Magnetic surveys have been widely used in archaeological field investigations. However, conventional survey methods are often restricted by complicated field conditions and ambiguities in data ...interpretation. In this study, a novel magnetic survey system was designed for pre-archaeological investigation (preliminary survey prior to the archaeological excavation) based on a modified quadrotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and was successfully applied to an archaeological area with a complex landform in Huizhou, China. Results show that the target anomaly identified by UAV aeromagnetic survey corresponds well to the location of a potential archaeological site. Subsequent soil analyses further confirm the archaeological value of UAV aeromagnetic results and provide strong constraints on the interpretation of target anomalies. This study demonstrates that the newly proposed UAV aeromagnetic system can adapt to the various field conditions with the advantages of flexibility and efficiency, which has great potential for future archaeological investigations.
ABSTRACT Determination of soil properties helps in the correct management of soil fertility. The portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (pXRF) has been recently adopted to determine total chemical ...element contents in soils, allowing soil property inferences. However, these studies are still scarce in Brazil and other countries. The objectives of this work were to predict soil properties using pXRF data, comparing stepwise multiple linear regression (SMLR) and random forest (RF) methods, as well as mapping and validating soil properties. 120 soil samples were collected at three depths and submitted to laboratory analyses. pXRF was used in the samples and total element contents were determined. From pXRF data, SMLR and RF were used to predict soil laboratory results, reflecting soil properties, and the models were validated. The best method was used to spatialize soil properties. Using SMLR, models had high values of R² (≥0.8), however the highest accuracy was obtained in RF modeling. Exchangeable Ca, Al, Mg, potential and effective cation exchange capacity, soil organic matter, pH, and base saturation had adequate adjustment and accurate predictions with RF. Eight out of the 10 soil properties predicted by RF using pXRF data had CaO as the most important variable helping predictions, followed by P2O5, Zn and Cr. Maps generated using RF from pXRF data had high accuracy for six soil properties, reaching R2 up to 0.83. pXRF in association with RF can be used to predict soil properties with high accuracy at low cost and time, besides providing variables aiding digital soil mapping.
RESUMO A determinação de atributos do solo auxilia no correto manejo da sua fertilidade. O equipamento portátil de fluorescência de raios-X (pXRF) foi recentemente adotado para determinar o teor total de elementos químicos em solos, permitindo inferências sobre atributos do solo. No entanto, esses estudos ainda são escassos no Brasil e em outros países. Os objetivos deste trabalho foram prever atributos do solo a partir de dados do pXRF, comparando-se os métodos de regressão linear múltipla stepwise (SMLR) e de random forest (RF), além de mapear e validar atributos do solo. 120 amostras de solo foram coletadas em três profundidades e submetidas a análises laboratoriais. Utilizou-se o pXRF para leitura das amostras e determinou-se o teor total de elementos. A partir dos dados do pXRF, foram utilizadas SMLR e RF para predizer resultados laboratoriais, que refletem atributos do solo, e os modelos foram validados. O melhor método foi utilizado para espacializar os atributos do solo. Utilizando SMLR, os modelos apresentaram valores elevados de R² (≥0,8), porém maior acurácia foi obtida na modelagem com RF. A capacidade de troca de cátions potencial e efetiva, matéria orgânica do solo, pH, saturação por bases e teores trocáveis de Ca, Al e Mg apresentaram ajustes adequados e predições acuradas com RF. Dos dez atributos do solo preditos por RF a partir de dados do pXRF, sete apresentavam CaO como a variável mais importante para auxiliar as predições, seguido por P2O5, Zn e Cr. Os mapas gerados a partir de dados do pXRF usando RF apresentaram adequados valores de R² para seis atributos do solo, atingindo R2 de até 0,83. O pXRF em associação com RF pode ser usado para prever atributos do solo com elevada acurácia, com rapidez e a baixo custo, além de proporcionar variáveis que auxiliam o mapeamento digital de solos.
Machu Picchu is an archaeological Inca sanctuary from the 15th century, located 2430 m above the sea level in the Cusco Region, Peru. In 1983, it was declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The ...surroundings and soils from the entire archaeological site are carefully preserved together with its grass parks. Due to the importance of the archaeological city and its surroundings, the Decentralized Culture Directorate of Cusco-PAN Machu Picchu decided to carry out a careful monitoring study in order to determine the ecological status of the soils. In this work, elemental and molecular characterization of 17 soils collected along the entire park was performed by means of X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) after acidic digestion assisted by microwave energy. Thanks to the combination of these analytical techniques, it was possible to obtain the mineral composition and metal concentrations of all soils from these 17 sampling points. Finally, different statistical treatments were carried out in order to confirm the ecological status of the different sampling points from Machu Picchu archaeological site concluding that soils are not impacted.
