• Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.39-46
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• 2005

Because soil compaction is a concern in crop production and environmental pollution, quantification and management of spatial and vertical variability in soil compaction for soil strength) would be a useful aspect of site -specific field management. In this paper, a soil strength profile sensor (SSPS) that could take measurements continuously while traveling across the field was developed and the performance was evaluated through laboratory and field tests. The SSPS obtained data simultaneously at 5 evenly spaced depths up to 50 em using an array of load cells, each of which was interfaced with a soil-cutting tip. Means of soil strength measurements collected in adjacent, parallel transects were not significantly different, confirming the repeatability of soil strength sensing with the SSPS. Maps created with sensor data showed spatial and vertical variability in soil strength. Depth to the restrictive layer was different for different field locations, and only 5 to 16% of the tested field areas were highly compacted.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2006.04a
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• pp.411-414
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• 2006

This study was examined to determine hydraulic conductivity of vadose zone($K_s$) and effective porosity(${\phi}_e$) of undisturbed soil profiles collected at each vadose zone of 6 study areas in South Korea. Effective porosity was approximately 19% of total porosity for each soil profile. Applied to Ahuja's equation, the correlation between $K_s$ and ${\phi}_e$ showed $y=1.3{\times}10^{-7}x^{2.15}(r^2=0.37)$ for total soil profiles. Although the small numbers of soil profile were used for this study, the result of this study might be used for other soil hydraulic studies as reasonable data.

• The Journal of Korean Institute of Electromagnetic Engineering and Science
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• v.17 no.12 s.115
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• pp.1181-1188
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• 2006

The radar backscattering coefficients of soil surfaces with various roughness conditions are computed at first in this paper. The roughness parameters for various surface-profile lengths are also obtained. Then, the relationship between the radar backscattering coefficients and the profile length is studied. It was shown that the effect of the profile length is negligible on the backscattering coefficient, even though the roughness parameters vary a lot with the length of the surface profile.

• Journal of Biosystems Engineering
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.382-389
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• 2009

An in-situ probe-based spectrophotometer has been developed. This system used two spectrometers to measure soil reflectance spectra from 450 nm to 2200 nm. It collects soil electrical conductivity (EC) and insertion force measurements in addition to the optical data. Six fields in Kansas were mapped with the VIS-NIR (visible-near infrared) probe module and sampled for calibration and validation. Results showed that VIS-NIR correlated well with carbon in all six fields, with RPD (the ratio of standard deviation to root mean square error of prediction) of 1.8 or better, RMSE of 0.14 to 0.22%, and $R^2$ of 0.69 to 0.89. From the investigation of carbon variability within the soil profile and by tillage practice, the 0-5 cm depth in a no-till field contained significantly higher levels of carbon than any other locations. Using the selected calibration model with the soil NIR probe data, a soil profile map of estimated carbon was produced, and it was found that estimated carbon values are highly correlated to the lab values. The array of sensors (VIS-NIR, electrical conductivity, insertion force) used in the probe allowed estimating bulk density, and three of the six fields were satisfactory. The VIS-NIR probe also showed the obtained spectra data were well correlated with nitrogen for all fields with RPD scores of 1.84 or better and coefficient of determination ($R^2$) of 0.7 or higher.

• Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.10-20
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• 2004

Precision agriculture aims to minimize costs and environmental damage caused by agriculture and to maximize crop yield and profitability, based on information collected at within-field locations. In this process, quantification of soil physical properties, including soil strength, would be useful. To quantify and manage variability in soil strength, there is need for a strength sensor that can take measurements continuously while traveling across the field. In this paper, preliminary analyses were conducted using two datasets available with current technology, (1) cone penetrometer readings collected at different compaction levels and for different soil textures and (2) tillage draft (TD) collected from an entire field. The objective was to provide information useful for design of an on-the-go soil strength profile sensor and for interpretation of sensor test results. Analysis of cone index (CI) profiles led to the selection of a 0.5-m design sensing depth, 10-MPa maximum expected soil strength, and 0.1-MPa sensing resolution. Compaction level, depth, texture, and water content of the soil all affected CI. The effects of these interacting factors on data obtained with the soil strength sensor should be investigated through experiments. Spatial analyses of CI and TD indicated that the on-the-go soil strength sensor should acquire high spatial-resolution, high-frequency ($\ge$ 4 Hz) measurements to capture within-field spatial variability.

