Small-scale Laboratory Studies Research Articles

Quantification and Categorization of Macroplastics (Plastic Debris) within a Headwaters Basin in Western North Carolina, USA: Implications to the Potential Impacts of Plastic Pollution on Biota

Plastic production on a commercial scale began in the 1950s, reaching an annual production of 460 million metric tons in 2019. The global release of 22% of produced plastics into the environment has raised concerns about their potential environmental impacts, particularly on aquatic ecosystems. Here, we quantify and categorize plastic debris found along Richland Creek, a small, heavily forested watershed in western North Carolina, USA. Plastics within the riparian zone of seven 50 m reaches of Richland Creek and its tributaries were sampled two or three times. The 1737 pieces of collected plastic debris were returned to the lab where they were measured and categorized. A small-scale laboratory study using seven of the items collected was performed to determine their ability to break down into microplastics (particles < 5 mm in size). The majority (76%) of collected items were made of either plastic film (particularly bags and food wrappers, 43%) or hard plastics (e.g., bottles, 2%). However, when viewed on a surface area basis, films and synthetic fabrics (e.g., clothing, sleeping bags) equally dominated. Roughly three-quarters of the items collected had a width less than 10 cm, due primarily to the fragmentation of the original items; over two-thirds of the collected items were fragmented. Items composed of foams and films exhibited the highest fragmentation rates, 93% and 86%, respectively. Most collected plastics were domestic in nature, and the number of items increased downstream through more developed areas. Laboratory studies showed that plastic debris has a propensity to break down into microplastics. We believe the data collected here should be replicated in other streams, as these freshwater environments are the source of plastics that eventually enter the oceans.

An Experimental Study on the Socketed Pile in Soft Rock

Pile foundation systems are used in India in many projects such as metro and railways, flyovers, and multi-story buildings. The pile transfers superstructure load to the substructure, i.e. to rock layers by means of skin resistance and end-bearing resistance. In this study, an attempt is made to observe the performance of socketed piles in soft rock. A series of socketed small-scale model pile load laboratory studies have been conducted using the loading frame. Load tests were performed on a model steel pile to calculate its axial load-bearing capability at various socket depths. An unconfined compression test was performed on pseudo-rock variations to find out the properties of the soft rock used. The results showed the ability of the drilled pile to enhance the strength of the pseudo rock. An attempt was also made to calculate the optimum depth for the socketed pile in soft rock.

Context-dependent choice and evaluation in real-world consumer behavior

A body of work spanning neuroscience, economics, and psychology indicates that decision-making is context-dependent, which means that the value of an option depends not only on the option in question, but also on the other options in the choice set—or the ‘context’. While context effects have been observed primarily in small-scale laboratory studies with tightly constrained, artificially constructed choice sets, it remains to be determined whether these context effects take hold in real-world choice problems, where choice sets are large and decisions driven by rich histories of direct experience. Here, we investigate whether valuations are context-dependent in real-world choice by analyzing a massive restaurant rating dataset as well as two independent replication datasets which provide complementary operationalizations of restaurant choice. We find that users make fewer ratings-maximizing choices in choice sets with higher-rated options—a hallmark of context-dependent choice—and that post-choice restaurant ratings also varied systematically with the ratings of unchosen restaurants. Furthermore, in a follow-up laboratory experiment using hypothetical choice sets matched to the real-world data, we find further support for the idea that subjective valuations of restaurants are scaled in accordance with the choice context, providing corroborating evidence for a general mechanistic-level account of these effects. Taken together, our results provide a potent demonstration of context-dependent choice in real-world choice settings, manifesting both in decisions and subjective valuation of options.

Experimental investigation of correlations between electrical resistivity, moisture content and voltage values for leachate contaminated clayey sand

Leachate leakage from landfill sites has become a significant environmental problem in recent years, polluting soil layers and groundwater aquifers. A considerable number of dumpsites near cities are operated traditionally and are not designed as landfills, which increases the risk of leakage. Leachate leakage also changes geotechnical and geo-environmental characteristics of soil, often increases soil permeability. Geo-electrical methods are one of the most common methods in leachate leakage investigation in recent years, which are considered as non-destructive methods. Despite recent studies, there are still challenges in applying geo-electrical methods to study leachate leaking from landfill sites that can be addressed through small-scale laboratory studies. One of the critical parameters in the laboratory study of soil resistivity is the voltage of current injected into the soil sample. In this research, the effect of voltage changes applied to the soil samples contaminated by solutions with different contaminant concentrations was investigated. Also, the relation between soil moisture content and resistivity was studied. It was found that there was a sudden change in the reduction rate of soil resistivity for moisture content larger than 13%, which is equal to soil plastic limit. The results showed that by increasing the voltage injected into the soil sample, fluctuation of resistivity values decreased and the transparency of the results increased.

