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Relative Detachability of Soil Particles by Simulated Rainfall
Author(s) -
Farmer Eugene E.
Publication year - 1973
Publication title -
soil science society of america journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.836
H-Index - 168
eISSN - 1435-0661
pISSN - 0361-5995
DOI - 10.2136/sssaj1973.03615995003700040042x
Subject(s) - surface runoff , environmental science , soil loss , range (aeronautics) , soil water , soil science , flow (mathematics) , hydrology (agriculture) , intensity (physics) , particle size , particle (ecology) , geology , geotechnical engineering , materials science , mathematics , physics , ecology , paleontology , oceanography , geometry , quantum mechanics , composite material , biology
Disturbed surface soil masses of two coarse‐grained granitic soils and a single fine‐textured clay soil were subjected to simulated rainfall. The relative detachability of 11 soil‐size fractions was determined by comparing the proportion of a given size fraction in the pretreatment soil mass with the proportion of that size fraction in the splashed soil. Tests were conducted under two levels of rainfall intensity, three degrees of slope steepness, and in the presence or absence of overland flow. Effects of rainfall intensity and slope steepness were small. Overland flow had a pronounced effect on particle detachment resulting from raindrop impact. Without overland flow, soil particle sizes in the range of 110–1,450 µm were most susceptible to detachment by raindrop impact. With overland flow, the susceptible size range was 219–2,034 µm.