• Proceedings of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea Conference
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• 2001.04a
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• pp.91-99
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• 2001

This paper is for a reasonable selection of design response spectra for the seismic design of specific types of soil-structure interaction systems, e.g., underground structure within flexible soil profiles of structures on the shallow soil layers on the stiff bed rock. the existing backup data used for determining the design response spectra of the Code have been investigated and evaluated. For this purpose, various types of free field analyses have been performed using one-dimensional wave propagation theory considering the nonlinear properties of the soil profile. As a result, a reasonable approach of determining input response spectra for specific soil profiles has been proposed to be compatible to the design response spectra of the Code.

• Journal of Biosystems Engineering
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.355-361
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• 2008

As agricultural machinery has become larger and tillage practices have changed in recent decades, compaction as a result of wheel traffic and tillage has caused increasing concern. If strategies to manage compaction, such as deep tillage, could be applied only where needed, economic and environmental benefits would result. For such site-specific compaction management to occur, compacted areas within fields must be efficiently sensed and mapped. We previously developed an on-the-go soil strength profile sensor (SSPS) for this purpose. The SSPS measures within-field variability in soil strength at five soil depths up to 50 cm. Determining the variability structure of SSPS data is needed for site-specific field management since the variability structure determines the required intensity of data collection and is related to the delineation of compaction management zones. In this paper, soil bin data were analyzed by a spectral analysis technique to determine the variability structure of the SSPS data, and to investigate causes and implications of this variability. In the soil bin, we observed a repeating pattern due to soil fracture with an approximate 12- to 19-cm period, especially at the 10-cm depth, possibly due to cyclic development of soil fracture on this interval. These findings will facilitate interpretation of soil strength data and enhance application of the SSPS.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.109-115
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• 2006

Understanding characteristics of claypan soils has long been an issue for researchers and farmers because the high-clay subsoil has a pronounced effect on grain crop productivity. The claypan restricts water infiltration and storage within the crop root zone, but these effects are not uniform within fields. Conventional techniques of identifying claypan soil characteristics require manual probing and analysis which can be quite expensive; an expense most farmers are unwilling to pay. On the other hand, farmers would be very interested if this information could be obtained with easy-to-use field sensors. Two examples of sensors that show promise for helping in claypan soil characterization are soil profile strength sensing and bulk soil apparent electrical conductivity (ECa). Little has been reported on claypan soils relating the combined information from these two sensors with grain crop yield. The objective of this research was to identify the relationships of sensed profile soil strength and soil EC with nine years of crop yield (maize and soybean) from a claypan soil field in central Missouri. A multiple-probe (five probes on 19-cm spacing) cone penetrometer was used to measure soil strength and an electromagnetic induction sensor was used to measure soil EC at 55 grid site locations within a 4-ha research field. Crop yields were obtained using a combine equipped with a yield monitoring system. Soil strength at the 15 to 45 cm soil depth were significantly correlated to crop yield and ECa. Estimated crop yields from apparent electrical conductivity and soil strength were validated with an independent data set. Using measurements from these two sensors, standard error rates for estimating yield ranged from 9 to 16%. In conclusion, these results showed that the sensed profile soil strength and soil EC could be used as a measure of the soil productivity for grain crop production.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2010.09c
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• pp.31-36
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• 2010

This paper introduces a practical determination method for soil parameters adopted in the new performance based design code for port and harbour facilities in Japan. In the new port-design code, the depth profile of the derived values is modeled as the profile of the estimated values so as to be either the mean value or the regression line, then the correction factors are multiplied to the estimated value according to the coefficient of variation (if COV > 0.1) and the number of the data entries (if n < 10). The new port-design code is applied to the unconfined compression test results for the Hiroshima Port clay in order to evaluate the undrained shear strengths. From the discussion, it is emphasized that not only the statistic treatment but also the engineering judgment are required in the procedure of the soil parameter determination for the reliability design.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.45 no.1
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• pp.9-15
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• 2012

This study was performed to produce basic data for silty reclaimed tidal lands and to develop techniques of environmentally-friendly utilization in agricultural system. We chose the two sites in Saemangeum reclaimed tidal lands, one (Site I) has been treated with cultivating green manure and conducting the desalinization process through submergence since April, 2007 and the other (Site II) has been under natural condition without artificial treatment. In situ and ex situ physic-chemical properties were determined and comparisons were made for soil profiles examined at these two sites in April 2009. Surface soil of Site I had lower EC and higher field saturated hydraulic conductivity than those of Site II, uncultivated land. Especially, exchangeable sodium content was lowest in Site I Ap1 layer than in other layers. This is probably due to flooding desalination and green manure cultivation. Besides, Ap1 and A2 layers of soil profile in Site I showed brighter soil color and more root observation than those of Site II. This is probably due to green manure cultivation. By the large, for high cash upland crops and intensive agricultural use of silty reclaimed tidal land, site-specific soil ripening such as flooding desalination and green manure cultivation could be useful.