Erosion Control Methods Research Articles

An appraisal of two qualitative field trials comparing methods of erosion control on earth slopes. Conference. Session five. Synopsis

An appraisal of two qualitative field trials comparing methods of erosion control on earth slopes. Conference. Session five. Synopsis

Paper 31: An Experiment on Erosion Control, Using a 60-Mw Steam Turbine

A twin-exhaust steam turbine of 60-MW output was used for a field study of a method of wet steam erosion control which had been examined previously under laboratory conditions. The last stage of one exhaust was modified so that measured quantities of steam and water could be extracted, or steam injected through slots in the trailing edges of the diaphragm blades. Variations in erosion rates of the last-stage moving blades in both exhausts were compared by recording continuously the changes in emissivity of radio-active labels attached to sample blades. An introscope was used to study flow conditions during the experiment, and after some five months' operation the set was opened up for inspection, which confirmed the estimates that water extraction reduced erosion by a factor of 5.

Erosion-Control Needs and the Intensification of Agriculture

AbstractIncreasing intensification of agriculture requires an integrated approach to erosion control on a broad scale, making use of a combination of moisture-retaining tillage methods, runoff-regulating engineering devices and the inclusion of soil-conserving crops in rotation schemes on eroded fields. Erosion-control methods used thus far on Soviet farms are limited largely to grass-crop rotations, the planting of trees along gullies, and contour tillage, and they lack an integrated approach.

Erosion Rates and Control Methods on Highway Cuts

RESEARCH WAS CONDUCTED IN THE COOSA RIVER WATERSHED TO: (1) DETERMINE FACTORS AFFECTING RATES OF RUNOFF, EROSION, AND SEDIMENT PRODUCTION FROM HIGHWAY CUTS, AND (2) DETERMINE THE MOST EFFECTIVE TYPES PLANT COVER AND THE FERTILITY AND CULTURAL REQUIREMENTS NECESSARY FOR QUICK ESTABLISHMENT AND ADEQUATE MAINTENANCE ON HIGHWAY CUTS. THE STUDIES TO DETERMINE THE RATES OF RUNOFF, EROSION, AND SEDIMENT PRODUCTION CONTINUED FOR ABOUT THREE YEARS AND CENTERED AROUND SIX UNVEGETATED PLOTS ON HIGHWAY CUTS. THE RATE OF ANNUAL SOIL LOSS ON BARE ROAD CUTS AND HIGHWAY DITCHES REACHES ALARMING PROPORTIONS. IN ADDITION TO DESTROYING THE NATURAL BEAUTY AND CREATING UNSIGHTLY SCENERY, THE LOSS IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM TO AGRICULTURE, RESERVOIRS, STREAMS, AND HIGHWAY MAINTENANCE. HAZARDOUS DRIVING CONDITIONS ALSO MAY BE CREATED BY THE EROSION. ADAPTABLE PLANS ON PROPERLY FERTILIZED AREAS CAN DEVELOP AN EFFECTIVE COVER WHICH WILL CONTROL EROSION ON THESE AREAS. MULCHES ARE ESSENTIAL FOR A COVER DEVELOPMENT ON THE STEEPER CUTS AND FOR PLANTS THAT ARE SLOW IN DEVELOPING A COMPLETE COVER.

The Nature and Controlling Variables of the Water Erosion Process

Summary-ConclusionsIt has been shown in the foregoing that the water erosion process is largely controlled by the following principal variables: 1.Soil erodibility 2.Climatic erosivity 3.Infiltration capacity 4.Surface storage capacity 5.Degree of slope 6.Length of slope 7.Cover protectivity Obviously research into the fundamentals of the erosion process must consist principally of studies of these variables. Space is not available to discuss the various ways in which these studies may be carried out. It is fairly apparent, however, that each variable should be investigated singly and in various combinations. Furthermore, all possible methods of approach should be employed. In addition to long-term field studies at permanent experiment stations, full advantage should be taken of the possibilities of fully controlled laboratory and field experiments. It is especially important that easily measured indices be invented for each of the principal variables, and nation-wide surveys made to evaluate these indices in all of the important agricultural problem areas of the country. These evaluations will form a rational basis for the design of erosion control measures. In the foregoing, it was not intended to infer that research into the fundamental nature of the erosion process constitutes a complete program of soil conservation research. Such a program would involve the study of: 1.The fundamentals of the process 2.Methods of erosion control 3.The reclamation of eroded soils It is clear that only the first phase of a complete program has been here treated. Nevertheless, to repeat the statement made in the introduction, this phase is of first importance, for the rational control of any physical phenomenon requires a clear understanding of the fundamental factors involved.

A quantitative study of certain factors affecting soil‐ and water‐losses as the logical basis for developing practical methods of erosion control

Efforts at a quantitative study of the physical factors affecting the rate and amount of erosion and surface‐runoff show that a wide range of natural forces, many of them uncontrollable, affect the results. Among the latter type are to be included those of a climatic nature such as intensity, duration and frequency of rains, as well as the time of their occurrence, especially with reference to particular surface‐conditions such as frozen, dry, or saturated soils, etc. Those factors having to do with topography also are included in this group, since the degree of slope is doubtless one of the most important influences controlling the course of erosion.