficient As(III) oxidizer and As(V) reducer in Pseudomonas, has the potential to impact arsenic mobility in both anoxic and aerobic environments, and has potential application in As remediation processes. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Community Structure of Active Aerobic Methanotrophs in Red Mangrove (Kandelia obovata) Soils Under Different Frequency of Tides.

PubMed

Shiau, Yo-Jin; Cai, Yuanfeng; Lin, Yu-Te; Jia, Zhongjun; Chiu, Chih-Yu

2018-04-01

Methanotrophs are important microbial communities in coastal ecosystems. They reduce CH 4 emission in situ, which is influenced by soil conditions. This study aimed to understand the differences in active aerobic methanotrophic communities in mangrove forest soils experiencing different inundation frequency, i.e., in soils from tidal mangroves, distributed at lower elevations, and from dwarf mangroves, distributed at higher elevations. Labeling of pmoA gene of active methanotrophs using DNA-based stable isotope probing (DNA-SIP) revealed that methanotrophic activity was higher in the dwarf mangrove soils than in the tidal mangrove soils, possibly because of the more aerobic soil conditions. Methanotrophs affiliated with the cluster deep-sea-5 belonging to type Ib methanotrophs were the most dominant methanotrophs in the fresh mangrove soils, whereas type II methanotrophs also appeared in the fresh dwarf mangrove soils. Furthermore, Methylobacter and Methylosarcina were the most important active methanotrophs in the dwarf mangrove soils, whereas Methylomonas and Methylosarcina were more active in the tidal mangrove soils. High-throughput sequencing of the 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene also confirmed similar differences in methanotrophic communities at the different locations. However, several unclassified methanotrophic bacteria were found by 16S rRNA MiSeq sequencing in both fresh and incubated mangrove soils, implying that methanotrophic communities in mangrove forests may significantly differ from the methanotrophic communities documented in previous studies. Overall, this study showed the feasibility of 13 CH 4 DNA-SIP to study the active methanotrophic communities in mangrove forest soils and revealed differences in the methanotrophic community structure between coastal mangrove forests experiencing different tide frequencies.

Depositional dynamics in the El'gygytgyn Crater margin: implications for the 3.6 Ma old sediment archive

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwamborn, G.; Fedorov, G.; Ostanin, N.; Schirrmeister, L.; Andreev, A.; El'gygytgyn Scientific Party, the

2012-11-01

The combination of permafrost history and dynamics, lake level changes and the tectonical framework is considered to play a crucial role for sediment delivery to El'gygytgyn Crater Lake, NE Russian Arctic. The purpose of this study is to propose a depositional framework based on analyses of the core strata from the lake margin and historical reconstructions from various studies at the site. A sedimentological program has been conducted using frozen core samples from the 141.5 m long El'gygytgyn 5011-3 permafrost well. The drill site is located in sedimentary permafrost west of the lake that partly fills the El'gygytgyn Crater. The total core sequence is interpreted as strata building up a progradational alluvial fan delta. Four macroscopically distinct sedimentary units are identified. Unit 1 (141.5-117.0 m) is comprised of ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel and intercalated sandy layers. Sandy layers represent sediments which rained out as particles in the deeper part of the water column under highly energetic conditions. Unit 2 (117.0-24.25 m) is dominated by ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel with individual gravel layers. Most of the Unit 2 diamicton is understood to result from alluvial wash and subsequent gravitational sliding of coarse-grained (sandy gravel) material on the basin slope. Unit 3 (24.25-8.5 m) has ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel that is interrupted by sand beds. These sandy beds are associated with flooding events and represent near-shore sandy shoals. Unit 4 (8.5-0.0 m) is ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel with varying ice content, mostly higher than below. It consists of slope material and creek fill deposits. The uppermost metre is the active layer (i.e. the top layer of soil with seasonal freeze and thaw) into which modern soil organic matter has been incorporated. The nature of the progradational sediment transport taking place from the western and northern crater margins may be related to the complementary occurrence of frequent turbiditic layers in the central lake basin, as is known from the lake sediment record. Slope processes such as gravitational sliding and sheet flooding occur especially during spring melt and promote mass wasting into the basin. Tectonics are inferred to have initiated the fan accumulation in the first place and possibly the off-centre displacement of the crater lake.

Testing Associations of Plant Functional Diversity with Carbon and Nitrogen Storage along a Restoration Gradient of Sandy Grassland

PubMed Central

Zuo, Xiaoan; Zhou, Xin; Lv, Peng; Zhao, Xueyong; Zhang, Jing; Wang, Shaokun; Yue, Xiyuan

2016-01-01

The trait-based approach shows that ecosystem function is strongly affected by plant functional diversity as reflected by the traits of the most abundant species (community-weighted mean, CWM) and functional dispersion (FDis). Effects of CWM and FDis individually support the biomass ratio hypothesis and the niche complementarity hypothesis. However, there is little empirical evidence on the relative roles of CWM traits and FDis in explaining the carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) storage in grassland ecosystems. We measured plant functional traits in the 34 most abundant species across 24 sites along a restoration gradient of sandy grassland (mobile dune, semi-fixed dune, fixed dune, and grassland) in Horqin Sand Land, northern China. Thereafter, we calculated the CWM traits, the functional divergence of each single trait (FDvar) and the trait dispersion of multiple traits (FDis). We also measured the C and N storage in plant, litter, root, and soil. Using a stepwise multiple regression analysis, we further assessed which of the functional diversity components best explained C and N storage in the sandy grassland restoration. We found consistent links between C or N storage and leaf traits related to plant resource use strategy. However, the CWM of plant height was retained as an important predictor of C and N storage in plant, litter, soil, and total ecosystem in the final multiple models. CWMs of specific leaf area and plant height best predicted soil C and N storage and total ecosystem N storage. FDis was one of good predictors of litter C and N storage as well as total ecosystem C storage. These results suggest that ecosystem C and N pools in the sandy grassland restoration are primarily associated with the traits of the most abundant species in communities, thereby supporting the biomass ratio hypothesis. The positive associations of FDis with C storage in litter and total ecosystem provide evidence to support the niche complementarity hypothesis. Both functional traits of dominant species and traits’ dispersion in plant communities could contribute to explaining total ecosystem C storage. Thus, single- and multi-trait indices of functional composition play a crucial role in predicting C storage in sandy grasslands. PMID:26925089

A geophysical and biochemical investigation of buried remains in contrasting soil textures in southern Ontario

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lowe, Amanda C.

Ground penetrating radar (GPR) is a non-invasive, geophysical tool used for the detection of clandestine graves. GPR operates by detecting density differences in soil by the transmission of high frequency electromagnetic (EM) waves from an antenna. A 500 Megahertz (MHz) frequency antenna is typically used for forensic investigations, as it provides a suitable compromise between depth of penetration and sub-surface resolution. Domestic pig (Sus scrofa) carcasses were clothed in 100% cotton t-shirts and 50% cotton/50% polyester briefs, and buried at a consistent depth at three field sites of contrasting soil texture (silty clay loam, fine sand and fine sandy loam) in southern Ontario. GPR was used to detect and monitor the graves for a period of 14 months post burial. Analysis of collected data revealed that GPR had applicability in the detection of clandestine graves containing remains in silty clay loam and fine sandy loam soils, but was not suitable for detection in fine sandy soil. Specifically, within a fine sandy loam soil, there is the potential to estimate the post burial interval (PBI), as hyperbolic grave response was well defined at the beginning of the 14 month burial duration, but became less distinctive near the completion of the study. Following the detection of a clandestine grave containing a carcass, collection of gravesoil, tissue and textile samples is important for the estimation of the stage of decomposition and the post burial interval (PBI) of the remains. Throughout the decomposition process of a carcass, adipose tissue is subjected to hydrolytic enzymes that convert triglycerides to their corresponding unsaturated, saturated and salts of fatty acids. The composition of fatty acids in the decomposed tissue will vary with the post mortem period, but it is unknown what affect the soil texture has on lipid degradation. As decomposition proceeds, fatty acids can leach from the tissues into the surrounding burial environment. Fatty acid analysis of gravesoil, tissue and textile samples, exhumed at two, eleven and fourteen month post burial intervals, was conducted using diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS), attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Infrared (IR) spectroscopy analysis of the samples provided a qualitative profile of lipid degradation. Analysis of gravesoil samples did not reveal IR spectroscopy bands attributable to fatty acid degradation or adipocere formation. IR spectroscopy analysis of tissue samples is applicable for the estimation of carcass decomposition in all of the soil textures tested. Results of textile IR spectroscopy analysis revealed limited potential to estimate the stage of carcass decomposition in silty clay loam soil. GC-MS was used to quantify the peak area ratio (area/int std area) (PAR) of myristic (C14:0), palmitic (C16:0), palmitoleic (C16:1), stearic (C18:0) and oleic (C18:1) acids. GC-MS results revealed that analysis of both tissue and textile samples can be useful in the estimation of the stage of decomposition and the PBI of carcasses in all three of the soil textures tested. The results of this research may have applicability within forensic investigations involving decomposing bodies by aiding in the location of clandestine graves in silty clay loam and fine sandy loam soil through the use of GPR. Infrared spectroscopy and GC-MS analysis of the fatty acid composition of tissue and textile samples may also be incorporated into investigational protocols to aid in the estimation of the stage of decomposition and the PBI of a body. Key Words: forensic science, ground penetrating radar, soil texture, buried remains, fatty acids, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), infrared spectroscopy

Reducing Nutrient Losses with Directed Fertilization of Degraded Soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Menzies, E.; Walter, M. T.; Schneider, R.

2016-12-01

Degraded soils around the world are stunting agricultural productivity in places where people need it the most. In China, hundreds of years of agriculture and human activity have turned large swaths of productive grasslands into expanses of sandy soils where nothing can grow. Returning soils such as these to healthy productive landscapes is crucial to the livelihoods of rural families and to feeding the expanding population of China and the world at large. Buried wood chips can be used to improve the soils' water holding capacity but additional nutrient inputs are crucial to support plant growth and completely restore degraded soils in China and elsewhere. Improperly applied fertilizer can cause large fluxes of soluble nutrients such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) to pollute groundwater, and reach surface water bodies causing harmful algal blooms or eutrophication. Similarly, fertilization can create increases in nutrient losses in the form of greenhouse gases (GHGs). It is imperative that nutrient additions to this system be done in a way that fosters restoration and a return to productivity, but minimizes nutrient losses to adjacent surface water bodies and the atmosphere. The primary objective of this study is to characterize soluble and gaseous N and P losses from degraded sandy soils with wood chip and fertilizer amendments in order to identify optimal fertilization methods, frequencies, and quantities for soil restoration. A laboratory soil column study is currently underway to begin examining these questions results of this study will be presented at the Fall Meeting.

Effects of biochar addition to soil on nitrogen fluxes in a winter wheat lysimeter experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hüppi, Roman; Leifeld, Jens; Neftel, Albrecht; Conen, Franz; Six, Johan

2014-05-01

Biochar is a carbon-rich, porous residue from pyrolysis of biomass that potentially increases crop yields by reducing losses of nitrogen from soils and/or enhancing the uptake of applied fertiliser by the crops. Previous research is scarce about biochar's ability to increase wheat yields in temperate soils or how it changes nitrogen dynamics in the field. In a lysimeter system with two different soils (sandy/silt loam) nitrogen fluxes were traced by isotopic 15N enriched fertiliser to identify changes in nitrous oxide emissions, leaching and plant uptake after biochar addition. 20t/ha woodchip-waste biochar (pH=13) was applied to these soils in four lysimeters per soil type; the same number of lysimeters served as a control. The soils were cropped with winter wheat during the season 2012/2013. 170 kg-N/ha ammonium nitrate fertiliser with 10% 15N was applied in 3 events during the growing season and 15N concentrations where measured at different points in time in plant, soil, leachate and emitted nitrous oxide. After one year the lysimeter system showed no difference between biochar and control treatment in grain- and straw yield or nitrogen uptake. However biochar did reduce nitrous oxide emissions in the silt loam and losses of nitrate leaching in sandy loam. This study indicates potential reduction of nitrogen loss from cropland soil by biochar application but could not confirm increased yields in an intensive wheat production system.

The long-term effects of silvicultural thinning and partial cutting on soil compaction in red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.) and northern hardwood stands in the northern Great Lakes Region of the United States

Treesearch

Rachel A. Tarpey; Martin F. Jurgensen; Brian J. Palik; Randy K. Kolka

2008-01-01

Periodic silvicultural thinnings (23.0, 27.6, 32.1 m2 ha-1 residual basal area) in a red pine stand growing on a sandy soil in north-central Minnesota over a 57-yr period increased soil compaction as the intensity of the thinning treatment increased. Of the three different methods used to measure soil compaction (bulk...

Fundamental Properties of Soils for Complex Dynamic Loadings: Dynamic Constitutive Modeling of Sandy Soils.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-04-01

1.0 INTRODUCTION AND SCOPE 1 2.0 PROGRESS SUMMARY 3 2.1 Soil Element Model Development 3 2.2 U.S. Any Engineer Waterways Experiment Station (WES...LABORATORY BEHAVIOR OF SAND 8 3.1 Introduction 8 3.2 Material Description 8 3.3 Laboratory Tests Performed 9 3.4 Laboratory Test Results 14 4.0 MODELING THE... INTRODUCTION AND SCOPE The subject of this annual report is constitutive modeling of cohesionless soil, for both laboratory standard static test conditions

Determination of Selenium Toxicity for Survival and Reproduction of Enchytraeid Worms in a Sandy Loam Soil

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-07-01

ecotoxicological benchmarks for developing the ecological soil screening levels (Eco-SSLs) for risk assessments of contaminated soils. For the present study, we...or manufacturers ’ names in this report does not constitute an official endorsement of any commercial products. This report may not be cited for...Disposal of Se in commercial products and waste can also contribute to Se contaminant levels in soil. Se has been found in at least 508 of the 1623

LOSS OF ORGANIC CHEMICALS IN SOIL: PURE COMPOUND TREATABILITY STUDIES

EPA Science Inventory

Comprehensive screening data on the treatability of 32 organic chemicals in soil were developed. Of the evaluated chemicals, 22 were phenolic compounds. Aerobic batch laboratory microcosm experiments were conducted using two soils: an acidic clay soil with <1% organic matter and ...

Phytotoxicity of nitroaromatic energetic compounds freshly amended or weathered and aged in sandy loam soil.

PubMed

Rocheleau, Sylvie; Kuperman, Roman G; Martel, Majorie; Paquet, Louise; Bardai, Ghalib; Wong, Stephen; Sarrazin, Manon; Dodard, Sabine; Gong, Ping; Hawari, Jalal; Checkai, Ronald T; Sunahara, Geoffrey I

2006-01-01

The toxicities of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), 1,3,5-trinitrobenzene (TNB), 2,4-dinitrotoluene (2,4-DNT), and 2,6-dinitrotoluene (2,6-DNT) to terrestrial plants alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), Japanese millet (Echinochloa crusgalli L.), and perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) were determined in Sassafras sandy loam soil using seedling emergence, fresh shoot, and dry mass measurement endpoints. A 13-week weathering and aging of energetic materials in soils, which included wetting and drying cycles, and exposure to sunlight of individual soil treatments, was incorporated into the study design to better reflect the soil exposure conditions in the field than toxicity determinations in freshly amended soils. Definitive toxicity tests showed that dinitrotoluenes were more phytotoxic for all plant species in freshly amended treatments based on EC20 values for dry shoot ranging from 3 to 24mgkg(-1) compared with values for TNB or TNT ranging from 43 to 62mgkg(-1). Weathering and aging of energetic materials (EMs) in soil significantly decreased the toxicity of TNT, TNB or 2,6-DNT to Japanese millet or ryegrass based on seedling emergence, but significantly increased the toxicity of all four EMs to all three plant species based on shoot growth. Exposure of the three plant species to relatively low concentrations of the four compounds initially stimulated plant growth before the onset of inhibition at greater concentrations (hormesis).

Bioaccessible Porosity in Soil Aggregates and Implications for Biodegradation of High Molecular Weight Petroleum Compounds.

PubMed

Akbari, Ali; Ghoshal, Subhasis

2015-12-15

We evaluated the role of soil aggregate pore size on biodegradation of essentially insoluble petroleum hydrocarbons that are biodegraded primarily at the oil-water interface. The size and spatial distribution of pores in aggregates sampled from biodegradation experiments of a clayey, aggregated, hydrocarbon-contaminated soil with relatively high bioremediation end point were characterized by image analyses of X-ray micro-CT scans and N2 adsorption. To determine the bioaccessible pore sizes, we performed separate experiments to assess the ability of hydrocarbon degrading bacteria isolated from the soil to pass through membranes with specific sized pores and to access hexadecane (model insoluble hydrocarbon). Hexadecane biodegradation occurred only when pores were 5 μm or larger, and did not occur when pores were 3 μm and smaller. In clayey aggregates, ∼ 25% of the aggregate volume was attributed to pores larger than 4 μm, which was comparable to that in aggregates from a sandy, hydrocarbon-contaminated soil (~23%) scanned for comparison. The ratio of volumes of inaccessible pores (<4 μm) to bioaccessible pores (>4 μm) in the clayey aggregates was 0.32, whereas in the sandy aggregates it was approximately 10 times lower. The role of soil microstructure on attainable bioremediation end points could be qualitatively assessed in various soils by the aggregate characterization approach outlined herein.

