@article{FunkBusseSiegmundetal.2022, author = {Funk, Roger and Busse, Jaqueline and Siegmund, Nicole and Sommer, Michael and Iturri, Laura Antonela and Panebianco, Juan E. and Avecilla, Fernando and Buschiazzo, Daniel}, title = {Phytoliths in particulate matter released by wind erosion on arable land in La Pampa, Argentina}, series = {Frontiers in environmental science}, volume = {10}, journal = {Frontiers in environmental science}, publisher = {Frontiers Media}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {2296-665X}, doi = {10.3389/fenvs.2022.969898}, pages = {10}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Silicon (Si) is considered a beneficial element in plant nutrition, but its importance on ecosystems goes far beyond that. Various forms of silicon are found in soils, of which the phytogenic pool plays a decisive role due to its good availability. This Si returns to the soil through the decomposition of plant residues, where they then participate in the further cycle as biogenic amorphous silica (bASi) or so-called phytoliths. These have a high affinity for water, so that the water holding capacity and water availability of soils can be increased even by small amounts of ASi. Agricultural land is a considerable global dust source, and dust samples from arable land have shown in cloud formation experiments a several times higher ice nucleation activity than pure mineral dust. Here, particle sizes in the particulate matter fractions (PM) are important, which can travel long distances and reach high altitudes in the atmosphere. Based on this, the research question was whether phytoliths could be detected in PM samples from wind erosion events, what are the main particle sizes of phytoliths and whether an initial quantification was possible.Measurements of PM concentrations were carried out at a wind erosion measuring field in the province La Pampa, Argentina. PM were sampled during five erosion events with Environmental Dust Monitors (EDM). After counting and classifying all particles with diameters between 0.3 and 32 mu m in the EDMs, they are collected on filters. The filters were analyzed by Scanning Electron Microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-Ray analysis (SEM-EDX) to investigate single or ensembles of particles regarding composition and possible origins.The analyses showed up to 8.3 per cent being phytoliths in the emitted dust and up to 25 per cent of organic origin. Particles of organic origin are mostly in the coarse dust fraction, whereas phytoliths are predominately transported in the finer dust fractions. Since phytoliths are both an important source of Si as a plant nutrient and are also involved in soil C fixation, their losses from arable land via dust emissions should be considered and its specific influence on atmospheric processes should be studied in detail in the future.}, language = {en} } @article{FunkLiHoffmannetal.2012, author = {Funk, Roger and Li, Yong and Hoffmann, Carsten and Reiche, Matthias and Zhang, Zhuodong and Li, Junjie and Sommer, Michael}, title = {Using Cs-137 to estimate wind erosion and dust deposition on grassland in Inner Mongolia-selection of a reference site and description of the temporal variability}, series = {Plant and soil}, volume = {351}, journal = {Plant and soil}, number = {1-2}, publisher = {Springer}, address = {Dordrecht}, issn = {0032-079X}, doi = {10.1007/s11104-011-0964-y}, pages = {293 -- 307}, year = {2012}, abstract = {The aims of this study were to identify areas of wind erosion and dust deposition and to quantify the effects of different grazing intensities on soil redistribution rates in grasslands based on the Cs-137 technique. Because the method uses a reference inventory as threshold for erosion or deposition, the classification of any other site as source or sink for dust depends on the accurate selection of this reference site. Measurements of Cs-137 inventories and depth distributions were carried out at pasture sites with predominant species of Stipa grandis and Leymus chinensis which are grazed with different intensities. Additional measurements were made at arable land, plant-covered sand dunes and alluvial plains. Wind-induced soil erosion and dust deposition rates were calculated from Cs-137 inventories by means of the "Profile-Distribution" and the "Mass Balance II" models. The selection of the reference site was based on fluid dynamical and process-determining parameters. The chosen site should meet the following four conditions: (i) located at a summit position with obviously low deposition rates, (ii) sufficient vegetation cover to prevent wind erosion, (iii) plane to exclude water erosion and (iv) in the wind/dust shadow of a higher elevation. The measured reference inventory of Cs-137 was 