Characterization and classification of soils in the Taquari river basin - Pantanal region, state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Among the soils in the Mato Grosso do Sul, stand out in the Pantanal biome, the Spodosols. Despite being recorded in considerable extensions, few studies aiming to characterize and classify these soils were performed. The purpose of this study was to characterize and classify soils in three areas of two physiographic types in the Taquari river basin: bay and flooded fields. Two trenches were opened in the bay area (P1 and P2) and two in the flooded field (P3 and P4). The third area (saline) with high sodium levels was sampled for further studies. In the soils in both areas the sand fraction was predominant and the texture from sand to sandy loam, with the main constituent quartz. In the bay area, the soil organic carbon in the surface layer (P1) was (OC) > 80 g kg-1, being diagnosed as Histic epipedon. In the other profiles the surface horizons had low OC levels which, associated with other properties, classified them as Ochric epipedons. In the soils of the bay area (P1 and P2), the pH ranged from 5.0 to 7.5, associated with dominance of Ca2+ and Mg2+, with base saturation above 50 % in some horizons. In the flooded fields (P3 and P4) the soil pH ranged from 4.9 to 5.9, H+ contents were high in the surface horizons (0.8-10.5 cmol c kg-1 ), Ca2+ and Mg² contents ranged from 0.4 to 0.8 cmol c kg-1 and base saturation was < 50 %. In the soils of the bay area (P1 and P2) iron was accumulated (extracted by dithionite - Fed) and OC in the spodic horizon; in the P3 and P4 soils only Fed was accumulated (in the subsurface layers). According to the criteria adopted by the Brazilian System of Soil Classification (SiBCS) at the subgroup level, the soils were classified as: P1: Organic Hydromorphic Ferrohumiluvic Spodosol. P2: Typical Orthic Ferrohumiluvic Spodosol. P3: Typical Hydromorphic Ferroluvic Spodosol. P4: Arenic Orthic Ferroluvic Spodosol.

Estimating subsoil resistance to nitrate leaching from easily measurable pedological properties

Leaching of nitrate (NO3-) can increase the groundwater concentration of this anion and reduce the agronomical effectiveness of nitrogen fertilizers. The main soil property inversely related to NO3- leaching is the anion exchange capacity (AEC), whose determination is however too time-consuming for being carried out in soil testing laboratories. For this reason, this study evaluated if more easily measurable soil properties could be used to estimate the resistance of subsoils to NO3- leaching. Samples from the subsurface layer (20-40 cm) of 24 representative soils of São Paulo State were characterized for particle-size distribution and for chemical and electrochemical properties. The subsoil content of adsorbed NO3- was calculated from the difference between the NO3- contents extracted with 1 mol L-1 KCl and with water; furthermore, NO3- leaching was studied in miscible displacement experiments. The results of both adsorption and leaching experiments were consistent with the well-known role exerted by AEC on the nitrate behavior in weathered soils. Multiple regression analysis indicated that in subsoils with (i) low values of remaining phosphorus (Prem), (ii) low soil pH values measured in water (pH H2O), and (iii) high pH values measured in 1 moL L-1 KCl (pH KCl), the amounts of surface positive charges tend to be greater. For this reason, NO3- leaching tends to be slower in these subsoils, even under saturated flow condition.

Irrigação localizada subsuperfical: gotejador convencional e novo protótipo

A irrigação por gotejamento subsuperficial, que utiliza um sistema protetor do emissor para evitar entupimento do mesmo por raiz e partículas sólida do solo, pode ser viável em relação a um sistema convencional. Propôs-se, com este trabalho, avaliar o desempenho de um sistema para proteção de emissor e comparar os resultados com um sistema que utiliza emissor convencional para irrigação por gotejamento subsuperficial. O sistema com protetor foi construído com materiais de baixo custo: mangueira de polietileno, microtubo, conector e um gotejador para controlar a vazão e no sistema convencional utilizou-se um emissor comercial. Após 12 meses de avaliação o sistema com protetor demonstrou bom desempenho com vazão relativa média de 0,97 e 0,98 em vasos com e sem cultura, respectivamente, não apresentando problemas de entupimento e tendo menor custo. No sistema convencional constatou-se vazão relativa de 0,51 e 0,98 em vasos com e sem cultura, respectivamente, grau de entupimento por raiz de 49,22% e emissores com solo em seu interior. Desta forma, o uso do emissor com sistema de proteção indicou viabilidade para irrigação subsuperficial por gotejamento, nas condições desta pesquisa.

Surface integrity analysis when milling ultrafine-grained steels

This paper quantifies the effects of milling conditions on surface integrity of ultrafine-grained steels. Cutting speed, feed rate and depth of cut were related to microhardness and microstructure of the workpiece beneath machined surface. Low-carbon alloyed steel with 10.8 µm (as-received) and 1.7 µm (ultrafine) grain sizes were end milled using the down-milling and dry condition in a CNC machining center. The results show ultrafine-grained workpiece preserves its surface integrity against cutting parameters more than the as-received material. Cutting speed increases the microhardness while depth of cut deepens the hardened layer of the as-received material. Also, deformations of microstructure following feed rate direction were observed in workpiece subsurface.

Influence of HSM cutting parameters on the surface integrity characteristics of hardened AISI H13 steel

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the influence of the cutting parameters of high-speed machining milling on the characteristics of the surface integrity of hardened AISI H13 steel. High-speed machining has been used intensively in the mold and dies industry. The cutting parameters used as input variables were cutting speed (v c), depth of cut (a p), working engagement (a e) and feed per tooth (f z ), while the output variables were three-dimensional (3D) workpiece roughness parameters, surface and cross section microhardness, residual stress and white layer thickness. The subsurface layers were examined by scanning electron and optical microscopy. Cross section hardness was measured with an instrumented microhardness tester. Residual stress was measured by the X-ray diffraction method. From a statistical standpoint (the main effects of the input parameters were evaluated by analysis of variance), working engagement (a e) was the cutting parameter that exerted the strongest effect on most of the 3D roughness parameters. Feed per tooth (f z ) was the most important cutting parameter in cavity formation. Cutting speed (v c) and depth of cut (a p) did not significantly affect the 3D roughness parameters. Cutting speed showed the strongest influence on residual stress, while depth of cut exerted the strongest effect on the formation of white layer and on the increase in surface hardness.