Assessment of the physicochemical and microbiological status of western Niger Delta soil for crude oil pollution bioremediation potential.

PubMed

Ejechi, Bernard O; Ozochi, Chizoba A

2015-06-01

The physical, chemical and microbiological characteristics of the soil across the western Niger Delta area of Nigeria were determined to assess its potential for natural remediation of crude oil pollution. The pH (oil-producing area, 6.1 ± 1.1; non-oil producing, 5.9 ± 0.9) and temperature (28-35 °C in both areas) were favourable to natural remediation, while the fluctuating moisture (7.7-45.6 %) and the dominant sandy soil textural classes (70 %) were limitations. The carbon nitrogen phosphorus (CNP) ratio markedly exceeded recommended 100:10:1, while the cation exchange capacity was below acceptable range. Counts of heterotrophic bacteria, fungi and hydrocarbon-utilising and nitrogen-fixing bacteria (mean range log10 3.8 ± 1.5-6.52 ± 0.9 cfu/g) were favourable having markedly exceeded the minimum counts required. Crude oil loss was highest in loam soil, but significantly (P = 0.00) increased in all soil textural classes including sandy soils after amendment with cow dung/poultry dropping and manual aeration in laboratory and 8-month field tests as indicated by two-way ANOVA. Thus, the overall assessment is that while CNP can be viewed as the major limiting factor to natural oil pollution remediation in the western Niger Delta soil, its influence can be minimised by the amendment indicated in the study.

Field and microcosm experiments to evaluate the effects of agricultural Cu treatment on the density and genetic structure of microbial communities in two different soils.

PubMed

Ranjard, Lionel; Echairi, Abdelwahad; Nowak, Virginie; Lejon, David P H; Nouaïm, Rachida; Chaussod, Rémi

2006-11-01

The effects of Cu amendment on indigenous soil microorganisms were investigated in two soils, a calcareous silty clay (Ep) and a sandy soil (Au), by means of a 1-year field experiment and a two-month microcosm incubation. Cu was added as 'Bordeaux mixture' [CuSO(4), Ca(OH)(2)] at the standard rate used in viticulture (B1=16 kg Cu kg(-1) soil) and at a higher level of contamination (B3=48 kg Cu ha(-1) soil). More extractable Cu was observed in sandy soil (Au) than in silty soil (Ep). Furthermore, total Cu and Cu-EDTA declined with time in Au soil, whereas they remained stable in Ep soil. Quantitative modifications of the microflora were assessed by C-biomass measurements and qualitative modifications were assessed by the characterization of the genetic structure of bacterial and fungal communities from DNA directly extracted from the soil, using B- and F-ARISA (bacterial and fungal automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis). In the field study, no significant modifications were observed in C-biomass whereas microcosm incubation showed a decrease in B3 contamination only. ARISA fingerprinting showed slight but significant modifications of bacterial and fungal communities in field and microcosm incubation. These modifications were transient in all cases, suggesting a short-term effect of Cu stress. Microcosm experiments detected the microbial community modifications with greater precision in the short-term, while field experiments showed that the biological effects of Cu contamination may be overcome or hidden by pedo-climatic variations.

Biochar pyrolyzed at two temperatures affects Escherichia coli transport through a sandy soil.

PubMed

Bolster, Carl H; Abit, Sergio M

2012-01-01

The incorporation of biochar into soils has been proposed as a means to sequester carbon from the atmosphere. An added environmental benefit is that biochar has also been shown to increase soil retention of nutrients, heavy metals, and pesticides. The goal of this study was to evaluate whether biochar amendments affect the transport of Escherichia coli through a water-saturated soil. We looked at the transport of three E. coli isolates through 10-cm columns packed with a fine sandy soil amended with 2 or 10% (w/w) poultry litter biochar pyrolyzed at 350 or 700°C. For all three isolates, mixing the high-temperature biochar at a rate of 2% into the soil had no impact on transport behavior. When added at a rate of 10%, a reduction of five orders of magnitude in the amount of E. coli transported through the soil was observed for two of the isolates, and a 60% reduction was observed for the third isolate. Mixing the low-temperature biochar into the soil resulted in enhanced transport through the soil for two of the isolates, whereas no significant differences in transport behavior were observed between the low-temperature and high-temperature biochar amendments for one isolate. Our results show that the addition of biochar can affect the retention and transport behavior of E. coli and that biochar application rate, biochar pyrolysis temperature, and bacterial surface characteristics were important factors determining the transport of E. coli through our test soil. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Multilaboratory evaluation of methods for detecting enteric viruses in soils.

PubMed Central

Hurst, C J; Schaub, S A; Sobsey, M D; Farrah, S R; Gerba, C P; Rose, J B; Goyal, S M; Larkin, E P; Sullivan, R; Tierney, J T

1991-01-01

Two candidate methods for the recovery and detection of viruses in soil were subjected to round robin comparative testing by members of the American Society for Testing and Materials D19:24:04:04 Subcommittee Task Group. Selection of the methods, designated "Berg" and "Goyal," was based on results of an initial screening which indicated that both met basic criteria considered essential by the task group. Both methods utilized beef extract solutions to achieve desorption and recovery of viruses from representative soils: a fine sand soil, an organic muck soil, a sandy loam soil, and a clay loam soil. One of the two methods, Goyal, also used a secondary concentration of resulting soil eluants via low-pH organic flocculation to achieve a smaller final assay volume. Evaluation of the two methods was simultaneously performed in replicate by nine different laboratories. Each of the produced samples was divided into portions, and these were respectively subjected to quantitative viral plaque assay by both the individual, termed independent, laboratory which had done the soil processing and a single common reference laboratory, using a single cell line and passage level. The Berg method seemed to produce slightly higher virus recovery values; however, the differences in virus assay titers for samples produced by the two methods were not statistically significant (P less than or equal to 0.05) for any one of the four soils. Despite this lack of a method effect, there was a statistically significant laboratory effect exhibited by assay titers from the independent versus reference laboratories for two of the soils, sandy loam and clay loam. PMID:1849712

Multilaboratory evaluation of methods for detecting enteric viruses in soils.

PubMed

Hurst, C J; Schaub, S A; Sobsey, M D; Farrah, S R; Gerba, C P; Rose, J B; Goyal, S M; Larkin, E P; Sullivan, R; Tierney, J T

1991-02-01

Two candidate methods for the recovery and detection of viruses in soil were subjected to round robin comparative testing by members of the American Society for Testing and Materials D19:24:04:04 Subcommittee Task Group. Selection of the methods, designated "Berg" and "Goyal," was based on results of an initial screening which indicated that both met basic criteria considered essential by the task group. Both methods utilized beef extract solutions to achieve desorption and recovery of viruses from representative soils: a fine sand soil, an organic muck soil, a sandy loam soil, and a clay loam soil. One of the two methods, Goyal, also used a secondary concentration of resulting soil eluants via low-pH organic flocculation to achieve a smaller final assay volume. Evaluation of the two methods was simultaneously performed in replicate by nine different laboratories. Each of the produced samples was divided into portions, and these were respectively subjected to quantitative viral plaque assay by both the individual, termed independent, laboratory which had done the soil processing and a single common reference laboratory, using a single cell line and passage level. The Berg method seemed to produce slightly higher virus recovery values; however, the differences in virus assay titers for samples produced by the two methods were not statistically significant (P less than or equal to 0.05) for any one of the four soils. Despite this lack of a method effect, there was a statistically significant laboratory effect exhibited by assay titers from the independent versus reference laboratories for two of the soils, sandy loam and clay loam.

Reductive immobilization of chromate in water and soil using stabilized iron nanoparticles.

PubMed

Xu, Yinhui; Zhao, Dongye

2007-05-01

Laboratory batch and column experiments were conducted to investigate the feasibility of using a new class of stabilized zero-valent iron (ZVI) nanoparticles for in situ reductive immobilization of Cr(VI) in water and in a sandy loam soil. Batch kinetic tests indicated that 0.08g/L of the ZVI nanoparticles were able to rapidly reduce 34mg/L of Cr(VI) in water at an initial pseudo first-order rate constant of 0.08h(-1). The extent of Cr(VI) reduction was increased from 24% to 90% as the ZVI dosage was increased from 0.04 to 0.12g/L. The leachability of Cr preloaded in a Cr-loaded sandy soil was reduced by nearly 50% when the soil was amended with 0.08g/L of the ZVI nanoparticles in batch tests at a soil-to-solution ratio of 1g: 10mL. Column experiments indicated that the stabilized ZVI nanoparticles are highly deliverable in the soil column. When the soil column was treated with 5.7 bed volumes of 0.06g/L of the nanoparticles at pH 5.60, only 4.9% of the total Cr was eluted compared to 12% for untreated soil under otherwise identical conditions. The ZVI treatment reduced the TCLP leachability of Cr in the soil by 90%, and the California WET (Waste Extraction Test) leachability by 76%. The stabilized ZVI nanoparticles may serve as a highly soil-dispersible and effective agent for in situ reductive immobilization of chromium in soils, groundwater, or industrial wastes.

The impact of biosolids application on organic carbon and carbon dioxide fluxes in soil.

PubMed

Wijesekara, Hasintha; Bolan, Nanthi S; Thangavel, Ramesh; Seshadri, Balaji; Surapaneni, Aravind; Saint, Christopher; Hetherington, Chris; Matthews, Peter; Vithanage, Meththika

2017-12-01

A field study was conducted on two texturally different soils to determine the influences of biosolids application on selected soil chemical properties and carbon dioxide fluxes. Two sites, located in Manildra (clay loam) and Grenfell (sandy loam), in Australia, were treated at a single level of 70 Mg ha -1 biosolids. Soil samples were analyzed for SOC fractions, including total organic carbon (TOC), labile, and non-labile carbon contents. The natural abundances of soil δ 13 C and δ 15 N were measured as isotopic tracers to fingerprint carbon derived from biosolids. An automated soil respirometer was used to measure in-situ diurnal CO 2 fluxes, soil moisture, and temperature. Application of biosolids increased the surface (0-15 cm) soil TOC by > 45% at both sites, which was attributed to the direct contribution from residual carbon in the biosolids and also from the increased biomass production. At both sites application of biosolids increased the non-labile carbon fraction that is stable against microbial decomposition, which indicated the soil carbon sequestration potential of biosolids. Soils amended with biosolids showed depleted δ 13 C, and enriched δ 15 N indicating the accumulation of biosolids residual carbon in soils. The in-situ respirometer data demonstrated enhanced CO 2 fluxes at the sites treated with biosolids, indicating limited carbon sequestration potential. However, addition of biosolids on both the clay loam and sandy loam soils found to be effective in building SOC than reducing it. Soil temperature and CO 2 fluxes, indicating that temperature was more important for microbial degradation of carbon in biosolids than soil moisture. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adsorption-desorption reactions of selenium (VI) in tropical cultivated and uncultivated soils under Cerrado biome.

PubMed

Lessa, J H L; Araujo, A M; Silva, G N T; Guilherme, L R G; Lopes, G

2016-12-01

Soil management may affect selenium (Se) adsorption capacity. This study investigated adsorption and desorption of Se (VI) in selected Brazilian soils from the Cerrado biome, an area of ever increasing importance for agriculture expansion in Brazil. Soil samples were collected from cultivated and uncultivated soils, comprising clayed and sandy soils. Following chemical and mineralogical characterization, soil samples were subjected to Se adsorption and desorption tests. Adsorption was evaluated after a 72-h reaction with increasing concentrations of Se (0-2000 μg L -1 ) added as Na 2 SeO 4 in a NaCl electrolyte solution (pH 5.5; ionic strength 15 mmol L -1 ). Desorption, as well as distribution coefficients (K d ) for selenate were also assessed. Soil management affected Se adsorption capacity, i.e., Se adsorbed amounts were higher for uncultivated soils, when compared to cultivated ones. Such results were also supported by data of K d and maximum adsorption capacity of Se. This fact was attributed mainly to the presence of greater amounts of competing anions, especially phosphate, in cultivated soils, due to fertilizer application. Phosphate may compete with selenate for adsorption sites, decreasing Se retention. For the same group of soils (cultivated and uncultivated), Se adsorption was greater in the clayed soils compared to sandy ones. Our results support the idea that adding Se (VI) to the soil is a good strategy to increase Se levels in food crops (agronomic biofortification), especially when crops are grown in soils that have been cultivated over the time due to their low Se adsorption capacity (high Se availability). Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Soil respiration in tropical seasonal forest of Southern Vietnam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Avilov, Vitaly; Anichkin, Alexandr; Descherevskaya, Olga; Evdokimova, Elena; Nguyen Van, Thinh; Novichonok, Artyom; Do Phong, Luu; Kurbatova, Julia; Lopes de Gerenyu, Valentin

2013-04-01

Soil respiration was monitored as a part of a complex research of carbon balance in Nam Cat Tien National Park in Southern Vietnam (NCT site in AsiaFlux index). The study area is described as a tropical monsoon valley tall-stand forest at altitude about 156 m above sea level, mean annual air temperature is 26.2°C, with fluctuations of monthly averaged temperatures within 4°C; mean annual precipitation is 2470 mm with a distinct alternation of wet and dry seasons (Dong Phu weather station, 1976-1990). Measurements were made every 10-15 days during year 2012 at 6 plots that differ in soil and forest type, mostly in Lagerstroemia- or Dipterocarpus-dominated tree stands. Five chambers Ø162 mm were installed at each plot. CO2 concentration was defined with LI-820 gas analyser and 20 ml syringes (three syringes/samples per chamber) up to August 2012, and by means of closed-loop continuous field analysis from August on. Our studies have shown significant temporal and spatial variability of soil respiration in tropical rainforest. Namely, highest annual CO2 efflux rates were calculated for cambisols under lagerstroemia-dominated tree stand and for light sandy fluvisols under dipterocarpus-dominated tree stand (1694.3±546.0 and 1628.1±442.7 gC•m-2•y-1 respectively). Noteworthy is that the content of organic carbon in these soils varies utterly. Lowest annual CO2 efflux rate was calculated for clay-slate leptosols under dipterocarpus-dominated tree stand (972.7±716.5 gC•m-2•y-1). We also observed a significant impact of termites activity on site-scale spatial variability of soil respiration. Seasonal patterns of soil respiration rates were conformed for all plots except one on sandy soils. The beginning of rainy season in April did not result in higher soil respiration rates, but rates did rise in August - October, at the end of rainy season. Apparently this pattern is related to the accumulation of decomposed organic matter in soil and to the deficient aeration caused by high water table at the peak of wet season. On sandy fluvisols CO2 efflux rates were high throughout the whole length of rainy season.

Exposure to respirable crystalline silica in South African farm workers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Swanepoel, Andrew; Rees, David; Renton, Kevin; Kromhout, Hans

2009-02-01

Although listed in some publications as an activity associated with silica (quartz) exposure, agriculture is not widely recognized as an industry with a potential for silica associated diseases. Because so many people work in agriculture; and because silica exposure and silicosis are associated with serious diseases such as tuberculosis (TB), particular in those immunological compromised by the Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), silica exposure in agriculture is potentially very important. But in South Africa (SA) very little is known about silica exposure in this industry. The objectives of this project are: (a) to measure inhalable and respirable dust and its quartz content on two typical sandy soil farms in the Free State province of SA for all major tasks done on the farms; and (b) to characterise the mineralogy soil type of these farms. Two typical farms in the sandy soil region of the Free State province were studied. The potential health effects faced by these farm workers from exposure to respirable crystalline silica are discussed.

Carbon Mineralization Can Be Sustained or Even Stimulated under Fluctuating Redox Conditions in Tropical and Temperate Soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, W.; Hall, S. J.

2017-12-01

Soil carbon (C) mineralization is widely thought to be affected by O2 availability, and anaerobiosis represents a significant global mechanism of C stabilization. However, mineral-associated organic C (e.g. Fe-bound organic C) may be vulnerable to redox fluctuations due to release following Fe reduction, which could counteract protective effects of anaerobiosis. Many soils, including temperate Mollisols and tropical Oxisols, experience fluctuating redox conditions following moisture variations that could impact C cycling and stabilization. Here we incubated two soils with C4 leaf litter at different duration and frequencies of anaerobic periods for 128 days to investigate how redox fluctuations affect soil C mineralization. The treatments included static aerobic (control), and 2-, 4-, 8- and 12- day anaerobic followed by 4-day aerobic. We measured CO2, CH4, and their C isotope ratios. Longer durations of anaerobic conditions promoted greater Fe reduction and more DOC released. Notably, in both soils despite their large differences in composition, the production of CO2 and CH4 was stimulated under aerobic conditions following anaerobic conditions (relative to the control), which compensated for the decrease under anaerobic conditions. After 128 days, cumulative C mineralization in the control was similar between the Mollisol (9.7 mg C g-1) and the Oxisol (10.1 mg C g-1). The value in the Mollisol was significantly higher in the 12-day anaerobic treatment (11.2 mg C g-1) than the aerobic control and the 2-day anaerobic treatment (9.7 mg C g-1). In the Oxisol, cumulative C mineralization was not significantly affected by any of the fluctuating redox treatments relative to the control. Our findings challenge theory by showing that redox fluctuations can counteract the suppressive effects of O2 limitation on decomposition.

