NANO hydromulch for soil erosion prevention and green space creation

Abstract

Nano Hydromulch is to prevent soil erosion and sliding and drifting in excavation trenches and embankments of forest roads, to reduce runoff and sediment, and to create an attractive landscape, the components of this Hydromulch in the laboratory phase include starch glue 18 grams, macro nano fertilizer NPK 0.7 grams, micro-nano fertilizer 0.25 grams, liquid silica 1 cc, super humic acid 0 / 45 grams, surfactant 1 cc, vermicompost, silica nanoparticles 10 milligrams and Nano Hydrogel (super absorbent) 1.2 grams. The procedure of production and use of these materials is as follows: mix all the materials with the mentioned compounds in 150 ml of distilled water and sprinkle the Hydromulch mixture along with grass seeds in the form of a seedling tray then, after the grass seeds germinate and reach a suitable stage of growth, they are placed under a rainmaker with an intensity of 180 mm per hour on slopes.

Description

Nano Hydromulch for Soil Erosion Prevention and Green Space Creation

[0001] The process of producing Nano Hydromulch is to prevent soil erosion and sliding and drifting in excavation trenches and embankments of forest roads, to reduce runoff and sediment, and to create an attractive landscape. the components of this Hydromulch in the laboratory phase include starch glue 18 grams, macro nano fertilizer NPK 0.7 grams, micro-nano fertilizer 0.25 grams, liquid silica 1 cc, super humic acid 0 / 45 grams, surfactant 1 cc, vermicompost, silica nanoparticles 10 milligrams and Nano Hydrogel (super absorbent) 1.2 grams.the procedure of production and use of these materials is as follows: mix all the materials with the mentioned compounds in 150 ml of distilled water and sprinkle the Hydromulch mixture along with grass seeds in the form of a seedling tray then, after the grass seeds germinate and reach a suitable stage of growth, they are placed under a rainmaker with an intensity of 180 mm per hour on slopes of 10 and 30%.

[0002] A01N 25 / 12 - A01P 13 / 00

[0003] Hydromulch root ball

[0004] United States Patent Application 20080086941

[0005] A hydromulch root ball includes a root system and hydraulically compactable mulch interspersed into the root system. The hydraulically compactable mulch is interspersed into the root system by soaking the root system in an aqueous mixture of water and mulch, then draining the water away from the root system to hydraulically compact the mulch into and around the root system.

[0006] HYDROMULCH COMPOSITION AND METHOD OF USE THEREOF

[0007] United States Patent Application 20230134142

[0008] A hydromulch composition compromising an oil-extruded cottonseed meal processed from a non-delinted cottonseed. The oil-extruded fuzzy cottonseed meal can optionally be combined with one or more super absorbent polymers, such as polyaspartate and polyacrylate polymers and other additives. The hydromulch composition can additionally include one or more microorganisms including but not limited to bacteria and mycorrhizae configured to provide symbiotic relationship with treated soil and plants to increase water and nutrient uptake in the treated plants or soil. The hydromulch composition can further be combined with a dispersant, such as water to make slurry for spray on application to a desired treatment surface.

[0009] HYDROMULCHING MATERIAL AND HYDROMULCHING METHOD

[0010] United States Patent Application 20210243966

[0011] A hydromulching material includes a mixture of: Kurapia cut seedlings prepared by cutting Kurapia stem into pieces each on the order of averagely 4 cm in length; seeds of sterile annual plant; and soil dressing.

[0012] Hydromulch container medium

[0013] United States Patent 7774980

[0014] A hydromulch container medium including a container and a root system disposed in the container. A hydraulically compactable mulch is interspersed between the root system and the container to form a semi-solid container medium around the root system.