1967(+/- 102) Bqm(-2) located at a summit position of moderately grazed Leymus chinensis steppe. The Cs-137 inventories at other sites ranged from 1330 Bqm(-2) at heavily grazed sites to 5119 Bqm(-2) at river deposits, representing annual average soil losses of up to 130 tkm(-2) and deposits of up to 540 tkm(-2), respectively. The calculated annual averages of dust depositions at ungrazed Leymus chinensis sites were related to the dust storm frequencies of the last 50 years resulting in a description of the temporal variability of annual dust depositions from about 154 tkm(-2) in the 1960s to 26 tkm(-2) at recent times. Based on this quantification already 80\% of the total dust depositions can be related to the 20 years between the 1960s and the end of the 1970s and only 20\% to the time between 1980 and 2001. Cs-137 technique is a promising method to assess the effect of grazing intensity and land use types on the spatial variability of wind-induced soil and dust redistribution processes in semi-arid grasslands. However, considerable efforts are needed to identify a reliable reference site, because erosion and deposition induced by wind may occur at the same places. The combination of the dust deposition rates derived from Cs-137 profile data with the dust storm frequencies is helpful for a better reconstruction of the temporal variability of dust deposition and wind erosion in this region. The calculated recent deposition rates of about 20 tkm(-2) are in good agreement with data of other authors.}, language = {en} } @article{IturriFunkSommeretal.2022, author = {Iturri, Laura Antonela and Funk, Roger and Sommer, Michael and Buschiazzo, Daniel}, title = {Transport preferences of P forms in wind-blown sediments of two susceptible soils}, series = {Aeolian research : an international journal on wind erosion research / International Society of Aeolian Research}, volume = {55}, journal = {Aeolian research : an international journal on wind erosion research / International Society of Aeolian Research}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam [u.a.]}, issn = {1875-9637}, doi = {10.1016/j.aeolia.2022.100776}, pages = {9}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Wind erosion of agricultural soils affects their stock of essential elements for plants, like phosphorus (P). It is known that the composition of the eroded sediments varies with height, according to the size and density of the transported substances. Aim of this study was to analyze the concentration and enrichment ratios of P forms in sediments transported by the wind. A wind-tunnel study was performed on a sandy-and a sandy loam soil in order to measure P forms concentrations in the saltating sediments. P concentrations were also measured in the particulate matter (PM) of each soil, gained with the Easy Dust Generator. In both soils, inorganic-(Pi) and organic P (Po) were preferentially transported in PM, with enrichment ratios of 1.8 and 5.5, respectively. Nevertheless, a Pi/Po of 0.9 indicated that the accumulation of the minor Po in PM was more pronounced than Pi. This agrees with P-rich light and easily erodible organic compounds, almost exclusively accumulated in PM, and in relatively heavy and less erodible minerals, like apatites, in lower height sediments. Labile P (Pl) was preferentially transported in saltating sediments of both soils. This was attributed to the selective Bray \& Kurtz I's extraction of the abundant inorganic P forms of these sediments. Total P (Pt) copied the transport trends of Pi, the major form. According to the transporting trends, Pi and Po would be re-sedimented at longer distances from the source than Pl. Outcomes become useful for modeling the influence of wind erosion on P cycling.}, language = {en} } @article{ReicheFunkZhangetal.2012, author = {Reiche, Matthias and Funk, Roger and Zhang, Zhuodong and Hoffmann, Carsten and Reiche, Johannes and Wehrhan, Marc and Li, Yong and Sommer, Michael}, title = {Application of satellite remote sensing for mapping wind erosion risk and dust emission-deposition in Inner Mongolia grassland, China}, series = {Grassland science}, volume = {58}, journal = {Grassland science}, number = {1}, publisher = {Wiley-Blackwell}, address = {Malden}, issn = {1744-6961}, doi = {10.1111/j.1744-697X.2011.00235.x}, pages = {8 -- 19}, year = {2012}, abstract = {Intensive grazing leads to land degradation and desertification of grassland ecosystems followed by serious environmental and social problems. The Xilingol steppe grassland in Inner Mongolia, China, which has been a sink area for dust for centuries, is strongly affected by the negative effects of overgrazing and wind erosion. The aim of this study is the provision of a wind erosion risk map with a spatial high resolution of 25 