High precision tracing of soil and sediment movement using fluorescent tracers at hillslope scale

Generating high resolution spatial information on the movement of sediment in response to soil erosion remains a major research challenge. In this paper we present a new tracing method that utilises LED (light emitting diode) light to induce fluorescence in a sand‐sized tracer, which is then detecte...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Earth surface processes and landforms 2019-04, Vol.44 (5), p.1091-1099
Main Authors: Hardy, R.A., Quinton, J.N., James, M.R., Fiener, P., Pates, J.M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
CMOS
Digital cameras
digital imaging
Earth
Earth surface
Erosion models
Fluorescence
Fluorescent indicators
Fluorescent tracers
Landforms
Light emitting diodes
Metal oxide semiconductors
Metals
Production methods
Removal
Resolution
Sediment
Sediment movement
Sediments
Soil
Soil dynamics
Soil erosion
Soil erosion models
Soil profiles
Soil properties
Spatial data
Tillage
tracer
Tracers
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Summary:Generating high resolution spatial information on the movement of sediment in response to soil erosion remains a major research challenge. In this paper we present a new tracing method that utilises LED (light emitting diode) light to induce fluorescence in a sand‐sized tracer, which is then detected, using a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) sensor in a commercial digital camera, at mm‐resolution without the need for removal of soil material. First, we detail two complementary, but independent, methods for quantifying the concentration of tracer from images: particle counting and an intensity based method. We show that both methods can produce highly resolved estimates of particle concentrations under laboratory conditions. Secondly, we demonstrate the power of the method for collecting spatial information on soil redistribution by tillage, with mm precision, over an approximately 50 m hillslope and vertically down the soil profile. Our work demonstrates the potential to collect quantitative time‐resolved data about soil movement without disturbing the soil surface which is being studied, and with it the possibility to parameterise or evaluate dynamic distributed soil erosion models or to undertake fundamental research focused on particle movement that has been impossible to conduct previously. © 2018 The Authors. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. First, we show how two complementary, but independent, methods for quantifying the concentration of tracer from images can produce highly resolved estimates of particle concentrations in the laboratory. Second, we demonstrate the power of the method for collecting spatial information on soil redistribution, with mm precision, over an approximately 50 m hillslope and vertically down the soil profile. Our work demonstrates the potential to collect quantitative time‐resolved data about soil movement without disturbing the soil surface that is being studied.
ISSN:0197-9337
1096-9837
DOI:10.1002/esp.4557