Active-Layer Soil Moisture Content Regional Variations in Alaska and Russia by Ground-Based and Satellite-Based Methods, 2002 through 2014

Soil moisture is a vital physical parameter of the active-layer in permafrost environments, and associated biological and geophysical processes operative at the microscopic to hemispheric spatial scales and at hourly to multi-decadal time scales. While?in-situ?measurements can give the highest quality of information on a site-specific basis, the vast permafrost terrains of North America and Eurasia require space-based techniques for assessments of cause and effect and long-term changes and impacts from the changes of permafrost and the active-layer. Satellite-based 6.925 and 10.65 GHz sensor algorithmic retrievals of soil moisture by Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer-Earth Observation System (AMSR-E) onboard NASA-Aqua and follow-on AMSR2 onboard JAXA-Global Change Observation Mission—Water-1 are ongoing since July 2002. Accurate land-surface temperature and vegetation parameters are critical to the success of passive microwave algorithmic retrieval schemes. Strategically located soil moisture measurements are needed for spatial and temporal co-location evaluation and validation of the space-based algorithmic estimates. We compare on a daily basis ground-based (subsurface-probe) 50- and 70-MHz radio-frequency soil moisture measurements with NASA- and JAXA-algorithmic retrieval passive microwave retrievals. We find improvements in performance of the JAXA-algorithm (AMSR-E reprocessed and AMSR2 ongoing) relative to the earlier NASA-algorithm version. In the boreal forest regions, accurate land-surface temperatures and vegetation parameters are still needed for algorithmic retrieval success. Over the period of AMSR-E retrievals, we find evidence of at the high northern latitudes of growing terrestrial radio-frequency interference in the 10.65 GHz channel soil moisture content. This is an important error source for satellite-based active and passive microwave remote sensing soil moisture retrievals in Arctic regions that must be addressed.

A Novel Interacting Multiple-Model Method and Its Application to Moisture Content Prediction of ASP Flooding

In this paper,an interacting multiple-model(IMM)method based on datadriven identification model is proposed for the prediction of nonlinear dynamic systems.Firstly,two basic models are selected as combination components due to their proved effectiveness.One is Gaussian process(GP)model,which can provide the predictive variance of the predicted output and only has several optimizing parameters.The other is regularized extreme learning machine(RELM)model,which can improve the overfitting problem resulted by empirical risk minimization principle and enhances the overall generalization performance.Then both of the models are updated continually using meaningful new data selected by data selection methods.Furthermore,recursive methods are employed in the two models to reduce the computational burden caused by continuous renewal.Finally,the two models are combined in IMM algorithm to realize the hybrid prediction,which can avoid the error accumulation in the single-model prediction.In order to verify the performance,the proposed method is applied to the prediction of moisture content of alkali-surfactant-polymer(ASP)flooding.The simulation results show that the proposed model can match the process very well.And IMM algorithm can outperform its components and provide a nice improvement in accuracy and robustness.

Application of NIR Reflectance Spectroscopy on Rapid Determination of Moisture Content of Wood Pellets

NIR spectroscopy was used to measure the moisture concentration of wood pellets. Pellets were conditioned to various moisture levels between 0.63% and 14.16% (wet basis) and the moisture concentration was verified using a standard oven method. Samples from various moisture levels were separated into two groups, as calibration and validation sets. NIR absorption spectral data from 400 nm to 2500 nm with 0.5 nm intervals were collected using pellets within the calibration and validation sample sets. Spectral wavelength ranges were taken as independent variables and the MC of the pellets as the dependent variable for the analysis. Measurements were obtained on 30 replicates within each moisture level. Partial Least Square (PLS) analysis was performed on both raw and preprocessed spectral data of calibration set to determine the best calibration model based on Standard Error of Calibration (SEC) and coefficient of multiple determinations (R2). The PLS model that yielded the best fit was used to predict the moisture concentration of validation group pellets. Relative Percent Deviation (RPD) and Standard Error of Prediction (SEP) were calculated to validate goodness of fit of the prediction model. Baseline and Multiple Scatter Corrected (MSC) reflectance spectra with 1st derivative model gave the highest RPD value of 4.46 and R2 of 0.95. Also it’s SEP (0.670) and RMSEP (0.782) were less than the other models those had RPD value more than 3.0 with less number of factors. Therefore, this model was selected as the best model for moisture content prediction of wood pellets.

