Fractal features of soil particle size distribution and the implication for indicating desertification

Soil Aggregate Stability and Associated Structure Affected by Long-Term Fertilization for a Loessial Soil on the Loess Plateau of China

“…Moreover, aggregate state, aggregate degree, and dispersion rate determine the ability of soil to resist disturbance and serve as indicators of soil structure [24]. Fractal dimension is also a powerful tool used to characterize aggregate-sized distributions for monitoring soil structure [25][26][27]. Using the fractal method to estimate soil structure changes under practices in conventional tillage/no tillage rotation, Wang et al [28] found that MWD and GMD were increased while fractal dimension decreased.…”

Farmland management effects on the quality of surface soil during oasification in the southern rim of the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang, China

“…In our five-year experiment, the D of soil PSD was significantly different between the four farmlands; the other six indicators (e.g. SOM) also had significant differences, and the order of the six soil properties was generally similar to that of D. This can be explained by the fact that the finer soil particles assisted binding of SOM and nutrients (Zalibekov 2002), and soil PSD plays a significant role in regulating soil nutrients (Basic et al 2004, Su et al 2004, Gui et al 2009a). The correlation analysis between D and the other six indicators also indicated that the soil PSD had an important effect on soil nutrients (Table 3).…”

“…the fractal dimension (D) was calculated according to PSD data; the higher the D-value, the better the PSD (Su et al 2004, Wang et al 2008, Gui et al 2009a). Tyler and Wheatcraft's method (Tyler and Wheatcraft 1992) was used for the D-value calculation, using the equation:…”

The best mathematical models describing particle size distribution of soils

“…Also, soil erodibility, water retention, residual water content, specific surface area, permeability and saturated as well as unsaturated hydraulic conductivity (Vereecken et al 2010;Nimmo 2004;Vipulanandan and Ozgurel 2009) are affected by PSD. Su et al (2004) believed that changes in PSD can provide important indications on the impact of land use, desertification processes and soil degradation on soils.…”