Collaborative research: Wind erodibility of salt-affected soils

The accumulation of salts and accelerated soil erosion are two major soil degradation issues affecting agriculture around the world, particularly in regions with high evaporative demand, shallow water tables or in those irrigated with water rich in dissolved solids. The effect of salinization on soil erodibility by wind and the associated dust emissions remain poorly understood.

These processes are responsible for numerous impacts on human health, soil productivity, ecosystem dynamics, and climate over large areas of the United States and the world. The proposed research will investigate how soil salinity and sodicity affect soil susceptibility to wind erosion and the associated dust emissions. With successful completion of this research, better understanding of the interactions between land use practices contributing to soil salinity/sodicity and wind erosion susceptibility will enable better prediction of wind erosion and improved management of lands susceptible to degradation.

The proposed research also seeks to integrate education and research through opportunities in undergraduate and graduate education, active recruitment of students from underrepresented groups, and outreach to K-12 educators.

This proposal investigates a new fundamental soil and geomorphic process (i.e., salt-induced enhancement of soil erodibility) and provides a new mechanistic framework for its explanation. The proposed research will use a combination of experimental and theoretical analyses to investigate the effect of soil salinity and sodicity on interparticle bonding forces and, consequently, soil erodibility by wind.

Wind tunnel tests will be used to evaluate soil erodibility under a wide range of soil salt concentrations, soil textures, and moisture scenarios both in the lab and in the field. Laboratory experiments will directly and indirectly measure the changes in interparticle bonding forces associated with such scenarios. A theoretical framework will be developed to explain the observed changes in soil erodibility by accounting for the changes in interparticle bonding forces in salt-affected soils.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.