WIND EROSION - FIELD MEASUREMENT AND ANALYSIS

Wind erosion researchers need field equipment and techniques for asertaining threshold wind velocities and the amount and vertical distribution of the eroded soil particles. To detect moving soil particles and field erosion, sensors and soil samplers to measure surface creep and airborne particles have been developed. A power expression will describe the variation in amounts of suspended material to a 2-m height. The quantity of material (f) and height of material (y) within the salation zone can be explained by the expression f = fo(1-y/sigma)beta where "fo" is surface creep, sigma is height below which 50% of the total mass flow occurs in the saltation process, and beta is the slope of the line. With this equipment and the analytical techniques described, the wind erosion process can be studied in the field, and the effectiveness of wind erosion control systems can be evaluated.