[0015] Currently, soil erosion is recognized as a significant concern that poses a threat to human welfare and existence. As societies have become aware of the criticality of this matter, they have implemented various strategies to manage erosion. The rate of soil erosion in Iran has reached approximately 20 tons per hectare per year, which has doubled compared to the last ten years. The solution that has been researched here is the use of Nano Hydromulch to reduce soil erosion in trenches. First, each of the materials needed to make the Nano Hydromulch composition is measured on a digital scale, and then in a graduated cylinder, by adding 150 ml of distilled water is brought to the volume, and by a manual mixer, the materials are evenly sprinkled along with the grass seed mixture on the soil bed, which is in the form of a seedling tray. After the grass seed germinates and reaches a suitable stage of growth in slopes of 10 and 30%, it is placed under a rainmaker with an intensity of 180 mm per hour, and the percentage of runoff and sediment is calculated. As a result, it can be said that Nano Hydromulch significantly prevents soil erosion.

[0016] Erosion is a process in which soil particles are separated from their original substrate and transported to another place with the help of a transport agent. If the agent that separates the particles from the substrate and transports them is water, it is called water erosion. Water erosion is the most important land degradation problem worldwide. Several factors are effective in the occurrence of soil erosion, some of which include rainfall, length of slope, degree of slope, type of soil, type and amount of soil cover, management and control methods. The role of erosion and sediment production in reducing soil fertility and waste, filling dam reservoirs, clogging and blocking irrigation canals, streams and rivers, muddying river water and the reduction of water quality and water pollution in the downstream areas have long been identified and noticed by experts and experts in geosciences, therefore, to prevent or reduce the mentioned effects, there is a need to plan and implement soil protection and sediment control measures within the framework of watershed management plans.

[0017] Soil erosion is certainly one of the most important environmental problems of landslide-prone slopes and forest roads, which have existed since the past and have increased due to several reasons, including the expansion of construction activities in natural areas in recent years. Soil erosion of forest roads reduces the useful life of road construction, increases protection and maintenance costs, causes damage to vehicles and destroys the environment of aquatic organisms. Therefore, the use of biological soil protection methods in these areas and the bioengineering stabilization of the slopes around the forest roads, which have been exposed to erosive factors due to natural and artificial processes such as drift, are of particular importance.

[0018] In general, in the conditions of the mountainous forests in the north of the country, without helping nature and using methods that facilitate the establishment of vegetation, it is not possible to stabilize drift trenches, especially excavation trenches, naturally and easily and the place of surface drifts in the trenches will remain uncovered for at least a few months and will turn into a place of erosion and sediment production in the forest. In this situation, bioengineering measures along with nanotechnology, which is considered one of the new and applied sciences in forestry and its management, and since this technology is capable of improving methods of assessment, management and reducing risks for the environment and a solution to preserve the environment and natural resources and achieving sustainable development and sustainable exploitation is considered. For example, the use of stable and biodegradable nanoparticles, which have been less studied in the aspect of preventing water erosion on the slopes of earthmoving hills, can be effective in stabilizing the soil of road drift trenches. On the other hand, bioengineering methods of soil stabilization can preserve soil nutrients, prepare a suitable substrate for the regrowth of native plants, preserve soil microorganisms and increase the resistance of road construction with minimum costs.

[0019] Therefore, considering that the use of bioengineering methods in combination with nanotechnology, which includes the use of nano hydromulch by the hydroseeding method and its combination with geocell, which is discussed in detail in the following article and besides these, the use of anti-sediment cushions and the evaluation of their economic-executive benefits in the mountainous forest roads of the country do not have much history, so the localization of the production process of these products with the ability to commercialize and transfer technology can be very interesting. Hydroseeding is a new method of planting grass and pasture plants, which has been considered in green space design and soil protection during the last few decades. This method is based on spraying a mixture of seeds, mulch, hydrogels, starter fertilizers, protective fibers and some other additives in a completely liquid environment. In this method, a suspended mixture of the mentioned materials with proportional proportions is sprayed on the bed surface by pressure controlled by a powerful pump or manually. The uniformly sprayed mass contains seeds and all necessary materials for seed germination and growth, and from this stage onwards, the seedling grows and follows the natural stages of its growth in a mass of suitable materials for growth and due to the covering of mulch and moisture protection materials, it shows more resistance to environmental stresses and also, this work helps to reduce the cost of labor significantly, and in addition to this, in hydroseeding, the germination speed is very high and requires little irrigation. Geocells are geosynthetic products that have a grid-like structure and are widely used in the construction industry. The grid structure of the geocell distributes the force that is applied vertically to the soil surface laterally on the soil surface and thus prevents soil settlement or soil erosion.

