Date of Award
2019
Publisher
North Dakota State University
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Awarded
Master of Science (MS)
Program
Soil Science
Department
Natural Resource Sciences
College
Agriculture, Food Systems and Natural Resources
Faculty Advisor
DeSutter, Thomas
Description
Surface coal mine reclamation is challenged by alterations in soil characteristics, compaction being the most plant-yield reducing. Superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) ability to retain large volumes of water gives them the potential to alter soil properties. Laboratory objectives were to determine how SAPs alter water retention, liquid limit (LL), evaporation, saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat), and compression across five soil series. Increasing SAP application rates to 0.2% significantly increased plant available water (PAW), stage one evaporation duration, LL, stage two evaporative water loss, and significantly decreased stage one evaporative water loss, Ksat, and compression for various soil series. Field study investigated how SAP, deep ripping (R) and mulch (M) impacted penetration resistance and spring wheat yield (Triticum aestivum). Application of 0.04% SAP improved yields similar to R. Penetration resistance decreased with R, and SAP application showed reduction similar to R. While SAPs show potential as a reclamation tool, application longevity needs evaluation.
Recommended Citation
Ostrand, Megan Sue, "Superabsorbent Polymer Effects on Soil Physical Properties and Use as a Compaction Alleviation Amendment in Surface Coal Mine Reclamation" (2019). Soil Science. 22.
https://digitalcommons.ndsu.edu/soil-sci/22
Rights
NDSU policy 190.6.2
Rights Link
https://www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/policy/190.pdf
Handle Identifier
https://hdl.handle.net/10365/31648