Removal of trichloroethylene (TCE) contaminated soil using a two-stage anaerobic-aerobic composting technique.

PubMed

Ponza, Supat; Parkpian, Preeda; Polprasert, Chongrak; Shrestha, Rajendra P; Jugsujinda, Aroon

2010-01-01

The effect of organic carbon addition on remediation of trichloroethylene (TCE) contaminated clay soil was investigated using a two stage anaerobic-aerobic composting system. TCE removal rate and processes involved were determined. Uncontaminated clay soil was treated with composting materials (dried cow manure, rice husk and cane molasses) to represent carbon based treatments (5%, 10% and 20% OC). All treatments were spiked with TCE at 1,000 mg TCE/kg DW and incubated under anaerobic and mesophillic condition (35 degrees C) for 8 weeks followed by continuous aerobic condition for another 6 weeks. TCE dissipation, its metabolites and biogas composition were measured throughout the experimental period. Results show that TCE degradation depended upon the amount of organic carbon (OC) contained within the composting treatments/matrices. The highest TCE removal percentage (97%) and rate (75.06 micro Mole/kg DW/day) were obtained from a treatment of 10% OC composting matrices as compared to 87% and 27.75 micro Mole/kg DW/day for 20% OC, and 83% and 38.08 micro Mole/kg DW/day for soil control treatment. TCE removal rate was first order reaction kinetics. Highest degradation rate constant (k(1) = 0.035 day(- 1)) was also obtained from the 10% OC treatment, followed by 20% OC (k(1) = 0.026 day(- 1)) and 5% OC or soil control treatment (k(1) = 0.023 day(- 1)). The half-life was 20, 27 and 30 days, respectively. The overall results suggest that sequential two stages anaerobic-aerobic composting technique has potential for remediation of TCE in heavy texture soil, providing that easily biodegradable source of organic carbon is present.

Changes in microbial community structure following herbicide (glyphosate) additions to forest soils

Treesearch

Alice W. Ratcliff; Matt D. Busse; Carol J. Shestak

2006-01-01

Glyphosate applied at the recommended field rate to a clay loam and a sandy loam forest soil resulted in few changes in microbial community structure. Total and culturable bacteria, fungal hyphal length, bacterial:fungal biomass, carbon utilization profiles (BIOLOG), and bacterial and fungal phospholipid fatty acids (PLFA) were unaffected 1, 3, 7, or 30 days...

Wind erosion potential influenced by tillage in an irrigated potato-sweet corn rotation in the Columbia Basin

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Wind erosion is a concern within the Columbia Basin of the Inland Pacific Northwest (PNW) United States due to the sandy texture of soils and small amount of residue retained on the soil surface after harvest of vegetable crops like potato. This study assessed potential wind erosion of an irrigated ...

Climate Change Impacts on Fort Bragg, NC

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-10-15

28 5.8 Soil erosion at Fort Bragg...Rust fungi that attack the plant appear worse during wet sum- mers. Since the summers may be wetter at Fort Bragg, it may become more difficult to...drop zones. This plant requires frequent fires on its sandy soils . All of these species are associated with the Longleaf pine forests of the

1,3-dichloropropene and chloropicrin emissions following simulated drip irrigation to raised beds under plastic films

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Using laboratory soil chambers a non-scaled representation of an agricultural raised bed was constructed. For a sandy loam soil, a drip application of 1,3-dichloropropene (1,3-D) and chloropicrin (CP) under both high density polyethylene (HDPE) and virtually impermeable film (VIF) was performed at 5...

Belowground Processes in Nitrogen Fertilized Cottonwood and Loblolly Pine Plantations

Treesearch

Kye-Han Lee; Shibu Jose

2004-01-01

We measured soil respiration, fine root biomass production, and microbial biomass along a fertilization gradient (0, 56, 112, and 224 kg N ha-1 per year) in 7-year-old cottonwood and loblolly pine plantations, established on a well-drained, Redbay sandy loam (a fine-loamy, siliceous, thermic Rhodic Paleudlt), in northwest Florida. Annual soil...

Nitrogen mineralization and nitrous oxide emissions in a sandy soil amended with low-phosphorus broiler litter

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Recurrent land application of broiler litter in regions with a high concentration of poultry farms result in soils with phosphorus (P) far beyond the agronomic requirement of crops. A new waste treatment technology developed by USDA-ARS, called “Quick Wash”, chemically extracts and recovers P from b...

Assessing the value of multi-receiver low-frequency electromagnetic-induction (EMI) measurement for assessing variation in soil moisture content in field experiments with winter wheat (Triticum aestivum)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shanahan, Peter; Binley, Andrew; Dodd, Ian; Whalley, Richard; Watts, Chris; Ashton, Rhys; Ober, Eric

2014-05-01

In large plant breeding field trials with multiple genotypes, measuring soil water status (an indicator of crop water uptake) by conventional techniques (e.g. core extraction and penetration resistance) is limited by the cost and effort needed to achieve sufficient replication to apply robust statistical analysis. Geophysical methods may provide a more cost-effective means of more assessing valuable information about soil water status for such studies. We present here results from a field experiment using geophysical techniques for remote mapping of soil water content on sandy loam and silt loam soils in spring/summer 2013 in the UK. The aim of the study was to assess electromagnetic-induction (EMI) conductivity measurements for sensitivity to variations in shallow soil electrical properties and the spatial and temporal mapping of soil water. The CMD Mini-Explorer (GF Instruments) operates with three receiver coils at fixed distances from a transmitter coil (0.32 m, 0.71 m, 1.2 m). Measurement of magnetic field quadrature in horizontal coplanar (HC) and vertical coplanar (VC) of the three receiver coils provides six depths of investigation for the given coil spacing cumulative sensitivities. At the two field sites the instrument was applied to measuring apparent electrical conductivity (ECa) below 7.0 x 1.8 m plots consisting of 23 rain fed winter wheat cultivars and bare soil fallow control plots. These plots were sown in March 2013 and organised into a randomised block design. Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) surveys along 15 m transects were also conducted at the two sites in order to compare EMI measured ECa. Our results show that progressive soil drying at both sites due to crop uptake significantly decreased (p<0.05) soil ECa. The difference in soil ECa as a result of water uptake between cultivars was found to be significant (p<0.05) from one of the coil configurations (coil spacing 1.8m in HC mode), and only at the silty loam site (no significant difference was found in data from the sandy loam site). The difference in soil ECa over time was expected owing to crop root development and low rainfall during the growing season. It was expected that soil ECa between certain cultivars in the June and July would differ over all investigation depths at both sites. It was not possible in this study to produce calibrations for EMI measured ECa from the ERT data. Our study confirms the suitability of multi-core EMI devices for efficient and repeatable measurements of soil ECa in trials of winter wheat cultivars, providing data on soil ECa with minimal user requirements and instrument error. Differences in soil ECa as a result of crop water uptake was, however, not fully conclusive, since water extraction by the different cultivars is difficult to detect with the instrument, especially on sandy textured soils. The full-depth of investigation (1.8 m) of the instrument used on silt loam soil textures can provide qualitative data on crop performance. Over time, with gradual soil drying, the instrument detected reductions in ECa at all depths of investigation in both sandy and silt textured soils. Further analysis will be done using profiles of electrical conductivity determined from inversions of measured ECa values. ERT data calibration of EMI measured ECa was not possible due to lower than expected variation in ECa measured along the 15 m transect over the field season. This has meant a change in the methodology by having transects crossing soil with greater vertical variation in ECa (determined from field EMI surveys) and surface conditions (e.g. bare and cropped soil).

The Rare Perennial Balduina atropurpurea (Asteraceae) at Fort Stewart, Georgia

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-06-01

savannas; moist, sandy, peaty clearings among slash ( Pinus elliottii) and longleaf (P. palustris) pines; and sandhill seeps with seasonal standing...with relatively shallow roots; however, near the end of the autumn drought these soils are still wet. It is believed that the soils remain wet from...internal drainage through the upland soils above the impervious clay layer into the topographically lower bog habitats over the 6 to 8 week drought

Spectroscopic characterization of organic matter of a soil and vinasse mixture during aerobic or anaerobic incubation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Doelsch, Emmanuel; Masion, Armand; Cazevieille, Patrick

2009-06-15

Mineralization potentials are often used to classify organic wastes. These methods involve measuring CO{sub 2} production during batch experiments, so variations in chemical compounds are not addressed. Moreover, the physicochemical conditions are not monitored during the reactions. The present study was designed to address these deficiencies. Incubations of a mixture of soil and waste (vinasse at 20% dry matter from a fermentation industry) were conducted in aerobic and anaerobic conditions, and liquid samples obtained by centrifugation were collected at 2 h, 1 d and 28 d. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) patterns highlighted that: there was a 'soil effect' which increasedmore » organic matter (OM) degradation in all conditions compared to vinasse incubated alone; and OM degradation was faster under aerobic conditions since 500 mg kg{sup -1} of C remained after aerobic incubation, as compared to 4000 mg kg{sup -1} at the end of the anaerobic incubation period. No changes were detected by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) between 2 h and 1 d incubation. At 28 days incubation, the FTIR signal of the aerobic samples was deeply modified, thus confirming the high OM degradation. Under anaerobic conditions, the main polysaccharide contributions ({nu}(C-O)) disappeared at 1000 and 1200 cm{sup -1}, as also confirmed by the {sup 13}C NMR findings. Under aerobic incubation, a 50% decrease in the polysaccharide proportion was observed. Under anaerobic conditions, significant chemical modifications of the organic fraction were detected, namely formation of low molecular weight organic acids.« less

Global pattern and controls of soil microbial metabolic quotient

DOE PAGES

Xu, Xiaofeng; Schimel, Joshua P.; Janssens, Ivan A.; ...

2017-05-02

The microbial metabolic quotient (MMQ), microbial respiration per unit of biomass, is a fundamental factor controlling heterotrophic respiration, the largest carbon flux in soils. The magnitude and controls of MMQ at regional scale remain uncertain. We compiled a comprehensive data set of MMQ to investigate the global patterns and controls of MMQ in top 30 cm soils. Published MMQ values, generally measured in laboratory microcosms, were adjusted on ambient soil temperature using long-term (30 yr) average site soil temperature and a Q10 = 2. The area-weighted global average of MMQ_Soil is estimated as 1.8 (1.5–2.2) (95% confidence interval) lmol C•hmore » -1•mmol -1 microbial biomass carbon (MBC) with substantial variations across biomes and between cropland and natural ecosystems. Variation was most closely associated with biological factors, followed by edaphic and meteorological parameters. MMQ_Soil was greatest in sandy clay and sandy clay loam and showed a pH maximum of 6.7 - 0.1 (mean ± se). At large scale, MMQ_Soil varied with latitude and mean annual temperature (MAT), and was negatively correlated with microbial N:P ratio, supporting growth rate theory. These trends led to large differences in MMQ_Soil between natural ecosystems and cropland. When MMQ was adjusted to 11°C (MMQ_Ref), the global MAT in the top 30 cm of soils, the area-weighted global averages of MMQ_Ref was 1.5 (1.3–1.8) lmol C•mmol MBC -1•h -1. The values, trends, and controls of MMQ_Soil add to our understanding of soil microbial influences on soil carbon cycling and could be used to represent microbial activity in global carbon models.« less

Global pattern and controls of soil microbial metabolic quotient

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Xu, Xiaofeng; Schimel, Joshua P.; Janssens, Ivan A.

The microbial metabolic quotient (MMQ), microbial respiration per unit of biomass, is a fundamental factor controlling heterotrophic respiration, the largest carbon flux in soils. The magnitude and controls of MMQ at regional scale remain uncertain. We compiled a comprehensive data set of MMQ to investigate the global patterns and controls of MMQ in top 30 cm soils. Published MMQ values, generally measured in laboratory microcosms, were adjusted on ambient soil temperature using long-term (30 yr) average site soil temperature and a Q10 = 2. The area-weighted global average of MMQ_Soil is estimated as 1.8 (1.5–2.2) (95% confidence interval) lmol C•hmore » -1•mmol -1 microbial biomass carbon (MBC) with substantial variations across biomes and between cropland and natural ecosystems. Variation was most closely associated with biological factors, followed by edaphic and meteorological parameters. MMQ_Soil was greatest in sandy clay and sandy clay loam and showed a pH maximum of 6.7 - 0.1 (mean ± se). At large scale, MMQ_Soil varied with latitude and mean annual temperature (MAT), and was negatively correlated with microbial N:P ratio, supporting growth rate theory. These trends led to large differences in MMQ_Soil between natural ecosystems and cropland. When MMQ was adjusted to 11°C (MMQ_Ref), the global MAT in the top 30 cm of soils, the area-weighted global averages of MMQ_Ref was 1.5 (1.3–1.8) lmol C•mmol MBC -1•h -1. The values, trends, and controls of MMQ_Soil add to our understanding of soil microbial influences on soil carbon cycling and could be used to represent microbial activity in global carbon models.« less

Bioaccumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and survival of earthworms (Eisenia andrei) exposed to biochar amended soils.

PubMed

Malev, O; Contin, M; Licen, S; Barbieri, P; De Nobili, M

2016-02-01

Biochar has a charcoal polycyclic aromatic structure which allows its long half-life in soil, making it an ideal tool for C sequestration and for adsorption of organic pollutants, but at the same time raises concerns about possible adverse impacts on soil biota. Two biochars were tested under laboratory-controlled conditions on Eisenia andrei earthworms: a biochar produced at low temperature from wine tree cuttings (WTB) and a commercial low tar hardwood lump charcoal (HLB). The avoidance test (48-h exposure) showed that earthworms avoid biochar-treated soil with rates higher than 16 t ha(-1) for HLB and 64 t ha(-1) for WTB. After 42 days, toxic effects on earthworms were observed even at application rates (100 t ha(-1)) that are generally considered beneficial for most crops. The concentration of HLB and WTB required to kill half of earthworms' population (LC50; 95% confidence limits) in the synthetic OECD soil was 338 and 580 t ha(-1), respectively. Accumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in earthworms exposed to the two biochar types at 100 t ha(-1) was tested in two soils of different texture. In biochar-treated soils, the average earthworm survival rates were about 64% in the sandy and 78% clay-loam soils. PAH accumulation was larger in the sandy soil and largest in soils amended with HLB. PAH with less than four rings were preferentially scavenged from the soil by biochars, and this behaviour may mask that of the more dangerous components (i.e. four to five rings), which are preferentially accumulated. Earthworms can accumulate PAH as a consequence of exposure to biochar-treated soils and transfer them along the food chain. Soil type and biochar quality are both relevant in determining PAH transfer.

Assessing tungsten transport in the vadose zone: from dissolution studies to soil columns.

PubMed

Tuna, Gulsah Sen; Braida, Washington; Ogundipe, Adebayo; Strickland, David

2012-03-01

This study investigates the dissolution, sorption, leachability, and plant uptake of tungsten and alloying metals from canister round munitions in the presence of model, well characterized soils. The source of tungsten was canister round munitions, composed mainly of tungsten (95%) with iron and nickel making up the remaining fraction. Three soils were chosen for the lysimeter studies while four model soils were selected for the adsorption studies. Lysimeter soils were representatives of the typical range of soils across the continental USA; muck-peat, clay-loamy and sandy-quartzose soil. Adsorption equilibrium data on the four model soils were modeled with Langmuir and linear isotherms and the model parameters were obtained. The adsorption affinity of soils for tungsten follows the order: Pahokee peat>kaolinite>montmorillonite>illite. A canister round munition dissolution study was also performed. After 24 d, the measured dissolved concentrations were: 61.97, 3.56, 15.83 mg L(-1) for tungsten, iron and nickel, respectively. Lysimeter transport studies show muck peat and sandy quartzose soils having higher tungsten concentration, up to 150 mg kg(-1) in the upper layers of the lysimeters and a sharp decline with depth suggesting strong retardation processes along the soil profile. The concentrations of tungsten, iron and nickel in soil lysimeter effluents were very low in terms of posing any environmental concern; although no regulatory limits have been established for tungsten in natural waters. The substantial uptake of tungsten and nickel by ryegrass after 120 d of exposure to soils containing canister round munition suggests the possibility of tungsten and nickel entering the food chain. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Regional analysis of groundwater phosphate concentrations under acidic sandy soils: Edaphic factors and water table strongly mediate the soil P-groundwater P relation.

