A STUDY OF SOIL MOISTURE

AND SOIL TEXTURE IN

JAWAHARLAL NEHRU
UNIVERSITY, NEW DELHI

OCTOBER 22, 2018

HYDROLOGY
Introduction:

Soil moisture is of vital interest not only for hydrologists, but also for pedologists,
geomorphologists and agriculturalists. By studying soil moisture conditions of an
area we can estimate the field capacity of the soil, saturation zone of soil, wielding
point of the soil, evaporation rates in the region, best crops to be grown in the
region, flood management, etc. Water content in soil also influences groundwater
recharge and soil chemistry. Soil moisture also helps in regulating nutrients in
plants by dissolving different salts in water.
Soil moisture is a measure of how wet or dry the soil is. Each plant species need
a different range of soil moisture in order to absorb water and nutrients efficiently
and stabilize the plant. Moisture may be present as absorbed at internal surfaces
or as capillary condensed water in small pores.
Generally, Soil moisture is the water that is held in the spaces between soil
particles. Surface soil moisture is the water that is the upper 10cm of soil, whereas
root zone soil moisture is the water that is available to plants, which is generally
considered to be in the upper 200cm of the soil.
Another important characteristic of soil moisture is that it helps in regulating soil
temperature1. Different plants requires different soil temperature to thrive.
Different factors plays their role differently in regulating the soil moisture
conditions differently over space and time. These are Texture, structure, organic
matter, density of soil, Temperature, salt content, depth of soil and Type of clay.
Nace and Plushowski (1965) in their study of the southern Plains drought of
1950’s found that soil moisture is a vital factor in the water economy.
Soil moisture is an important component of water budget, yet an accurate
depiction of this variable is a serious challenge for scientists. So by the help of
given sets of instruments and available knowledge we will try to find out the
surface soil moisture conditions prevailing in the study area.
In this paper, we will try to find soil moisture conditions and properties of soil at
the end of Rainy season (monsoon) in the environment of J.N.U. (Jawaharlal
Nehru University, New Delhi).

1
Izlar R. (2007) Soil society of America
Study Area:
Parthasarthy Rocks has been chosen as study area. It is part of relict mountain
range of Aravalli’s, which is located in the southern part of Delhi. Parthasarthy
Rocks is the highest natural point of Delhi. The region is mainly composed on
Pink Granite rocks. The latitude and longitude for the study area is 28°34’40’’ N
and 77°15’35’’E respectively.

Map 1: STUDY AREA MAP CREATED ON ARCGIS

Weathering plays a crucial role in soil formation in the area. Both physical and
biological weathering is working simultaneously in the area to form soil. The
region lies in semi-arid climatic zone which also influences the soil forming
processes in the region.
Map 2: STUDY AREA MAP BY GOOGLE EARTH
The temperature varies between 40°C to 0° from summer (June) to winters
(January). The area also have high diurnal range and seasonal range of
temperature, which is the prime cause for the granular disintegration form of
weathering.
The area receives 652mm of rainfall on an average, monsoon bearing winds are
the major source of rainfall in the region. July, August and September are the
months of prominent rainfall. Rainfall also causes chemical weathering and soil
erosion in the area.
Another important thing which needed to be kept in mind is that JNU campus
have mixed kind of land use pattern, which influences the soil forming processes
and soil characteristics and further influences the soil moisture holding capacity.
Objectives:
Major objectives of this paper are as follows:
i) To Find out the infiltration rate of soil samples collected from the study
area;
ii) To calculate the soil moisture content in soil ;
iii) To calculate the bulk density of the soil collected from sample sites; and
iv) To find out the soil composition based on textural analysis.

