Aiming to improve work efficiency in such areas as tillage in agriculture, earth-moving in civil engineering, and tunnel-making in sea-bed operations, this work offers an introduction to Finite Element Method (FEM) analysis of soil-machine systems. It explains the advantage of FEM's numerical approach over traditional analytical and empirical methods of dealing with complex factors from nonlinear mechanical behaviour to geometric configurations.

Aiming to improve work efficiency in such areas as tillage in agriculture, earth-moving in civil engineering, and tunnel-making in sea-bed operations, this work offers an introduction to Finite Element Method (FEM) analysis of soil-machine systems. It explains the advantage of FEM's numerical approach over traditional analytical and empirical methods of dealing with complex factors from nonlinear mechanical behaviour to geometric configurations.

Merging coverage of two increasingly popular and quickly growing food trends, Organic Production and Use of Alternative Crops provides an overview of the basic principles of organic agriculture and highlights its multifunctionality with special emphasis on the conservation of rare crops and their uses. Considering more than 30 disregarded and negle

The agricultural world has changed significantly during the last years. The excessive use of heavy machinery, waste disposal, the use of agrochemicals and new soil cultivation means led to severe problems, which agricultural engineers have to cope with in order to prevent soil from permanent irreversible damage. This Soil Biology volume will update readers on several cutting-edge aspects of sustainable soil engineering including topics such as: soil compaction, soil density increases, soil disturbance and soil fragmentation; soil tillage machineries and optimization of tillage tools; soil traffic and traction, effects of heavy agricultural machines, the use of robotics in agriculture and controlled traffic farming; mechanical weed control, the characterization of soil variability and the recycling of compost and biosolids in agricultural soils.

This book contains the scientific contributions to the 11th International Workshop on Bifurcation and Degradation in Geomaterials (IWBDG) held in Limassol-Cyprus, May 21-25, 2017. The IWBDG series have grown in size and scope, since their inception 30 years ago in Germany, covering more and wider areas of geomaterials and geomechanics research including modern trends. The papers cover a wide range of topics including advances in instabilities, localized and diffuse failure, micromechanical, multiscale phenomena, multiphysics modeling and other related topics. This volume gathers a series of manuscript by brilliant international scholars who work on modern recent advances in experimental, theoretical and numerical methods. The theoretical and applied mechanics are linked successfully with engineering applications in traditional and in emerging fields, such as geomechanics for the energy and the environment. The quality of the contributed papers has benefited from the peer review process by expert referees. This book can be used as a useful reference for research students, academics and practicing engineers who are interested in the instability and degradation problems in geomaterials, geomechanics, geotechnical engineering and other related applications.

Principles of Soil Physics examines the impact of the physical, mechanical, and hydrological properties and processes of soil on agricultural production, the environment, and sustainable use of natural resources. The text incorporates valuable assessment methods, graphs, problem sets, and tables from recent studies performed around the globe and offers an abundance of tables, photographs, and easy-to-follow equations in every chapter. The book discusses the consequences of soil degradation, such as erosion, inhibited root development, and poor aeration. It begins by defining soil physics, soil mechanics, textural properties, and packing arrangements . The text continues to discuss the theoretical and practical aspects of soil structure and explain the significance and measurement of bulk density, porosity, and compaction. The authors proceed to clarify soil hydrology topics including hydrologic cycle, water movement, infiltration, modeling, soil evaporation, and solute transport processes. They address the impact of soil temperature on crop growth, soil aeration, and the processes that lead to the emission of greenhouse gases. The final chapters examine the physical properties of gravelly soils and water movement in frozen, saline, and water-repellant soils. Reader-friendly and up-to-date, Principles of Soil Physics provides unparalleled coverage of issues related to soil physics, structure, hydrology, aeration, temperature, and analysis and presents practical techniques for maintaining soil quality to ultimately preserve its sustainability.

Interacting Processes in Soil Science focuses on coupled processes in soil. Topics covered in this important volume include the effects of inorganic salts upon water flow, modeling of sorption, transport and transformation of organic solutes, and the effects of microorganisms on silicate clay minerals. The book presents studies and approaches that can be extended and complemented by innovative work in the future. Interacting Processes in Soil Science will be an essential reference for all researchers and students in soil science, soil and water engineering, civil and environmental engineering, earth sciences, and hydrology.