Soil porocity

Soil porocity

Procedure:

A 250ml beaker was filled with 200ml of soil.

100ml graduated cylinder was filled with 100ml of water.

The water was then poured onto soil until completely saturated.

Observations were made.

The water left over was measured.

Observations and Data:

The soil  looked saturated 

Soil is wet

37ml of water left over after saturation

The measurement of water left over was subtracted from 100 to find the pore space.

100-37=63

63ml of pore space 

The pore space was divided by the amount of soil that was started with to find the percent soil porocity. 

63/200=31.5%porocity

Burlese Funnel

The following pictures are of the burlese funnel over the course of 5 days.

Salinization

 

The following photos are of the various salinization seeds.

 

Soil Collection

The soil was collected from Marlies's backyard. the sample was about a foot from a 5 foot tall wooden fence and about two feet away from a row of lilac bushes. All of the grass above and surrounding the soil sample was green and at similar heights. In the sample right as it was being dug out of the ground, there were many roots and a peach pit near it and leaves around it. There were many large chunks of soil all clumped together as well as smaller particles mixed into the sample.

The photos below show the soil sample, the hole it was dug from and the area surrounding the hole.

Soil Moisture

Soil Moisture

Data:

2.36g - aluminum tray

32.0g - tray w/soil

29.64g - soil

26.10 - mass after 24 hrs. in drying oven

23.74 - mass of soil after 24hrs. in drying oven

5.9g of water lost

20%water in soil 

Procedure:

 An aluminum tray was made.

The mass of the tray was recorded.

Soil was added to the tray.

The mass of the tray plus the soil was recorded.

The mass of the tray was subtracted from the mass recorded to find the soil mass.

The sample was put in the drying oven for24 hrs.

The mass was then recorded and observations were made.

The mass of the dry soil was subtracted from the mass from the original soil to find the amount of water lost.

Observations:

Before placing soil in the drying oven the soil looked moist and clumpy

After 24hrs in drying oven soil loos dry, clumpy, brittle

Results:

percent water in sample calculated:

((5.9g)\(29.64g))*100= 20%water

Water lost calculation:

29.64g(initial mass) - 23.74g(final mass) = 5.9g of water lost

Compared to the soil texture test our soil sample was very moist. In the moisture test we found a large mass of water in the soil, which directly correlated with the results of the soil texture test. The texture test showed that our soil was sticky with mostly clay and a silty loam. The high amount of moisture in our soil made our soil made our sample clay- like. This compared to the other tests done which also indicated our soil was moist. 

Soil Dry Percolation Rate: soil

     To perform this lab, I placed a small piece of filter paper in the neck of a 16 oz water bottle that has been cut off to act as a funnel. I filled the funneled section with soil samples to 1 cm of the top. I set the funnel section into the remaining bottom part of the water bottle. I then poured water onto the surface of the soil and started the timer when the water hit the sample and stopped the timer when there was a measurable amount of water that had fallen through the soil and filter paper.

     9.7 seconds went by before there was a measurable amount of water in the bottle. The total amount of water that fell through in 9.7 seconds was 35.2 mL. To calculate the rate of the percolation I measured in cubic centimeters of water per surface area of sample for second. The equation is 35.2 mL / 9.7 seconds. The surface area of the bottle was 28.27 cm^2. I found the percolation rate to be 3.63 cm^3 per second / the surface area of 28.27 cm^2.the sand took 18 seconds for a measurable amount of water to reach the bottom. The total amount of water that fell through in this period of time was 22.5 ML. The surface area was 28.27 cm^2. The percolation rate was found to be 1.25 cm^3 per second/ the surface area of 28.27 cm^2.

The following photos are of the bottle and funnel after the water was poured through the soil and the water that ran through the soil.

Percent Organic Matter

In the test to find the percent of organic matter in a soil sample, I weighed a clean, dry porcelain crucible on the scale and found it weighed 18.63 grams. I filled the crucible about 3/4 of the way full of soil, weighed it and found the mass of the soil and the crucible to be 48.23grams. I placed it in the drying oven overnight in an aluminum foil tray at a temperature between 90 and 95 degrees Celsius to remove water from the sample. I then weighed the crucible and the dry soil again after the night, and found that the mass was 44.73 grams. The crucible with the soil was placed on a ring stand inside a fume hood uaing an irong ring and a pipe-stem triangle. It was heated with a Bunsen burner with a small flame initially, and later with a large flame for thirty minutes. The burner was shut off and the crucible was allowed to cool. The crucible and the soil were the massed again and the mass was found to be 36.30 grams. The amount of organic matter in the sample was calculated by subtracting the final mass, 36.30, from the initial mass, 44.73, and the resulting organic matter content was found to be 8.43 grams. It was not necessary to measure the mass of the soil without the crucible, because all of the measurements were found with the crucible, so its mass would not change the amount of organic matter present in the soil sample. The crucible's mass is unchanging. Organic matter is vital to soil because it is a reservoir for nutrients, and the organic matter can release the nutrients to the soil to keep it healthy. Also, organic matter is like a sponge, and it can absorb and hold a lot of water that is released to plants. In addition, organic matter prevents erosion because of the increased water infiltration, and all together keeps the soil healthier for longer.