Summary
The compaction of field soils due to repeated rolling of agricultural vehicles is one of the main reasons for the agricultural soil degradation. A good understanding of the compaction properties of these soils is essential for an optimum organisation of agricultural activities, and therefore for environmental protection in terms of nitrate migrations. In the present work, the compaction properties of agricultural soils from four sites in France are studied after experimental data from oedometer tests. In the oedometer tests, a quick loading procedure was applied to simulate the loading of tire rolling. The soils that were initially in unsaturated state were loaded under constant water content condition. The compaction properties of these soils (i.e. the precompression vertical stress, compression index and swelling index) were then determined. The effect of initial dry density and initial water content on these properties is discussed. A possible effect of loading velocity on the apparent compressibility was observed. The results are finally discussed in the context of unsaturated soil mechanics.
Access provided by Autonomous University of Puebla. Download to read the full chapter text
Chapter PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alonso EE, Gens A, Josa AA (1990) A constitutive model for partially saturated soil, Géotechnique 40(3):405–430
Arvidsson J, Keller T (2004) Soil precompression stress. I. A survey of Swedish arable soils, Soil & Tillage Research 77:85–95
Berli M, Kirby JM, Springman SM, Schulin R (2003) Modelling compaction of agricultural subsoils by tracked heavy construction machinery under various moisture conditions in Switzerland, Soil & Tillage Research 73:57–66
Chan KY, Oates A, Swan AD, Hayes RC, Dear BS, Peoples MB (2006) Agronomic consequences of tractor wheel compaction on a clay soil, Soil & Tillage Research 89:13–21
Cui YJ, Delage P (1996) Yielding and plastic behaviour of an unsaturated compacted silt, Géotechnique 46(2):291–311
Hamza MA, Anderson WK (2005) Soil compaction in cropping systems. A review of the nature, causes and possible solutions, Soil & Tillage Research, 82:121–145
Horn R, Fleige H, Richter FH, Czyz EA, Dexter A, Diaz-Pereira E, Dumitru E, Enarche R, Mayol F, Rajkai K, de la Rosa D, Simota C (2005) SIDASS project. Part 5: Prediction of mechanical strength of arable soils and its effects on physical properties at various map scales, Soil & Tillage Research 82:47–56
Imhoff S, Da Silva AP, Fallow D (2004) Susceptibility to compaction, load support capacity, and soil compressibility of Hapludox. Soil Sci Soc Am J 68:17–24
Raper RL (2005) Agricultural traffic impacts on soil, J Terramechanics 42:259–280
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2007 Springer-Verlag
About this paper
Cite this paper
Tang, AM., Cui, YJ., Eslami, J., D’efossez-Berthoud, P. (2007). Compaction Properties of Agricultural Soils. In: Schanz, T. (eds) Experimental Unsaturated Soil Mechanics. Springer Proceedings in Physics, vol 112. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-69873-6_47
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-69873-6_47
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-69872-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-540-69873-9
eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)