Surface Hardness as an Indicator of Soil Strength of Agricultural Soils

Gaius D. Eudoxie, Dennison Phillips, Raymond Springer

Department of Food Production, University of the West Indies, Saint Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago..

DOI: 10.4236/ojss.2012.24040                

Abstract

Soil strength is an important quality of agricultural soils prone to traffic. Surface hardness (SH) measured by the Clegg Impact Tester (CIT) was evaluated as an indicator for assessing soil strength. Proctor tests were performed on a diverse range of soils to examine the relationships between bulk density (BD), penetration resistance (PR), SH and water content. All three indices showed typical response curves with increasing water content, with notable differences among the soils. Maximum dry bulk density (MDBD), peak penetration resistance (PPR) and peak surface hardness (PSH) showed values of 1.98 Mg m^-3, 8.2 MPa and 248 Cmax for Piarco, River Estate and Piarco respectively. Corresponding critical moisture contents (CMC) were much greater for MDBD compared to PPR and PSH. SH showed a significant positive correlation with PR, but not BD. Further divulgence into the relationships between SH and other soil properties as well as crop response will facilitate greater use of the CIT.

Keywords

Clegg Impact Tester; Surface Hardness; Penetration Resistance; Moisture-Density Relationship

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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