Hysteresis Model for Water Retention Characteristics of Water-Absorbing Polymer-Amended Soils
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 148, Issue 4
Abstract
Water absorbing polymers (WAPs) are gaining attention in the field of geotechnical engineering, with application to bioengineered slopes, vegetation growth on landfill covers, and maintenance of green infrastructure in arid climate regions. WAP-amended soil is often exposed to alternate drying–wetting cycles, which influence its water retention characteristics. Determining the hysteresis in water retention characteristics of WAP-amended soils is crucial to evaluate their hydraulic performance with time. The present study proposes a methodology to measure the hysteresis in soil–water retention curve (SWRC) of WAP-amended soils subjected to alternate drying–wetting cycles. For this purpose, the drying–wetting SWRC of three different textured soils (sand, silt loam, and clay loam) were determined for varying WAP concentrations (0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.4% on weight-by-weight basis). Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was used to confirm degradation in the polymer chain of the WAPs with the progressive wetting–drying cycles, which significantly affected the hysteresis phenomenon. A predictive model was proposed to estimate the wetting SWRC from the drying SWRC for WAP-amended soils, which is valid until the complete degradation of the WAPs. The proposed model was validated for two consecutive drying–wetting cycles for the selected soils with varying WAP concentrations, which showed its effectiveness for predicting hysteresis behavior in SWRC of WAP-amended soils. Further, the degree of hysteresis in SWRC of WAP-amended soil was quantified after each drying–wetting cycle. The experimental results revealed that the presence of WAP and its degradation with time significantly increased the degree of hysteresis in SWRC.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Data Availability Statement
Some or all of the data, models, or code generated or used during the study are available from the corresponding author by request.
Acknowledgments
The authors gratefully acknowledge the Central Instrument Facility (CIF) and Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT Guwahati), Assam, India, for providing the necessary support required for this research.
References
Abdallah, A. M. 2019. “The effect of hydrogel particle size on water retention properties and availability under water stress.” Int. Soil Water Conserv. Res. 7 (3): 275–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iswcr.2019.05.001.
Agaba, H., L. J. Baguma Orikiriza, J. F. Osoto Esegu, J. Obua, J. D. Kabasa, and A. Hüttermann. 2010. “Effects of hydrogel amendment to different soils on plant available water and survival of trees under drought conditions.” Clean–Soil Air Water 38 (4): 328–335. https://doi.org/10.1002/clen.200900245.
Akhter, J., K. Mahmood, K. A. Malik, A. Mardan, M. Ahmad, and M. M. Iqbal. 2004. “Effects of hydrogel amendment on water storage of sandy loam and loam soils and seedling growth of barley, wheat and chickpea.” Plant Soil Environ. 50 (10): 463–469. https://doi.org/10.17221/4059-PSE.
ASTM. 2007. Standard test method for particle-size analysis of soils (withdrawn 2016). ASTM D422-63. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2014. Standard test method for specific gravity of soil solids by water pycnometer. ASTM D854-14. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2017a. Standard practice for classification of soils for engineering purposes (unified soil classification system). ASTM D2487-17. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2017b. Standard test methods for liquid limit, plastic limit, and plasticity index of soils. ASTM D4318-17e1. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
ASTM. 2018. Standard test method for measuring the exchange complex and cation exchange capacity of inorganic fine-grained soils. ASTM D7503-18. West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM.
Bai, W., H. Zhang, B. Liu, Y. Wu, and J. Song. 2010. “Effects of super-absorbent polymers on the physical and chemical properties of soil following different wetting and drying cycles.” Soil Use Manage. 26 (3): 253–260. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-2743.2010.00271.x.
Banedjschafie, S., and W. Durner. 2015. “Water retention properties of a sandy soil with superabsorbent polymers as affected by aging and water quality.” J. Plant Nutr. Soil Sci. 178 (5): 798–806. https://doi.org/10.1002/jpln.201500128.
Bhardwaj, A. K., I. Shainberg, D. Goldstein, D. N. Warrington, and J. G. Levy. 2007. “Water retention and hydraulic conductivity of cross-linked polyacrylamides in sandy soils.” Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 71 (2): 406–412. https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2006.0138.
