Calculate the bulk density of the soil if the fresh soil weight of the soil is 400 g and oven dry soil weight is 300 g. The diameter of the cylinder is 5 cm and the length is 10 cm.
Answers
Answer:
Bulk density (g/cm3) = Dry soil weight (g) / Soil volume (cm3) Bulk density is usually expressed in megagrams per cubic metre (Mg/m3) but the numerically equivalent units of g/cm3 and t/m3 are also used (1 Mg/m3 = 1 g/cm3 = 1 t/m3) (Cresswell and Hamilton, 2002).
Explanation:
Bulk density measurements can be done if you suspect your soil is compacted or as part of fertiliser or irrigation management plans (see Bulk Density – On Farm Use) factsheet. To account for variability, it is useful to take several measurements at the same location over time and at different depths in the soil, for example at 10, 30 and 50 cm depths to look at both the surface soil and subsoil. It is also useful to measure the bulk density of when comparing management practices (e.g. cultivated vs. non-cultivated) as physical soil properties are often altered (Hunt and Gilkes, 1992).
The most common method of measuring soil BD is by collecting a known volume of soil using a metal ring pressed into the soil (intact core), and determining the weight after drying (McKenzie et al., 2004).