Pascal Benard
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View article: Early signals of water limitations begin at the root–soil interface: linking rhizosphere drying to water uptake decline
Early signals of water limitations begin at the root–soil interface: linking rhizosphere drying to water uptake decline Open
Summary Understanding when and where drought stress originates in the soil–plant continuum is essential for predicting plant responses to climate change. While stomatal closure is a well‐known reaction to declining soil moisture, the preci…
View article: Time-series Neutron Tomography of Rhizoboxes
Time-series Neutron Tomography of Rhizoboxes Open
This study investigates the feasibility of tilt-series neutron tomography for analyzing rhizoboxes used in root-soil interaction studies. Traditional neutron imaging methods are limited by constrained root growth volumes and poor penetrati…
View article: Interaction of unsaturated water flow and microplastic transport in a sandy soil imaged with neutron and X-ray CT
Interaction of unsaturated water flow and microplastic transport in a sandy soil imaged with neutron and X-ray CT Open
Soils are considered the largest sink of microplastic (MP) particles in terrestrial ecosystems. However, there is little knowledge on the implications of MP on soil functions. In particular, we lack understanding of conditions under which …
View article: Declining Soil Hydraulic Conductivity Shifts Root Water Uptake from Bulk Soil to the Rhizosphere and Triggers Stomatal Closure
Declining Soil Hydraulic Conductivity Shifts Root Water Uptake from Bulk Soil to the Rhizosphere and Triggers Stomatal Closure Open
Soil water availability is a critical factor in determining how plants regulate their water relations, with drying soils imposing hydraulic constraints that affect root water uptake and stomatal behavior. As soils dry, their hydraulic cond…
View article: Rhizosphere Liquid Architecture
Rhizosphere Liquid Architecture Open
In the rhizosphere, all transport processes considered fundamental in regulating resource availability and accessibility for plants and microorganisms are controlled by water retention and its temporal dynamics in the soil pore space, the …
View article: A root mucilage analogue from chia seeds reduces soil gas diffusivity
A root mucilage analogue from chia seeds reduces soil gas diffusivity Open
Gas exchange in the soil is determined by the size and connectivity of air‐filled pores. Root mucilage reduces air‐filled pore connectivity and thus gas diffusivity. It is unclear to what extent mucilage affects soil pore connectivity and …
View article: Root and rhizosphere traits for enhanced water and nutrients uptake efficiency in dynamic environments
Root and rhizosphere traits for enhanced water and nutrients uptake efficiency in dynamic environments Open
Modern agriculture’s goal of improving crop resource acquisition efficiency relies on the intricate relationship between the root system and the soil. Root and rhizosphere traits play a critical role in the efficient use of nutrients and w…
View article: The role of root mucilage and Extracellular Polymeric Substances in shaping soil structure and maintaining plant-soil contact
The role of root mucilage and Extracellular Polymeric Substances in shaping soil structure and maintaining plant-soil contact Open
The hydraulic properties of the rhizosphere are essential for understanding root-soil interactions. Diverging from common assumptions in soil modelling, which often equate rhizosphere properties with those of bulk soil, research shows that…
View article: Soil moisture dynamics of forest soils – magnitude, persistence and implications of soil water repellency 
Soil moisture dynamics of forest soils – magnitude, persistence and implications of soil water repellency  Open
Soil water repellency has been observed across a range of ecosystems, including forests. Among other parameters such as organic matter content and quality, climate, and soil texture, the magnitude and persistence of water repellency is con…
View article: Water flow and MP transport in sandy soils imaged with neutron radiography and X-ray CT
Water flow and MP transport in sandy soils imaged with neutron radiography and X-ray CT Open
Microplastic (MP, ⌀ < 5 mm) can be found worldwide. Besides aquatic environments, terrestrial ecosystems are reported to contain large amounts of MP of different origin, polymer type, shape, size, and state of degradation. Furthermor…
View article: Variations in pore size and contact angle distributions control rhizosphere rewetting
Variations in pore size and contact angle distributions control rhizosphere rewetting Open
Rhizosphere wettability decreases upon severe drying leading to periods of prolonged low water content around roots after precipitation or irrigation. These observations were explained by the temporal hydrophobic character of mucilage, whi…
View article: Theory of drying of polymer solutions in porous media
Theory of drying of polymer solutions in porous media Open
Plant roots and bacteria release in soils polymeric blends of substances which alter the physics of soil water flow and support life in soils. They adsorb water, decrease the surface tension of the soil solution and increase its viscosity,…
View article: Extracellular polymeric substances from soil-grown bacteria delay evaporative drying
Extracellular polymeric substances from soil-grown bacteria delay evaporative drying Open
When soils dry, water flow and nutrient diffusion cease as the liquid phase vital for soil life becomes fragmented. To delay soil drying locally and related adverse effects, bacteria and plants modify their surroundings by releasing extrac…
View article: Microplastic Interaction with Soil Water - Visualization and Quantification with Neutron and X-ray Imaging
Microplastic Interaction with Soil Water - Visualization and Quantification with Neutron and X-ray Imaging Open
Soil is considered the largest sink of microplastics (MP) in terrestrial ecosystems. Among the expected effects of MP as hydrophobic surface addition is the likelihood that MP enhances soil water repellency. So, crucial for MP fate in soil…
View article: Root shrinkage and its mechanisms: why context matter
Root shrinkage and its mechanisms: why context matter Open
Modeling plant responses to drought over short-to long-term is crucial under rising global warming threats. Roots form the critical gateway between a plant and its water sources in the soil, yet their connection with the soil is still poor…
View article: Ferrihydrite coating reduces microplastic induced soil water repellency
Ferrihydrite coating reduces microplastic induced soil water repellency Open
Addition of microplastics (MP) to soil has the potential to increase soil water repellency. Absorption of soil abundant substances on MP surfaces has the potential to overcome MP inherent hydrophobicity.
