An Improved Procedure for Collection and Preservation of Soil Profiles

Abstract

AbstractThe monolith and lacquer peel methods of soil profile collection proved to be unworkable for an 8‐m high wall that contained both fine loams and loose gravel. A new procedure was developed that has advantages over either of the commonly used procedures. Polyurethane foam is injected as a binder and filler between the soil and the field backing board. The foam dries hard overnight making it possible for two people to remove 2‐m sections of profile on the following day. The field backing board is also the final mounting board, so less time is spent in the laboratory preparing samples than with the traditional monolith procedure. Polyurethane foam makes it possible to collect larger profiles that can be more easily managed than the traditional monolith. It can be used on a wider range of textures than the lacquer peel method, and requires less time in the field because foam requires less drying time than lacquer. The foam method is an efficient way to collect large soil profiles.