Daniel Francisco Jaramillo

Laser ablation–laser induced breakdown spectroscopy for the measurement of total elemental concentration in soils

The performances of traditional laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) and laser ablation-LIBS (LA-LIBS) were compared by quantifying the total elemental concentration of potassium in highly heterogeneous solid samples, namely soils. Calibration curves for a set of fifteen samples with a wide range of potassium concentrations were generated. The LA-LIBS approach produced a superior linear response different than the traditional LIBS scheme. The analytical response of LA-LIBS was tested with a large set of different soil samples for the quantification of the total concentration of Fe, Mn, Mg, Ca, Na, and K. Results showed an acceptable linear response for Ca, Fe, Mg, and K while poor signal responses were found for Na and Mn. Signs of remaining matrix effects for the LA-LIBS approach in the case of soil analysis were found and discussed. Finally, some improvements and possibilities for future studies toward quantitative soil analysis with the LA-LIBS technique are suggested.

Physical variables that explain alluvial soil variability and their spatial behavior

The objective of this work was to use the principal component and semivariance analyses to select physical variables that could explain the variability of an alluvial soil, in order to establish the spatial behavior of the chosen variables so that the location of experimental plots could be technically defined to study the abrasiveness effect on the wearing away of farm equipment. Field tests were performed in 2008, on a 6,000 m2 flat lot with medium to heavy soil texture (Vertic Haplustepts). An intensive sampling was done in a grid of 10x14 m. The variables which had the most weight on the first three principal components were the contents of silt, fine and intermediate sand, intermediate gravel, soil moisture at field capacity, and the hygroscopic coefficient. Except for the half sand and the field capacity, the other properties showed a high spatial dependence, and their distribution showed that in the experimental plot there are three sectors of differential accumulation of silt and fine sand. The combination of principal component analysis and geostatistics allowed for defining the soil properties involved in the wear of tools, their spatial pattern and the most appropriate way of distributing plots to study soil abrasiveness.

Components of the spatial variability in site‑specific management in banana

Components of the spatial variability in site‑specific management in banana Abstract - The objective of this work was to evaluate the spatial variability of banana production, in function of physical and chemical variables of soil and of farm physiographic characteristics, in order to select those with the greatest potential for use in site‑specific management program. One hundred thirty productive units of banana clone Williams (Cavendish AAA) distributed in four lots and tree soils units of the farm were georeferenced. The bunch weight and root functionality were determined for each plant, as well as 35 physical and chemical soil variables. The spatial variability of the production was evaluated in function of these soil variables, using four different strategies: axes as covariates; both physic and chemical soil properties as covariates; analysis made by individual plot; and analysis made by soil unit. The individual plot study was the best strategy to model the spatial variability of banana production. This analysis model allowed to set soil variable groups which were significantly correlated and precisely explained more than 69% of the bunch weight inside the plots. These groups of variables are the ones with higher potential for the establishment of a site‑specific management program.