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ARS Home » Midwest Area » West Lafayette, Indiana » National Soil Erosion Research Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #82636
Title: EFFECT OF GYPSUM ON SOIL EROSION, RUNOFF, AND INFILTRATION IN SOME MEXICAN AND US SOILS USING SIMULATED RAINFALL

Author
item VENTURA, EUSEBIO - AGRY DEPT, PURDUE UNIV.
item RIOS, B - MONTECILLO, MEXICO
item Norton, Lloyd
item OROPEZA, J - MONTECILLO, MEXICO

Submitted to: Soil and Water Conservation Society
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/25/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Soil erosion is a serious worldwide environmental problem that threatens the sustainability of agriculture. In the croplands of Mexico and the United States, soil erosion occurs when intense rains hit the soil, destroying the aggregates and causing sealing and crusting, which reduces infiltration and increased runoff. The soil resistance to the detachment and transport by the erosive forces is largely determined by the physical-chemical composition of the solid-fluid interface during a rain. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of gypsum on soil erosion, runoff and infiltration in different soils from Mexico and the US. The soils were packed and subjected to 75 mm of simulated rain during one hour. Surface application of gypsum reduced sediment concentration and total volume of runoff in all soils. Steady-state infiltration rates were also higher with gypsum. This demonstrates that soil dispersion caused by the low electrolyte concentration and the mechanical action of the rainwater, could be minimized by adding a source of electrolytes and calcium to promote flocculation of soil particles. The effect of gypsum may depend, however, upon the soil type, surface condition and the rainfall intensity and duration.