View article: Extracellular polymeric substances from soil-grown bacteria delay evaporative drying
Extracellular polymeric substances from soil-grown bacteria delay evaporative drying Open
When soils dry, water flow and nutrient diffusion cease as the hydraulic microenvironments vital for soil life become fragmented. To delay soil drying locally and related adverse effects, bacteria and plants modify their surroundings by re…
View article: Microplastic induces soil water repellency and limits capillary flow
Microplastic induces soil water repellency and limits capillary flow Open
Soils are considered the largest sink of microplastic (MP) in terrestrial ecosystems. However, little is known about the implications of MP on soil physical properties. We hypothesize that low wettability of MP induces soil water repellenc…
View article: In situ measurement of 3D contact angle in sand based on X‐ray computed tomography
In situ measurement of 3D contact angle in sand based on X‐ray computed tomography Open
Soil water repellency is traditionally expressed as contact angle (CA) and measured destructively on exposed surfaces or derived from flow behavior or measured forces. These approaches cannot map local heterogeneities in CA, which typicall…
View article: How Heterogeneous Pore Scale Distributions of Wettability Affect Infiltration into Porous Media
How Heterogeneous Pore Scale Distributions of Wettability Affect Infiltration into Porous Media Open
Wettability is an important parameter that significantly determines hydrology in porous media, and it especially controls the flow of water across the rhizosphere—the soil-plant interface. However, the influence of spatially heterogeneous …
View article: Biogels in the rhizosphere: Plant mucilage as a biofilm matrix that shapes the rhizosphere microbial habitat
Biogels in the rhizosphere: Plant mucilage as a biofilm matrix that shapes the rhizosphere microbial habitat Open
<p>Mucilage is a gelatinous high-molecular-weight substance produced by almost all plants, serving numerous functions for plants and soil. To date, research has mainly focused on the hydraulic and physical functions of mucilage in th…
View article: Biogels in Soils: Plant Mucilage as a Biofilm Matrix That Shapes the Rhizosphere Microbial Habitat
Biogels in Soils: Plant Mucilage as a Biofilm Matrix That Shapes the Rhizosphere Microbial Habitat Open
Mucilage is a gelatinous high-molecular-weight substance produced by almost all plants, serving numerous functions for plant and soil. To date, research has mainly focused on hydraulic and physical functions of mucilage in the rhizosphere.…
View article: Physics of Viscous Bridges in Soil Biological Hotspots
Physics of Viscous Bridges in Soil Biological Hotspots Open
Plant roots and bacteria alter the soil physical properties by releasing polymeric blends into the soil pore space (e.g., extracellular polymeric substances and mucilage). The physical mechanisms by which these substances interact with the…
View article: Linking rhizosphere processes across scales: Opinion
Linking rhizosphere processes across scales: Opinion Open
Purpose Simultaneously interacting small-scale rhizosphere processes determine emergent plant-scale behaviour, including growth, transpiration, nutrient uptake, soil carbon storage and transformation by microorganisms. Current advances in …
View article: Simulating the effect of mucilage deposition on rhizosphere rewetting using a morphological pore network model
Simulating the effect of mucilage deposition on rhizosphere rewetting using a morphological pore network model Open
<p>Water flow dynamics and hydraulic properties of the rhizosphere are influenced by the exudation of mucilage and microbial extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). Upon drying,&#160;mucilage becomes hydrophobic&#160;and it…
View article: Microplastic water repellency impacts water flow and microplastic transport in soils
Microplastic water repellency impacts water flow and microplastic transport in soils Open
<p>Soils are considered the largest sink of microplastic particles (MP) in terrestrial ecosystems. However, there is little knowledge on the implications of MP contaminating soils. In particular, we do not know the extent of and cond…
View article: Bypass and hyperbole in soil science: A perspective from the next generation of soil scientists
Bypass and hyperbole in soil science: A perspective from the next generation of soil scientists Open
Letter to the Editor of the European Journal of Soil Science as a reaction to the Russell Review by Phillipe Baveye “Bypass and hyperbole in soil research: worrisome practices critically reviewed through examples” and to his follow‐up Invi…
View article: Interplay between water adsorption and viscosity determines the spatial configuration of EPS during soil drying
Interplay between water adsorption and viscosity determines the spatial configuration of EPS during soil drying Open
<p>Bacteria alter the physical properties of soil hotspots by secreting extracellular polymeric substances EPS. Despite the biogeochemical importance of these alterations is well accepted, the physical mechanisms by which EPS shapes …
View article: High viscosity of polymer solutions supports life in soil hotspots
High viscosity of polymer solutions supports life in soil hotspots Open
<p>Plant roots and bacteria alter the soil properties by releasing a polymeric blend of substances (e.g. mucilage and extracellular polymeric substances EPS). Despite extensive knowledge of their ecological importance, the physical m…