PubMed

Mabilde, Lisa; De Neve, Stefaan; Sleutel, Steven

2017-12-01

Historic long-term P application to sandy soils in NW-Europe has resulted in abundant sorption, saturation and eventually leaching of P from soil to the groundwater. Although many studies recognize the control of site-specific factors like soil texture and phosphate saturation degree (PSD), the regional-scaled relevance of effects exerted by single factors controlling P leaching is unclear. Very large observational datasets of soil and groundwater P content are furthermore required to reveal indirect controls of soil traits through mediating soil variables. We explored co-variation of phreatic groundwater orthophosphate (o-P) concentration and soil factors in sandy soils in Flanders, Belgium. Correlation analyses were complemented with an exploratory model derived using 'path analysis'. Data of oxalate-extractable Al, Fe, P and pH KCl , phosphate sorption capacity (PSC) and PSD in three depth layers (0-30, 30-60, 60-90 cm), topsoil SOC, % clay and groundwater depth (fluctuation) were interpolated to predict soil properties on exact locations of a very extensive net of groundwater monitoring wells. The mean PSD was only poorly correlated to groundwater o-P concentration, indicating the overriding control of other factors in the transport of P to the groundwater. A significant (P < 0.01) positive non-linear relationship was found between groundwater o-P concentrations and pH KCl for all depth layers. Likewise, lower SOC% (P < 0.01) and shallower groundwater level (MHL or MLL) corresponded (P < 0.01) with higher o-P concentrations. Groundwater o-P unexpectedly correlated positively to clay% and path analysis indicated this to be an indirect effect of the groundwater level. Path analysis furthermore indicated an important indirect control of pH on groundwater o-P concentrations and a considerable direct effect of P ox, 0-90 , Al ox, 0-90 and MHL. The fact that groundwater o-P concentration was stronger controlled by soil pH and groundwater table depth than by PSD indicates the likely oversimplification of the latter index to measure the long-term potential risk of P leaching. Accounting for controls on leaching not included in PSD via an alternative index, however, seems problematic as in Flanders for example groundwater o-P turned out to be higher in finer textured soils or soils with higher pedogenic Fe content, probably because of their lower pedogenic Al content and higher soil pH. Path analysis of extensive soil and groundwater datasets seems a viable way to identify prime local determinants of soil P leaching and could be further on used for 'ground-truthing' more complex P-migration simulation models. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of distribution and manganese availability in soils under soybean cultivation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mendes Coutinho, Edson Luiz; de Cássia Gomes São João, Andréia; Mendes Coutinho Neto, André; Corá, José Eduardo; Fernandes, Carolina

2013-04-01

Manganese (Mn) deficiency in soybean became a problem in Brazil, mainly, due to soil low fertility use or soil high pH due to incorrect lime use. However, the manganese deficiency have not been thoroughly investigated. The effect of Mn soil application on Mn distribution among exchangeable, organic matter, amorphous Fe and Al oxides, crystalline Fe and Al oxides, and residual fractions were studied on a Typic Quartzipsament (RQ), a clayey Typic Haplustox (LVA) and a sandy clay loam Typic Haplustox (LV), in a greenhouse experiment carried out in Jaboticabal (SP) - Brazil (21°14'05'' S and 48°17'09'' W). A complete randomized design with three replications of treatments in a 3 x 6 factorial arrangement (three soils and six manganese rates) was used. Five soybean plants were grown during 34 days in pots with 2.5 kg of soil. The Mn contents in these fractions were correlated with those extracted by DTPA and by Mehlich-1 extractants and with soybean shoot Mn contents. Mn rates (0, 5, 10, 20, 40 and 60 mg kg-1) were applied using manganese sulphate (MnSO4). In the Oxisols, most of the Mn was associated with the Fe and Al oxides (amorphous and crystalline) and residual fractions. In the sandy soil (RQ), higher contents were found in exchangeable and residual fractions. Exchangeable fraction was the most important Mn supplier to soybean plants. Multiple regression analysis showed that Mn extracted by DTPA and Mehlich-1 were associated with soil exchangeable fraction.

Variations in water balance and recharge potential at three western desert sites

USGS Publications Warehouse

Gee, G.W.; Wierenga, P.J.; Andraski, Brian J.; Young, M.H.; Fayer, M.J.; Rockhold, M.L.

1994-01-01

Radioactive and hazardous waste landfills exist at numerous desert locations in the USA. At these locations, annual precipitation is low and soils are generally dry, yet little is known about recharge of water and transport of contaminants to the water table. Recent water balance measurements made at three desert locations, Las Cruces, NM, Beatty, NV, and the U.S. Department of Energy's Hanford Site in the state of Washington, provide information on recharge potential under three distinctly different climate and soil conditions. All three sites show water storage increases with time when soils are coarse textured and plants are removed from the surface, the rate of increase being influenced by climatic variables such as precipitation, radiation, temperature, and wind. Lysimeter data from Hanford and Las Cruces indicate that deep drainage (recharge) from bare, sandy soils can range from 10 to >50% of the annual precipitation. At Hanford, when desert plants are present on sandy or gravelly surface soils, deep drainage is reduced but not eliminated. When surface soils are silt loams, deep drainage is eliminated whether plants are present or not. At Las Cruces and Beatty, the presence of plants eliminated deep drainage at the measurement sites. Differences in water balance between sites are attributed to precipitation quantity and distribution and to soil and vegetation types. The implication for waste management at desert locations is that surface soil properties and plant characteristics must be considered in waste site design in order to minimize recharge potential.

Lead and cadmium interactions in Cynodon nlemfuensis and sandy soil subjected to treated wastewater application under greenhouse conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Madyiwa, Simon; Chimbari, Moses John; Schutte, Frederik

Pb and Cd are known to influence each other’s uptake by some plants when the two metals exist in the soil in significant amounts. This influence may be beneficial if it reduces uptake of metal by plants but may be detrimental if it increases uptake of the metal. This study was carried out to investigate the interaction of Pb and Cd in sandy soils and Cynodon nlemfluensis (star grass). Star grass was grown under greenhouse conditions in 33 fertilized pots containing sandy soils. Three weeks after planting the grass the pots were randomly assigned to the following treatments replicated three times; (a) application of three varying concentrations of Pb or Cd in addition to effluent and sludge, (b) application of three varying concentrations of combined Pb and Cd in addition to effluent and sludge, (c) application of water and (d) application of only effluent and sludge. Analysis of grass samples was done 45 and 90 days after addition of Pb and Cd to pots and that of the soil was done 90 days after addition of Pb and Cd to pots. The log normal mean level (in mg/kg) of Pb detected in the soil was 1.75 and that of Cd was 0.057 in mixed treatments while for single treatments the levels were 1.67 for Pb and 0.03 for Cd. The presence of Cd in the soil had no effect on the bio-available level of Pb but Pb significantly ( p < 0.05) increased the bio-available concentration of Cd. The log normal mean levels of Pb in grass re-growth from mixed treatment was 1.68 and that of Cd was 0.57 while the values for single treatments were 1.47 for Pb and 0.31 for Cd. There was no significant change in the level of uptake of Pb between single treatments and mixed treatments. However, Pb significantly increased uptake of Cd in mixed treatments compared to single treatments ( p < 0.05). The results of this study indicate that co-presence of Pb and Cd may have the detrimental effect of increasing uptake of Cd in star grass.

ELASTOL

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Technical product bulletin: this moderately volatile oil spill control agent is for use in cleanups on fresh or salt water. Treatment may reduce the emulsification and dispersion of oil, and its penetration into porous soils and sandy beaches.

Using Remote Sensing Data to Evaluate Surface Soil Properties in Alabama Ultisols

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sullivan, Dana G.; Shaw, Joey N.; Rickman, Doug; Mask, Paul L.; Luvall, Jeff

2005-01-01

Evaluation of surface soil properties via remote sensing could facilitate soil survey mapping, erosion prediction and allocation of agrochemicals for precision management. The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between soil spectral signature and surface soil properties in conventionally managed row crop systems. High-resolution RS data were acquired over bare fields in the Coastal Plain, Appalachian Plateau, and Ridge and Valley provinces of Alabama using the Airborne Terrestrial Applications Sensor multispectral scanner. Soils ranged from sandy Kandiudults to fine textured Rhodudults. Surface soil samples (0-1 cm) were collected from 163 sampling points for soil organic carbon, particle size distribution, and citrate dithionite extractable iron content. Surface roughness, soil water content, and crusting were also measured during sampling. Two methods of analysis were evaluated: 1) multiple linear regression using common spectral band ratios, and 2) partial least squares regression. Our data show that thermal infrared spectra are highly, linearly related to soil organic carbon, sand and clay content. Soil organic carbon content was the most difficult to quantify in these highly weathered systems, where soil organic carbon was generally less than 1.2%. Estimates of sand and clay content were best using partial least squares regression at the Valley site, explaining 42-59% of the variability. In the Coastal Plain, sandy surfaces prone to crusting limited estimates of sand and clay content via partial least squares and regression with common band ratios. Estimates of iron oxide content were a function of mineralogy and best accomplished using specific band ratios, with regression explaining 36-65% of the variability at the Valley and Coastal Plain sites, respectively.

Aggregate-associated carbon and nitrogen in reclaimed sandy loam soils

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wick, A.F.; Stahl, P.D.; Ingram, L.J.

2009-11-15

Minimal research has been conducted on aggregate, C, and N in coarse-textured soils used to reclaim surface coal mine lands. Furthermore, little is known about the contribution different plant communities make to the recovery of aggregation in these soils. Two chronosequences of semiarid reclaimed sites with sandy loam soils were sampled under shrub- and grass-dominated communities. Aggregation, aggregate fractions, and associated C and N were measured. No definitive trends of increasing macroaggregates between sites were observed undershrubs; however, macro- and microaggregation was greater in the 16-yr-old (0.20 and 0.23 kg aggregate kg{sup -1} soil, respectively) than in the 5-yr-old soilsmore » (0.02 and 0.08 kg aggregate kg{sup -1} soil, respectively) under grasses. Although C and N concentrations were drastically reduced (50-75%) with mining activity between the <1-yr-old and native soils, aggregate C and N concentrations tinder shrubs and grasses were similar to each other and to the native soils in the 5-yr-old site. Sods under grass in the 16-yr-old site had lower available and aggregate-occluded C and N concentrations than the 5-yr-old site, while C and N concentrations did not change between 5- and 16-yr-old soils under shrubs. Conversely, aggregate C and N pool sizes under shrubs and grasses both increased with site age to conditions similar to those observed in the native soil. Reclaimed shrub site soils had consistently higher C concentrations in the older reclaimed sites (10 and 16 yr old) than the soils under grasses, indicating greater accumulation and retention of C and N in organic material under shrub than grass communities in semiarid reclaimed sites.« less

Trace gas emissions following deposition of excreta by grazing dairy cows in eastern Canada

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rochette, P.; Pelster, D. E.; Chantigny, M. H.; Angers, D. A.; Liang, C.; Belanger, G.; Ziadi, N.; Charbonneau, E.; Pellerin, D.

2012-04-01

The N2O emission factor proposed for cattle excreta N by the Tier I IPCC methodology (EF3) is 2% (IPCC, 2006). While N2O emissions from excreta deposited by grazing animals have been reported in several publications, relatively few estimated EF3 values because measurements did not cover the entire year. This study measured N2O and CH4 flux and crop dry matter (DM) yield over two years (2009 to 2011) from a clay and a sandy loam soil cultivated with Timothy grass (Phleum pratense L.). A split-plot design was used on each soil type, with different application dates (either spring, summer or autumn application) as main plots and treatment (U-50: urine 50 g N m-2, U-100: urine 100 g N m-2, dung: 60 g N m-2, and control) as the sub-plots. Regardless of application time, annual DM yield increased in all treated plots when compared to the control. Also, DM yields were generally greater when urine as opposed to dung was applied suggesting greater N-availability from the urine application. The CH4 flux from the dung plots increased for only the first two weeks after treatment while the flux from the urine plots was similar to the control plots. Cumulative N2O emissions on the U-50 and U-100 plots increased linearly with urine N rate on both soils, resulting in nearly identical mean emission factors for both urine rates. The emission factor for the urine was three times greater on the clay (1.02% of applied N on both rates) than on the sandy loam soil (0.26% (U100) and 0.31% (U50) of applied N). Cumulative N2O emissions from dung plots also differed between soil types; however the impact of soil type on N2O emissions was opposite to that of urine, with greater losses from the sandy loam (0.15%) compared with the clay soil (0.07%). These results suggest that estimates of soil N2O emissions by grazing cattle in Eastern Canada obtained using the IPCC default methodology are overestimates of actual values and that these estimates for should include a stratification according to soil type.

Spatial variability in the soil water content of a Mediterranean agroforestry system with high soil heterogeneity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molina, Antonio Jaime; Llorens, Pilar; Aranda, Xavier; Savé, Robert; Biel, Carmen

2013-04-01

Variability of soil water content is known to increase with the size of spatial domain in which measurements are taken. At field scale, heterogeneity in soil, vegetation, topography, water input volume and management affects, among other factors, hydrologic plot behaviour under different mean soil water contents. The present work studies how the spatial variability of soil water content (SWC) is affected by soil type (texture, percentage of stones and the combination of them) in a timber-orientated plantation of cherry tree (Prunus avium) under Mediterranean climatic conditions. The experimental design is a randomized block one with 3 blocks * 4 treatments, based on two factors: irrigation (6 plots irrigated versus 6 plots not irrigated) and soil management (6 plots tillaged versus 6 plots not tillaged). SWC is continuously measured at 25, 50 and 100 cm depth with FDR sensors, located at two positions in each treatment: under tree influence and 2.5 m apart. This study presents the results of the monitoring during 2012 of the 24 sensors located at the 25 cm depth. In each of the measurement point, texture and percentage of stones were measured. Sandy-loam, sandy-clay-loam and loam textures were found together with a percentage of stones ranging from 20 to 70 %. The results indicated that the relationship between the daily mean SWC and its standard deviation, a common procedure used to study spatial variability, changed with texture, percentage of stones and the estimation of field capacity from the combination of both. Temporal stability analysis of SWC showed a clear pattern related to field capacity, with the measurement points of the sandy-loam texture and the high percentage of stones showing the maximun negative diference with the global mean. The high range in the mean relative difference observed (± 75 %), could indicate that the studied plot may be considered as a good field-laboratory to extrapolate results at higher spatial scales. Furthermore, the pattern in the temporal stability of tree growth was clearly related to that one in SWC. Nevertheless, the treatments that represent the mean conditions in growth were not exactly the same than those in SWC, which could be attributable to other characteristics than soil.

Climatic thresholds for pedogenic iron oxides under aerobic conditions: Processes and their significance in paleoclimate reconstruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Long, Xiaoyong; Ji, Junfeng; Barrón, Vidal; Torrent, José

2016-10-01

Iron oxides are widely distributed across the surface of the Earth as a result of the aerobic weathering of primary Fe-bearing minerals. Pedogenic iron oxides which consist mainly of hematite (Hm), goethite (Gt), maghemite (Mgh), are often concentrated synchronously in aerobic soils under low to moderate rainfall regimes. Magnetic susceptibility (χ) and redness, which respectively reflect the content of Mgh and Hm in soils, are considered reasonable pedogenic and climatic indicators in soil taxonomy and paleorainfall reconstruction. However, under high rainfall regimes, the grain growth of Mgh and transformation to Hm, combined with the prior formation of Gt under conditions of high relative humidity (RH), can result in magnetic reduction and dramatic yellowing of soils and sediments, which explains the existence of rainfall thresholds for Mgh and Hm at a large scale even before the pedogenic environment turns anaerobic. In order to capture the rainfall thresholds for Mgh and Hm occurring under aerobic conditions, we explored a tropical transect across a granitic region where the soil color turned from red to yellow under a wide rainfall range of 900-2200 mm/yr and a corresponding mean annual RH range of 77%-85%. We observed a lower rainfall threshold of ∼1500 mm/yr and a corresponding RH ∼80% for Mgh and Hm along this transect, as well as a higher rainfall threshold of ∼1700 mm/yr and a corresponding RH of ∼81% for Gt and total pedogenic iron oxides (citrate/bicarbonate/dithionite-extractable Fe, Fed). Cross-referencing with comparable studies in temperate and subtropical regions, we noted that the rainfall or RH thresholds for Fed and Hm or Mgh likewise increase with temperature. Moreover, the different thresholds for total and individual iron oxide phase indicates that a negative correlation between chemical weathering intensity and redness or χ in sediment sequences can occur under the prevalent climate regime just between their thresholds. Finally, we developed an integrated model to interpret the sequential formation of rainfall thresholds for different pedogenic iron oxides in soils and sediments with conditions from aerobic to anaerobic.