m to identify actual source and sink areas. In an integrative approach, field measurements of vegetation features and surface roughness length z0 were combined with Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) image data for a land use classification. To determine the characteristics of the different land use classes, a field observation (ground truth) was performed in April 2009. The correlation of vegetation height and z0 (R2 = 0.8, n = 55) provided the basis for a separation of three main classes, grassland, non-vegetation and other. The integration of the soil-adjusted vegetation index (SAVI) and the spectral information from the atmospheric corrected ASTER bands 1, 2 and 3 (visible to near-infrared) led to a classification of the overall accuracy (OA) of 0.79 with a kappa () statistic of 0.74, respectively. Additionally, a digital elevation model (DEM) was used to identify topographical effects in relation to the main wind direction, which enabled a qualitative estimation of potential dust deposition areas. The generated maps result in a significantly higher description of the spatial variability in the Xilingol steppe grassland reflecting the different land use intensities on the current state of the grassland less, moderately and highly degraded. The wind erosion risk map enables the identification of characteristic mineral dust sources, sinks and transition zones.}, language = {en} } @article{SiegmundFunkKoszinskyetal.2018, author = {Siegmund, Nicole and Funk, Roger and Koszinsky, Sylvia and Buschiazzo, Daniel and Sommer, Michael}, title = {Effects of low-scale landscape structures on aeolian transport processes on arable land}, series = {Aeolian Research}, volume = {32}, journal = {Aeolian Research}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Oxford}, issn = {1875-9637}, doi = {10.1016/j.aeolia.2018.03.003}, pages = {181 -- 191}, year = {2018}, abstract = {The landscape of the semiarid Pampa in central Argentina is characterized by late Pleistocene aeolian deposits, covering large plains with sporadic dune structures. Since the current land use changed from extensive livestock production within the Caldenal forest ecosystem to arable land, the wind erosion risk increased distinctly. We measured wind erosion and deposition patterns at the plot scale and investigated the spatial variability of the erosion processes. The wind-induced mass-transport was measured with 18 Modified Wilson and Cooke samplers (MWAC), installed on a 1.44 ha large field in a 20 x 40 m grid. Physical and chemical soil properties from the upper soil as well as a digital elevation model were recorded in a 20 x 20 m grid. In a 5-month measuring campaign data from seven storms with three different wind directions was obtained. Results show very heterogeneous patterns of erosion and deposition for each storm and indicate favoured erosion on windward and deposits on leeward terrain positions. Furthermore, a multiple regression model was build, explaining up to 70\% of the spatial variance of erosion by just using four predictors: topsoil thickness, relative elevation, soil organic carbon content and slope direction. Our findings suggest a structure-process-structure complex where the landscape structure determines the effects of recent wind erosion processes which again slowly influence the structure, leading to a gradual increase of soil heterogeneity.}, language = {en} } @article{SiegmundFunkSommeretal.2022, author = {Siegmund, Nicole and Funk, Roger and Sommer, Michael and Avecilla, Fernando and Esteban Panebianco, Juan and Iturri, Laura Antonela and Buschiazzo, Daniel}, title = {Horizontal and vertical fluxes of particulate matter during wind erosion on arable land in the province La Pampa, Argentina}, series = {International journal of sediment research}, volume = {37}, journal = {International journal of sediment research}, number = {5}, publisher = {IRTCES}, address = {Beijing}, issn = {1001-6279}, doi = {10.1016/j.ijsrc.2022.01.004}, pages = {539 -- 552}, year = {2022}, abstract = {A detailed analysis of horizontal and vertical particulate matter (PM) fluxes during wind erosion has been done, based on measurements of PM smaller than 10, 2.5, and 1.0 mu mm, at windward and leeward positions on a measuring field. The three fractions of PM measurement are differently influenced by the increasing wind and shear velocities of the wind. The measured concentrations of the coarser fractions of the fine dust, PM10, and PM2.5, increase with wind and shear velocity, whereas the PM1.0 concentrations show no clear correlation to the shear velocity. The share of PM2.5 on PM10 depends on the measurement height and wind speed and varies between 4 and 12 m/s at the 1 m height ranging from 25\% to 7\% (average 10\%), and at the 4 m