Bordoloi, S., and C. W. W. Ng. 2020. “The effects of vegetation traits and their stability functions in bio-engineered slopes: A perspective review.” Eng. Geol. 275 (Sep): 105742. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2020.105742.
Chetia, M., and S. Sreedeep. 2016. “Evaluation of different laboratory procedures for determining suction–water content relationship of cohesionless geomaterials.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng. 28 (2): 04015123. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0001399.
Dorraji, S. S., A. Golchin, and S. Ahmadi. 2010. “The effects of hydrophilic polymer and soil salinity on corn growth in sandy and loamy soils.” Clean–Soil Air Water 38 (7): 584–591. https://doi.org/10.1002/clen.201000017.
El-Asmar, J., H. Jaafar, I. Bashour, M. T. Farran, and I. P. Saoud. 2017. “Hydrogel banding improves plant growth, survival, and water use efficiency in two calcareous soils.” Clean–Soil Air Water 45 (7): 1700251. https://doi.org/10.1002/clen.201700251.
Feng, D., B. Bai, C. Ding, H. Wang, and Y. Suo. 2014. “Synthesis and swelling behaviors of yeast-g-poly (acrylic acid) superabsorbent co-polymer.” Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 53 (32): 12760–12769. https://doi.org/10.1021/ie502248n.
Feng, M., and D. G. Fredlund. 1999. “Hysteretic influence associated with thermal conductivity sensor measurements.” In Vol. 14 of Proc., 52nd Canadian Geotechnical Conf. and the Unsaturated Soil Group, 651–657. Richmond, BC, Canada: BiTech Publishers.
Fredlund, D. G., and H. Rahardjo. 1993. Soil mechanics for unsaturated soils. New York: Wiley.
Gadi, V. K., S. Bordoloi, A. Garg, Y. Kobayashi, and L. Sahoo. 2016. “Improving and correcting unsaturated soil hydraulic properties with plant parameters for agriculture and bioengineered slopes.” Rhizosphere 1 (Jun): 58–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rhisph.2016.07.003.
Gallipoli, D., A. W. Bruno, F. D’Onza, and C. Mancuso. 2015. “A bounding surface hysteretic water retention model for deformable soils.” Géotechnique 65 (10): 793–804. https://doi.org/10.1680/jgeot.14.P.118.
Gallipoli, D., S. Wheeler, and M. Karstunen. 2003. “Modelling the variation of degree of saturation in a deformable unsaturated soil.” Géotechnique 53 (1): 105–112. https://doi.org/10.1680/geot.2003.53.1.105.
Hosney, M., and R. K. Rowe. 2017. “Polymer-enhanced bentonite–sand to cover calcium-rich soil.” Environ. Geotech. 6 (3): 155–161. https://doi.org/10.1680/jenge.17.00001.
Hüttermann, A., M. Zommorodi, and K. Reise. 1999. “Addition of hydrogels to soil for prolonging the survival of Pinus halepensis seedlings subjected to drought.” Soil Tillage Res. 50 (3–4): 295–304. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-1987(99)00023-9.
Koupai, J. A., S. S. Eslamian, and J. A. Kazemi. 2008. “Enhancing the available water content in unsaturated soil zone using hydrogel, to improve plant growth indices.” Ecohydrol. Hydrobiol. 8 (1): 67–75. https://doi.org/10.2478/v10104-009-0005-0.
Likos, W. J., N. Lu, and J. W. Godt. 2014. “Hysteresis and uncertainty in soil water-retention curve parameters.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 140 (4): 04013050. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GT.1943-5606.0001071.
Lu, N., and M. Khorshidi. 2015. “Mechanisms for soil-water retention and hysteresis at high suction range.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 141 (8): 04015032. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GT.1943-5606.0001325.
Lu, N., and W. J. Likos. 2004. Unsaturated soil mechanics. New York: Wiley.
Malaya, C., and S. Sreedeep. 2012. “Critical evaluation of the drying water retention characteristics of a class F Indian fly ash.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng. 24 (4): 451–459. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0000395.