Psychedelic Communitas: Intersubjective Experience During Psychedelic Group Sessions Predicts Enduring Changes in Psychological Wellbeing and Social Connectedness.

Background: Recent years have seen a resurgence of research on the potential of psychedelic substances to treat addictive and mood disorders. Historically and contemporarily, psychedelic studies have emphasized the importance of contextual elements ('set and setting') in modulating acute drug effects, and ultimately, influencing long-term outcomes. Nevertheless, current small-scale clinical and laboratory studies have tended to bypass a ubiquitous contextual feature of naturalistic psychedelic use: its social dimension. This study introduces and psychometrically validates an adapted Communitas Scale, assessing acute relational experiences of perceived togetherness and shared humanity, in order to investigate psychosocial mechanisms pertinent to psychedelic ceremonies and retreats. Methods: In this observational, web-based survey study, participants (N = 886) were measured across five successive time-points: 2 weeks before, hours before, and the day after a psychedelic ceremony; as well as the day after, and 4 weeks after leaving the ceremony location. Demographics, psychological traits and state variables were assessed pre-ceremony, in addition to changes in psychological wellbeing and social connectedness from before to after the retreat, as primary outcomes. Using correlational and multiple regression (path) analyses, predictive relationships between psychosocial 'set and setting' variables, communitas, and long-term outcomes were explored. Results: The adapted Communitas Scale demonstrated substantial internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.92) and construct validity in comparison with validated measures of intra-subjective (visual, mystical, challenging experiences questionnaires) and inter-subjective (perceived emotional synchrony, identity fusion) experiences. Furthermore, communitas during ceremony was significantly correlated with increases in psychological wellbeing (r = 0.22), social connectedness (r = 0.25), and other salient mental health outcomes. Path analyses revealed that the effect of ceremony-communitas on long-term outcomes was fully mediated by communitas experienced in reference to the retreat overall, and that the extent of personal sharing or ‘self-disclosure’ contributed to this process. A positive relationship between participants and facilitators, and the perceived impact of emotional support, facilitated the emergence of communitas. Conclusion: Highlighting the importance of intersubjective experience, rapport, and emotional support for long-term outcomes of psychedelic use, this first quantitative examination of psychosocial factors in guided psychedelic settings is a significant step toward evidence-based benefit-maximization guidelines for collective psychedelic use.

Evaluating the Performance of Wicking Geotextile in Providing Drainage for Flexible Pavements Built over Expansive Soils

The longevity and performance of a pavement section depend on the characteristics of the subgrade soil. A majority of the pavements in North Texas, U.S., are constructed on expansive soils. The deterioration of the pavement performance because of rutting, cracking, and differential heaving is a regular phenomenon in the regions predominantly distributed with expansive soils. The pavements, particularly those built for low-volume traffic conditions, experience distress because of the high swelling and shrinkage characteristics of the underlying problematic soils. Geosynthetics have been traditionally used to improve such poor subgrades because of their many benefits, such as ease of installation, and ample mechanical and hydraulic properties. In the last decade, a newly available wicking geotextile, with a moisture redistribution capacity, has been developed to improve the performance of pavements constructed over expansive and frozen soils. In this study, small-scale laboratory and full-scale field studies were conducted to comprehend the wicking ability of this innovative geotextile in an expansive soil environment. Full-scale test sections were constructed with reclaimed asphalt pavement aggregate and traditional crushed stone aggregates in the base layer near North Texas. Details of the construction and instrumentation procedure are discussed in this paper. A comparative study between the performance of the pavement sections subjected to traffic loads and moisture intrusion was also performed. Furthermore, the rutting life of the sections, estimated using a linear elastic model, was compared and validated using the in situ data. The observations during the initial phase indicated that the wicking geotextile has the potential to improve the long-term pavement performance.