Display omitted
•Machu Picchu archaeological park’s granitic soil samples were analyzed.•Analytical strategy based on the combination of XRD and ICP-MS was carried out.•Environmental quality standards for agricultural soil of Peru are not exceeded.•NWAC indexes and CFs were calculated.•In general terms, the contamination degree of the soil from the archaeological site is low.
The present paper aims to assess the quality characteristics of the available water bodies, air, and agricultural lands of Assuit governorate using spatial and laboratory analyses integrated with ...remote sensing techniques. To fulfill this aim, a field survey was conducted for identifying the dominant anthropogenic activities, collecting water and soil for further lab analyses of physical and chemical characteristics. Contamination indices and ecological risk of heavy metals in soil were calculated and assessed. Further, calibrated space-borne multispectral Landsat images dated 1999, 2009, 2019 and 2023 were processed to retrieve the Particulate Matter (PM10) to assess air quality over the governorate. A similar spatial distribution of PM10 over Assuit governorate was recorded during the four investigated years; 1999, 2009, 2019 and 2023. PM10 exceeded the allowable Egyptian threshold limits over the desert lands (150 µg/m3). Results reported the discharge of domestic wastewater into some irrigation canals as the main reason for elevating turbidity and Organic matter levels. Reasonable Electric Conductivity (EC) levels were recorded (277 to 1094.00 µs/cm) which showed good to permissible levels for irrigation. The investigated water parameters of the River Nile are coinciding with the Egyptian threshold limits. Remarkable fluctuations were observed in the levels of most of the soil characteristics in Assuit and the spatial analyses showed that levels of soil pollution are increasing southward which is confirmed by the positive correlation between the indicators of pollution. However, soil contamination and ecological indices were low in the whole governorate.
The aim of our study is the modeling at the field level of the soil erodibility (K factor) by water (rainfall and irrigation) on traditional tillage (CoTl) and no-tillage (NoTl) plots cultivated with ...Helianthus annuus utilizing plot observations, soil sampling laboratory analyses, GIS, precision agriculture (PA), and Kriging geostatistical modeling. A split-plot layout consisting of four handlings × three replicates of trial blocks (with a southeast facing 7.5% slope) was used. Grid template surface soil core (0.0–5.0 cm) samples were taken to characterize the textures (sandy, silty, clayey, very fine sandy, and gravelly), organic matter concentrations, and the soil’s microstructure and water permeability categories. One GPS satellite tracker system was utilized to define the sampled positions, and 40 soil cores were air-dried and sieved with a 2 mm sieve to identify the soil’s mechanical microtexture using the Bouyoucos methodology. The organic matter was extracted by chemical oxidation with 1 mol L−1 K2Cr2O7 and titration of the remaining reagent with 0.5 mol L−1 FeSO4. The soil microstructure and permeability categories were defined following the USDA classification system. The soil erodibility by water modeling of K (Mg·ha·h·ha−1·MJ−1·mm−1) was derived according to the Wischmeier nomographic method by incorporating it into a developed GIS geospatial model using Kriging geostatistics. The statistical results of the ANOVA test (p = 0.05) among the soil erodibility datasets showed significant differences between the two tillage systems, as well as between the four management treatments. Moreover, it was found that the no-tillage (NoTl) plots and the treatment of no tillage plus vegetative coverage were the best tillage and agricultural practices for hillslope farm fields and can be considered environmentally friendly farming methods to curb soil erodibility by water, reduce runoff hazard, and maintain the soil’s environment and its beneficial nutrients.
In this dataset we present soil data analyses with properties such as pH, organic matter (OM), salinity (EC), etc., major elements (N, P, K, Mg) as well as some microelements (Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu, B) with ...significant impact on plant nutrition. The samples were collected from the top 30 cm of the soil depth through a period of 5 successive years. The survey area is in the regional unit of Grevena in northern Greece. This dataset can be used to evaluate the status of the soil for a variety of tasks.
Of the many techniques tested to date to rehabilitate degraded ecosystems, topsoil transfer appears to offer the best results. However, this method is recent, and results achieved in the short term ...(months to years) may not provide a sound indication of long-term vegetation reestablishment. In the plain of La Crau in southeastern France, many dry alluvial quarries were exploited in the 1970s–1980s and are nearly all now abandoned. Various topsoil transfers were performed when operations ceased, for various rehabilitation purposes (aesthetic, security, agricultural, etc.) and now provide the opportunity to test their efficacy in the 30-year long-term. We used an ecological analysis of plant communities and soil carried out in 2015 to compare the reference ecosystem (the steppe of La Crau, positive control) with un-rehabilitated quarry pits (negative control) and with four different rehabilitation treatments: (1) soil transfer (40cm) with no contact with the water table; (2) soil transfer (40cm) in contact with the water table; (3) more than 40cm of soil transfer and (4) anthropogenic material deposits (spoils) unrelated to the characteristics of the reference soil. Our results show that the treatment most favorable to restoration of the species richness, diversity and composition of the steppe vegetation is transferring soil with fine particles (clay, silt) (treatment 1), at least 40cm thick and without contact with groundwater. However, even after thirty years, and the re-establishment of traditional sheep grazing, full restoration of the reference steppe is far from being achieved. The other treatments lead to the emergence of hybrid or novel ecosystems, such as temporary ponds, riparian woodlands or matorrals with new variables and common variables to the historical ecosystem. Additional techniques to enhance the effectiveness of topsoil transfer are discussed.