height from 39\% to 23\% (average 30\%). Although general relationships between wind speed, PM concentration, and horizontal and vertical fluxes could be found, the contribution of the measuring field was very low, as balances of incoming and outgoing fluxes show. Consequently, the measured PM concentrations are determined from a variety of sources, such as traffic on unpaved roads, cattle drives, tillage operations, and wind erosion, and thus, represent all components of land use and landscape structure in the near and far surroundings of the measuring field. The current results may reflect factors from the landscape scale rather than the influence of field-related variables. The measuring devices used to monitor PM concentrations showed differences of up to 20\%, which led to considerable deviations when determining total balances. Differences up to 67\% between the calculated fluxes prove the necessity of a previous calibration of the devices used. (c) 2022 International Research and Training Centre on Erosion and Sedimentation/the World Association for Sedimentation and Erosion Research.}, language = {en} } @article{SiegmundPanebiancoAvecillaetal.2022, author = {Siegmund, Nicole and Panebianco, Juan E. and Avecilla, Fernando and Iturri, Laura Antonela and Sommer, Michael and Buschiazzo, Daniel and Funk, Roger}, title = {From gustiness to dustiness}, series = {Atmosphere}, volume = {13}, journal = {Atmosphere}, number = {8}, publisher = {MDPI}, address = {Basel}, issn = {2073-4433}, doi = {10.3390/atmos13081173}, pages = {14}, year = {2022}, abstract = {This study delivers the first empirical data-driven analysis of the impact of turbulence induced gustiness on the fine dust emissions from a measuring field. For quantification of the gust impact, a new measure, the Gust uptake Efficiency (GuE) is introduced. GuE provides a percentage of over- or under-proportional dust uptake due to gust activity during a wind event. For the three analyzed wind events, GuE values of up to 150\% could be found, yet they significantly differed per particle size class with a tendency for lower values for smaller particles. In addition, a high-resolution correlation analysis among 31 particle size classes and wind speed was conducted; it revealed strong negative correlation coefficients for very small particles and positive correlations for bigger particles, where 5 mu m appears to be an empirical threshold dividing both directions. We conclude with a number of suggestions for further investigations: an optimized field experiment setup, a new particle size ratio (PM1/PM0.5 in addition to PM10/PM2.5), as well as a comprehensive data-driven search for an optimal wind gust definition in terms of soil erosivity.}, language = {en} } @article{WannerElmerSommeretal.2015, author = {Wanner, Manfred and Elmer, Michael and Sommer, Michael and Funk, Roger and Puppe, Daniel}, title = {Testate amoebae colonizing a newly exposed land surface are of airborne origin}, series = {Ecological indicators : integrating monitoring, assessment and management}, volume = {48}, journal = {Ecological indicators : integrating monitoring, assessment and management}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {1470-160X}, doi = {10.1016/j.ecolind.2014.07.037}, pages = {55 -- 62}, year = {2015}, abstract = {We hypothesized that at the very beginning of terrestrial ecosystem development, airborne testate amoebae play a pivotal role in facilitating organismic colonization and related soil processes. We, therefore, analyzed size and quantity of airborne testate amoebae and immigration and colonization success of airborne testate amoebae on a new land surface (experimental site "Chicken Creek", artificial post-mining water catchment). Within an altogether 91-day exposure of 70 adhesive traps, 12 species of testate amoebae were identified to be of airborne origin. Phryganella acropodia (51\% of all individuals found, diameter about 35-45 mu m) and Centropyxis sphagnicola (23\% of all individuals found, longest axis about 55-68 mu m), occurred most frequently in the adhesive traps. We extrapolated an aerial amoeba deposition of 61 individuals d(-1) m(-2) (living and dead individuals combined). Although it would be necessary to have a longer sequence (some additional years), our analysis of the "target substrate" of aerial immigration (catchment site) may point to a shift from a stochastic (variable) beginning of community assembly to a more deterministic (stable) course. This shift was assigned to an age of seven years of initial soil development. Although experienced specialists are necessary to conduct these time-consuming studies, the presented data suggest that terrestrial amoebae are suitable indicators for initial ecosystem development and utilization.