Lateritic Red Soil Research Articles

Effectiveness of Phosphate-Solubilizing Aspergillus fumigatus MCC 1721 in Boosting Fenugreek Yield in Red Laterite Soil

Effectiveness of Phosphate-Solubilizing Aspergillus fumigatus MCC 1721 in Boosting Fenugreek Yield in Red Laterite Soil

Seasonal hypoxia enhances sediment iron-bound phosphorus release in a subtropical river reservoir

Dams worldwide commonly accelerate the eutrophication of reservoirs. While the seasonal hypoxia in deep reservoirs is widely acknowledged, there is limited research on its impact on benthic phosphorus (P) cycling and P fraction release from the reservoir sediments. Here we show that seasonal hypoxia enhances sediment P release and P fluxes at the sediment-water interface (SWI) which might alter P dynamics in deep reservoirs. We conducted a detailed measurement of sediment P fractions through the SEDEX approach, combined with a labile P gradient analysis using the diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT) technique to understand P cycling patterns in sediments during the transition period from spring (oxic) to late summer (hypoxic) conditions. The sediment P pool was predominantly composed of iron-bound phosphorus (Fe−P, 76–80 %), primarily due to the widespread occurrence of lateritic red soil (rich in Fe2O3/MnO2) in subtropical areas. More organic-P was observed in summer compared to spring. A significant increase in labile P occurred at the depth of 0–4 cm and 0–1 cm in spring and summer, respectively, where sediment P release was primarily governed by the reduction of Fe−P and the generation of S2−. A higher apparent fluxes of phosphate across the SWI were observed in summer characterized by higher temperature and lower oxygen levels. The current results suggest that seasonal hypoxia was a crucial factor affecting P cycling and diffusion in deep reservoirs. These findings present important implications for the ecology and management of the watershed-coast ecosystem.

Sugarcane leaf return and mixing significantly reduce slope runoff and soil loss

AbstractImproper management of sugarcane cultivation may cause severe soil erosion, especially in lateritic red soil hilly areas. Crop straw return to the field can effectively improve the soil structure, but there is a lack of evaluation studies of the soil and water conservation benefits of sugarcane leaf mixing and return to the field, and the underlying regulatory mechanism has rarely been described. Thus, we conducted a series of simulated rainfall experiments to investigate the impact of returning different mixed sugarcane leaf weights (0, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 t/ha) to the field on erodible lateritic red soil slopes that support sugarcane production under various slopes (5°, 10°, 15° and 20°) in different rainfall events (60 and 120 mm/h). The results indicated that returning sugarcane leaves into farmland could effectively regulate the process of runoff and sediment production on lateritic red soil slopes, and the optimal mixing amount was 9 t/ha. Under a low rainfall intensity, the erosion process was mainly affected by the slope, and the benefits of applying the sugarcane leaf mixing treatment to the slope to reduce runoff and sediment could reach 13.37–53.04% and 23.86–77.55%, respectively. However, under a high rainfall intensity, the sugarcane leaf mixing amount was the main influencing factor, the benefits for reducing runoff and sediment could reach 4.64–38.72% and 30.87–93.14%, respectively. The sugarcane leaf mixing amount exhibited a linear relationship with the Reynolds number (R2 > 0.63), whereas the runoff velocity (R2 > 0.96), Froude number (R2 > 0.94) and drag coefficient (R2 > 0.85) exhibited well‐fitting exponential function relationship with it. This study provides a reference for future endeavours regarding the inhibition mechanisms of sugarcane leaves mixed and returned to the field for decreasing slope erosion.

Bioaccessibility and human health risks of arsenic from geological origin in lateritic red soil on construction land