This study was aimed to determine the deficiency or excessivity of nutrients for sugar beet crop in Konya plain. The results showed that the pH value was found as 7.65 and soils were classified as ...sodic; the organic matter was 1.59% and 92.9% of the soil samples was poor in terms of the organic matter. The mean lime content (CaCO
) was determined capacity was 26.07 and 97.1% of the soil samples was limy and the mean cation Exchange capacity was 26.07 me/100g, and it was varied between 10.72 me/100g and 44.7 me/100g. The mean available NH4+NO3 nitrogen content, phosphorus and potassium for crop were as 0.059%, 10.21 ppm and 1.39 me/100g, respectively. According to the these results, NH
+NO
nitrogen and potassium amounts were sufficient while the phosphourus content was sufficient in 65.8% and insufficient in 34.2%. Cu and Mn content in soil samples were adequate. The sufficient amounts of Zn, B and Fe were 85.7%, 45.8% and 95.7% and their insufficient amounts were 14.53%, 54.2% and 4.3%, respectively. According to the result of leaf analyses, the content of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and sodium were sufficient. The deficiencies of iron, zinc and bor were found in 4.3%, 14.3% and 38.6% of the total samples, respectively.
This study shows the impact of the reforestation program by some tree species (
and
) on the soil physicochemical parameters in south-western Algeria steppe. The study was realized on soil samples ...from the Touadjeur site. One hundred soil samples were taken from the field, followed by physicochemical analyses in the laboratory. A comparison of the soil elements between reforested and unreforested sites considered as a control was carried out. The results show that there are differences in the physicochemical parameters of the soil between the reforestation and the non-reforestation ones constituted by a steppe vegetation. The ANOVA one way test shows a highly significant difference change in soil physical parameters, moisture, holding capacity and saturated hydraulic conductivity, but no change in apparent density, actual density and color. Also, from a chemical point of view, the differences concern the organic matter, organic carbon, pH and certain soil contents. The main differences in soil properties between the reforestation sites and the control site, reflect the consequences of forest management adopted by the forest services, most probably the choice of reforestation species.
Durante la investigación en el campo en 2013 en el sitio arqueológico multicultural Begastri en la región de Murcia en España, el suelo ha sido muestreado in situ desde los puntos de referencia. La ...investigación se propuso evaluar la presión humana en el sector norte del sitio arqueológico, que presumiblemente cambió sus funciones a lo largo de los siglos. Al elegir el lugar del sector residencial se tomaron en cuenta las habitaciones cuyas capas culturales se han definido previamente sobre la base de los hallazgos de los artefactos, principalmente piezas de cerámica, vidrio y objetos metálicos. Se extrajeron muestras de suelo de dos cavidades, una de las cuales se bisecó en dos áreas adyacentes, y luego se sometieron a análisis químicos, con el objetivo de determinar su composición elemental y factor de pH. No se revelaron anomalías dentro del sitio arqueológico al probar el factor de pH del suelo, lo que permitió que el estudio eliminara la posibilidad de influencia de la variación del factor de pH en la concentración de elementos individuales. También se determinó que el suelo es claramente alcalino, por eso se descubre ocasionalmente material orgánico. Para el análisis de muestras de suelo se han tomado en primer lugar a cuenta los elementos cuya presencia está asociada a las actividades humanas, como hierro, plomo, cobre, níquel, zinc, cobalto, cadmio y platino. Las capas que pueden influir en el factor de la presión antrópica se distinguieron sobre la base de altos niveles de elementos tales como manganeso, cobre, zinc, níquel y cobalto. Tanto la presencia de elementos principales (hierro y plomo), como los oligoelementos (cadmio y platino) varían en cada capa, lo que excluye conclusiones claras sobre su origen. Los análisis se realizaron con la técnica de espectrometría de masas plasmática acoplada inductivamente (ICP - MS) en el Laboratorio de Técnicas Analíticas Nucleares en Varsovia. La investigación geológica en el sitio arqueológico está planificada para completar el estudio de determinaciones químicas.
PDF