[0020] The material of the geocell network is usually high density polyethylene (HDPE) or new polymer alloy (NPA). The ability to transport water can be seen in polyester geocells, and besides that, geocells support the growth of vegetation and protect vegetation against surface erosion. It should be noted that in this research, due to the importance of the environment and the parallelism of this research with environmental issues, biodegradable geocell is used by adding oxa material to it to return all its materials to nature.

[0021] They use the geocell network to achieve the following goals:Stabilizing and consolidating the bed soil in canals and canalsErosion controlStrengthening the road and railway infrastructureProtection of channelsretaining walls

[0022] Now, if the grids are filled with a combination of forest soil and hydromulch, it is possible for the plant to grow. A review of the studies related to the effects of hydromulch shows that this type of management action can significantly reduce the amount of soil erosion and prevent its larger amounts. Since the benefits of using biological methods of soil protection and bioengineering techniques to correct and stabilize unstable slopes and soils that face vegetation problems have been proven, therefore, with the successful implementation of these methods, it is possible to expand bioengineering techniques and optimal use of local facilities in order to deal with soil erosion. In addition, bioengineering techniques are less expensive than mechanical methods and require little equipment and heavy machinery such as loaders and excavators and this issue is very important for the protection and maintenance of roads in forestry projects that often face financial constraints.

[0023] Changing the appearance of the profile of natural slopes by creating earthmoving trenches causes disturbance in the hydraulic behavior and physical and chemical characteristics of the soil and ultimately increases the loss of soil and mass movement of the slopes. Jordan Leps et al. (2009) proved that the soil loss rate of the excavation trench is 3 and 18 times that of the roadbed and the embankment trench, respectively. Arnez et al. (2004) also reached a similar result in this regard. Therefore, one of the most important issues in reducing road destruction and managing the crisis caused by soil wastage is the strengthening of road excavation trenches with the help of bioengineering methods. Because there is often a side stream at the foot of the excavation trench and the sediments and drained water flows from the upstream slope of the excavation trench and the excavation trench is directed towards the waterways by the atmosphere. In the forest roads of Gilan province and on slopes above 60%, the soil is sensitive to erosion and will show various forms of destruction with the lowest runoff flow. The destruction of the spongy tissue of the A horizon and the scattering of the soil horizons due to road construction prevent the penetration of water into the lower horizons of the trenches, and as a result, the effects of erosion and destruction appear. In general, in forest areas with harsh ecological conditions, it is not possible to stabilize road excavation trenches naturally and easily without helping nature and restoration and strengthening activities. Unfortunately, the implementation of bioengineering techniques to stabilize and restore slopes overlooking forest roads, despite being cost-effective and compatible with the environment, due to lack of confidence in efficiency, durability, difficulty in obtaining raw materials, elegance of design and the construction and lack of sufficient knowledge regarding its advantages have been neglected. In this situation, bioengineering measures can be effective in stabilizing the soil of road excavation trenches. At the same time, bioengineering methods of soil stabilization can preserve soil nutrients, prepare a suitable substrate for the regrowth of native plants, preserve soil microorganisms and increase the resistance of road construction with minimum costs. Applying some bio-engineering methods, including the use of hydro-mulch, installing sediment-absorbing cushions, geocells and evaluating their economic-performance benefits in the mountainous forest roads of the country has not had much history and the localization of the production process of these products with the ability to commercialize and transfer technology is one of the innovations of the present research.Solution of problem

[0024] This invention was conducted in one of the erosion and landslide-prone areas in Guilan province. For this, sections of forest roads in the selected series are selected.