Effects of organic fertilizers and biochar/organic fertilizer combinations on fertility and organic matter dynamics of a sandy soil in north-west Germany

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greenberg, Isabel; Kaiser, Michael; Polifka, Steven; Wiedner, Katja; Glaser, Bruno; Ludwig, Bernard

2017-04-01

Biochar and biochar/organic fertilizer combinations have been recommended as soil amendments to improve plant productivity and soil properties, as well as to increase soil organic C (OC) storage. However, these claims have been largely unverified by field experiments lasting several years. To address these issues, a field experiment was established in 2012 to analyze the effects of organic fertilizers and biochar/organic fertilizer combinations (five field replicates, fully randomized block design) on the fertility and organic matter dynamics of a sandy Cambisol. In 2016, samples were taken from the 0-10 cm and 10-30 cm soil depths of the following treatments: mineral fertilizer and maize digestate that were applied both individually and in combination with 1 t/ha or 40 t/ha biochar. Further treatments were compost and 10 t/ha composted biochar. The treatments were analyzed for the plant yield and the bulk soil samples were analyzed for the pH, cation exchange capacity (CEC), OC content, microbial biomass C and the distribution of aggregate-size fractions (i.e. >2 mm, 2 mm - 250 µm, 250 - 53 µm, <53 µm). The latter were also analyzed for OC content and by FTIR. In 2012, the combination of 40 t/ha biochar+digestate accounted for about 42% higher maize (Zea mays) yields (7.9 t/ha) than the mineral fertilization treatment. For winter rye (Secale cereale) in 2013, we detected the highest yield (10.4 t/ha) for the 10 t/ha composted biochar treatment. In 2014, the highest yield for blue lupine (Lupinus angustifolius) (1.84 t/ha) was detected for the 40 t/ha biochar+digestate treatment. The first data for the soil samples indicate that the 10 t/ha composted biochar and the compost treatment are most effective in increasing the CEC, and the microbial biomass C content of the soil, while pH was not significantly affected by any of the treatments. The bulk soil OC content of the treatments receiving 40 t/ha biochar+fertilizer (digestate or mineral), 10 t/ha composted biochar, and compost has been significantly increased by 43 to 88% in the 10-30 cm depth compared to the individual application of mineral fertilizer. The OC content of the water-stable macro- (2 mm - 250 µm) and micro-aggregates (250 - 53 µm) of the treatments receiving 40 t/ha biochar+fertilizer (digestate or mineral), 10 t/ha composted biochar, and compost was increased by 12 to 120% compared to the mineral fertilizer treatment. The magnitude of the demonstrated positive effect of biochar application on crop yield depends on the type and amount of the biochar+organic fertilizer mixture and the cultivated plant species. Besides benefiting biomass production, applications of 10 to 40 t/ha of biochar+fertilizer mixtures seem to result in increased bulk soil and aggregate protected OC contents, indicating a longer lasting positive effect on the OC storage and the structural stability of this sandy soil. Cost/benefit wise, the 10 t/ha composted biochar treatment seems to be most promising for improving soil properties and crop yield, while the compost treatment seems to be the best alternative for sandy soils where biochar is either unavailable or prohibitively expensive.

Crop water use efficiency following biochar application on maize cropping systems on sandy soils of tropical semiarid eastern Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sukartono, S.; Utomo, W.

2012-04-01

A field study was conducted to evaluate the effect of biochar on crop water use efficiency under three consecutive maize cropping system on sandy loam of Lombok, eastern Indonesia from December 2010 to October 2011.The treatments tested were: coconut shell- biochar (CSB), cattle dung-biochar (CDB), cattle manure applied at only early first crop (CM1) and cattle manure applied at every planting time (CM2) and no organic amendment as the control. Evaluation after the end of third maize, the application of organic amendments (biochar and cattle manure) slightly altered the pore size distribution resulting changes in water retention and the available water capacity. The available water capacity was relatively comparable between biochar treated soils (0.206 cm3 cm-3) and soil treated with cattle manure applied at every planting time (0.220 cm3 cm-3). Water use efficiency (WUE) of maize under biochars were 9.44 kg/mm (CSB) and 9.24 kg/mm (CDB) while WUE for CM1 and CM2 were 8.54 and 9.97 kg/mm respectively, and control was 8.08 kg/mm. Thus, biochars as well as cattle manure applied at every planting time improved water use efficiency by 16.83% and 23.39 respectively compared to control. Overall, this study confirms that biochar and cattle manure are both valuable amendments for improving water use efficiency and to sustain maize production in the sandy loam soils of semiarid North Lombok, eastern Indonesia. However, unlike bicohar, in order to maintain its posivtive effect, cattle manure should be applied at every planting time, and this make cattle manure application is more costly. Keywords: Biochar, organic management, catle manure, water retention, maize yield

Effect of surfactants on sorption of atrazine by soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abu-Zreig, Majed; Rudra, R. P.; Dickinson, W. T.; Evans, L. J.

1999-03-01

This study investigates the effect of synthetic wastewater containing surfactants on the sorption of atrazine using an equilibrium batch technique. Laboratory experiments were conducted on three soils with two non-ionic (Rexol and Rexonic) surfactants and one anionic (Sulphonic) surfactant, specifically manufactured for the detergent industry. Four sets of experiments were conducted to examine the influence of surfactants on the equilibrium time of atrazine sorption, to explore the effect of surfactant concentration, pH and type of surfactant on the amount of atrazine sorbed and to determine sorption isotherms of atrazine in the presence of surfactants. The results indicate that the application of Sulphonic results in dramatic increase in the adsorption of atrazine on to soils, the increase being directly proportional to the concentration of the surfactant. Application of the Sulphonic surfactants with a concentration of 3000 mg/l can result in a significant increase in Kd values of atrazine for loam and sandy loam soils. On the other hand, the effect of non-ionic surfactants depends on their concentration. Generally, non-ionic surfactants can result in a slight increase in atrazine sorption at high concentration, an exception being Rexol on sandy loam soil. At low concentrations, non-ionic surfactants have shown a tendency to decrease atrazine sorption.

Aerobic biotransformation of polyfluoroalkyl phosphate esters (PAPs) in soil.

PubMed

Liu, Chen; Liu, Jinxia

2016-05-01

Microbial transformation of polyfluoroalkyl phosphate esters (PAPs) into perfluorocarboxylic acids (PFCAs) has recently been confirmed to occur in activated sludge and soil. However, there lacks quantitative information about the half-lives of the PAPs and their significance as the precursors to PFCAs. In the present study, the biotransformation of 6:2 and 8:2 diPAP in aerobic soil was investigated in semi-dynamics reactors using improved sample preparation methods. To develop an efficient extraction method for PAPs, six different extraction solvents were compared, and the phenomenon of solvent-enhanced hydrolysis was investigated. It was found that adding acetic acid could enhance the recoveries of the diPAPs and inhibit undesirable hydrolysis during solvent extraction of soil. However 6:2 and 8:2 monoPAPs, which are the first breakdown products from diPAPs, were found to be unstable in the six solvents tested and quickly hydrolyzed to form fluorotelomer alcohols. Therefore reliable measurement of the monoPAPs from a live soil was not achievable. The apparent DT50 values of 6:2 diPAP and 8:2 diPAP biotransformation were estimated to be 12 and > 1000 days, respectively, using a double first-order in parallel model. At the end of incubation of day 112, the major degradation products of 6:2 diPAP were 5:3 fluorotelomer carboxylic acid (5:3 acid, 9.3% by mole), perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA, 6.4%) and perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA, 6.0%). The primary product of 8:2 diPAP was perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA, 2.1%). The approximately linear relationship between the half-lives of eleven polyfluoroalkyl and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs, including 6:2 and 8:2 diPAPs) that biotransform in aerobic soils and their molecular weights suggested that the molecular weight is a good indicator of the general stability of low-molecular-weight PFAS-based compounds in aerobic soils. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The soil microbial community composition and soil microbial carbon uptake are more affected by soil type than by different vegetation types (C3 and C4 plants) and seasonal changes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Griselle Mellado Vazquez, Perla; Lange, Markus; Gleixner, Gerd

2016-04-01

This study investigates the influence of different vegetation types (C3 and C4 plants), soil type and seasonal changes on the soil microbial biomass, soil microbial community composition and soil microbial carbon (C) uptake. We collected soil samples in winter (non-growing season) and summer (growing season) in 2012 from an experimental site cropping C3 and C4 plants for 6 years on two different soil types (sandy and clayey). The amount of phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) and their compound-specific δ13C values were used to determined microbial biomass and the flow of C from plants to soil microorganisms, respectively. Higher microbial biomass was found in the growing season. The microbial community composition was mainly explained by soil type. Higher amounts of SOC were driving the predominance of G+ bacteria, actinobacteria and cyclic G- bacteria in sandy soils, whereas root biomass was significantly related to the increased proportions of G- bacteria in clayey soils. Plant-derived C in G- bacteria increased significantly in clayey soils in the growing season. This increase was positively and significantly driven by root biomass. Moreover, changes in plant-derived C among microbial groups pointed to specific capabilities of different microbial groups to decompose distinct sources of C. We concluded that soil texture and favorable growth conditions driven by rhizosphere interactions are the most important factors controlling the soil microbial community. Our results demonstrate that a change of C3 plants vs. C4 plants has only a minor effect on the soil microbial community. Thus, such experiments are well suited to investigate soil organic matter dynamics as they allow to trace the C flow from plants into the soil microbial community without changing the community abundance and composition.

A Note on the Fractal Behavior of Hydraulic Conductivity and Effective Porosity for Experimental Values in a Confined Aquifer

PubMed Central

De Bartolo, Samuele; Fallico, Carmine; Veltri, Massimo

2013-01-01

Hydraulic conductivity and effective porosity values for the confined sandy loam aquifer of the Montalto Uffugo (Italy) test field were obtained by laboratory and field measurements; the first ones were carried out on undisturbed soil samples and the others by slug and aquifer tests. A direct simple-scaling analysis was performed for the whole range of measurement and a comparison among the different types of fractal models describing the scale behavior was made. Some indications about the largest pore size to utilize in the fractal models were given. The results obtained for a sandy loam soil show that it is possible to obtain global indications on the behavior of the hydraulic conductivity versus the porosity utilizing a simple scaling relation and a fractal model in coupled manner. PMID:24385876

Battlefield Environment Obscuration Handbook. Volume I

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-12-01

consider only the radiometric properties of the surface whereas in another section we consider the physical properties of the soil . The general...and more arid, though it does not consist of sandy desert but rather, rocky soil and scrub brush. No part of Syria is much more than 300 miles from a...where p is average soil . density and V is measured crater volume. Around 1960, a project was undertaken by the U.S. Army Waterways Experiment Station

Environmental Assessment of Lead at Camp Edwards, Massachusetts, Small Arms Ranges

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-08-01

phosphates in soils as a method to immobilize lead. Environmental Science and Technology. 28(4):646–654. Rühling, A., and G. Tyler. 1973. Heavy metal ...control of heavy metals in a sandy soil . Environmental Science and Technology. 36(22):4804– 4810. Xia, K., W. Bleam, and P. A. Helmke. 1997. Studies...Military Training Sources of Lead and Soil Distribution at Camp Edwards ..............38 3.3 Projects Specific to Camp Edwards Small Arms Ranges

Manure Refinement Affects Apple Rhizosphere Bacterial Community Structure: A Study in Sandy Soil

PubMed Central

Zhang, Qiang; Sun, Jian; Liu, Songzhong; Wei, Qinping

2013-01-01

We used DNA-based pyrosequencing to characterize the bacterial community structure of the sandy soil of an apple orchard with different manure ratios. Five manure percentages (5%, 10%, 15%, 20% and 25%) were examined. More than 10,000 valid reads were obtained for each replicate. The communities were composed of five dominant groups (Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi, Acidobacteria and Bacteroidetes), of which Proteobacteria content gradually decreased from 41.38% to 37.29% as manure ratio increased from 0% to 25%, respectively. Redundancy analysis showed that 37 classes were highly correlated with manure ratio, 18 of which were positively correlated. Clustering revealed that the rhizosphere samples were grouped into three components: low manure (control, 5%) treatment, medium manure (10%, 15%) treatment and high manure (20%, 25%) treatment. Venn analysis of species types of these three groups revealed that the bacteria community difference was primarily reflected by quantity ratio rather than species variety. Although greater manure content led to higher soil organic matter content, the medium manure improved soil showed the highest urease activity and saccharase activity, while 5% to 20% manure ratio improvement also resulted in higher bacteria diversity than control and 25% manure ratio treatment. Our experimental results suggest that the use of a proper manure ratio results in significantly higher soil enzyme activity and different bacteria community patterns, whereas the use of excessive manure amounts has negative effect on soil quality. PMID:24155909

Application of N-modified lignite and activated biochar to increase growth of summer wheat on nutrient-poor sandy soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schillem, Steffi; Schneider, Bernd-Uwe; Zeihser, Uwe; Hüttl, Reinhard F.

2017-04-01

Land degradation is recognized as the main environmental problem that adversely depletes soil organic carbon (SOC) and nitrogen (SON) stocks, which in turn directly affects the fertility and productivity of soils. Degraded soils and marginal lands are characterized by low fertility, poor physicochemical and biological properties and are almost free of soil organic matter (SOM), limiting their functional properties and, hence, their productivity. To enhance or restore the fertility of these soils, natural soil amendments such as biochar, lignite or humic acids can be added. A greenhouse experiment was carried out to investigate the effect of different application rates (5, 7.5, 11, 15, 28 t ha-1) of N-modified lignite (NL) incorporated in a nutrient-poor sandy soil from a recultivation site on plant growth, water use and nitrogen use efficiency of summer wheat. Additionally activated biochar (BC) was tested to see whether any differences exist between N-modified lignite and activated biochar at the same C-application rates. All variants with soil amendments displayed a much higher grain and straw yield and water use efficiency compared to the control sample. The differences were significant for the 28 t ha-1variant followed by the variant with 5 t ha-1 NL. With the 7.5 t ha-1 NL higher biomasses, water and nitrogen use efficiency could be achieved compared to the variant treated with BC at the same C-content. This study shows that even small amounts of N-modified lignite can increase growth, water and nitrogen use efficiency of summer wheat on marginal lands.

Influence of host plants and soil diluents on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus propagation for on-farm inoculum production using leaf litter compost and agrowastes

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi (Claroideoglomus etunicatum NNT10, C. etunicatum PBT03 and Funneliformis mosseae RYA08) were propagated using different culture materials (sterile sandy soil by itself or mixed 1:1 (v/v) with clay-brick granules, rice husk charcoal, or vermiculite) and host plants (...

Analyzing the impacts of three types of biochar on soil carbon fractions and physiochemical properties in a corn-soybean rotation.

PubMed

Sandhu, Saroop S; Ussiri, David A N; Kumar, Sandeep; Chintala, Rajesh; Papiernik, Sharon K; Malo, Douglas D; Schumacher, Thomas E

2017-10-01

Biochar is a solid material obtained when biomass is thermochemically converted in an oxygen-limited environment. In most previous studies, the impacts of biochar on soil properties and organic carbon (C) were investigated under controlled conditions, mainly laboratory incubation or greenhouse studies. This 2-year field study was conducted to evaluate the influence of biochar on selected soil physical and chemical properties and carbon and nitrogen fractions for two selected soil types (clay loam and a sandy loam soil) under a corn (Zea mays L.)-soybean (Glycine max L.) rotation. The three plant based biochar materials used for this study were corn stover (CS), ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Lawson and C. Lawson) wood residue (PW), and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) (SG). Data showed that CS and SG significantly increased the pH of acidic soil at the eroded landscape position but produced no significant change in soil pH at the depositional landscape position. The effects of biochar treatments on cold water extractable C (WSC) and nitrogen (WSN) fractions for the 0-7.5 cm depth were depended on biochar and soil type. Results suggested that alkaline biochars applied at 10 Mg ha -1 can increase the pH and WSC fraction of acidic sandy loam soil, but the 10 Mg ha -1 rate might be low to substantially improve physical properties and hot water extractable C and N fractions of soil. Application of higher rates of biochar and long-term monitoring is needed to quantify the benefits of biochar under field conditions on soils in different environmental conditions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Leaching and ponding of viral contaminants following land application of biosolids on sandy-loam soil.

PubMed

Wong, Kelvin; Harrigan, Tim; Xagoraraki, Irene

2012-12-15

Much of the land available for application of biosolids is cropland near urban areas. Biosolids are often applied on hay or grassland during the growing season or on corn ground before planting or after harvest in the fall. In this study, mesophilic anaerobic digested (MAD) biosolids were applied at 56,000 L/ha on a sandy-loam soil over large containment lysimeters seeded to perennial covers of orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.), switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), or planted annually to maize (Zea mays L.). Portable rainfall simulators were to maintain the lysimeters under a nearly saturated (90%, volumetric basis) conditions. Lysimeter leachate and surface ponded water samples were collected and analyzed for somatic phage, adenoviruses, and anionic (chloride) and microbial (P-22 bacteriophage) tracers. Neither adenovirus nor somatic phage was recovered from the leachate samples. P-22 bacteriophage was found in the leachate of three lysimeters (removal rates ranged from 1.8 to 3.2 log(10)/m). Although the peak of the anionic tracer breakthrough occurred at a similar pore volume in each lysimeter (around 0.3 pore volume) the peak of P-22 breakthrough varied between lysimeters (<0.1, 0.3 and 0.7 pore volume). The early time to peak breakthrough of anionic and microbial tracers indicated preferential flow paths, presumably from soil cracks, root channels, worm holes or other natural phenomena. The concentration of viral contaminants collected in ponded surface water ranged from 1 to 10% of the initial concentration in the applied biosolids. The die off of somatic phage and P-22 in the surface water was fit to a first order decay model and somatic phage reached background level at about day ten. In conclusion, sandy-loam soils can effectively remove/adsorb the indigenous viruses leached from the land-applied biosolids, but there is a potential of viral pollution from runoff following significant rainfall events when biosolids remain on the soil surface. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Occurrence and Fate of Trace Contaminants during Aerobic and Anaerobic Sludge Digestion and Dewatering.