Methodology and Data:

Different sets of methodology and data has been used for different exercises. The
first exercise which we conducted is calculating the infiltration rate. Infiltration
rate can be defined as the velocity or speed at which water enters into the soil. It
is usually measured by the depth (in mm) of the water layer that can enter the soil
in one hour. Soil texture, structure, spaces between soil particles, soil moisture
content, vegetation type, soil temperature and human activities influences the
infiltration rate.
Instruments used for measuring the infiltration rate are pipet, cardboard
cylinder and stopwatch.
Two soil samples with weight of 130.64mg and 125.99mg respectively have been
selected from two different locations at PSR (Parthasarthy Rocks), JNU Campus,
New Delhi – 110067 from (28°32'37.87"N 77°10'12.45"E) for sample one and
(28°32'39.51"N 77°10'15.59"E) for sample two.
To calculate the infiltration rate, we allowed water to pass through both the soil
samples with the help of pipet.
The second exercise is to calculate the saturation weight of soil and dry weight
and volume of soil for both the samples respectively. These weight and volumes
will help us in finding the soil moisture content in soil. For that we will use
following equations:
1. For Calculating Volume of Soil:
Volume can be defined as the amount of space that a substance or object occupies,
or that is enclosed within a container. Formula for calculating volume:-
 𝒗 = 𝝅𝒓𝟐 𝒉 (1)
Where, V = Volume of the Container;
𝝅 = represents the ratio of a circle′ scircumference to its diameter;
r = radius of the cylinder; and
h = height of the cylinder
Container Radius Height Volume (g/cm3)
Full Container 3 cm 12 cm 339.29
(sample one)
Soil (sample one) 3 cm 7.5 cm 212.06
Full Container 3 cm 10 cm 282.74
(sample two)
Soil (sample two) 3 cm 8 cm 226.19

2. Soil Moisture content:

Soil moisture content can be defined as the ratio of the mass of water in a
sample to the mass of solids in the sample, it is generally expressed in
Percentage. Soil moisture content is denoted by Θ.
Θm = Mw/Ms
Where, Θ = Soil Moisture Content
Mw = Weight of water in Soil
Ms = Total weight of Soil
Sample 1 Sample 2
Total weight of 124.07g 122.02g
saturated soil
Weight of soil after 80.53g 65.03g
Drying
Weight of water in soil 43.54g 56.99g
Weight in water before 13.54g 28.99g
adding water in soil

3. Bulk Density:
Soil weight is most often expressed on a soil volume basis rather than on a
particle basis. Bulk Density is defined as the dry weight of soil per unit
volume of soil. It is the indicator of soil compaction. It can be expressed in
g/cm3. It can be calculated by following formula:
P = M/V
 Where, P = Bulk Density of Soil
M = total weight of Soil
V = Volume of Soil
4. Soil texture:
Soil texture is a classification of soil which is based on its physical texture
and characteristics, particularly the size of the particles that make up the
soil. To find out the soil texture we used manual sieving method. Sieves
are utensils consisting of a wire or plastic mesh held in a frame, used for
straining solids from liquids, for separating coarser from finer particles, or
for reducing soft solids to a pulp.
To find out the relationship between the soil texture and soil moisture
content collected three soil samples (two from same locations from soil
moisture test samples were taken) and one from different location
(28°32'31.02"N 77°10'14.57"E).

Table: Size of Soil Particles in different sieving sizes with percentage

Sample 1 % Sample 2 % Sample3 %

2mm and 36.79 10.87 96.09 28.27 176.69 51.62
above

1.41mm 34.7 10.25 24.65 7.25 49.38 14.42

1mm 17.59 5.20 13.99 4.11 15.3 4.47
0.710mm 14.46 4.27 14.3 4.20 10.47 3.05
0.50mm 16.09 4.75 15.76 4.63 9.4 2.74
0.35mm 14.84 4.38 11.76 3.45 10.2 2.98
0.177mm 95 28.08 16.95 4.98 15.87 4.63
0.088mm 56.99 16.84 63.01 18.53 25.58 7.47
0.0625mm 37.11 10.97 75.7 22.27 21.79 6.36
125 microns 14.66 4.33 7.69 2.26 7.57 2.21
and below

Total 338.23 100 339.9 100 342.25 100

weight
Result and Discussion:
The first experiment which we performed on collected soil samples was to check
infiltration rate. Both the samples showed different results while performing
infiltration test. These are as follows:
Table: Showing time water required to make soil samples saturated and time
taken by them to infiltrate water
SAMPLE 1 SAMPLE 2
Weight of Soil column 94.07mg 94.02mg
before adding water
Water added to make 30ml 25.46ml
soil saturated
Time taken by water 7 minutes 6.08 minutes
make soil column
saturated

