A Study on the Development of Soil Moisture Measuring Unit

인공토조용(人工土槽用) 토양함수율(土壤含水率) 측정기(測程器) 개발(開發)에 관(關)한 연구(硏究)

This study was carried out to find a method which can be used to measure the soil moisture content of the soil bin exactly and quickly. And gypsum block is used as an instrument in measuring soil moisture content in the field of green house farming, etc.. However the characteristics of gypsum block, or the guide line of making gypsum block is not well introduced in Korea. So the information about gypsum block such as the density of gypsum, type of electrode, dimension of electrode, distance between electrodes, density of surrounding soil were included in this study and their effects on the relationship between soil moisture content and electrical resistance were investigated. The results of this study are as follows; 1. The grid type electrode was quicker in accessing the equilibrium condition and showed more sensitive response to the change of soil moisture content than the plate type electrode. 2. The longer the distance between the electrodes, the larger the electrical resistance, and the distance of 3 to 5 mm was recommended. 3. The larger the width of the electrode, the smaller the electrical resistance. However, there was no significance between the levels designed in this study. Considering the size of the gypsum block itself, the adaptible range of width may be 4 to 8 mm. 4. The higher the density of gypsum, the smaller the electrical resistance. And the block of lower density was broken down in the soil of higy moisture content. The optimum ratio of gypsum to water was 7:5. 5. The measuring system used in this study allowed simultaneous, multi-data acquisition. So this system using A/D converter can be applied to the measurement of soil moisture content of soil bin.