Penetrometer
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Deep roots and soil structure Open
In this opinion article we examine the relationship between penetrometer resistance and soil depth in the field. Assuming that root growth is inhibited at penetrometer resistances > 2.5 MPa, we conclude that in most circumstances the incre…
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Methods to estimate changes in soil water for phenotyping root activity in the field Open
Penetrometer measurements can provide a reliable approach to comparing soil drying profiles by different wheat lines, and genotypic rankings are repeatable across years. EMI, which is more sensitive to soil water content than matric potent…
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Plant root tortuosity: an indicator of root path formation in soil with different composition and density Open
Background and Aims Root soil penetration and path optimization are fundamental for root development in soil. We describe the influence of soil strength on root elongation rate and diameter, response to gravity, and root-structure tortuosi…
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Root growth in field-grown winter wheat: Some effects of soil conditions, season and genotype Open
This work compared root length distributions of different winter wheat genotypes with soil physical measurements, in attempting to explain the relationship between root length density and soil depth. Field experiments were set up to compar…
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A process-based approach to estimate point snow instability Open
Snow instability data provide information about the mechanical state of the snow cover and are essential for forecasting snow avalanches. So far, direct observations of instability (recent avalanches, shooting cracks or whumpf sounds) are …
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Thixotropic mechanism of clay: A microstructural investigation Open
Clays with high sensitivity exhibit varied degrees of thixotropic characteristics. Previous research has been focused on dilute suspensions, but only a few studies have investigated normal clay with water contents lower than the liquid lim…
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The soil effects on the grapevine root system in several vineyards of the Loire valley (France) Open
The effects of different soil types on grapevine root distribution are presented and discussed for Loire Valley (France) conditions. Field studies with Cabernet franc/SO 4 root-stock vines showed four main rooting patterns in different soi…
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Root anatomical traits contribute to deeper rooting of maize under compacted field conditions Open
To better understand the role of root anatomy in regulating plant adaptation to soil mechanical impedance, 12 maize lines were evaluated in two soils with and without compaction treatments under field conditions. Penetrometer resistance wa…
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Interpretation of Cone Penetration Test Data in Layered Soils Using Cavity Expansion Analysis Open
Cavity expansion theory plays an important role in many geotechnical engineering problems, including the cone penetration test (CPT). One of the challenges of interpreting CPT data is the delineation of interfaces between soil layers and t…
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Sensor data fusion for soil health assessment Open
Assessment of soil health involves determining how well a soil is performing its biological, chemical, and physical functions relative to its inherent potential. Due to high cost, labor requirements, and soil disturbance, traditional labor…
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Investigation of non-unique relationship between soil electrical conductivity and water content due to drying-wetting rate using TDR Open
The characterization of the relationship between volumetric soil water content (θ) and bulk electrical conductivity (EC) (or electrical resistivity) is of high interest in fields of engineering, fundamental petrophysical, hydrological mode…
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Centrifuge modelling of cone penetration tests in layered soils Open
Penetration problems are important in many areas of geotechnical engineering, such as the prediction of pile capacity and interpretation of in situ test data. The cone penetration test is a proven method for evaluating soil properties, yet…
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VisNIR integrated multi-sensing penetrometer for in situ high-resolution vertical soil sensing Open
An in situ penetrometer system that can measure profile soil properties rapidly, cost-effectively, and at high vertical resolution would benefit the soil science and agriculture communities. A visible and near infrared (VisNIR) integrated …
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Penetrometer testing in a calcareous silt to explore changes in soil strength Open
This paper describes a centrifuge study using a range of penetrometer tests (T-bar, piezocone and free-fall piezocone) to explore strength changes in a reconstituted, normally consolidated, natural calcareous silt. Various penetrometer tes…
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Non-Destructive Robotic Assessment of Mango Ripeness via Multi-Point Soft Haptics Open
To match the ever increasing standards of fresh products, and the need to reduce waste, we devise an alternative to the destructive and highly variable fruit ripeness estimation by a penetrometer. We propose a fully automatic method to ass…