A guide to household manual and machine dishwashing through a life cycle perspective

This study evaluates and provides guidance on improving the life cycle environmental performance of dishwashing in the typical U.S. household. Typical user behaviors and recommended best practices for manual dishwashing as well as machine dishwasher use are evaluated. A sensitivity analysis shows the influence of varying grid carbon intensity, water heater type, regional water scarcity, and behaviors such as pre-rinsing and machine loading on overall results. Use-phase behaviors are observed through a small-scale laboratory study. Dishwashing following typical manual and machine practices produces 5,620 and 2,090 kg CO2e life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions respectively based on washing 4 loads (8 place settings per load) a week for 10 years. Avoiding typical behaviors like pre-rinsing and selecting heated dry can decrease life cycle GHG emissions for machine dishwashing by 3% and 11%, respectively. The running tap style of manual dishwashing results in the highest life cycle GHG emissions of the alternatives in the lab study. Manual dishwashing has the potential to have the lowest GHG emmisions (1,610 kg) when recommended behaviors are followed, less than the 1,960 kg CO2e for recommended machine dishwasher use. When life cycle water consumption burdens are evaluated, typical manual and machine dishwashing use 34,200 and 16,300 gallons respectively and these results are contextualized to regions with different water scarcity. A life cycle cost (LCC) analysis finds that machine dishwashing costs more than manual dishwashing over a 10-year lifetime even if best practices are followed. However, when a user’s time spent washing is valued, machine dishwashers pay for themselves within a year of use.

Small-scale laboratory test on expansive soil stabilized by CCR-Fly ash columns

Volumetric changes in expansive soils due to seasonal moisture changes can seriously damage foundations. In the small-scale laboratory study reported in this paper, the effect of inserting columns made from calcium carbide residue (CCR) and fly ash (FA) to reduce the swelling potential of expansive soil was examined. An attempt was made to determine the mineralogical changes in the soil and to identify newly generated reaction products by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The strength gain of the stabilised soil was investigated using unconfined compressive strength tests. It was found that the heave of the soil with columns of CCR and FA installed by in situ mixing and compaction reduced by up to 88% and 57%, respectively. The compressive strength of samples increased up to two-fold, and around the same level, for both installation methods after 90 d of curing. This increase in strength was an outcome of soil modification and stabilisation. The XRD results indicated the change in soil mineralogy. Further studies are required to study the cyclic swell–shrink behaviour of the stabilised expansive soil.

Small- and large-scale analysis of bearing capacity and load-settlement behavior of rock-soil slopes reinforced with geogrid-box method

This paper presents an investigation on bearing capacity, load-settlement behavior and safety factor of rock-soil slopes reinforced using geogrid-box method (GBM). To this end, small-scale laboratory studies were carried out to study the load-settlement response of a circular footing resting on unreinforced and reinforced rock-soil slopes. Several parameters including unit weight of rock-soil materials (loose- and dense-packing modes), slope height, location of footing relative to the slope crest, and geogrid tensile strength were studied. A series of finite element analysis were conducted using ABAQUS software to predict the bearing capacity behavior of slopes. Limit equilibrium and finite element analysis were also performed using commercially available software SLIDE and ABAQUS, respectively to calculate the safety factor. It was found that stabilization of rock-soil slopes using GBM significantly improves the bearing capacity and settlement behavior of slopes. It was established that, the displacement contours in the dense-packing mode distribute in a broader and deeper area as compared with the loose-packing mode, which results in higher ultimate bearing load. Moreover, it was found that in the loose-packing mode an increase in the vertical pressure load is accompanied with an increase in the soil settlement, while in the dense-packing mode the load-settlement curves show a pronounced peak. Comparison of bearing capacity ratios for the dense- and loose-packing modes demonstrated that the maximum benefit of GBM is achieved for rock-soil slopes in loose-packing mode. It was also found that by increasing the slope height, both the initial stiffness and the bearing load decreases. The results indicated a significant increase in the ultimate bearing load as the distance of the footing to the slope crest increases. For all the cases, a good agreement between the laboratory and numerical results was observed.

Remediation of Toxic Metal Contaminated Sediment Using Three Types of nZVI Supported Materials.