[0025] The GPS is utilized to record the positions of soil trenches that are at risk of erosion and drift along the forest road network in the selected series. These identified trenches demonstrate similarities in terms of general characteristics, including slope, direction, and soil conditions. After identifying the soil trenches prone to erosion and drift, a number of them will be randomly selected, each with a minimum workable area of 30 square meters. The current study follows a randomized complete block design, consisting of two blocks. Within each block, bioengineering treatments will be conducted, with each treatment being replicated three times.

[0026] Since the process of making Hydromulch is a manual procedure for combining materials with water, and also in line with the optimal selection of Hydromulch and its type of composition, the desired Hydro-mulch should be made in a laboratory environment before being transferred to the forest. Then, in the form of a seedling tray, it should be combined with the desired seeds and soil, and alongside the rainmaker with different intensities in terms of rainfall, the target parameters should be measured and if it is desirable and meets the desired requirements, it can be implemented in the forest and the next stage, it is implemented by entering the field of bioengineering treatments. The treatments used include:Nano Hydromulch with grass seedsNano Hydromulch with a mixture of grass seeds and geocellGeocellControlTo preserve and manage soil erosion in the trenches of forest roads in the area under study, the following measures are implemented:

[0027] In Nano Hydromulch, the following derived compounds are used: 18 grams of starch, 0.7 grams of macro-nano fertilizer NPK, 0.25 grams of micro-nano fertilizer, 1 cc of liquid silica, 0.45 grams of super humic acid, 1 cc of surfactant, vermicompost, 10 mg of silica nanoparticle and 1.2 g of Nano Hydrogel (super absorbent). In the beginning, the forest soil is placed in the laboratory environment and the apparent specific gravity is measured in a dry state using the cylindrical method (Core Method) so that the samples are dried and pounded in the open air and after passing through a 2 mm sieve, the desired experiments are carried out on them. Then the Hydromulch composition is made together with the grass seed and placed in a seedling tray, and after the grass seed has germinated and reached a suitable stage of growth it is placed in the slopes of 10 and 30% under the rainmaker with an intensity of 180 milliliters and the percentage of its runoff is calculated.

[0028] Regarding Nano Hydromulch with the combination of grass seed and geocell, due to the nature of geocell and its inability to be tested in a laboratory environment, it is directly implemented, so first the geocell is installed on the trench of the forest road and then with the hydroseeder machine Hydromulch is sprayed on it.

[0029] In the geocell treatment, we install the geocell on the trench of the forest road after laying the plot for its installation and implementation.

[0030] In the control treatment, the only action taken is the creation of plots, while the measurement of sediment and runoff is conducted by digging a pit at the outlet of each plot after every rainfall event.

[0031] The field portable rainfall simulator used in this research was designed and built in the soil protection and watershed research center of the country. The rainmaker under study was designed with a plot size of 0.06 square meters (25 cm x 25 cm) based on the standard model available at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, which is known as Kamphorst type and is easily portable and portable. This rain gauge is suitable for determining soil erosion characteristics, water infiltration rate, and soil conservation research, and using it to determine the erodibility of surface deposits in the desert is considered a standard method. The rainmaker under study consists of 3 sprinkler parts with a pressure regulator to produce standard rainfall, a base for the sprinkler and a metal frame inside which the tested soil sample is placed.

[0032] The treatment under investigation in the laboratory environment where the rain simulator is utilized to measure the amount of erosion and sedimentation, is Nano Hydromulch with grass seeds.

[0033] In the implementation of the research in laboratory conditions, first, each of the materials needed to make the Hydromulch composition is measured by a Kern digital scale with an accuracy of 0.0001 grams. Then it is brought to volume by adding 150 ml of distilled water in a graduated cylinder, and by a manual mixer, the ingredients are evenly sprinkled along with the grass seed mixture on the soil bed, which is in the form of a seedling tray. Also, the rainfall intensity in this study will be considered 180 mm per hour due to the limitations of the rainmaker machine and its similarity to the real environment in the forests of the north of the country (Rahma et al., 2017).