Modelling the dead fuel moisture content in a grassland of Ergun City,China

The dead fuel moisture content(DFMC)is the key driver leading to fire occurrence.Accurately estimating the DFMC could help identify locations facing fire risks,prioritise areas for fire monitoring,and facilitate timely deployment of fire-suppression resources.In this study,the DFMC and environmental variables,including air temperature,relative humidity,wind speed,solar radiation,rainfall,atmospheric pressure,soil temperature,and soil humidity,were simultaneously measured in a grassland of Ergun City,Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China in 2021.We chose three regression models,i.e.,random forest(RF)model,extreme gradient boosting(XGB)model,and boosted regression tree(BRT)model,to model the seasonal DFMC according to the data collected.To ensure accuracy,we added time-lag variables of 3 d to the models.The results showed that the RF model had the best fitting effect with an R2value of 0.847 and a prediction accuracy with a mean absolute error score of 4.764%among the three models.The accuracies of the models in spring and autumn were higher than those in the other two seasons.In addition,different seasons had different key influencing factors,and the degree of influence of these factors on the DFMC changed with time lags.Moreover,time-lag variables within 44 h clearly improved the fitting effect and prediction accuracy,indicating that environmental conditions within approximately 48 h greatly influence the DFMC.This study highlights the importance of considering 48 h time-lagged variables when predicting the DFMC of grassland fuels and mapping grassland fire risks based on the DFMC to help locate high-priority areas for grassland fire monitoring and prevention.

Feasibility of measuring moisture content of green sand by a low frequency multiprobe detector based on dielectric characteristics

Green sand is a mixture of silica sand,bentonite,water and coal powder,and other additives.Moisture content is an important index to characterize the properties of green sand.Based on the dielectric characteristics of green sand and transmission line theory,a method for rapidly measuring the moisture content of green sand by means of a low frequency multiprobe detector was proposed.A system was constructed,where six detectors with different arrangements and probes were designed.The experimental results showed that the voltage difference of transmission line increases with the increasing frequency before 29 MHz while decreases after 35 MHz.A voltage difference platform occurs in the range of 29-35 MHz,which is suitable for measuring the moisture content due to its insensitivity to frequency.The electric field intensity gradually decreases with the increase of the probe depth,and the intensity of central probe is always greater than that of the edge probe.When the distance of the probe away from the sand sample surface is 80 mm,the electric field intensity of the edge probe is found to be very weak.The optimal excitation frequency for measuring the moisture content of green sand is 29-33 MHz.The optimal detector is the one with one center probe and three edge probes,and their lengths are 80 mm and 60 mm,respectively.The distance between the center and edge probes is 25 mm,and the diameter of probes is 5 mm.Taking the voltage difference of transmission line,bentonite content,coal powder content and compactability as parameters of the input layer,and the moisture content as a parameter of the output layer,a three-layer BP artificial neural network model for predicting the moisture content of green sand was constructed according to the experimental results at 33 MHz.The prediction error of the model is not higher than 3.3% when the moisture content of green sand is within the range of 3wt.%-7wt.%.

Determination of the Optimum Moisture Content ofPurple Ipe （Handroanthus heptaphyllus） Seeds forBiospeckle Tests

Handroanthus heptaphyllus （botany synonymy Tabebuia heptaphylla） is considered to have very important economical,ornamental and medicinal value. It is included in the Bignoniaceae botanical family, whose multiplication is quite solely carried byseeds. Forest dispersion elements, i.e., the seeds, deserve a deep understanding on their physiological performance. The objective ofthis research work was to determine the optimum seed moisture content for laser interaction in biospeckle tests, which is based onlaser interferometry. Seeds were hydrated to the level of 69% and then divided into four subsamples, i.e., （1） seeds without teguments,（2） seeds with tegument, （3） seeds without teguments frozen at 0 ℃ and （4） seeds with teguments frozen at 0 ℃. The foursubsamples were then separated into five moisture level groups （28%, 35%, 54%, 63% and 69%） and exposed to the laser. Thebiospeckle phenomenon quantification was carried out by means of the moment of inertia （MI） approach. A positive correlationbetween MI and seed moisture content was obtained. It was also verified that seed moisture content between 28% and 54% showedbetter interaction with the laser. The results are important for the application of the biospeckle technique as a possible tool to assessthe quality of purple ipe seeds.

