Selection of a stress-based soil compaction test to determine potential
impact of machine wheel load
Abstract
The use of heavy machinery is increasing in agricultural industries in
particular cotton farming systems, which induces an increased risk of
soil compaction and yield reduction. Hence, there is a need for a
technical solution to use available tools to measure projected soil
compaction due to farm machinery traffics. The aim of this work was to
compare the effects of static and dynamic loads on soil compaction. In
this study, three vertosols (common soil for cotton production) were
selected to examine soil compaction under a range of static and dynamic
loads using uniaxial compression equipment and a modified proctor test,
respectively. In general, soils behaved similarly under static and
dynamic loads with no significant difference between bulk density values
for all moisture contents with a high index of agreement (d=0.96, RMSE=
0.056). The results further indicate better agreement between soil
compaction for static and dynamic loads Uniaxial compression test
(static loads) produced higher compaction compared to the modified
proctor test (dynamic loads) in particular at moisture contents lower
than the plastic limit condition. The variation in soil compaction for
static and loads was often evident for loads ≥600 kPa, with the highest
soil compaction induced under loads ≥1200 kPa. The findings of this
study confirm the suitability of a modified proctor method to assess
soil compaction as an alternative tool under a range of moisture
contents and machinery loads for vertosols.