[0034] Each trench will be used to determine the apparent specific gravity, moisture percentage, sand, silt, and clay percentage, organic matter percentage, and pasty index of soil sampling from a depth of 0-20 cm. Monitoring of the condition of the trenches and the collection of rainfall and sediment data are done after each rainfall and during the fall and winter, and no precise prediction can be made concerning the number of showers. Rainfall data will be documented by a rain gauge installed in the study area. The amount of sediment delivery is accomplished through side channel trapping and at the beginning and end of treated and control trenches. Trapping involves digging a cylindrical pit with a diameter of 0.4 meters and a depth of 0.6 meters to collect sediment. In the center of each trap, a calibrated indicator is installed to estimate the sediment height (Long, 2016). During each visit, the sediment height (meters) and the deposition surface (square meters) will be measured to calculate the sediment volume. At the end of each period, three samples are prepared from each sediment trap using a cylinder to measure the apparent specific gravity of the sediment. To calculate the mass of sediment (megagrams) in each measurement step, the volume of sediment (cubic meters) is multiplied by the specific weight (megagrams per cubic meter). By dividing the sediment mass by the surface of the road (trench area) in sediment production, the mass per surface unit (megagram per hectare) is obtained (Yelmeh et al., 2021). In the end, with the help of the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), the best bioengineering treatment will be determined according to performance criteria, installation and implementation cost, and durability.Advantage effects of invention

[0035] Hydromulch reduces soil erosion in trenches better than other treatments.

[0036] The cost of implementation and installation of Geocell is lower than other bioengineering treatments used in this project.

[0037] There is a significant relationship between the intensity and duration of rainfall and the amount of soil erosion in forest road trenches.

[0038] The combination of geocell treatment with nano hydromulch is the best treatment for stabilizing forest road trenches in terms of function, cost and durability.

[0039] Creating green space

[0040] : Table of ingredients of Nano hydromulch

[0041] : Nano hydromulch production process and its use

[0042] : Table of ingredients of Nano hydromulch

[0043] : Nano hydromulch production process and its useExamples

[0044] The stabilization and revitalization of bioengineering is of special importance in any place where, due to natural and artificial processes, the soil lacks cover and is exposed to erosive factors. In this regard, grass plays the most important role in soil erosion control, visual beauty, purification and reduction of air pollution in urban and non-urban environments. For this purpose, in this plan, using Nano hydromulch along with grass seed is considered to prevent and thus reduce soil erosion. The materials used in the experimental phase include: Nano hydrogel, macro Nano fertilizer, super humic acid, micro Nano fertilizer, liquid silica, starch glue, surfactant and silica Nano particles, which were mixed and used in 150 ml of distilled water.

[0045] This design can be used in all erosion-prone environments to prevent soil erosion and beautify the surrounding environment.

Claims

The process of producing Nano Hydromulch is to prevent soil erosion and sliding and drifting in excavation trenches and embankments of forest roads, to reduce runoff and sediment, and to create an attractive landscape. For this, Hydromulch along with grass seed has been utilized due to the high speed of growth and stabilization of the trenches in the shortest possible time.According to claim 1, the components of this Hydromulch in the laboratory phase include starch glue 18 grams, macro nano fertilizer NPK 0.7 grams, micro-nano fertilizer 0.25 grams, liquid silica 1 cc, super humic acid 0 / 45 grams, surfactant 1 cc, vermicompost, silica nanoparticles 10 milligrams and Nano Hydrogel (super absorbent) 1.2 grams.Based on claim 1, at first, the forest soil was placed in the laboratory environment and the apparent specific mass was measured in a dry state using the cylindrical method (Core Method) so that the samples were dried and pounded in the open air and then after passing through a 2 mm sieve, the desired tests were performed on them.Based on claims 2 and 3, the procedure of production and use of these materials is as follows: mix all the materials with the mentioned compounds in 150 ml of distilled water and sprinkle the Hydromulch mixture along with grass seeds in the form of a seedling tray then, after the grass seeds germinate and reach a suitable stage of growth, they are placed under a rainmaker with an intensity of 180 mm per hour on slopes of 10 and 30%.

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