The lateral pressure coefficient at rest of expansive soils in landfill at various vertical stresses and moisture contents

When expansive soils in the original location are artificially transferred to landfill in different seasons,and subject to engineering activities afterwards,the corresponding deformation and stability of retaining structures become unpredictable.This necessitates the determination of lateral pressure coefficient at rest(k_(0) value)for expansive soils in landfill.Considering compaction,excavation of expansive soils,as well as construction of landfill in different seasons,series of stepwise loading and unloading consolidation tests at various moisture contents were carried out in this work to explore the evolution characteristics of k_(0) value and assess the dependence of k_(0) value on vertical stress and moisture content.Besides,scanning electron microscope(SEM)was used to track the change in microstructural features with vertical stresses.The results indicated that the k_(0) value of expansive soil shows a pronounced nonlinearity and is inextricably linked with vertical stress and moisture content,based on which a prediction formula to estimate the variation in k_(0) value with vertical stress during loading stage was proposed;there is a significant exponential increase in k_(0) value with overconsolidation ratio(OCR)during unloading stage,and OCR dominates the release of horizontal stress of expansive soil;SEM results revealed that with an increase in vertical stress,the anisotropy of expansive soil microstructure increases dramatically,causing a significant directional readjustment,which is macroscopically manifested as an initially rapid increase in k_(0) value;but when vertical stress increases to a critical value,the anisotropy of microstructure increases marginally,indicating a stable orientation occurring in the soil microstructure,which causes the k_(0) value to maintain a relatively stable value.

Study on Influence of Moisture Content on Coupling Mechanical Properties of Reinforced Soil in Highway Slope

In recent years,highway,especially expressway is under rapid construction throughout the world.The Infl uence of moisture content on coupling mechanical properties of plant fi ber-rope slope soil interface was studied by using self-made tensile equipment through mechanical experiments on plant fi berreinforced&slope soil.The study mainly involved 2 groups of experiments,the mechanical properties of slope soil with structural damages were experimented in the experiments of Group I;the mechanical properties of slope soil with structural retention were experimented in the experiments of Group II.The results showed that coupling mechanical properties between the plant fi ber and slope soil in the experiments of Group I were signifi cantly infl uenced by the moisture content,and the tensile strength of the plant fi ber decreased linearly with the increase in the moisture content,the infl uence of the moisture content on the friction angle was insignifi cant,and the cohesive force decreased exponentially with the increase in the moisture content.The coupling mechanical properties of plant fi ber and slope soil in the experiments of Group II were also signifi cantly infl uenced by the moisture content,and the peak strength and residual strength of the plant fi ber and slope soil decreased exponentially with the increase in the moisture content.

EFFECTS OF SOIL MOISTURE CONTENT ON DRY NURSERY SEEDLING QUALITY OF LATE DOUBLE CROPPING RICE IN SOUTH CHINA

In the present paper, an experiment was conducted to study the effects of soil moisture content on dry nursery seedling quality in Guangzhou in 1995. Through comparing the difference of dry nursery seedlings and wet nursery seedlings, we found a close relationship between soil moisture content and seedling growth. The seedling emergence of dry nursery seedling was more even, tidy and faster, and the survival rate was higher than that of wet nursery seedling. Dry nursery seedlings had small plant stature, slow leaf stretching speed and low individual seedling dry weight, but had high dry/fresh weight ratio. This was abeneficial factor for seedlings to recover from transplanting shock more quickly. As com-pared with the wet nursery seedlings, dry nursery seedlings had poor rooting ability,but had more vigorous white roots and fewer rust roots. It was the possibly important reasonfor dry nursery seedlings to form strong“explosive force”.

Sensing the Moisture Content of Dry Cherries—A Rapid and Nondestructive Method

Impedance (Z), and phase angle (θ) of a parallel-plate capacitor with a single cherry fruit between the plates were measured using a CI meter (Chari’s Impedance meter), at 1 and 9 MHz. Capacitance C was derived from Z and θ, and by using the C, θ, and Z values of a set of cherries whose moisture content (MC) values were later determined by the hot air-oven method, a calibration equation was developed. Using this equation, and their measured C, θ, and Z values, the MC of a group of cherries, not used in the calibration, was predicted. The predicted values were compared with their vacuum-oven values. The method worked well with an R2 value of 0.98 and a standard error of prediction (SEP) of 1.24, in the measured moisture range between 5% and 20%.