}, language = {en} } @article{ZhangWielandReicheetal.2012, author = {Zhang, Zhuo-dong and Wieland, Ralf and Reiche, Matthias and Funk, Roger and Hoffmann, Carsten and Li, Yong and Sommer, Michael}, title = {A computational fluid dynamics model for wind simulation: model implementation and experimental validation}, series = {Journal of Zhejiang University : an international journal ; Science A, Applied physics \& engineering : an international applied physics \& engineering journal}, volume = {13}, journal = {Journal of Zhejiang University : an international journal ; Science A, Applied physics \& engineering : an international applied physics \& engineering journal}, number = {4}, publisher = {Zhejiang University Press}, address = {Hangzou}, issn = {1673-565X}, doi = {10.1631/jzus.A1100231}, pages = {274 -- 283}, year = {2012}, abstract = {To provide physically based wind modelling for wind erosion research at regional scale, a 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) wind model was developed. The model was programmed in C language based on the Navier-Stokes equations, and it is freely available as open source. Integrated with the spatial analysis and modelling tool (SAMT), the wind model has convenient input preparation and powerful output visualization. To validate the wind model, a series of experiments was conducted in a wind tunnel. A blocking inflow experiment was designed to test the performance of the model on simulation of basic fluid processes. A round obstacle experiment was designed to check if the model could simulate the influences of the obstacle on wind field. Results show that measured and simulated wind fields have high correlations, and the wind model can simulate both the basic processes of the wind and the influences of the obstacle on the wind field. These results show the high reliability of the wind model. A digital elevation model (DEM) of an area (3800 m long and 1700 m wide) in the Xilingele grassland in Inner Mongolia (autonomous region, China) was applied to the model, and a 3D wind field has been successfully generated. The clear implementation of the model and the adequate validation by wind tunnel experiments laid a solid foundation for the prediction and assessment of wind erosion at regional scale.}, language = {en} } @article{ZhangWielandReicheetal.2012, author = {Zhang, Zhuodong and Wieland, Ralf and Reiche, Matthias and Funk, Roger and Hoffmann, Carsten and Li, Yong and Sommer, Michael}, title = {Identifying sensitive areas to wind erosion in the xilingele grassland by computational fluid dynamics modelling}, series = {Ecological informatics : an international journal on ecoinformatics and computational ecolog}, volume = {8}, journal = {Ecological informatics : an international journal on ecoinformatics and computational ecolog}, number = {5}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {1574-9541}, doi = {10.1016/j.ecoinf.2011.12.002}, pages = {37 -- 47}, year = {2012}, abstract = {In order to identify the areas in the Xilingele grassland which are sensitive to wind erosion, a computational fluid dynamics model (CFD-WEM) was used to simulate the wind fields over a region of 37 km(2) which contains different topography and land use types. Previous studies revealed the important influences of topography and land use on wind erosion in the Xilingele grassland. Topography influences wind fields at large scale, and land use influences wind fields near the ground. Two steps were designed to implement the CFD wind simulation, and they were respectively to simulate the influence of topography and surface roughness on the wind. Digital elevation model (DEM) and surface roughness length were the key inputs for the CFD simulation. The wind simulation by CFD-WEM was validated by a wind data set which was measured simultaneously at six positions in the field. Three scenarios with different wind velocities were designed based on observed dust storm events, and wind fields were simulated according to these scenarios to predict the sensitive areas to wind erosion. General assumptions that cropland is the most sensitive area to wind erosion and heavily and moderately grazed grasslands are both sensitive etc. can be refined by the modelling of CFD-WEM. Aided by the results of this study, the land use planning and protection measures against wind erosion can be more efficient. Based on the case study in the Xilingele grassland, a method of regional wind erosion assessment aided by CFD wind simulation is summarized. The essence of this method is a combination of CFD wind simulation and determination of threshold wind velocity for wind erosion. Because of the physically-based simulation and the flexibility of the method, it can be generalised to other regions.}, language = {en} }