Misiewicz, J., A. Głogowski, K. Lejcuś, and D. Marczak. 2020. “The characteristics of swelling pressure for superabsorbent polymer and soil mixtures.” Materials (Basel) 13 (22): 5071. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma13225071.
Mohawesh, O., and W. Durner. 2019. “Effects of bentonite, hydrogel and biochar amendments on soil hydraulic properties from saturation to oven dryness.” Pedosphere 29 (5): 598–607. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1002-0160(17)60426-0.
Narjary, B., P. Aggarwal, A. Singh, D. Chakraborty, and R. Singh. 2012. “Water availability in different soils in relation to hydrogel application.” Geoderma 187–188 (Oct): 94–101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2012.03.002.
Ng, C. W., R. Chen, J. L. Coo, J. Liu, J. J. Ni, Y. M. Chen, L. T. Zhan, H. W. Guo, and B. W. Lu. 2019. “A novel vegetated three-layer landfill cover system using recycled construction wastes without geomembrane.” Can. Geotech. J. 56 (12): 1863–1875. https://doi.org/10.1139/cgj-2017-0728.
Pandey, M. R., S. Badiger, and G. L. Sivakumar Babu. 2019. “Effects of bentonite and polymer soil amendment on contaminant transport parameters.” J. Hazard. Toxic Radioact. Waste 23 (1): 04018034. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)HZ.2153-5515.0000427.
Pham, H. Q., and D. G. Fredlund. 2011. “Volume–mass unsaturated soil constitutive model for drying–wetting under isotropic loading–unloading conditions.” Can. Geotech. J. 48 (2): 280–313. https://doi.org/10.1139/t10-061.
Pham, H. Q., D. G. Fredlund, and S. L. Barbour. 2003. “A practical hysteresis model for the soil–water characteristic curve for soils with negligible volume change.” Géotechnique 53 (2): 293–298. https://doi.org/10.1680/geot.2003.53.2.293.
Pham, H. Q., D. G. Fredlund, and S. L. Barbour. 2005. “A study of hysteresis models for soil-water characteristic curves.” Can. Geotech. J. 42 (6): 1548–1568. https://doi.org/10.1139/t05-071.
Piqué, T. M., D. Manzanal, M. Codevilla, and S. Orlandi. 2019. “Polymer-enhanced soil mixtures for potential use as covers or liners in landfill systems.” Environ. Geotech. 8 (7): 467–479. https://doi.org/10.1680/jenge.18.00174.
Raghuram, A. S. S., B. M. Basha, and A. A. B. Moghal. 2020. “Effect of fines content on the hysteretic behavior of water-retention characteristic curves of reconstituted soils.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng. 32 (4): 04020057. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0003114.
Saha, A., B. Rattan, S. Sreedeep, and U. Manna. 2020a. “Quantifying the interactive effect of water absorbing polymer (WAP)-soil texture on plant available water content and irrigation frequency.” Geoderma 368 (Jun): 114310. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2020.114310.
Saha, A., B. Rattan, S. Sreedeep, and U. Manna. 2021a. “Quantifying the combined effect of pH and salinity on the performance of water absorbing polymers used for drought management.” J. Polym. Res. 28 (11): 428. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10965-021-02795-5.
Saha, A., and S. Sreedeep. 2021. “Importance of volumetric shrinkage curve (VSC) for determination of soil–water retention curve (SWRC) for low plastic natural soils.” J. Hydrol. 596 (May): 126113. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2021.126113.
Saha, A., S. Sreedeep, and U. Manna. 2020b. “Evaluation of capacitance sensor for suction measurement in silty clay loam.” Geotech. Geol. Eng. 38 (4): 4319–4331. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10706-020-01297-3.
Saha, A., S. Sreedeep, and U. Manna. 2020c. “Superabsorbent hydrogel (SAH) as a soil amendment for drought management: A review.” Soil Tillage Res. 204 (Oct): 104736. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2020.104736.
Saha, A., S. Sreedeep, and U. Manna. 2021b. “Predictive model for water retention curve of water-absorbing polymer amended soil.” Géotech. Lett. 11 (3): 164–170. https://doi.org/10.1680/jgele.21.00015.