Nondestructive Determination of Moisture Content in Dry Fruits by Impedance and Phase Angle Measurements

An electronic method to estimate the moisture content (MC) of dry fruits by measuring the impedance (Z) and phase angle (θ) of a cylindrical parallel-plate capacitor with dry fruit sample between the plates, using a CI meter (Chari’s Impedance meter) at 1 and 9 MHz is described. Capacitance C was derived from Z and θ, and using the C, θ, and Z values of a set of dried cherries, whose MC values were later determined by the vacuum hot air-oven method, a calibration equation was developed. Using this equation, and their measured C, θ, and Z values, the MC of a group of cherries, not used in the calibration, was predicted. The predicted values were compared with their air-oven values. Similar predictions were done using the same method on dried blueberries. The method worked well with a good R2 value, and showed a low standard error of prediction (SEP) in the measured MC range between 5% and 30% for cherries, and 9% and 22% for blueberries.

Effects of Moisture Content and Plasticity Index on Duncan-Chang Model Parameters of Hydraulic Fill Soft Soil

In order to explore the effects of moisture content and plasticity index on Duncan-Chang model parameters?K,n,?C?and?Rf,?we selected 8 groups of soft soil with water content of 69.1%?-?94.3% and plasticity index of 32.2?-?54.1 for triaxial unconsolidated undrained shear test. The results show that?Cuu,?K?and?n?values all showed a downward trend, and?Rf?variation was not obvious with the increase of moisture content. The variation rule of each parameter is not obvious with the increase of plasticity index. When moisture content is constant,?Cuu?and?n?values do not change much,?K?increases with the increase of plasticity index within the range of 70%?-?80% moisture content, and does not change much with the increase of plasticity index when moisture content is greater than 80%,?Rf?has no obvious rule.?When the plasticity index is constant,?Cuu,?Kand?n?decrease with the increase of moisture content,?Rf?has no obvious rule. The maximum value of?Cuu?is 20.18?kPa, the minimum is 3.72?kPa, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 5.42. The maximum value of?K?is 0.517, the minimum is 0.022, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 23.5. The maximum value of?n?is 1.198, the minimum is 0.150, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 7.99. The maximum value of?Rf?is 0.872, the minimum is 0.679, and the maximum to minimum ratio is 1.28.

Influence of Moisture Content,Variety and Parboiling on Milling Quality of Rice Grains

The effects of moisture content （8%, 10%and 12%）, variety （Tarom and Fajr） and parboiling on milling quality of rice as a function of milling recovery （MR）, head rice yield （HRY）, degree of milling （DOM） and whiteness were investigated. The parboiled grains was prepared with three soaking temperatures of 25 oC, 50 oC and 75 oC and three steaming times of 10, 15 and 20 min. As a result of parboiling, the increasing rates of MR and HRY values were 7.8%and 14.3%for Tarom and 9.8%and 10.0%for Fajr, respectively, and the decreasing rates for DOM and whiteness were 6.6%and 10.8%for Tarom and 6.8% and 10.5% for Fajr, respectively. Moreover, decreasing moisture content to 8%maximized MR （75.8% for Tarom and 74.3% for Fajr） and HRY （65.8% for Tarom and 57.0% for Fajr） while increasing that to 12%revealed maximum values of DOM （6.1%for Tarom and 6.2%for Fajr） and whiteness （24.8%for Tarom and 28.2%for Fajr）.

Evaluation of Soil Organic Carbon and Soil Moisture Content from Agricultural Fields in Mississippi

Independent observation of the effects of agricultural management practices on soil organic carbon (SOC) with soil moisture content (SMC) is essential to quantify their potential relationships for sustainable ecosystems. Soil water retention studies and soil carbon stocks have been mapped in some areas worldwide. However, few studies have been conducted in the southeastern US, particularly in Mississippi. The objectives of this research study were to collect soil samples from fields chosen to be representative of the watersheds they are contained within, analyze the soil samples for carbon content and soil moisture content, and evaluate the relationship between SOC and different parameters (land use, vertical distribution, temporal distribution, and soil moisture content). Field sites were chosen based on their compositional similarity shared with the watershed as a whole in the Town Creek watershed (TCW) and Upper Pearl River watershed (UPRW) in Mississippi. Monthly soil samples from different depths (6 inch, 12 inch, and 24 inch) were collected from crop, pasture, and forest field areas. Soil samples were analyzed using bench analysis, elemental analysis, and statistical analysis. This study was able to demonstrate the SOC distribution in the soil layers across all three land uses studied. It was also shown that there does seem to be an interactive effect of parameters such as land use type, vertical distribution, and time on carbon accretion within the soil. Results of this study also determined that the near surface (6-in) layer was found to contain significantly more carbon than either the 12 inch or 24 inch layers (p 0.01) across all field types. There was found to be a high degree of variability within the soil moisture data and correlation between SOC and SMC. It was found that carbon amount is not influenced by SMC but SMC could be influenced by SOC.