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Assessing the penetration resistance acting on a dynamically installed anchor in normally consolidated and overconsolidated clay Open
Predicting the final embedment depth of a dynamically installed anchor is a key prerequisite for reliable calculation of anchor capacity. This paper investigates the embedment characteristics of dynamically installed anchors in normally co…
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Temporal evolution of crack propagation propensity in snow in relation to slab and weak layer properties Open
If a weak snow layer below a cohesive slab is present in the snow cover, unstable snow conditions can prevail for days or even weeks. We monitored the temporal evolution of a weak layer of faceted crystals as well as the overlaying slab la…
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Assessing subgrade strength using an instrumented dynamic cone penetrometer Open
Subgrade strength is an important aspect to be considered when designing unsurfaced roads and working platforms for pavement structures. Furthermore, dynamic cone penetration tests are used to characterize the subgrade strength. However, t…
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Creep performance evaluation of Cold Mix Asphalt patching mixes Open
Cold Mix Asphalt (CMA) is commonly used in lieu of typical Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) for localized pavement patching due to the quantities, intermittent locations and times when repairs need to be executed. The objective of this investigation …
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Numerical simulation of a free fall penetrometer deployment using the material point method Open
Free Fall Penetrometer (FFP) testing consist of a torpedo-shaped body freefalling into a soil target. The use of this type of device is becoming popular for the characterization of shallow sediments in near-shore and off-shore environments…
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Mid-scale biocemented soil columns via enzyme-induced carbonate precipitation (EICP) Open
Biocemented soil columns were created at a reduced scale (mid-scale) using enzyme-induced carbonate precipitation (EICP) as a prelude to field scale deployment. Approximately 0.3 m diameter × 0.75 m long columns were created using a tube-à…
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Relating simple drivers to snow instability Open
Snow layers form during and after accumulation due to the interaction of meteorological and physical processes. It is known that the vertical structure and also the lateral continuity of layers depend on these processes and the boundaries …
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Experimental Evaluation of Earthworm and Plant Root Soil Penetration–Cavity Expansion Models Using Cone Penetrometer Analogs Open
Core Ideas Analytic model for penetration–expansion forces closely agrees with measurements. Measurements used cones with size geometry similar to earthworms and roots. Soil parameters and constraints for root and earthworm bioturbation ar…
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Quantification of displacement and particle crushing around a penetrometer tip Open
Particle crushing occurs near the tip of a penetrometer and influences the development of the tip resistance. To study particle crushing near a penetrometer tip, a cone penetrometer was monotonically jacked and then load-tested in medium d…
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Field Proximal Soil Sensor Fusion for Improving High-Resolution Soil Property Maps Open
Mapping soil properties, using geostatistical methods in support of precision agriculture and related activities, requires a large number of samples. To reduce soil sampling and measurement time and cost, a combination of field proximal so…
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Improving In-Situ Estimation of Soil Profile Properties Using a Multi-Sensor Probe Open
Optical diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) has been used for estimating soil physical and chemical properties in the laboratory. In-situ DRS measurements offer the potential for rapid, reliable, non-destructive, and low cost measuremen…
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Comparison of Wearable Sensors for Estimation of Chewing Strength Open
This paper presents wearable sensors for detecting differences in chewing strength while eating foods with different hardness (carrot as a hard, apple as moderate and banana as soft food). Four wearable sensor systems were evaluated. They …
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Prediction of Penetration Resistance of a Spherical Penetrometer in Clay Using Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines Model Open
This paper presents the technique for solving the penetration resistance factor of a spherical penetrometer in clay under axisymmetric conditions by taking the adhesion factor, the embedded ratio, the normalized unit weight, and the undrai…
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Predicting forwarder rut formation on fine-grained mineral soils Open
Predictive factors for forwarder rut formation were studied on fine-grained mineral soils. The study was carried out in southern Finland in mid-May, when the soil water contents were high after snowmelt. A total of 7 study tracks of 20 m w…
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Application of portable free-fall penetrometer for geotechnical investigation of Arctic nearshore zone Open
The Arctic is currently undergoing rapid changes with regard to sea ice extent permafrost thaw, and coastal erosion. In addition to hydrodynamic processes, the sediments in the Arctic nearshore zone are affected by freeze–thaw cycles, as w…