Water repellant soils affect 30 per cent of Australia’s cropping land, mostly in Western Australia.

Image credit: Daniel Critch

Source: GRDC

While you might be familiar with the use of CAT scans in hospitals, you may not have related them to understanding how non wetting soils behave. Professor Iain Young from the University of New England, in Armidale, along with his international interdisciplinary team, are using CAT scans to create 3D imagery. This imagery can help to determine the interactions between soil, water, and root, and also how these interactions can change when surfactants are applied.

Water repellency affects about 30% of Australia’s cropping land. It results in poor germination, staggered weed germination, and increased risk of wind and water erosion.

To read the GRDC article: http://grdc.com.au/Media-Centre/Ground-Cover/Ground-Cover-Issue-117-July-August-2015/CAT-scans-analyse-non-wetting-behaviour