Current human health risk assessments of soil arsenic (As) contamination rarely consider bioaccessibility (IVBA), which may overestimate the health risks of soil As. The IVBA of As (As-IVBA) may differ among various soil types. This investigation of As-IVBA focused As from geological origin in a typical subtropical soil, lateritic red soil, and its risk control values. The study used the SBRC gastric phase in vitro digestion method and As speciation sequential extraction based upon phosphorus speciation extraction method. Two construction land sites (CH and HD sites) in the Pearl River Delta region were surveyed. The results revealed a high content of residual As (including scorodite, mansfieldite, orpiment, realgar, and aluminum arsenite) in the lateritic red soils at both sites (CH: 84.9%, HD: 91.7%). The content of adsorbed aluminum arsenate (CH: 3.24%, HD: 0.228%), adsorbed ferrum arsenate (CH: 8.55%, HD: 5.01%), and calcium arsenate (CH: 7.33%, HD: 3.01%) were found to be low. The bioaccessible As content was significantly positively correlated with the As content in adsorbed aluminum arsenate, adsorbed ferrum arsenate, and calcium arsenate. A small portion of these sequential extractable As speciation could be absorbed by the human body (CH: 14.9%, HD: 3.16%), posing a certain health risk. Adsorbed aluminum arsenate had the highest IVBA, followed by calcium arsenate, and adsorbed ferrum arsenate had the lowest IVBA. The aforementioned speciation characteristics of As from geological origin in lateritic red soil contributed to its lower IVBA compared to other soils. The oxidation state of As did not significantly affect As-IVBA. Based on As-IVBA, the carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks of soil As in the CH and HD sites decreased greatly in human health risk assessment. The results suggest that As-IVBA in lateritic red soil should be considered when assessing human health risks on construction land.

A Remote Sensing Approach to Estimating Cropland Sustainability in the Lateritic Red Soil Region of China

Spatiotemporal assessment and a comprehensive understanding of cropland sustainability are prerequisites for ensuring food security and promoting sustainable development. However, a remote sensing-based approach framework that is suitable for large-scale and high-precision assessment and can reflect the overall sustainability of cropland has not yet been developed. This study considered a typical lateritic red soil region of Guangdong Province, China, as an example. Cropland sustainability was examined from three aspects: natural capacity, management level, and food productivity. Ten typical indicators, including soil organic matter, pH, irrigation guarantee capability, multiple cropping index, and food productivity, among others, were constructed using remote sensing technology and selected to represent these three aspects. Based on the indicator system, we assessed the spatiotemporal patterns of cropland sustainability from 2010 to 2020. The results showed that the natural capacity, management level, and food productivity of cropland had improved over the 10 years. The cropland sustainability score increased from 67.95 to 69.08 over this period. The sustainability scores for 68.64% of cropland were increased and were largely distributed in the eastern and western region of the study area. The croplands with declining sustainability scores were mostly distributed in the central region. The prefecture-level regions differed in cropland sustainability, with Zhongshan, Zhuhai, and Qingyuan cities exhibiting the highest values, and Zhanjiang the lowest. Exploring the underlying mechanisms of cropland sustainability and proposing improvement measures can guide decision-making, cropland protection, and efficient utilization, especially in similar lateritic red soil regions of the world.

Residue Kinetics of Insecticide Pymetrozine in Rice Field Soil

Soils are the most diverse and complex ecosystem in the world. In addition to providing humanity with 98.8% of its food, soils provide a broad range of other services, from carbon storage and greenhouse gas regulation, to flood mitigation and providing support for our sprawling cities. Therefore, protection of soil health from various pollutants including pesticides is important for its future sustenance. The pesticide Pymetrozine widely used in rice fields for the control of aphids and whiteflies is also registered in India for crop protection in Paddy. This study aimed to examine how long the pesticide Pymetrozine persists and how it breaks down in different types of soil in West Bengal. This research was conducted through laboratory experiments using LC-MS/MS at Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Nadia. Applied two doses of Pymetrozine and analyzed soil samples over 30 days. Pymetrozine levels decreased by 95-97% after 15 days and fell below detectable levels after 30 days. Dissipation followed first-order kinetics, with a faster rate in new alluvial soil compared to red lateritic soil. This difference could be due to variations in soil properties, like organic carbon content and water retention.

Phenotypic characterization of Indian mustard using agronomic and quality traits under semi‐arid climate