Due to nZVI effectiveness in the removal of toxic metals as well as low-cost regarding its production, kaolinite, bentonite and carboxymethyl cellulose supported nZVI were chosen for in-situ remediation of river sediment. Small-scale laboratory studies have shown that the percentage of removed metal (Ni, Zn and Pb) ranged up to 80% depending on the nanomaterial used. The metal mobility in sediments was investigated using single extraction, which is proved to be better for quick estimation of metal mobility, and for highly contaminated sites both single and sequential extraction needs to be used. Risk assessment code indicated medium risk for Ni and high risk for Pb and Zn in untreated sediment. In-situ treatment in laboratory proved to be very effective, providing the choice of optimal doses of three different nanomaterials used towards the concentration of toxic metals in the sediment.

Settlement Estimation of Peat Reinforced with Bamboo Grid Under Embankment

Peat has the disadvantages characteristics when used as sub-grade of construction. The embankment on peat can improve the soil parameters. The height and duration of embankment affect the stability and settlement. The excessive settlement makes embankment addition unfeasible as it may lead to failure of embankment construction, thus analysis of settlement estimation is necessary to identify the correct timing in performing addition of embankment construction and the correct height required to generate sufficient compression of peat soil. Small-scale laboratory study to measure settlement was conducted by applying embankment on reinforced and unreinforced peat. The calculation to estimate the settlement was conducted using the hyperbolic method. Parameter intersection and slope of the linear line of the method can be utilized to estimate settlement at certain height and points of time. The result of this study can be utilized as a reference in determining load stages in the application of embankment on peat soil.

AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON SAND DUNE SEDIMENT TRANSPORT DUE TO TSUNAMI OVERWASH

Response of sand dune when overwashed by tsunami or storm surge, is investigated by conducting small scale laboratory study. Dune consisting of initially wet sand and initially dry sand are tested for three different sand grain sizes. Overtopping of water and the corresponding sediment transport are analyzed. These data set can be used to validate mathematical models associated with dune sediment transport as well as prediction of dune profile.

The Effects of Salinity on the Filtration Rates of Juvenile Tropical Oyster Crassostrea iredalei.

A small scale laboratory study was conducted to determine the effects of salinity ranging from 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, and 45 ppt on the filtration rates of juvenile oyster Crassostrea iredalei with 25 ppt as the control. Three juvenile oysters (shell weight: 1.04 ± 0.12 g; shell length: 1.9 ± 0.2 cm; shell height: 1.9 ± 0.1 cm) were used to test the filtration rates in each salinity over the course of 8 hours. The hourly filtration rates were determined from the exponential decrease in algal (Chaetoceros calcitrans) concentration as a function of time. The oyster in 35 ppt salinity produced the highest overall filtration rate (FR2) with 134.06 ± 15.66 mL-1 hr-1 oyster-1 and the lowest overall filtration rate (FR2) occurred in oyster exposed to 15 ppt and 45 ppt with 31.30 ± 6.90 mL-1 hr-1 oyster-1 and 32.11 ± 7.68 mL-1 hr-1 oyster-1 respectively throughout the 8 hours. The result from this study can be useful for optimum oyster culturing and the oysters can be employed as a natural biofilter in marine polyculture farming.

Development of an optical microscopy system for automated bubble cloud analysis.

Recently, the number of uses of bubbles has begun to increase dramatically, with medicine, biofuel production, and wastewater treatment just some of the industries taking advantage of bubble properties, such as high mass transfer. As a result, more and more focus is being placed on the understanding and control of bubble formation processes and there are currently numerous techniques utilized to facilitate this understanding. Acoustic bubble sizing (ABS) and laser scattering techniques are able to provide information regarding bubble size and size distribution with minimal data processing, a major advantage over current optical-based direct imaging approaches. This paper demonstrates how direct bubble-imaging methods can be improved upon to yield high levels of automation and thus data comparable to ABS and laser scattering. We also discuss the added benefits of the direct imaging approaches and how it is possible to obtain considerable additional information above and beyond that which ABS and laser scattering can supply. This work could easily be exploited by both industrial-scale operations and small-scale laboratory studies, as this straightforward and cost-effective approach is highly transferrable and intuitive to use.