Scalia, J., and C. H. Benson. 2017. “Polymer fouling and hydraulic conductivity of mixtures of sodium bentonite and a bentonite-polymer composite.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 143 (4): 04016112. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GT.1943-5606.0001628.
Shaikh, J., S. K. Yamsani, S. Sreedeep, and R. R. Rakesh. 2019. “Performance evaluation of 5TM sensor for real-time monitoring of volumetric water content in landfill cover system.” Adv. Civ. Eng. Mater. 8 (1): 322–335. https://doi.org/10.1520/ACEM20180091.
Siriwatwechakul, W., J. Siramanont, and W. Vichit-Vadakan. 2012. “Behavior of superabsorbent polymers in calcium-and sodium-rich solutions.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng. 24 (8): 976–980. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)MT.1943-5533.0000449.
Śpitalniak, M., K. Lejcuś, J. Dąbrowska, D. Garlikowski, and A. Bogacz. 2019. “The influence of a water absorbing geocomposite on soil water retention and soil matric potential.” Water 11 (8): 1731. https://doi.org/10.3390/w11081731.
Sreedeep, S., V. K. Gadi, S. Bordoloi, A. Saha, H. Kumar, B. Hazra, and A. Garg. 2019. “Sustainable geotechnics: A bio-geotechnical perspective.” In Frontiers in geotechnical engineering, 313–331. Singapore: Springer.
Tian, K., W. J. Likos, and C. H. Benson. 2019. “Polymer elution and hydraulic conductivity of bentonite–polymer composite geosynthetic clay liners.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 145 (10): 04019071. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GT.1943-5606.0002097.
Wei, Y., and D. J. Durian. 2013. “Effect of hydrogel particle additives on water-accessible pore structure of sandy soils: A custom pressure plate apparatus and capillary bundle model.” Phys. Rev. E 87 (5): 053013. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.87.053013.
Xiao, X., L. Yu, F. Xie, X. Bao, H. Liu, Z. Ji, and L. Chen. 2017. “One-step method to prepare starch-based superabsorbent polymer for slow release of fertilizer.” Chem. Eng. J. 309 (Feb): 607–616. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2016.10.101.
Yang, Y., J. Wu, S. Zhao, Q. Han, X. Pan, F. He, and C. Chen. 2018. “Assessment of the responses of soil pore properties to combined soil structure amendments using X-ray computed tomography.” Sci. Rep. 8 (1): 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-18997-1.
Zhang, J., L. Wang, and A. Wang. 2007. “Preparation and properties of chitosan-g-poly (acrylic acid)/montmorillonite superabsorbent nanocomposite via in situ intercalative polymerization.” Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 46 (8): 2497–2502. https://doi.org/10.1021/ie061385i.
Zhang, M., Z. Cheng, T. Zhao, M. Liu, M. Hu, and J. Li. 2014. “Synthesis, characterization, and swelling behaviors of salt-sensitive maize bran–poly (acrylic acid) superabsorbent hydrogel.” J. Agric. Food. Chem. 62 (35): 8867–8874. https://doi.org/10.1021/jf5021279.
Zhuang, W., L. Li, and C. Liu. 2013. “Effects of sodium polyacrylate on water retention and infiltration capacity of a sandy soil.” Springerplus 2 (Dec): S11. https://doi.org/10.1186/2193-1801-2-S1-S11.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 148 • Issue 4 • April 2022
Copyright
© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 19, 2021
Accepted: Dec 15, 2021
Published online: Feb 11, 2022
Published in print: Apr 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Jul 11, 2022
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.
Cited by
- Hasan Ghasemzadeh, Aida Mehrpajouh, Malihe Pishvaei, Compressive Strength of Acrylic Polymer-Stabilized Kaolinite Clay Modified with Different Additives, ACS Omega, 10.1021/acsomega.2c00236, 7, 23, (19204-19215), (2022).
- Ilyas Akram, Shahid Azam, Determination of collapse and consolidation behavior of cohesionless soils, Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment, 10.1007/s10064-022-02956-w, 81, 11, (2022).