AbstractIndian mustard is an important oilseed crop in India. The productivity of Indian mustard needs to be increased in marginal environments such as in arid and semi‐arid areas to boost production. For this, identification of promising genotypes with high yield and quality under arid and semi‐arid climate is required. In this study, 65 genotypes of Indian mustard were evaluated in Augmented Randomized Block Design in the Purulia district of West Bengal, a mustard growing zone characterized by red laterite soil and semi‐arid climate. Considerable variation was observed between the genotypes for most characters such as number of seeds per siliqua (coefficient of variation [CV] 7.39%), followed by days to first flowering (CV 6.9%) and total number of siliquae (CV 6.43%), respectively. However, variation was less for days to maturity and quality parameters. Strong positive correlations were observed between many traits such as number of branches and number of siliquae on branches (0.82), number of branches and siliquae per plant (0.73), number of branches and yield per plant (0.72), number of siliquae on branches and siliquae per plant (0.91), number of siliquae on branches and seed yield per plant (0.76). Relatively strong negative correlation was observed only between oil and glucosinolate content (−0.60). Most of the traits showed high heritability along with high genetic advance over mean. Principal component analysis and cluster analysis classified the genotypes into six clusters. Based on yield, its components, and other quality parameters, promising genotypes such as Pusa Mahak, Narendra Ageti Rai 4, and JM‐1 were identified. These genotypes may be targeted for further genetic improvement or be incorporated in breeding programmes for developing high‐yielding mustard varieties for arid and semi‐arid climate.

Non-linear memory-based learning for predicting soil properties using a regional vis-NIR spectral library

Visible near-infrared (vis-NIR) spectroscopy has gained widespread recognition as an efficient and reliable approach for the rapid monitoring of soil properties. This technique relies on robust machine learning models that convert soil spectra information to soil properties. In particular, memory-based learning (MBL) has emerged as a powerful local modeling technique for soil spectral analysis. However, conventional MBL algorithms use linear models, disregarding the non-linear relationship between soil properties and vis-NIR spectra. Therefore, we hypothesize that non-linear memory-based learning (N-MBL) models can enhance prediction. This study develops and evaluates the N-MBL algorithm using the Lateritic Red soil spectral library (LRSSL) from Guangdong province in China. This library consists of 742 samples of vis-NIR spectra and corresponding soil properties, including pH, soil organic matter (SOM), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), and total potassium (TK). As a comparison, several commonly used supervised learning methods, such as Partial least squares regression (PLSR), Cubist, Random Forest (RF), Super vector machine (SVM), Convolution neural network (CNN), and local models (MBL), were compared to the proposed N-MBL. The results showed that local models generally outperformed supervised learning methods, particularly when applied to a large soil spectral library with a substantial number of samples (over 500). When comparing the two local models, MBL had more fluctuation of model performance compared to N-MBL as the number of selected nearest neighbors (k) varied between 30 and 250. As k increased, N-MBL showed higher R2 values for SOM and TN prediction than MBL but lower performance for pH and TK prediction. In addition, N-MBL outperformed MBL in predicting TP. In conclusion, N-MBL is a new local algorithm for predicting soil properties from vis-NIR spectra. It has a high potential to improve the accuracy of the prediction of multiple soil properties.

Enhancing phosphorus bioavailability in lateritic red soil: Combining Bacillus subtilis inoculated microbial organic fertilizer with reduced chemical input

AbstractOptimal phosphorus (P) levels in lateritic soils are key for sustainable crop production. However, the effect of various fertilizers on soil phosphorus pools, crop phosphorus uptake and crop yields remains unclear. This study investigated the effect of different fertilizer application strategies on plant growth and soil P fractions and determined the contribution of biotic and abiotic factors to insoluble P release. We found that resin‐P, NaHCO3‐P and NaOH‐P represented the primary active P pools in the lateritic soil, contributing 59.8% of the total P in conventional fertilizer application (CF), with Fe/Al‐bound P (NaOH‐P) being 42.1% of the active P pool. Combining Nangbowang (NBW), a microbial organic fertilizer inoculated with Bacillus subtilis (≥2 × 107 million CFU g−1), with reduced chemical fertilizer (NBW + CR) increased soil P availability and promoted the release of Fe/Al‐bound P and residual‐P, decreasing the Fe/Al‐bound P to 21.7%. Soil biological factors mainly influenced the P transformation process. With the consumption of soil active P, NBW bio‐organic fertilizer enhanced the niche filtration of P‐solubilizing bacterial communities (Gemmatimonadetes, Sphingomonas and Halomonas), altered the soil functional microbial community structure and promoted P form conversion. The NBW + CR treatment also enhanced nitrogen and P nutrient uptake by pepper plants (Capsicum annuum), with increased total P concentrations in pepper fruit and stem, and improved crop yield. NBW increased active P concentrations in the soil and promoted Fe/Al‐P release and transformation by impacting autochthonous microbes involved in the conversion of P chemical species. These results can guide the improvement of P availability and release in lateritic red soils using bio‐organic fertilizer.

