aplab physical characteristics of soil(1)

8/3/2019 APLab Physical Characteristics of Soil(1)

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The Effect ofSoil Type on Physical Characteristics of Soil

Conducted By: Gustavo Gomez

Assisted By (Lab Partners): Last Name, First Initial

Date(s) of Experiment: 9/19/11, 9/22/11, 9/26/11, 9/27/11-9/30/11

Course Name & Block

Ms. Umscheid


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I. Introduction

The purpose of this lab is to investigate:

IF....THEN...

Background Information -(SUMMARIZE THE KEY CONCEPTS OF THE LAB FROM THE

"DISCUSSION' SECTION OF THE APLAB)

The independent variable is: soil type as defined by muddy soil; grassy soil; dry creek bedsoil; leaf litter soil and rocky soil.

The dependent variable is: physical characteristics of soil as measured by slope of the land;

texture; consistency; structure; capillary action; permeability; soil horizons; particle size

and water holding capacity.

The control is: the physical characteristics of soil with standard soil type as defined by sand

and clay.

II. Procedure

Materials

50mL of soil from muddy area


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50mL of soil from grassy area

50mL of soil from rocky area

50mL of soil from dry creek bed area

50mL of soil from leaf litter covered area

Experimental Design

Refer to the procedure on page ??? with the following modifications

1. Use soil samples collected from areas in the Outdoor Classroom.

2.

3.

Constants

The following must be held constant:

1. ???

2. ???

3. ???

III. Results


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Data Table 1: Soil Horizons

Horizon TypeHorizon Thickness

(cm)Horizon Color Horizon Description

O 3.7 Brown O and A layer lookabout the sameA 1.2 Brown

E 1.7 Dark brown

E layer looks darker

due to more

compaction

Data Table 2: Slope of Land

Soil Type Trial 1 % Slope Trial 2 % Slope Trial 3 % Slope Ave % Slope

Muddy Soil 21 19 - 20Leaf Litter Soil 16 .6 14 10.2

Grassy Soil

.2

2 - 1.1

Dry Creek BedSoil

.6

- - .6

Rocky Soil 1.4 1.6 - 1.5

Data Table 3: Texture, Consistency, and Structure ofdry creek bed Soil


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Soil Type Texture (cm)Consistency -Dry

Consistency -Wet

Structure Source

Dry creekbed- Sample 1

1.6

HardNon-plastic,non-sticky

round Loamy sand

Dry creek

bed- Sample 2

1.6

hardNon-plastic,

non-stickyround Loamy sand

Dry creek bed

Soil - Average

1.6

hardNon-plastic,

non-stickyRound Sandy loam

Control Soil -

Clay.7 Hard, firm plastic round clay

Data Table 4: AVERAGE Texture, Consistency, and Structure ofALL Soil Types

Soil TypeAverageTexture (cm)

Average

Consistency -Dry

Average

Consistency -Wet

AverageStructure

AverageSource

Muddy Soil 4.5 hardNon-plastic,non-sticky

AngularSandy clayloam

Grassy Soil 3.6 friableNon-plastic,non-sticky

Round Silty

Leaf Litter Soil 4.0 Loose dry Non-sticky Round Sandy clay

Dry Creek Bed

Soil1.6 hard Non-plastic Round Loamy sand

Rocky Soil 2.8 loose plastic round Silt loam

Control - Clay 1.5 Sticky plastic angular clay

Data Table 5: Particle Size of dry creek bed Soil

Soil TypeDepth of Clay Layer

(cm)

Depth of Silt Layer

(cm)

Depth of Sand Layer

(cm)


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Dry creek bed Soil -Sample 1

0 .3 6.5

Dry creek bed Soil -

Sample 2- - -

AVERAGE Particle Size

dry creek bed soil 0 .3 6.5

Clay/Silt/Sand Mixture 3 1.3 5.0

Data Table 6: Particle Size Distribution ofdry creek bed Soil

Soil Type % clay % Silt % Sand Soil Class

Dry creek bed

Soil - Sample 10 37.5 62.5 Sandy loam

Dry creek bed

Soil - Sample 2- - - -

AVERAGE %

ParticleDistribution dry

creek bed soil

0 37.5 62.5 Sandy loam

Control:

Clay/Silt/SandMixture 32.75 13.97 53.76 Sandy loam

Data Table 7: Particle Size Distribution ofALL Soil types

Soil Type % clay % Silt % Sand Soil Class

Muddy Soil

Grassy Soil

Leaf Litter Soil

Dry Creek Bed

Soil

Rocky Soil

Control:Clay/Silt/Sand


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Mixture

Data Table 8: Bulk Density ofdry creek bed Soil

Initial Mass (g) Final Mass (g)% Bulk Density(Final/Initial)

??? Soil - Sample 1

??? Soil - Sample 2

AVERAGE BulkDensity

Data Table 9: Bulk Density ofALL Soil Types

Soil Type Bulk Density (%) Bulk Density Soil Type

Muddy Soil

Grassy Soil

Leaf Litter Soil

Dry Creek Bed Soil

Rocky Soil

Control: Clay/Silt/Sand

Mixture

Data Table 10: Permeability ofdry creek bed soil

Time to First Drop

(sec)

Time to Full Contents

(sec)

Average Time of

Permeability (sec)


1.1 96 94.9


239 240+ 1+


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AVERAGE SoilPermeability

120.05 168+ 95.9+

Data Table 11: Permeability ofALL Soil Types

Soil Type Average Time of Permeability (sec)

Muddy Soil

Grassy Soil

Leaf Litter Soil

Dry Creek Bed Soil

Rocky Soil

Control: Clay/Silt/Sand Mixture

Data Table 12: Capillary Action ofdry creek bed soil

Initial Volume (ml) Final Volume (mL) Change in Volume(mL)

??? Soil - Sample 1 10 .5 9.5

??? Soil - Sample 2 10 2.3 7.7

AVERAGE SoilPermeability

10 1.4 8.6

Data Table 13: Capillary Action ofALL Soil Types

Soil Type Average Change in Volume (mL)

Muddy Soil

Grassy Soil

Leaf Litter Soil

Dry Creek Bed Soil 8.6

Rocky Soil

Control: Clay/Silt/Sand Mixture

Data Graph 1:Soil Horizons - Detailed Sketch


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Data Graph 2: Comparison of %Slopes


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Data Graph 3: Comparison of Soil Sources


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IV: Conclusions

The hypothesis was/was not supported because the data

The results may be inconclusive because of the following errors:

1. ???.

2. ???

3. ???

The results indicated that (what I learned)


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aplab physical characteristics of soil(1)

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