PubMed

Guerra, Paula; Kleywegt, Sonya; Payne, Michael; Svoboda, M Lewina; Lee, Hing-Biu; Reiner, Eric; Kolic, Terry; Metcalfe, Chris; Smyth, Shirley Anne

2015-07-01

Digestion of municipal wastewater biosolids is a necessary prerequisite to their beneficial use in land application, in order to protect public health and the receiving environment. In this study, 13 pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), 11 musks, and 17 polybrominated diphenyl ethers were analyzed in 84 samples including primary sludge, waste activated sludge, digested biosolids, dewatered biosolids, and dewatering centrate or filtrate collected from five wastewater treatment plants with aerobic or anaerobic digestion. Aerobic digestion processes were sampled during both warm and cold temperatures to analyze seasonal differences. Among the studied compounds, triclosan, triclocarban, galaxolide, and BDE-209 were the substances most frequently detected under different treatment processes at levels up to 30,000 ng/g dry weight. Comparing aerobic and anaerobic digestion, it was observed that the levels of certain PPCPs and musks were significantly higher in anaerobically digested biosolids, relative to the residues from aerobic digestion. Therefore, aerobic digestion has the potential advantage of reducing levels of PPCPs and musks. On the other hand, anaerobic digestion has the advantage of recovering energy from the biosolids in the form of combustible gases while retaining the nutrient and soil conditioning value of this resource. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Microbial Degradation of Phenanthrene in Pristine and Contaminated Sandy Soils.

PubMed

Schwarz, Alexandra; Adetutu, Eric M; Juhasz, Albert L; Aburto-Medina, Arturo; Ball, Andrew S; Shahsavari, Esmaeil

2018-05-01

Phenanthrene mineralisation studies in both pristine and contaminated sandy soils were undertaken through detailed assessment of the activity and diversity of the microbial community. Stable isotope probing (SIP) was used to assess and identify active 13 C-labelled phenanthrene degraders. Baseline profiling indicated that there was little difference in fungal diversity but a significant difference in bacterial diversity dependent on contamination history. Identification of dominant fungal and bacterial species highlighted the presence of organisms capable of degrading various petroleum-based compounds together with other anthropogenic compounds, regardless of contamination history. Community response following a simulated contamination event ( 14 C-phenanthrene) showed that the microbial community in deep pristine and shallow contaminated soils adapted most to the presence of phenanthrene. The similarity in microbial community structure of well-adapted soils demonstrated that a highly adaptable fungal community in these soils enabled a rapid response to the introduction of a contaminant. Ten fungal and 15 bacterial species were identified as active degraders of phenanthrene. The fungal degraders were dominated by the phylum Basidiomycota including the genus Crypotococcus, Cladosporium and Tremellales. Bacterial degraders included the genera Alcanivorax, Marinobacter and Enterococcus. There was little synergy between dominant baseline microbes, predicted degraders and those that were determined to be actually degrading the contaminant. Overall, assessment of baseline microbial community in contaminated soils provides useful information; however, additional laboratory assessment of the microbial community's ability to degrade pollutants allows for better prediction of the bioremediation potential of a soil.

The effect of EDTA on Helianthus annuus uptake, selectivity, and translocation of heavy metals when grown in Ohio, New Mexico and Colombia soils.

PubMed

Turgut, Cafer; Pepe, M Katie; Cutright, Teresa J

2005-02-01

The use of two EDTA concentrations for enhancing the bioavailability of cadmium, chromium, and nickel in three natural soils (Ohio, New Mexico and Colombia) was investigated. The resulting uptake, translocation and selectivity with Helianthus annuus after mobilization were also examined. In general, plants grown in the sandy-loam Ohio soil had a higher uptake that resulted in a selectivity and total metal content of Cd>Cr>Ni and 0.73 mg and Cr>Cd>Ni and 0.32 mg for 0.1 and 0.3 g kg-1 EDTA, respectively. With the silty-loam New Mexico soil, although the total metal uptake was not statistically different the EDTA level did alter the selectivity; Cd>Cr>Ni (0.1 g kg-1 EDTA) and Cd>Cr>Ni (0.3 g kg-1 EDTA). Conversely, with the Colombian (sandy clay loam) soil increasing the EDTA level resulted in a higher total metal uptake (0.62 mg) than the 0.1 g kg-1 (0.59 mg) treatment. For all three soils, the translocation of Cd was limited. Evaluating the mobile metal fraction with and without EDTA determined that the chelator was capable of overcoming mass transfer limitations associated with the expandable clay fraction in the soils. Root wash results and root biomass concentrations indicated that Cd sorption was occurring. Therefore limited Cd translocation was attributed to insufficient phytochelatin levels.

Effect of Metal Oxide Nanoparticles on Microbial Community Structure and Function in Two Different Soil Types

PubMed Central

Frenk, Sammy; Ben-Moshe, Tal; Dror, Ishai; Berkowitz, Brian; Minz, Dror

2013-01-01

Increased availability of nanoparticle-based products will, inevitably, expose the environment to these materials. Engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) may thus find their way into the soil environment via wastewater, dumpsters and other anthropogenic sources; metallic oxide nanoparticles comprise one group of ENPs that could potentially be hazardous for the environment. Because the soil bacterial community is a major service provider for the ecosystem and humankind, it is critical to study the effects of ENP exposure on soil bacteria. These effects were evaluated by measuring bacterial community activity, composition and size following exposure to copper oxide (CuO) and magnetite (Fe3O4) nanosized (<50 nm) particles. Two different soil types were examined: a sandy loam (Bet-Dagan) and a sandy clay loam (Yatir), under two ENP concentrations (1%, 0.1%). Results indicate that the bacterial community in Bet-Dagan soil was more susceptible to change due to exposure to these ENPs, relative to Yatir soil. More specifically, CuO had a strong effect on bacterial hydrolytic activity, oxidative potential, community composition and size in Bet-Dagan soil. Few effects were noted in the Yatir soil, although 1% CuO exposure did cause a significant decreased oxidative potential and changes to community composition. Fe3O4 changed the hydrolytic activity and bacterial community composition in Bet-Dagan soil but did not affect the Yatir soil bacterial community. Furthermore, in Bet-Dagan soil, abundance of bacteria annotated to OTUs from the Bacilli class decreased after addition of 0.1% CuO but increased with 1% CuO, while in Yatir soil their abundance was reduced with 1% CuO. Other important soil bacterial groups, including Rhizobiales and Sphingobacteriaceae, were negatively affected by CuO addition to soil. These results indicate that both ENPs are potentially harmful to soil environments. Furthermore, it is suggested that the clay fraction and organic matter in different soils interact with the ENPs and reduce their toxicity. PMID:24349575

Factors affecting microbial 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene mineralization in contaminated soil

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bradley, P.M.; Chapelle, F.H.

1995-01-01

The influence of selected environmental factors on microbial TNT mineralization in soils collected from a TNT-contaminated site at Weldon Spring, MO, was examined using uniformly ring-labeled [14C]TNT. Microbial TNT mineralization was significantly inhibited by the addition of cellobiose and syringate. This response suggests that the indigenous microorganisms are capable of metabolizing TNT but preferentially utilize less recalcitrant substrates when available. The observed inhibition of TNT mineralization by TNT concentrations higher than 100 ??mol/kg of soil and by dry soil conditions suggests that toxic inhibition of microbial activity at high TNT concentrations and the periodic drying of these soils have contributed to the long-term persistence of TNT at Weldon Spring. In comparison to aerobic microcosms, mineralization was inhibited in anaerobic microcosms and in microcosms with a headspace of air amended with oxygen, suggesting that a mosaic of aerobic and anaerobic conditions may optimize TNT degradation at this site.

Influence of biochar on the physical, chemical and retention properties of an amended sandy soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baiamonte, Giorgio; De Pasquale, Claudio; Parrino, Francesco; Crescimanno, Giuseppina

2017-04-01

Soil porosity plays an important role in soil-water retention and water availability to crops, potentially affecting both agricultural practices and environmental sustainability. The pore structure controls fluid flow and transport through the soil, as well as the relationship between the properties of individual minerals and plants. Moreover, the anthropogenic pressure on soil properties has produced numerous sites with extensive desertification process close to residential areas. Biochar (biologically derived charcoal) is produced by pyrolysis of biomasses under low oxygen conditions, and it can be applied for recycling organic waste in soils and increase soil fertility, improving soil structure and enhancing soil water storage and soil water movement. Soil application of biochar might have agricultural, environmental and sustainability advantages over the use of organic manures or compost, as it is a porous material with a high inner surface area. The main objectives of the present study were to investigate the possible application of biochar from forest residues, derived from mechanically chipped trunks and large branches of Abies alba M., Larix decidua Mill., Picea excelsa L., Pinus nigra A. and Pinus sylvestris L. pyrolysed at 450 °C for 48h, to improve soil structural and hydraulic properties (achieving a stabilization of soil). Different amount of biochar were added to a desertic sandy soil, and the effect on soil porosity water retention and water available to crops were investigated. The High Energy Moisture Characteristic (HEMC) technique was applied to investigate soil-water retention at high-pressure head levels. The adsorption and desorption isotherms of N2 on external surfaces were also determined in order to investigate micro and macro porosity ratio. Both the described model of studies on adsorption-desorption experiments with the applied isotherms model explain the increasing substrate porosity with a particular attention to the macro and micro porosity, respectively.

Effects of aerobic and anaerobic biological processes on leaching of heavy metals from soil amended with sewage sludge compost.

PubMed

Fang, Wen; Wei, Yonghong; Liu, Jianguo; Kosson, David S; van der Sloot, Hans A; Zhang, Peng

2016-12-01

The risk from leaching of heavy metals is a major factor hindering land application of sewage sludge compost (SSC). Understanding the change in heavy metal leaching resulting from soil biological processes provides important information for assessing long-term behavior of heavy metals in the compost amended soil. In this paper, 180days aerobic incubation and 240days anaerobic incubation were conducted to investigate the effects of the aerobic and anaerobic biological processes on heavy metal leaching from soil amended with SSC, combined with chemical speciation modeling. Results showed that leaching concentrations of heavy metals at natural pH were similar before and after biological process. However, the major processes controlling heavy metals were influenced by the decrease of DOC with organic matter mineralization during biological processes. Mineralization of organic matter lowered the contribution of DOC-complexation to Ni and Zn leaching. Besides, the reducing condition produced by biological processes, particularly by the anaerobic biological process, resulted in the loss of sorption sites for As on Fe hydroxide, which increased the potential risk of As release at alkaline pH. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Aerobic methanol-oxidizing bacteria in soil.

PubMed

Kolb, Steffen

2009-11-01

Methanol is an atmospheric compound that is primarily released from plant polymers and impacts ozone formation. The global methanol emission rate from terrestrial ecosystems is of the same order of magnitude (4.9 x 10(12) mol year(-1)) as that of methane (10 x 10(12) mol year(-1)). The major proportion of the annual plant-released methanol does not enter the atmosphere, but may be reoxidized by biological methanol oxidation, which is catalyzed by methanol-oxidizing prokaryotes. Fifty-six aerobic methanol-oxidizing species have been isolated from soils. These methylotrophs belong to the Alpha-, Beta-, and Gammaproteobacteria, Verrucomicrobia, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria. Their ecological niches are determined by oxygen and methanol concentration, temperature, pH, the capability to utilize nitrate as an electron acceptor, and the spectrum of nitrogen sources and utilizable multicarbon substrates. Recently discovered interactions with eukaryotes indicate that their ecological niches may not solely be defined by physicochemical parameters. Nonetheless, there are still gaps in knowledge; based on global methanol budgets, methanol oxidation in soil is important, but has not been addressed adequately by biogeochemical studies. Ratios of above-ground and soil-internal methanol oxidation are not known. The contribution to methanol-oxidation by aerobic and anaerobic methylotrophs in situ also needs further research.

Effect of fire residues (ash and char) on microbial activity, respiration and methanogenesis in three subtropical wetland soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Medvedeff, C.; Hogue, B.; Inglett, P.

2011-12-01

Prescribed fire is a common restoration and maintenance technique in the southern United States. Prescribed burns coupled with frequent natural fires in South Florida can have devastating effects on ecosystem function. To determine the effect fire residues have on carbon biogeochemical cycling litter material was obtained from two restored and one native marl wetland in Everglades National Park and manipulated in a laboratory setting to produce ash and vegetation derived char. Based on vegetation biomass removal pre and post fire (insitu) appropriate aliquots of each fire residue was added to experimental microcosms as a soil amendment. Soil enzymes (β-glucosidase, cellobiohydrolase, phosphatase, bis-phosphate and leucine amino peptidase), aerobic and anaerobic respiration (CO2) potentials, extractable C and methanogenesis were measured over a 25 day period. Regardless of site C enzymes responded to both amendments within 5 days of addition. Similarly amended soil contained more extractable carbon in the reference and one of the restored sites. In the restored sites ash and char inhibited methanogenesis, had no effect on anaerobic CO2 potentials, but stimulated aerobic respiration after ten days. In contrast, within the first ten days phosphatase enzyme activity was lower in the ash treatment when compared to the control treatment and stimulation of aerobic respiration was observed in both treatment soils. After ten days ash stimulated methanogenic processing while suppressing anaerobic CO2 production suggesting methanogens in this ecosystem may be dependant on usable carbon substrates derived from aerobic microbial processing. This study illustrates the variable response of C parameters to complete and incomplete combusted materials produced from both prescribed and natural fires with particular importance to fire adapted ecosystems.

Microbial degradation of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (CHCl2F and CHCl2CF3) in soils and sediments

USGS Publications Warehouse

Oremland, R.S.; Lonergan, D.J.; Culbertson, C.W.; Lovley, D.R.

1996-01-01

The ability of microorganisms to degrade trace levels of the hydrochlorofluorocarbons HCFC-21 and HCFC-123 was investigated. Methanotroph- linked oxidation of HCFC-21 was observed in aerobic soils, and anaerobic degradation of HCFC-21 occurred in freshwater and salt marsh sediments. Microbial degradation of HCFC-123 was observed in anoxic freshwater and salt marsh sediments, and the recovery of 1,1,1-trifluoro-2-chloroethane indicated the involvement of reductive dechlorination. No degradation of HCFC-123 was observed in aerobic soils. In same experiments, HCFCs were degraded at low (parts per billion) concentrations, raising the possibility that bacteria in nature remove HCFCs from the atmosphere.

Aerobic composting reduces antibiotic resistance genes in cattle manure and the resistome dissemination in agricultural soils.

PubMed

Gou, Min; Hu, Hang-Wei; Zhang, Yu-Jing; Wang, Jun-Tao; Hayden, Helen; Tang, Yue-Qin; He, Ji-Zheng

2018-01-15

Composting has been suggested as a potential strategy to eliminate antibiotic residues and pathogens in livestock manure before its application as an organic fertilizer in agro-ecosystems. However, the impacts of composting on antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in livestock manure and their temporal succession following the application of compost to land are not well understood. We examined how aerobic composting affected the resistome profiles of cattle manure, and by constructing laboratory microcosms we compared the effects of manure and compost application to agricultural soils on the temporal succession of a wide spectrum of ARGs. The high-throughput quantitative PCR array detected a total of 144 ARGs across all the soil, manure and compost samples, with Macrolide-Lincosamide-Streptogramin B, aminoglycoside, multidrug, tetracycline, and β-lactam resistance as the most dominant types. Composting significantly reduced the diversity and relative abundance of ARGs and mobile genetic elements (MGEs) in the cattle manure. In the 120-day microcosm incubation, the diversity and abundance of ARGs in manure-treated soils were significantly higher than those in compost-treated soils at the beginning of the experiment. The level of antibiotic resistance rapidly declined over time in all manure- and compost-treated soils, coupled with similar temporal patterns of manure- and compost-derived bacterial communities as revealed by SourceTracker analysis. The network analysis revealed more intensive interactions/associations among ARGs and MGEs in manure-treated soils than in compost-treated soils, suggesting that mobility potential of ARGs was lower in soils amended with compost. Our results provide evidence that aerobic composting of cattle manure may be an effective approach to mitigate the risk of antibiotic resistance propagation associated with land application of organic wastes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Distribution and variation of arsenic in Wisconsin surface soils, with data on other trace elements

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stensvold, Krista A.

2012-01-01

Soils with sandy glacial outwash as a parent material have a lower median arsenic concentration (1.0 mg/kg) than soils forming in other parent materials (1.5 to 3.0 mg/kg). Soil texture and drainage category also influence median arsenic concentration. Finer grained soils have a higher observed range of concentrations. For loamy and loess-dominated soil groups, drainage category influences the median arsenic concentration and observed range of values, but a consistent relationship within the data is not apparent. Statistical analysis of the 16 other elements are presented in this report, but the relationships of concentrations to soil properties or geographic areas were not examined.

An Experimental Study of the Effects of Litter and Duff Consumption and Ash Formation on Post-Fire Runoff.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woods, S. W.; Balfour, V.