Influence of lime and organics on phosphorus sorption–desorption kinetics in red-lateritic soils of West Bengal

Influence of lime and organics on phosphorus sorption–desorption kinetics in red-lateritic soils of West Bengal

Phosphorus can effectively reduce selenium adsorption in selenium-rich lateritic red soil

Phosphorus (P) application can improve the availability of selenium (Se) in soil, which benefits the output of Se-rich agricultural products. However, the mechanism by which P affects the adsorption of Se in Se-rich soil is still unclear. Therefore, this study took Se-rich lateritic red soil as the research object and studied the adsorption behavior of P and Se in the soil through batch adsorption tests and soil characterization technology. The results showed that the adsorption of P or Se in lateritic red soil increased with an increase in equilibrium concentration. The P or Se adsorption process was explained using the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models. After adding P, the adsorption of Se decreased from 276–423 mg/kg to 52–201 mg/kg at different initial Se concentrations. The scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM-EDS) results showed that the lateritic red soil was rich in C, O, Fe, Al, and other elements, and the free oxidation states of these elements could efficiently facilitate the adsorption of P and Se. Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses indicated that both Se and P could react with ferrite groups in the soil to form iron-containing complexes, and there was a competitive adsorption phenomenon, which was the main reason for the decrease in Se adsorption. This study provides theoretical support for further exploring the effect of P on Se behavior in the geochemical cycle. Furthermore, it promotes the efficient use of Se-rich soil resources.

Metal oxide modified biochars for fertile soil management: Effects on soil phosphorus transformation, enzyme activity, microbe community, and plant growth

Metal oxide modified biochars are increasingly being used for intensive agricultural soil remediation, but there has been limited research on their effects on soil phosphorus transformation, soil enzyme activity, microbe community and plant growth. Two highly-performance metal oxides biochars (FeAl-biochar and MgAl-biochar) were investigated for their effects on soil phosphorus availability, fractions, enzyme activity, microbe community and plant growth in two typical intensive fertile agricultural soils. Adding raw biochar to acidic soil increased NH4Cl–P content, while metal oxide biochar reduced NH4Cl–P content by binding to phosphorus. Original biochar slightly reduced Al–P content in lateritic red soil, while metal oxide biochar increased it. LBC and FBC significantly reduced Ca2–P and Ca8–P properties while improving Al–P and Fe–P, respectively. Inorganic phosphorus-solubilizing bacteria increased in abundance with biochar amendment in both soil types, and biochar addition affected soil pH and phosphorus fractions, leading to changes in bacterial growth and community structure. Biochar's microporous structure allowed it to adsorb phosphorus and aluminum ions, making them more available for plants and reducing leaching. In calcareous soils, biochar additions may dominantly increase the Ca (hydro)oxides bounded P or soluble P instead of Fe–P or Al–P through biotic pathways, favoring plant growth. The recommendations for using metal oxides biochar for fertile soil management include using LBC biochar for optimal performance in both P leaching reduction and plant growth promotion, with the mechanisms differing depending on soil type. This research highlights the potential of metal oxide modified biochars for improving soil fertility and reducing phosphorus leaching, with specific recommendations for their use in different soil types.

Effects of microorganisms on soil selenium and its uptake by pak choi in selenium-enriched lateritic red soil

Data on selenium (Se) transformation, specifically the mineralization or activation of Se bound by microorganisms in natural Se-enriched soil, is limited. Therefore, this study investigates the effects of microorganisms on Se availability of Se-enriched lateritic red soil and Se uptake by pak choi. Following the incubation of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia S1 and arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi agent, the available Se content of soils increased from 35 to 66.69–117.04 μg/kg, corresponding to an increase of 90.50–234.40%. The Se bioconcentration and translocation factors in pak choi increased after adding the AM fungi agent and strain S1. The soil acid phosphatase activity, and pak choi root length, surface area, and diameter also increased. Moreover, the soil acid phosphatase activity showed a significant positive correlation with soil available Se and phosphorus content (p < 0.01). Overall, the AM fungi agent and strain S1 increased Se bioavailability by enhancing soil acid phosphatase and promoting root activity, ultimately increasing pak choi’s ability to absorb available Se.