From the given table, we can figure out that although the weight of both the
samples almost equal but water required to make the soil saturated is different in
both the samples. In sample one it is 30ml while in sample two it reduces to
25.46ml, which suggests that sample two requires less water to get saturated. This
is because sample two have more proportion water content then sample one when
we bring that to the lab. Weight of water in soil before adding the water through
pipet was 13.54mg in sample one and 28.99mg in sample two. Which suggests
that sample two have higher infiltration rate as compared to sample one
because of its higher moisture storage conditions.
Another interesting result which we get during experimenting with sample two is
that we added 28ml of water in total but 2.54ml of water seeps out after 6.08
minutes which is the discharge which will take place after saturation of the soil.
Soil moisture content for both the samples are 0.35093 (for sample 1) and
0.46683 (for sample 2), which suggests that sample two have more soil moisture
content. Which suggests that soil sample two will require less water to get
saturated as compared to sample one.
Bulk density reflects the soil’s ability to function for structural support, water and
solute movement, and soil aeration. Bulk density for both the samples is as
follows:
Table: Soil total weight, volume and Bulk Density
Sample 1 Sample 2
Total weight of soil 124.07g 122.04g
Volume of soil 212.06g/cm3 226.19g/cm3
Bulk Density 0.58 g/cm3 0.53 g/cm3

From the above table, we find out that sample one have bulk density of 0.58 g/cm3
and sample two have bulk density of 0.53 g/cm3, which suggests that sample two
have lower bulk density than sample one. Which tends to indicates that soil from
sample two have relatively high porosity. Further, higher bulk density indicates
the restriction to root growth, and relatively lower movement of air and water
through the soil.
Higher Bulk Density, also indicates higher runoff rate and lower infiltration rate
which can help in creating flood like situation at the time of high intensity of
rainfall.
While performing soil texture analysis from all the three samples we found that
sample three (we is collected from relatively newly developed forest soil in the
study area) have 51.62% of particles more equal to the size of 2mm and above,
as compared to sample 1 with 10.87% and sample 2 with 28.27%. Which suggest
that sample 3 will have more pore space between particles, which will have more
infiltration rate, while sample one have more field capacity as compared to both
the samples as it is composed of finer particles. When we talk about micron level
soil particles it is further supports our argument as sample 1 have highest
percentage of micron particles with 4.33% followed by sample 2 with 2.26% and
at last sample three have lowest proportion of micron particles with 2.21%.
To perform textural analysis we collected soil samples from three location with a
weight of 350 grams each. We also find that after completing the sieving process
where is a loss in total weight of soil samples. Highest loss is found in sample
one with a weight loss of 11.77 grams, while lowest loss is found in sample 3
with a weight loss of 7.75 grams. Which further suggests that finer soil particles
are more to loss as compared to coarse soil particles during manual sieving
process.
Conclusion:
Soil moisture is an important component of water balance. It not only influence
the plant growth, but also regulates the infiltration rate, Run-off conditions,
evaporation conditions, soil erosion, etc.
From the above sets of experiment we established that previous moisture content
in soil, bulk density and soil texture are the factor which influence the soil
moisture conditions and infiltration rate of the soil of the region.
If time permit further we can calculate the void space ratio, particle specific
gravity, porosity and degree of saturation of the soil from the sample collected in
future.
Reference:
Davie T. (2002): Fundamentals of hydrology, pp (58-60), Routledge publication
Knapp B.J.(1979): Elements of Geographical Hydrology, Unwin hyman
Publication
Shaw M. E. (1983): Hydrology in Practice, pp. (86-102)
Dingman S. L (2015): Physical Hydrology, Waveland Press, Inc.
Web links:
https://pubs.usgs.gov/wsp/1619u/report.pdf
https://water.usgs.gov/hif/programs/instrumenteval/HIFEvaluationGuidance.pdf
https://pubs.usgs.gov/wsp/1544f/report.pdf
https://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/1648/report.pdf
https://forums.naturalcapitalproject.org/uploads/FileUpload/cd/3f63ddb4f9e6e4
315fd3238568fba7.pdf
http://soilquality.org/indicators/bulk_density.html
http://www.fao.org/docrep/S8684E/s8684e0a.htm