The Equilibrium Moisture Content of Five Lesser Utilized Species of Ghana Contrasted with Three European Species

Equilibrium moisture contents (EMC) of wood species are very necessary in the utilization of these in service. This study investigated the EMC of five lesser utilized species of Ghana and compared it with that of three European species. Sixteen randomly sampled specimens of each of the eight species (heartwood and sapwood) with dimensions 3 cm × 3 cm × 3 cm were exposed at various relative humidity conditions of 30%, 45%, 60%, 75% and 90% in a temperature and humidity-controlled climate chamber at a temperature of 25°C in accordance to German standard DIN 52182. The species are Albies alba, Fagus sylvatica and Picea abies which are European species and Amphimas pterocarpoides, Antiaris toxicaria, Canarium schweinfurthii, Celtis zenkeri and Cola gigantea are wood species from Ghana. Internal wood temperature and humidity were measured with datalogger. Samples were considered to have reached equilibrium at any given humidity when the daily weight changes were less than 0.1 mg according to German standard DIN 52183. After the last measurements of the weight changes, the samples were dried at 103°C until there was a constant weight. The five tropical hardwoods had low sorption values recorded and high sorption values for the European species and this could be attributed to differences in the microstructure of these woods.

Evidence of Dual Scale Porous Mechanisms During Fluid Migration in Hardwood Species (Ⅰ) Using the Attenuation of a Aolychromatic X-ray Beam to Determine the Evolution of Moisture Content During Imbibition of Beech

An experimental device able to determine the moisture content of wood using X-ray attenuation is used to study the imbibition of beech samples (Fagus silvatica). The apparatus includes an X-ray generator, a protective tube, coUimating plates and a 50 mm detector. Detected particles can be categorised by energy (accuracy of the order of 20%) or by position (accuracy 100μm). The independent choice of both the energy spectrum (through the voltage) and the counting rate (through the current intensity) makes the installation very flexible. However,a rigorous treatment is necessary to deal with the attenuation of a polychromatic spectrum. The appropriate calculations are presented and validated with homogeneous samples made of wood and water. In addition, some results are presented with samples heterogeneous in density and moisture content. Finally, the experimental device is used to study the evolution of moisture content during saturation experiments, for which the moisture migration is mainly due to capillary forces. The geometrical configuration was so arranged that the transfer can be studied in two directions simultaneously.

Quantitative Simulation on Soil Moisture Contents of Two Typical Vegetation Communities in Sanjiang Plain,China

Different types of vegetation occupy different geomorphology and water gradient environments in the San-jiang Plain,indicating that the soil moisture dynamics and water balance patterns of the different vegetation communi-ties might differ from each other.In this paper,a lowland system,perpendicular to the Nongjiang River in the Honghe National Nature Reserve(HNNR),was selected as the study area.The area was occupied by the non-wetland plant forest and the typical wetland plant meadow.The Microsoft Windows-based finite element analysis software package for simulating water,heat,and solute transport in variably saturated porous media(HYDRUS),which can quantita-tively simulate water,heat,and/or solute movement in variably-saturated porous media,was used to simulate soil moisture dynamics in the root zone(20-40 cm) of those two plant communities during the growing season in 2005.The simulation results for soil moisture were in a good agreement with measured data,with the coefficient of determi-nation(R2) of 0.44-0.69 and root mean square error(RMSE) ranging between 0.0291 cm3/cm3 and 0.0457 cm3/cm3,and index of agreement(d) being from 0.612 to 0.968.During the study period,the volumetric soil moisture content of meadow increased with the depth and its coefficient of variation decreased with the depth(from 20 cm to 40 cm),while under the forest the soil moisture content at different depths varied irregularly.The calculated result of water budget showed that the water budget deficit of the meadow was higher than that of the forest,suggesting that the meadow is more likely to suffer from water stress than the forest.The quantitative simulation by HYDRUS in this study did not take surface runoff and plant growth processes into account.Improved root water uptake and surface runoff models will be needed for higher accuracy in further researches.