Chromium in soil detection using adaptive weighted normalization and linear weighted network framework for LIBS matrix effect reduction

Rapid and accurate detection of agricultural soil chromium (Cr) is of great significance for soil pollution assessment. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) could serve as a rapid and chemical-free method for hazardous metal analysis compared with conventional chemical methods. However, the detection of LIBS is interfered by uncertainty and matrix effect. In this study, an average strategy combined with linear weighted network (LWNet) was proposed to reduce the uncertainty. Adaptive weighted normalization-LWNet (AWN-LWNet) framework was proposed to reduce the matrix effect in two soil types. The results indicated that LWNet outperformed traditional machine learning and achieved the average relative error (ARE) of 2.08 % and 3.03 % for yellow brown soil and lateritic red soil, respectively. Moreover, LWNet could effectively mine Cr feature peaks even under the low spectral resolution. AWN-LWNet was the optimal model compared with commonly used models to reduce matrix effect (ARE=4.12 %). Besides, AWN-LWNet greatly reduced the number (from 22016 to 72) of spectral variables for model input. By extracting Cr peaks from models, the difference of Cr peaks intensity could be intuitively observed, which served as spectral interpretation for matrix effect reduction. The two methods have the potential to realize the detection of hazardous metals in soil by LIBS.

Multiresidue analysis of pesticides in three Indian soils: method development and validation using gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry

The paper reports a multiresidue method that was validated on 220 multi-class pesticides in three major Indian soils, namely, (i) new alluvial soil (NAS); (ii) red lateritic soil (RS) and (iii) black soil (BS) from three different regions. An ethyl acetate-based extraction method with a freezing-out cleanup step was employed for sample preparation, followed by gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometric analysis. The method that was initially optimized on BS worked satisfactorily for the other two soil matrices. At the spiking level of 10 µg/kg (LOQ), the recoveries were satisfactory (within 70–120%) with precision-RSDs, ≤20% (n = 6) for 85, 88.6, and 89% of compounds in BS, RS, and NAS respectively. At 20 µg/kg, the method performance was satisfactory in each soil for all pesticides. When this validated method was applied to analyse 25 field samples, 6 pesticides were detected in them. In each case, precision (RSD) was <20%. The method sensitivity, accuracy and precision complied with the SANTE/2020/12830 guidelines. The method can be applied for environmental monitoring and risk assessment purposes, thus aiding in regulating pesticide usage in agricultural fields. The limitations and future scope of the study are also discussed. Highlights A multiresidue method is reported for simultaneous analysis of multi-class pesticides in diverse soils The method was validated on 220 pesticides in new alluvial, red lateritic and black soils Sample preparation involved extraction with ethyl acetate and cleanup by a freezing step The residues were estimated by gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) The method accuracy and precision complied with the EU’s SANTE guidelines

Stability and splash erosion characteristics of lateritic red soil aggregates in the South Subtropical Zone of China

Stability and splash erosion characteristics of lateritic red soil aggregates in the South Subtropical Zone of China

Characteristics of Soil Erodibility in the Yinna Mountainous Area, Eastern Guangdong Province, China

Soil erodibility research is of theoretical and practical significance to the prediction and prevention of regional soil erosion. At present, the study on soil erodibility in the lateritic red soil area of eastern Guangdong province is relatively lacking. Taking the forest land soil of the Yinna mountainous area as the research object, the physical and chemical properties (organic matter mass fraction, texture, moisture, bulk density, pH, aggregate content) of soil samples at different altitudes were measured with field survey sampling and indoor analysis. Soil erodibility K values were simulated with different models (the EPIC model, the Torri model, and the Shirazi model) and the regional applicability of the K simulation models was discussed. The influence of soil properties on soil erodibility was analyzed. The results showed that: (1) K values in the Yinna mountainous area are between 0.0250 and 0.0331 t·hm2·h/MJ·mm·hm2, and the K value in the subsoil layer (20-40 cm) is higher than that of the topsoil layer (0-20 cm). These values decreased significantly with the increase of altitude. The soil in the study area belongs to low-medium to medium erodible soil types. (2) The three models have certain applicability in the Yinna mountainous area, but the simulation results still lack validation. (3) Soil particle size composition is the most important factor affecting the K value in the study area. As far as the topsoil is concerned, K values increase with the increase of clay and silt content and decrease with the increase of sand content and aggregate stability. Soil erodibility has no significant correlation with pH and bulk density and has no clear relationship with the content of soil organic carbon and soil moisture. The research results can provide basic data for regional soil and water conservation and the construction of K value databases of different soil types in China.