2007-12-01

Consumption of the litter and duff layers in forest wildfires can lead to substantial increases in the frequency and magnitude of overland flow. These increases result from the loss of storage in the organic surface layer, reduced surface roughness, and from sealing of the exposed mineral soil surface. The presence of an ash layer may accentuate surface sealing by providing an additional source of fine material, or it may reduce runoff by storing rainfall and by protecting the soil surface from raindrop impacts. We used simulated rainfall experiments to assess the effects of litter and duff consumption and the presence of ash layers of varying thickness on post fire runoff at two forested sites in western Montana, one with sandy loam soils formed out of granodiorite and the other with gravelly silt loam soils formed out of argillite. At each site we measured the runoff from simulated rainfall in replicated 0.5 m2 plots before and after application of the following treatments: 1) burning with a fuel load of 90 Mg ha-1, 2) manual removal of the litter and duff layers, 3) addition of 0.5, 2.5 and 5 cm of ash to plots from which the litter and duff had previously been removed, and 4) addition of the same depths of ash to burned plots at the sandy loam site. In the burned plots the surface litter and duff layers were completely consumed and a <1cm layer of black and gray ash and char was formed, indicating a moderate severity burn. The mean soil temperature in the upper 1 cm of the mineral soil was 70° C, and there was no detectable increase in water repellency. The mean final infiltration capacity of the burned sandy loam plots was 35 mm hr-1 compared to a pre-fire mean of 87 mm hr-1, while in the gravelly silt loam plots the pre- and post burn infiltration capacities (27 and 31 mm hr- 1) were not significantly different. Manual removal of the litter and duff layers reduced the mean final infiltration capacity in the sandy loam plots from 64 mm hr-1 to 40 mm hr-1 and in the gravelly silt loam plots from 23 mm hr-1 to 16 mm hr-1. We attribute decreases in infiltration due to the burning and duff removal treatments primarily to surface sealing. In the sandy loam plots, burning may have had a greater effect on infiltration than duff removal because the thin ash layer in the burned plots provided an additional source of fine material. In the gravelly silt loam plots, macropores located around rock fragments helped to minimize sealing effects. The addition of 0.5 cm of ash to the burned granitic plots resulted in a 20 mm hr-1 decrease in the final infiltration rate, and this was also probably due to surface sealing. However, the overall effect of ash addition was to increase the cumulative infiltration in proportion to the ash thickness and to maintain a higher average infiltration rate, indicating that while thin (<1 cm) ash layers may promote sealing, thicker ash layers help to reduce the runoff rate by providing additional storage for rainfall and by protecting the soil surface from raindrop impacts.

Bioavailability and chronic toxicity of bismuth citrate to earthworm Eisenia andrei exposed to natural sandy soil.

PubMed

Omouri, Zohra; Hawari, Jalal; Fournier, Michel; Robidoux, Pierre Yves

2018-01-01

The present study describes bioavailability and chronic effects of bismuth to earthworms Eisenia andrei using OECD reproduction test. Adult earthworms were exposed to natural sandy soil contaminated artificially by bismuth citrate. Average total concentrations of bismuth in soil recovered by HNO 3 digestion ranged from 75 to 289mg/kg. Results indicate that bismuth decreased significantly all reproduction parameters of Eisenia andrei at concentrations ≥ 116mg/kg. However, number of hatched cocoons and number of juveniles seem to be more sensitive than total number of cocoons, as determined by IC 50 ; i.e., 182, 123 and > 289mg/kg, respectively. Bismuth did not affect Eisenia andrei growth and survival, and had little effect on phagocytic efficiency of coelomocytes. The low immunotoxicity effect might be explained by the involvement of other mechanisms i.e. bismuth sequestered by metal-binding compounds. After 28 days of exposure bismuth concentrations in earthworms tissue increased with increasing bismuth concentrations in soil reaching a stationary state of 21.37mg/kg dry tissue for 243mg Bi/kg dry soil total content. Data indicate also that after 56 days of incubation the average fractions of bismuth available extracted by KNO 3 aqueous solution in soil without earthworms varied from 0.0051 to 0.0229mg/kg, while in soil with earthworms bismuth concentration ranged between 0.310-1.347mg/kg dry soil. We presume that mucus and chelating agents produced by earthworms and by soil or/and earthworm gut microorganisms could explain this enhancement, as well as the role of dermal and ingestion routes of earthworms uptake to soil contaminant. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Soil color indicates carbon and wetlands: developing a color-proxy for soil organic carbon and wetland boundaries on sandy coastal plains in South Africa.

PubMed

Pretorius, M L; Van Huyssteen, C W; Brown, L R

2017-10-13

A relationship between soil organic carbon and soil color is acknowledged-albeit not a direct one. Since heightened carbon contents can be an indicator of wetlands, a quantifiable relationship between color and carbon might assist in determining wetland boundaries by rapid, field-based appraisal. The overarching aim of this initial study was to determine the potential of top soil color to indicate soil organic carbon, and by extension wetland boundaries, on a sandy coastal plain in South Africa. Data were collected from four wetland types in northern KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Soil samples were taken to a depth of 300 mm in three transects in each wetland type and analyzed for soil organic carbon. The matrix color was described using a Munsell soil color chart. Various color indices were correlated with soil organic carbon. The relationship between color and carbon were further elucidated using segmented quantile regression. This showed that potentially maximal carbon contents will occur at values of low color indices, and predictably minimal carbon contents will occur at values of low or high color indices. Threshold values can thus be used to make deductions such as "when the sum of dry and wet Value and Chroma values is 9 or more, carbon content will be 4.79% and less." These threshold values can then be used to differentiate between wetland and non-wetland sites with a 70 to 100% certainty. This study successfully developed a quantifiable correlation between color and carbon and showed that wetland boundaries can be determined based thereon.

Combined effects of tides, evaporation and rainfall on the soil conditions in an intertidal creek-marsh system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xin, Pei; Zhou, Tingzhang; Lu, Chunhui; Shen, Chengji; Zhang, Chenming; D'Alpaos, Andrea; Li, Ling

2017-05-01

Salt marshes, distributed globally at the land-ocean interface, are a highly productive eco-system with valuable ecological functions. While salt marshes are affected by various eco-geo-hydrological processes and factors, soil moisture and salinity affect plant growth and play a key role in determining the structure and functions of the marsh ecosystem. To examine the variations of both soil parameters, we simulated pore-water flow and salt transport in a creek-marsh system subjected to spring-neap tides, evaporation and rainfall. The results demonstrated that within a sandy-loam marsh, the tide-induced pore-water circulation averted salt build-up due to evaporation in the near-creek area. In the marsh interior where the horizontal drainage was weak, density-driven flow was responsible for dissipating salt accumulation in the shallow soil layer. In the sandy-loam marsh, the combined influences of spring-neap tides, rainfall and evaporation led to the formation of three characteristic zones, c.f., a near-creek zone with low soil water saturation (i.e., well-aerated) and low pore-water salinity as affected by the semi-diurnal spring tides, a less well-aerated zone with increased salinity where drainage occurred during the neap tides, and an interior zone where evaporation and rainfall infiltration regulated the soil conditions. These characteristics, however, varied with the soil type. In low-permeability silt-loam and clay-loam marshes, the tide-induced drainage weakened and the soil conditions over a large area became dominated by evaporation and rainfall. Sea level rise was found to worsen the soil aeration condition but inhibit salt accumulation due to evaporation. These findings shed lights on the soil conditions underpinned by various hydrogeological processes, and have important implications for further investigations on marsh plant growth and ecosystem functions.

A New Screening Method for Methane in Soil Gas Using Existing Groundwater Monitoring Wells

EPA Science Inventory

Methane in soil gas may have undesirable consequences. The soil gas may be able to form a flammable mixture with air and present an explosion hazard. Aerobic biodegradation of the methane in soil gas may consume oxygen that would otherwise be available for biodegradation of gasol...

Spatial distribution of hydroxylamine and its role in aerobic N2O formation in a Norway spruce forest soil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, S.; Weymann, D.; Gottselig, N.; Wiekenkamp, I.; Vereecken, H.; Brueggemann, N.

2014-12-01

Hydroxylamine (HA) as a crucial intermediate in the microbial oxidation of ammonium to nitrite (nitrification) is a potential precursor of abiotic N2O formation in the soil. However, the determination of HA concentration in natural soil samples has not been reported until now. Here, we determined the HA concentrations in organic (Oh) and mineral (Ah) layers of 135 soil samples collected from a spruce forest (Wüstebach, Eifel National Park, Germany) using a novel approach, based on the fast extraction of HA from the soil at a pH of 1.7, the oxidation of HA to N2O with Fe3+, and the analysis of produced N2O using gas chromatography (GC). Meanwhile, N2O emission rates were determined by means of aerobic laboratory incubations of 3-g soil in 22-mL vials. Subsequently, the spatial distribution of soil HA concentrations and N2O emission rates in the Oh and Ah layers of the whole sampling area were analyzed using a geostatistical approach. The correlations among soil HA, N2O emission rate, pH, soil C, N, Fe, Mn and soil water content (SWC) were further explored. The HA concentrations ranged from 0.3-44.6 μg N kg-1 dry soil and 0.02-16.2 μg N kg-1 dry soil in the Oh and the Ah layer, respectively. The spatial distribution of HA was similar in both layers, with substantial spatial variability dependent on soil type, tree density and distance to a stream. For example, HA concentration was greater at locations with a thick litter layer or at locations close to the stream. The average N2O emission rate in the Oh layer was 0.38 μg N kg-1 dry soil h-1, 10-fold larger than in the Ah layer. Interestingly, N2O emission rate exhibited high correlation with soil HA content in the Oh (R2 = 0.65, p < 0.01) and Ah (R2 = 0.45, p < 0.05) layer. The results demonstrated that HA is a crucial component for aerobic N2O formation and emission in spruce forest soils. Moreover, HA concentration was negatively correlated with pH and positively correlated with SWC in the Oh layer, while positively correlated with C and N as well as NO3- content in the Ah layer. Mn content was the most important factor for HA recovery at the specific extraction conditions. Further studies should focus on the effects of soil organic matter, Mn content, and pH on the production of N2O from HA under aerobic conditions.

Soil compaction effects on water status of ponderosa pine assessed through 13C/12C composition.

PubMed

Gomez, G Armando; Singer, Michael J; Powers, Robert F; Horwath, William R

2002-05-01

Soil compaction is a side effect of forest reestablishment practices resulting from use of heavy equipment and site preparation. Soil compaction often alters soil properties resulting in changes in plant-available water. The use of pressure chamber methods to assess plant water stress has two drawbacks: (1) the measurements are not integrative; and (2) the method is difficult to apply extensively to establish seasonal soil water status. We evaluated leaf carbon isotopic composition (delta13C) as a means of assessing effects of soil compaction on water status and growth of young ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa var. ponderosa Dougl. ex Laws) stands across a range of soil textures. Leaf delta13C in cellulose and whole foliar tissue were highly correlated. Leaf delta13C in both whole tissue and cellulose (holocellulose) was up to 1.0 per thousand lower in trees growing in non-compacted (NC) loam or clay soils than in compacted (SC) loam or clay soils. Soil compaction had the opposite effect on leaf delta13C in trees growing on sandy loam soil, indicating that compaction increased water availability in this soil type. Tree growth response to compaction also varied with soil texture, with no effect, a negative effect and a positive effect as a result of compaction of loam, clay and sandy loam soils, respectively. There was a significant correlation between 13C signature and tree growth along the range of soil textures. Leaf delta13C trends were correlated with midday stem water potentials. We conclude that leaf delta13C can be used to measure retrospective water status and to assess the impact of site preparation on tree growth. The advantage of the leaf delta13C approach is that it provides an integrative assessment of past water status in different aged leaves.

Does thermal carbonization (Biochar) of organic material increase more merits for their amendments of sandy soil?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Y.; Xu, G.; Sun, J. N.; Shao, H. B.

2014-02-01

Organic materials (e.g. furfural residue) are generally believed to improve the physical and chemical properties of the soils with low fertility. Recently, biochar have been received more attention as a possible measure to improve the carbon balance and improve soil quality in some degraded soils. However, little is known about their different amelioration of a sandy saline soil. In this study, 56d incubation experiment was conducted to evaluate the influence of furfural and its biochar on the properties of saline soil. The results showed that both furfural and biochar greatly reduced pH, increased soil organic carbon (SOC) content and cation exchange capacity (CEC), and enhanced the available phosphorus (P) in the soil. Furfural is more efficient than biochar in reducing pH: 5% furfural lowered the soil pH by 0.5-0.8 (soil pH: 8.3-8.6), while 5% biochar decreased by 0.25-0.4 due to the loss of acidity in pyrolysis process. With respect to available P, 5% of the furfural addition increased available P content by 4-6 times in comparison to 2-5 times with biochar application. In reducing soil exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP), biochar is slightly superior to furfural because soil ESP reduced by 51% and 43% with 5% furfural and 5% biochar addition at the end of incubation. In addition, no significant differences were observed between furfural and biochar about their capacity to retain N, P in leaching solution and to increase CEC in soil. These facts may be caused by the relatively short incubation time. In general, furfural and biochar have different amendments depending on soil properties: furfural was more effectively to decrease pH and to increase available P, whereas biochar played a more important role in increasing SOC and reducing ESP of saline soil.

Estimating of Soil Texture Using Landsat Imagery: a Case Study in Thatta Tehsil, Sindh

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khalil, Zahid

2016-07-01

Soil texture is considered as an important environment factor for agricultural growth. It is the most essential part for soil classification in large scale. Today the precise soil information in large scale is of great demand from various stakeholders including soil scientists, environmental managers, land use planners and traditional agricultural users. With the increasing demand of soil properties in fine scale spatial resolution made the traditional laboratory methods inadequate. In addition the costs of soil analysis with precision agriculture systems are more expensive than traditional methods. In this regard, the application of geo-spatial techniques can be used as an alternative for examining soil analysis. This study aims to examine the ability of Geo-spatial techniques in identifying the spatial patterns of soil attributes in fine scale. Around 28 samples of soil were collected from the different areas of Thatta Tehsil, Sindh, Pakistan for analyzing soil texture. An Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression analysis was used to relate the reflectance values of Landsat8 OLI imagery with the soil variables. The analysis showed there was a significant relationship (p<0.05) of band 2 and 5 with silt% (R2 = 0.52), and band 4 and 6 with clay% (R2 =0.40). The equation derived from OLS analysis was then used for the whole study area for deriving soil attributes. The USDA textural classification triangle was implementing for the derivation of soil texture map in GIS environment. The outcome revealed that the 'sandy loam' was in great quantity followed by loam, sandy clay loam and clay loam. The outcome shows that the Geo-spatial techniques could be used efficiently for mapping soil texture of a larger area in fine scale. This technology helped in decreasing cost, time and increase detailed information by reducing field work to a considerable level.

Moisture can be the dominant environmental parameter governing cadaver decomposition in soil.

PubMed

Carter, David O; Yellowlees, David; Tibbett, Mark

2010-07-15

Forensic taphonomy involves the use of decomposition to estimate postmortem interval (PMI) or locate clandestine graves. Yet, cadaver decomposition remains poorly understood, particularly following burial in soil. Presently, we do not know how most edaphic and environmental parameters, including soil moisture, influence the breakdown of cadavers following burial and alter the processes that are used to estimate PMI and locate clandestine graves. To address this, we buried juvenile rat (Rattus rattus) cadavers (approximately 18 g wet weight) in three contrasting soils from tropical savanna ecosystems located in Pallarenda (sand), Wambiana (medium clay), or Yabulu (loamy sand), Queensland, Australia. These soils were sieved (2mm), weighed (500 g dry weight), calibrated to a matric potential of -0.01 megapascals (MPa), -0.05 MPa, or -0.3 MPa (wettest to driest) and incubated at 22 degrees C. Measurements of cadaver decomposition included cadaver mass loss, carbon dioxide-carbon (CO(2)-C) evolution, microbial biomass carbon (MBC), protease activity, phosphodiesterase activity, ninhydrin-reactive nitrogen (NRN) and soil pH. Cadaver burial resulted in a significant increase in CO(2)-C evolution, MBC, enzyme activities, NRN and soil pH. Cadaver decomposition in loamy sand and sandy soil was greater at lower matric potentials (wetter soil). However, optimal matric potential for cadaver decomposition in medium clay was exceeded, which resulted in a slower rate of cadaver decomposition in the wettest soil. Slower cadaver decomposition was also observed at high matric potential (-0.3 MPa). Furthermore, wet sandy soil was associated with greater cadaver decomposition than wet fine-textured soil. We conclude that gravesoil moisture content can modify the relationship between temperature and cadaver decomposition and that soil microorganisms can play a significant role in cadaver breakdown. We also conclude that soil NRN is a more reliable indicator of gravesoil than soil pH. (c) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dominant Douglas-fir respond to fertilizing and thinning in southwest Oregon

Treesearch

Richard E. Miller; Richard L. Williamson

1974-01-01

In 30-year-old, Site IV Douglas-fir in southwest Oregon, fertilizing increased average 4-year basal area growth of dominant trees by 57 and 28 percent on clay loam and sandy loam soils, respectively. Fertilizing with thinning increased growth by 94 and 132 percent over untreated growth. Thinning on clay loam soil increased growth by 53 percent. Treatment did not affect...

A comparison of cation sampling in forest soils by tension and tension-free lysimeters

Treesearch

James H. Miller

1981-01-01

Field tests conducted in two soils with ceramic cup, ceramic plate, and tension-free lysimeters showed no concentration differences in collected cations (Ca, Mg, K, Na) between cups and plates, except for the hydrogen ion. Mean pH was 0.6 lower in cup collected samples for a sandy loam profile. Tension-free lysimeters of the design tested had persistent contamination...