Scale-down model screening study of key process parameters for anchorage-dependent stem cells using vertical-wheel bioreactors

Current 3D manufacturing platforms need to be improved in order to efficiently advance cellular therapy processes from laboratories to clinical trials to commercialization. An ideal 3D cell culture platform allows for a scale-down, small volume model to be representative of the culture environments in larger volumes., With this platform, cell therapy processes can be developed efficiently and economically at the laboratory scale, and then easily transferred to manufacturing. A single-use bioreactor system with novel Vertical-Wheel technology has recently been introduced as an ideal platform for cell therapy manufacturing. These bioreactors provide homogeneous liquid mixing and microcarrier suspension with low shear across a range of working volumes, from 100mL to 500L. In particular, the “Mini” bioreactors, with working volumes of 100 and 500mL, are ideal for small-scale laboratory studies where they can provide efficient and cost-effective screening of key process parameters. The agitation rate of a Mini bioreactor is independently controlled, but the entire unit is designed to operate inside a CO2 incubator that will regulate temperature, pH, and dissolved oxygen levels. Due to the consistent, predictable mixing performance of Vertical Wheel technology, processes developed in small scale Mini bioreactors can confidently be scaled up to large-scale manufacturing. In this poster, data from a screening study of key process parameters developed in Mini bioreactors for human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hBM-MSC) will be presented, as well as mixing performance correlations between small-scale and larger volume Vertical-Wheel bioreactors.

Thermo-mechanical radial expansion of heat exchanger piles and possible effects on contact pressures at pile–soil interface

This letter shows that the increase of heat exchanger pile capacity in response to heating, observed in several small-scale laboratory studies, cannot be directly attributed to the increase of contact pressure at the soil–pile interface. The main thermo-hydro-mechanical processes that influence the capacity and behaviour of heat exchanger piles include thermal hardening of the soil, thermally induced water flow, excess pore pressure development and volume changes upon thermal consolidation. Due to the lack of understanding of the behaviour around the soil–pile interface, thermo-mechanical interactions between the heat exchanger pile and the ground are not taken into account appropriately in energy foundation design. However, in situ and reduced-scale experiments provide evidence about temperature-induced changes in pile capacity, presumably as a result of the altered stress state around the test pile. A finite-element analysis was conducted to quantitatively assess the radial stresses and strains undergone by a heated pile embedded in deformable soil. The study indicates that radial contact pressures typically increase less than 15 kPa, which cannot fully explain the increase in shaft resistance observed in heating tests. Further analyses are underway to characterise the mechanisms that govern pile load–displacement behaviour and the limit state.

Effect of wave distortion on acoustic emission characterization of cementitious materials

The fracturing behavior of materials can be nondestructively monitored by the acoustic emission (AE) technique, using sensors that detect the transient elastic waves after any crack propagation event. In addition to the information relatively to the total activity and the location of the cracks, certain waveform features supply detailed information on the type of cracking. The waveform of the emitted AE signal depends on the relative motion of the crack sides and therefore, it carries information on the mode of cracks. Therefore, AE is used for classification of the active cracking mode. This enables characterization of the current fracturing condition within the material and warning before final failure. Tension-related cracks, which in most materials and loading conditions are nucleated first, emit signals with higher frequency content and shorter rising time than shear cracks. However, in most cases wave propagation from the crack to the sensor is attenuative and dispersive. This results in signal distortion which is enhanced by geometry restrictions and material or damage-induced inhomogeneity. This results in strong change of the waveform shape and the calculated AE parameters. This effect is stronger as the propagation distance increases rendering crack classification troublesome for structures where the separation distance between sensors is long. In the present study, fracture experiments were conducted in cementitious specimens in order to investigate the influence of distance on the AE parameters as measured by sensors at different distances from the source. Numerical simulations based on the finite difference method are also used to enlighten the problem and expand to different material conditions. This is one of the first studies of wave dispersion examined not from the classical ultrasonics point of view of phase velocity dependence on frequency but from the AE view, where specific waveform parameters are of interest. Experimental and numerical results show that the influence of the propagation path is crucial and should be taken into consideration for AE characterization of large structures, while it should not be neglected even in small-scale laboratory studies in order to improve crack characterization.