Soil microbial population as affected by tillage and rice cultivation modes in Stagnic Anthrosols and Lateritic Red Earth soils in Southern China

The microbial population (MP) is considered to be a relatively important part of soil health, quality, and productivity. Therefore, this study aimed to access the effects of tillage and rice cultivation modes on soil MP in Stagnic Anthrosols and Lateritic Red Earth soils. The treatments were as follows: (i) MDS: land tilled twice with a moldboard plow and hill-seeding of pregerminated seeds with a direct seeding machine of four to six seeds per hill at a planting space of 25 × 15 cm, (ii) RDS: land tilled twice with a rotary tiller and hill-seeding of pregerminated seeds with a direct seeding machine of four to six seeds per hill at a planting space of 25 × 15 cm, (iii) MMT: land tilled twice with a moldboard plow and 15-day-old seedlings were mechanically transplanted with a transplanting machine at a transplanting hill of four to six seedlings and at a transplanting space of 25 × 15 cm, and (iv) RMT: land tilled twice with a rotary tiller and 15-day-old seedlings were mechanically transplanted with a transplanting machine at a transplanting hill of four to six seedlings and a transplanting space of 25 × 15 cm. The findings showed that MDS improved the MP and increases rice yield. MDS showed a high increase in MP in both locations and the rice productivity of 32.81% (1H; first harvest) and 13.91% (2H; second harvest) and 16.48% (1H) and 18.13% (2H) for Zeng-Cheng and Yi-Yang, respectively. In conclusion, MDS was found to be better in improving the MP and increasing rice yield and could be adopted as a suitable approach for improving soil health, quality, and productivity.

Land Use and Soil Type Exert Strongly Interactive Impacts on the pH Buffering Capacity of Acidic Soils in South China

Soil acidification is a severe environmental problem around the world. Soil pH buffering capacity (pHBC) is the intrinsic factor affecting the soil acidification rate and is intensively impacted by anthropogenic and natural conditions. However, composite assessments of the effects of land use and soil type on soil pHBC are still limited. Therefore, we collected samples of five soil types (red soil, lateritic red soil, latosol, paddy soil and acid sulphate soil) from two land use patterns of agricultural and adjacent forest fields at different depths (0–10 cm, 10–20 cm and 20–30 cm) in South China, aiming to investigate the effects of land use and soil type on soil pHBC in this region. The results show that land use, soil type and their interactions greatly influence soil pHBC and physico-chemical properties. Forest soils have a significantly higher pHBC (11.40–49.50 mmol·kg−1 soil·unit−1 pH), cation exchange capacity (CEC), exchangeable Al3+ (EAl3+) and clay content than agricultural soils. Acid sulphate soil has the highest pHBC (49.27–117.83 mmol·kg−1 soil·unit−1 pH) values and exchangeable acid (EA) content among all investigated soil types, whereas lateritic red soil has the lowest pHBC (10.56–31.71 mmol·kg−1 soil·unit−1 pH). In agricultural fields, soil pHBC is positively related to CEC, soil organic carbon (SOC) and EA, indicating that agricultural soils may be in a cation exchange buffering stage. The soil pHBC of forest fields is positively correlated with SOC and EAl3+, implying that forest soils may be in the Al buffering stage. In conclusion, soil pHBC would vary with different land use forms and soil types, in which a series of key complex physico-chemical processes and interactions would occur to regulate soil pH buffering capacity.

A Study of Cost Comparison of Flexible Pavement Using Different Soils

India is home to the world’s second-largest road network. It has a diverse range of soil types, each with its own set of conditions and characteristics, on which the road network is built. IRC: 37-2018 was used for the Design and Cost Analysis of Flexible Pavement for five distinct types of soils: Black cotton soil, Alluvial soil, Sandy soil, Red Laterite soil, and Murram soil. The Resilient modulus which depends on CBR value of the soil has been found to influence the pavement thickness, strength and performance. The project’s cost is determined by the pavement thickness, which again is determined by the soil’s CBR value. By employing a soil with a high CBR value, the project’s pavement thickness and cost will be decreased. On poor or problematic soils, soil stabilisation techniques should be employed to improve CBR value and save project expenses. According to the findings, employing the CBR value improves the pavement’s strength and hence saves time when planning a pavement.