Measurement and Modeling of Fugitive Dust from Off Road DoD Activities

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-12-08

each soil and vehicle type (see Table 2). Note, no tracked vehicles were run at YTC. CT is the curve track sampling location, CR is the curve ridge...Soil is SL = sandy loam. ...................... 116 Figure 35. Single-event Wind Erosion Evaluation Program (SWEEP) Run example results. ... 121...Figure 36. Single-event Wind Erosion Evaluation Program (SWEEP) Threshold Run example results screen

Salty bark as a soil amendment

Treesearch

W.B. Bollen

1971-01-01

Bark from Douglas-fir logs floated in sea water contained 0.75 to 1.94 percent salt (NaCl). Leaching by natural and simulated rainfall and by soaking readily removed this salt. Bush bean and tomato plants were grown in the greenhouse on a sandy loam soil to which bark of three different proportions of salt was applied as a mulch and as an incorporation at the rate of...

Multivariate Bioclimatic Ecosystem Change Approaches

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-02-06

course the sandy soils of the Sandhills will not migrate. This observation suggests that a new nomenclature for ecosystems must be developed if...Coast Sandhills. At that time period, not only will the climate be similar, but the soil character will also be similar. Therefore about the year 2115...Disaggregation of global circulation model outputs decision and policy analysis. Working Paper No. 2. Cali, Colombia : International Centre for Tropical

High-Explosive Cratering a Frozen and Unfrozen Soils in Alaska

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-02-01

SAMPLES I DEPTH TO .... T 24 DATE HOLEIROUN - S]T AR ED adO~ ________ F __24_ad_2____________7 EL . ITHOE (4IQ1 ~.0oioy Section ChlofRrndotboelI a...MotorIoI. Bronco Dno 20 f t.D. FREDRICKSON DEPTH %WATER SAI.IPLE SOIL MAAX FEET .4CtENT NO LEGEND CLASSIFICATION IZE F G i Silty Sandy Gravel Brown, Frozen

Toxicity and uptake of cyclic nitramine explosives in ryegrass Lolium perenne.

PubMed

Rocheleau, Sylvie; Lachance, Bernard; Kuperman, Roman G; Hawari, Jalal; Thiboutot, Sonia; Ampleman, Guy; Sunahara, Geoffrey I

2008-11-01

Hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX), octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX), and 2,4,6,8,10,12-hexanitro-2,4,6,8,10,12-hexaazaisowurtzitane (CL-20) are cyclic nitramines used as explosives. Their ecotoxicities have been characterized incompletely and little is known about their accumulation potential in soil organisms. We assessed the toxicity and uptake of these explosives in perennial ryegrass Lolium perenne L. exposed in a Sassafras sandy loam (SSL) or in a sandy soil (DRDC, CL-20 only) containing contrasting clay contents (11% and 0.3%, respectively). A 21-d exposure to RDX, HMX or CL-20 in either soil had no adverse effects on ryegrass growth. RDX and HMX were translocated to ryegrass shoots, with bioconcentration factors (BCF) of up to 15 and 11, respectively. In contrast, CL-20 was taken up by the roots (BCF up to 19) with no translocation to the shoots. These studies showed that RDX, HMX, and CL-20 can accumulate in plants and may potentially pose a risk of biomagnification across the food chain.

Spatial variation in the degradation rate of the pesticides isoproturon, azoxystrobin and diflufenican in soil and its relationship with chemical and microbial properties.

PubMed

Bending, Gary D; Lincoln, Suzanne D; Edmondson, Rodney N

2006-01-01

The extent of within field variability in the degradation rate of the pesticides isoproturon, azoxystrobin and diflufenican, and the role of intrinsic soil factors and technical errors in contributing to the variability, was investigated in sites on sandy-loam and clay-loam. At each site, 40 topsoil samples were taken from a 160 x 60 m area, and pesticides applied in the laboratory. Time to 25% dissipation (DT25) ranged between 13 and 61 weeks for diflufenican, 5.6 and 17.2 weeks for azoxystrobin, and 0.3 and 12.5 weeks for isoproturon. Variability in DT25 was higher in the sandy-loam in which there was also greatest variability in soil chemical and microbial properties. Technical error associated with pesticide extraction, analysis and lack of model fit during derivation of DT25 accounted for between 5.3 and 25.8% of the variability for isoproturon and azoxystrobin, but could account for almost all the variability for diflufenican. Azoxystrobin DT25, sorption and pH were significantly correlated.

Genome Sequence of “Pedosphaera parvula” Ellin514, an Aerobic Verrucomicrobial Isolate from Pasture Soil▿

PubMed Central

Kant, Ravi; van Passel, Mark W. J.; Sangwan, Parveen; Palva, Airi; Lucas, Susan; Copeland, Alex; Lapidus, Alla; Glavina del Rio, Tijana; Dalin, Eileen; Tice, Hope; Bruce, David; Goodwin, Lynne; Pitluck, Sam; Chertkov, Olga; Larimer, Frank W.; Land, Miriam L.; Hauser, Loren; Brettin, Thomas S.; Detter, John C.; Han, Shunsheng; de Vos, Willem M.; Janssen, Peter H.; Smidt, Hauke

2011-01-01

“Pedosphaera parvula” Ellin514 is an aerobically grown verrucomicrobial isolate from pasture soil. It is one of the few cultured representatives of subdivision 3 of the phylum Verrucomicrobia. Members of this group are widespread in terrestrial environments. PMID:21460084

Using Conventional Monitoring Wells to Collect Data Necessary to Understand Petroleum Vapor Intrusion (PVI)

EPA Science Inventory

Recent work has clearly established that the possibility for vapor intrusion of petroleum hydrocarbons is greatly reduced by aerobic biodegradation of the hydrocarbons in unsaturated soil. The rate and extent of aerobic biodegradation of benzene (or any other fuel hydrocarbon) in...

Virus and bacteria transport in a sandy aquifer, Cape Cod, MA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bales, Roger C.; Li, Shimin; Maguire, Kimberly M.; Yahya, Moyasar T.; Gerba, Charles P.; Harvey, Ronald W.

1995-01-01

Transport of the bacteriophage PRD-1, bacteria, and latex microspheres was studied in a sandy aquifer under natural-gradient conditions. The field injection was carried out at the U.S. Geological Survey's Toxic Substances Hydrology research site on Cape Cod. The three colloids and a salt tracer (Br−) moved along the same path. There was significant attenuation of the phage, with PRD-1 peak concentrations less than 0.001 percent of Br− peaks 6 m from the source; but the low detection limit (one per ml) enabled tracking movement of the PRD-1 plume for 12 m downgradient over the 25-day experiment. Attenuation of phage was apparently due to retention on soil particles (adsorption). Attenuation of bacteria and microspheres was less, with peak concentrations 6 m from the source on the order of 10 and 0.4 percent of Br−, respectively. Injection of a high-pH pulse of water 20 days into the experiment resulted in significant remobilization of retained phage, demonstrating that attached phage remained viable, and that PRD-1 attachment to and detachment from the sandy soil particles was highly pH dependent. Phage behavior in this experiment, i.e. attenuation at pH 5.7 and rapid resuspension at pH 6–8, was consistent with that observed previously in laboratory column studies. Results illustrate that biocolloids travel in a fairly narrow plume in sandy (relatively homogeneous) media, with virus concentrations dropping below detection limit several meters away from the source; bacteria concentrations above detection limits can persist over longer distances.

A case study on stratified settlement and rebound characteristics due to dewatering in Shanghai subway station.

PubMed

Wang, Jianxiu; Huang, Tianrong; Sui, Dongchang

2013-01-01

Based on the Yishan Metro Station Project of Shanghai Metro Line number 9, a centrifugal model test was conducted to investigate the behavior of stratified settlement and rebound (SSR) of Shanghai soft clay caused by dewatering in deep subway station pit. The soil model was composed of three layers, and the dewatering process was simulated by self-invention of decompressing devise. The results indicate that SSR occurs when the decompression was carried out, and only negative rebound was found in sandy clay, but both positive and negative rebound occurred in the silty clay, and the absolute value of rebound in sandy clay was larger than in silty clay, and the mechanism of SSR was discussed with mechanical sandwich model, and it was found that the load and cohesive force of different soils was the main source of different responses when decompressed.

Cadastral valuation of land contaminated with radionuclides

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ratnikov, A. N.; Sapozhnikov, P. M.; Sanzharova, N. I.; Sviridenko, D. G.; Zhigareva, T. L.; Popova, G. I.; Panov, A. V.; Kozlova, I. Yu.

2016-01-01

The methodology and procedure for cadastral valuation of land in the areas contaminated with radionuclides are presented. The efficiency of rehabilitation measures applied to decrease crop contamination to the levels satisfying sanitary-hygienic norms is discussed. The differentiation of cadastral value of radioactively contaminated agricultural lands for the particular farms and land plots is suggested. An example of cadastral valuation of agricultural land contaminated during the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident is given. It is shown that the use of sandy and loamy sandy soddy-podzolic soils with the 137Cs contamination of 37-185 and >185 kBq/m2 for crop growing is unfeasible. The growing of grain crops and potatoes on clay loamy soddy-podzolic soils with the 137Cs contamination of 555-740 kBq/m2 is unprofitable. The maximum cadastral value of radioactively contaminated lands is typical of leached chernozems.

Damage and Reproductive Potentials of Pratylenchus brachyurus and P. penetrans on soybean.

PubMed

Schmitt, D P; Barker, K R

1981-07-01

Damage and reproductive potentials of Pratylenchus brachyurus and P. penetrans on soybean, Glycine max, cvs. Essex, Forrest, and Lee 68, were determined in microplot tests. Cultivar Essex was generally tolerant to P. brachyurus. Yield of Forrest was suppressed linearly with increasing P(i)'s in the sandy soil (r = -0.92) and loamy sand soil (r = -0.99). Low to moderate P(i)'s in the sandy clay loam gave an increase in yields as compared to plants without nematodes. Yield was not affected by this nematode in muck. Lee 68 was very sensitive to P. penetrans in microplots. Yield vs. P(i) was fitted by a quadratic model (r = 0.82) with yield decreasing sharply as P(i)'s were increased. The reproduction of both species decreased with increases in P(i). Lee 68 was a good host for P. penetrans, whereas Essex and Forrest were fair to poor hosts for P. brachyurus.

Evaluation of Diuron Tolerance and Biotransformation by Fungi from a Sugar Cane Plantation Sandy-Loam Soil.

PubMed

Perissini-Lopes, Bruna; Egea, Tássia Chiachio; Monteiro, Diego Alves; Vici, Ana Cláudia; Da Silva, Danilo Grünig Humberto; Lisboa, Daniela Correa de Oliveira; de Almeida, Eduardo Alves; Parsons, John Robert; Da Silva, Roberto; Gomes, Eleni

2016-12-14

Microorganisms capable of degrading herbicides are essential to minimize the amount of chemical compounds that may leach into other environments. This work aimed to study the potential of sandy-loam soil fungi to tolerate the herbicide Herburon (50% diuron) and to degrade the active ingredient diuron. Verticillium sp. F04, Trichoderma virens F28, and Cunninghamella elegans B06 showed the highest growth in the presence of the herbicide. The evaluation of biotransformation showed that Aspergillus brasiliensis G08, Aspergillus sp. G25, and Cunninghamella elegans B06 had the greatest potential to degrade diuron. Statistical analysis demonstrated that glucose positively influences the potential of the microorganism to degrade diuron, indicating a cometabolic process. Due to metabolites founded by diuron biotransformation, it is indicated that the fungi are relevant in reducing the herbicide concentration in runoff, minimizing the environmental impact on surrounding ecosystems.

A Case Study on Stratified Settlement and Rebound Characteristics due to Dewatering in Shanghai Subway Station

PubMed Central

Wang, Jianxiu; Huang, Tianrong; Sui, Dongchang

2013-01-01

Based on the Yishan Metro Station Project of Shanghai Metro Line number 9, a centrifugal model test was conducted to investigate the behavior of stratified settlement and rebound (SSR) of Shanghai soft clay caused by dewatering in deep subway station pit. The soil model was composed of three layers, and the dewatering process was simulated by self-invention of decompressing devise. The results indicate that SSR occurs when the decompression was carried out, and only negative rebound was found in sandy clay, but both positive and negative rebound occurred in the silty clay, and the absolute value of rebound in sandy clay was larger than in silty clay, and the mechanism of SSR was discussed with mechanical sandwich model, and it was found that the load and cohesive force of different soils was the main source of different responses when decompressed. PMID:23878521

Spatial patterns and natural recruitment of native shrubs in a semi-arid sandy land.

PubMed

Wu, Bo; Yang, Hongxiao

2013-01-01

Passive restoration depending on native shrubs is an attractive approach for restoring desertified landscapes in semi-arid sandy regions. We sought to understand the relationships between spatial patterns of native shrubs and their survival ability in sandy environments. Furthermore, we applied our results to better understand whether passive restoration is feasible for desertified landscapes in semi-arid sandy regions. The study was conducted in the semi-arid Mu Us sandy land of northern China with the native shrub Artemisia ordosica. We analyzed population structures and patterns of A. ordosica at the edges and centers of land patches where sand was stabilized by A. ordosica-dominated vegetation. Saplings were more aggregated than adults, and both were more aggregated at the patch edges than at the patch centers. At the patch edges, spatial association of the saplings with the adults was mostly positive at distances 0.3-6.6 m, and turned from positive to neutral, and even negative, at other distances. At the patch centers, the saplings were spaced almost randomly around the adults, and their distances from the adults did not seem to affect their locations. A greater number of A. ordosica individuals emerged at the patch edges than at the patch centers. Such patterns may have resulted from their integrative adjustment to specific conditions of soil water supply and sand drift intensity. These findings suggest that in semi-arid sandy regions, native shrubs that are well-adapted to local environments may serve as low-cost and competent ecological engineers that can promote the passive restoration of surrounding patches of mobile sandy land.

Managing Semi-Arid Rangelands for Carbon Storage: Grazing and Woody Encroachment Effects on Soil Carbon and Nitrogen

PubMed Central

Yusuf, Hasen M.; Treydte, Anna C.; Sauerborn, Jauchim

2015-01-01

High grazing intensity and wide-spread woody encroachment may strongly alter soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) pools. However, the direction and quantity of these changes have rarely been quantified in East African savanna ecosystem. As shifts in soil C and N pools might further potentially influence climate change mitigation, we quantified and compared soil organic carbon (SOC) and total soil nitrogen (TSN) content in enclosures and communal grazing lands across varying woody cover i.e. woody encroachment levels. Estimated mean SOC and TSN stocks at 0–40 cm depth varied across grazing regimes and among woody encroachment levels. The open grazing land at the heavily encroached site on sandy loam soil contained the least SOC (30 ± 2.1 Mg ha-1) and TSN (5 ± 0.57 Mg ha-1) while the enclosure at the least encroached site on sandy clay soil had the greatest mean SOC (81.0 ± 10.6 Mg ha-1) and TSN (9.2 ± 1.48 Mg ha-1). Soil OC and TSN did not differ with grazing exclusion at heavily encroached sites, but were twice as high inside enclosure compared to open grazing soils at low encroached sites. Mean SOC and TSN in soils of 0–20 cm depth were up to 120% higher than that of the 21–40 cm soil layer. Soil OC was positively related to TSN, cation exchange capacity (CEC), but negatively related to sand content. Our results show that soil OC and TSN stocks are affected by grazing, but the magnitude is largely influenced by woody encroachment and soil texture. We suggest that improving the herbaceous layer cover through a reduction in grazing and woody encroachment restriction are the key strategies for reducing SOC and TSN losses and, hence, for climate change mitigation in semi-arid rangelands. PMID:26461478

The Fate and Stability of Eroding Wetland Soil Carbon in a Subsiding Deltaic Coastal Plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

White, J. R.; Steinmuller, H.; Chambers, L. G.; Fontenot, A.

2017-12-01

Coastal wetlands can respond to rapid rates of relative sea level rise via wetland submergence and/or erosion, which occur when wetlands are unable to vertically accrete to keep pace with sea level rise. As coastal wetlands erode, previously sequestered organic carbon is exposed to oxygen-rich estuarine water. This transition in redox from anaerobic to aerobic condition can trigger increased mineralization rates of decades to centuries'-old soil carbon. Barataria Bay, Louisiana has one of the highest coastal wetland land loss rates in the United States, primarily due to eustatic sea level rise coupled with coastal subsidence. Marsh-edge erosion rates measured over the past two years are on the order of 1.5 meters per year. Meter long soil cores were obtained from vegetated wetland sites and sectioned into 11 intervals to investigate aerobic and anaerobic mineralization rates with depth. In surface soils, organic carbon mineralization rates averaged 16 times greater than anaerobic mineralization rates. In deeper, older soils, the aerobic mineralization rate was still an order of magnitude greater than the anaerobic rate, suggesting a significant portion of this older, soil carbon is readily cycling back to the atmosphere after erosion followed by mineralization by microorganisms. These results have consequences for increased atmospheric CO2 concentrations in the future, as stable coastlines worldwide will be subjected to Barataria-bay levels of sea level rise in the next 50-75 years.