A bat's perspective on navigation

Much has been learned during the past decades about how animals navigate in their local environment. We know that most taxonomic groups, from arthropods to mammals, use multiple mechanisms to find their way (1). Animals may reach goals by following trails or approaching salient beacons or by computationally more sophisticated strategies, such as path integration (1, 2) and the use of geometric “cognitive maps” of the external environment (3, 4). The mammalian brain has specialized systems for many of these functions. Key components include, in the hippocampus, place cells, which are cells that fire only when the animal is in specific positions (4, 5), and, in the entorhinal cortex, grid cells, which provide the animal with a universally applicable metric of local space (5, 6). Together with direction-coding cells (7), place and grid cells are known to form a map-like neural representation of the animal's external environment (4–6). Despite these emerging insights, the growing knowledge of how space is computed in the mammalian brain is based almost exclusively on small-scale laboratory studies in which rodents forage in a test box or on a track. Whether similar mechanisms are used during large-scale navigation in the animal's natural habitat remains to be determined. Most of our knowledge about long-distance navigation comes from studies of nonmammalian species, such as birds, insects, fish, and sea turtles. Those studies have identified sources of information used by animals to determine compass direction as well as spatial location, for example the geomagnetic field, olfactory gradients, and celestial cues such as the sun and the stars (1, 8–11). The physiological mechanisms used to extract the information are not well understood, however, and the relationship to local spatial representation mechanisms described in mammals has almost not been examined at all.

Analysis of Ge-132 and development of a simple oral anticancer formulation

The anticancer activity of synthetic organogermanium, β- or bis-carboxyethylgermanium sesquioxide (Ge-132), has been demonstrated in several cancer cell models and human studies. Ge-132 increases pro-inflammatory responses by enhancing interferon-γ (IFN-γ), natural killer cell and T-cell activity, and is significantly less toxic than other widely used metal-based anticancer drugs such as cisplatin. In this small-scale laboratory study, we effectively assessed the physicochemical characteristics and purity of Ge-132, our main objective being to develop a novel oral anticancer formulation, using conventional tabletting excipients which do not alter the chemistry of Ge-132. We determined that solid Ge-132 decomposes at 330°C; is virtually insoluble in most common organic solvents; and readily dissolves in water (saturation solubility ≈1.28 g/100 ml) to form germane triol (pH 3.06–3.12). 1 H and 13 C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy confirmed the structure of our compound showing two identical proton environments at 1.55 and 2.65 ppm (triplets) and three distinct carbon environments at 178.31, 27.37 and 12.93 ppm. The mass spectrum indicated the formation of numerous complex ion fragments with masses ranging from m/z 123.1 to m/z 478.3. FT-infrared and FT-Raman spectra showed characteristic sesquioxide peaks at 900.51, 900.26 and 800.04 cm −1 and, most importantly, confirmed the absence of toxic, inorganic GeO 2 , at 850 cm −1 . While parenteral formulations exist for many anticancer medicines, here we successfully developed uncoated tablets containing Ge-132 (5% w/w) by manual direct compression (powder particle size ≤180 µm). The tablets passed British Pharmacopoeia (BP) content uniformity testing (Ultraviolet–visible, 212 nm), and BP disintegration testing in both acidic and basic media, disintegrating between 2 min 55 s and 3 min 10 s, respectively. We prepared gastro-resistant formulations using Eudragit ® ; however, these failed content uniformity tests and had lower disintegration times (≤1 min 36 s), indicating that compatibility of polymers with Ge-132 requires further investigation. The results presented here support further larger-scale research on Ge-132 as a novel metal-based oral anticancer drug which can be conveniently administered alone or included within a chemotherapy regimen. Future formulation studies on Ge-132 could focus on compatibility assessments with nano-formulations in keeping with current advancements in metal-based anticancer therapies.

Dielectric permittivity of fine-grained fractions of soil samples from eastern Spain at 200 MHz

To provide a database for interpreting GPR field data by means of small-scale laboratory studies, we have determined the real and imaginary parts of the dielectric permittivity of fine-grained fractions of soil samples from eastern Spain in the laboratory. We use the parallel-plate method in combination with an impedance analyzer and focus on the frequency of [Formula: see text]. The measurements are compared to physical properties such as volumetric water content, dry density, clay fraction, and carbonate content. The results show the well-known increase in dielectric permittivity with increasing water content, as presented in the literature; however, our values are systematically higher. This deviation may be caused by the exceptionally high carbonate content of the samples. We establish a basic relationship between dielectric permittivity and water content that is characteristic for soils in the research area. In addition to the dominating influence of water on permittivity, we find a correlation with dry density as well, which is linear for dry samples. Finally, we calculate the attenuation coefficients and find high attenuation for samples with high clay fraction, even at low water contents. A 1D model of the permittivity distribution is constructed from borehole data (water content and layer thickness) coincident with a GPR profile and from the laboratory data. The modeled GPR trace explains the observation and thus connects laboratory measurements to GPR data.