Modeling surface fuels moisture content in Pinus brutia stands

Fuel moisture content is an important variable for forest fires because it affects fuel ignition and fire behavior. In order to accurately predict fuel ignition potential, fuel moisture content must be assessed by evaluating fire spread, fireline intensity and fuel consumption.Our objective here is to model moisture content of surface fuels in normally stocked Calabrian pine(Pinus brutia Ten.) stands in relation to weather conditions, namely temperature, relative humidity, and wind speed in the Mugla province of Turkey. All surface fuels were categorized according to diameter classes and fuel types. Six fuel categories were defined: these were 0–0.3, 0.3–0.6, and0.6–1 cm diameter classes, and cone, surface litter, and duff. Plastic containers 15 9 20 cm in size with 1 9 1 mm mesh size were used. Samples were taken from 09:00 to19:00 h and weighed every 2 h with 0.01 g precision for10 days in August. At the end of the study, samples were taken to the laboratory, oven-dried at 105 °C for 24 h and weighed to obtain fuel-moisture contents. Weather measurements were taken from a fully automated weather station set up at the study site prior to the study. Correlation and regression analyses were carried out and models were developed to predict fuel moisture contents for desorption and adsorption phase for each fuel type categories. Practical fuel moisture prediction models were developed for dry period. Models were developed that performed well with reasonable accuracy, explaining up to 92 and 95.6%of the variability in fuel-moisture contents for desorption and adsorption phases, respectively. Validation of the models were conducted using an independent data set and known fuel moisture prediction models. The predictive power of the models was satisfactory with mean absolute error values being 1.48 and 1.02 for desorption and adsorption as compared to the 2.05 and 1.60 values for the Van Wagner's hourly litter moisture content prediction model. Results obtained in this study will be invaluable for fire management planning and modeling.

Variation characteristics of temperature and moisture content of seasonal frozen soil during freezing process in Changchun,China

In China,seasonal frozen soil is widely distributed.The freezing damage of subgrade soil in Jilin Province has been one of major engineering geological problems troubling the safety of road,in which some common damage phenomena,such as frost heave,subsidence deformation and frost boiling,are all caused by water translocation.Aiming at the phenomenon,the changes of moisture content of seasonal frozen soil in Changchun City are mainly studied by long-term field observation and indoor testing of physical properties under different conditions,and then the variation characteristics of moisture content in soil under different compactness and temperature conditions are realized.The results show that the increasing section of moisture content and negative temperature section all lie in 0.0-1.0 m of subgrade.Both lowest air and earth temperature occur in January to February,and the most negative temperature ranges from-7 ℃ to-10 ℃.

Influence of soil moisture content on pullout properties of Hippophae rhamnoides Linn. roots

Plant root system plays an important role in preventing soil erosion and improving slope stability.However,its performance is significantly affected by soil moisture content,and the role of soil moisture in root reinforcement is not fully understood.In this study,the influence of soil moisture on root pullout properties was studied by experiments.Vertical in-situ pullout tests under four different levels of soil matric suction(12 kPa,18 kPa,24 kPa,30 kPa)were carried out on roots of sea buckthorn plants(Hippophae rhamnoides Linn.)which were artificially cultivated for 7 months.Diameter and length of the root system of sea buckthorn were investigated.The results showed that a very significant correlation was observed between root diameter(D)and root length(L)(P<0.01),and root diameter decreased with soil depth.When soil bulk density was constant,peak pullout force(F)and friction coefficient of root-soil interface(μ)decreased with increasing gravimetric soil moisture content in power functions.Soil moisture content significantly affected root pullout resistance because the increase of soil moisture content decreased the friction coefficient between the roots and soil.Root diameter at breakage point(Db)and length of root segment left in soil(Lb)were increased with soil moisture content.In addition,peak pullout force of the roots increased in a power function with root diameter at the soil surface(D0)and in a linear function with total root length(L).The results provided an experimental basis for quantifying the effects of soil moisture content on soil reinforcement by plant roots.