Effect of Soft Rock Material Addition on Surface Charge Properties and Internal Force of Aeolian Sandy Soil Particles in the Maowusu Desert

Zhe Liu, Yang Zhang (), Yingying Sun (), Yuliang Zhang, Na Wang, Feinan Hu, Yuhu Luo and Tingting Meng
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Zhe Liu: Technology Innovation Center for Land Engineering and Human Settlements by Shaanxi Land Engineering Construction Group Co., Ltd. and Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
Yang Zhang: Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Land Consolidation, Chang’an University, Xi’an 710064, China
Yingying Sun: Technology Innovation Center for Land Engineering and Human Settlements by Shaanxi Land Engineering Construction Group Co., Ltd. and Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
Yuliang Zhang: Technology Innovation Center for Land Engineering and Human Settlements by Shaanxi Land Engineering Construction Group Co., Ltd. and Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
Na Wang: Technology Innovation Center for Land Engineering and Human Settlements by Shaanxi Land Engineering Construction Group Co., Ltd. and Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
Feinan Hu: State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming on the Loess Plateau, Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Ministry of Water Resources, Yangling 712100, China
Yuhu Luo: Technology Innovation Center for Land Engineering and Human Settlements by Shaanxi Land Engineering Construction Group Co., Ltd. and Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
Tingting Meng: Technology Innovation Center for Land Engineering and Human Settlements by Shaanxi Land Engineering Construction Group Co., Ltd. and Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China

Resources, 2025, vol. 14, issue 7, 1-15

Abstract: The Maowusu Desert is still suffering from serious ecological and environmental security issues such as wind erosion and desertification, influenced by both natural and human factors. The amendment of aeolian sandy soil with soft rock material presents an effective erosion control strategy, leveraging the complementary structural and compositional properties of both materials to enhance soil stability and rehabilitate degraded environments. However, there are few studies that investigate the effect of soil surface electrochemical properties and particle interaction forces on the structural stability of compound soils with soft rock and sandy soil. This decade-long field study quantified the electrochemical properties and interparticle forces and their synergistic effects on structural stability across five soft rock-to-aeolian sandy soil blend volume ratios (0:1, 1:5, 1:2, 1:1, 1:0) within the 0–30 cm soil profile. The results showed that the soil organic matter (SOM), specific surface area (SSA), and cation exchange capacity (CEC) significantly increased with the incorporation of soft rock material. For five different proportions, with the addition of soft rock and the extension of planting years, the content of SOM increased from 5.65 g·kg −1 to 11.36 g·kg −1 , the CEC varied from 4.68 cmol kg −1 to 17.91 cmol kg −1 , while the σ 0 importantly decreased from 1.8 to 0.47 c m −2 ( p < 0.05). For the interaction force at 2.4 nm between soil particles, the absolute value of van der Waals attractive force increased from 0.10 atm to 0.38 atm, and the net force decreased from 0.09 atm to −0.30 atm after the incorporation ratios of soft rock from 0:1 to 1:1. There was a significant negative correlation between the resultant net force between the particles of compound soil and the SSA and CEC. These results indicate that the addition of soft rock material positively improves the surface electrochemical properties and internal forces between aeolian sandy soil particles, further enhancing its structural stability. This study establishes a foundational theoretical framework for advancing our mechanistic understanding of aeolian sand stabilization and ecosystem rehabilitation in the Mu Us Desert.

Keywords: soft rock material; aeolian sandy soil; surface electrochemical properties; net interaction force; soil structural stability; particle interaction forces (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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