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All of us at Landviser, LLC (USA) and IP GeoPro (Russia) are wishing our friends, collegues, customers and everybody else around the world Happy Holidays and Great New Year!

was published in December, 2010 issue of FastTIMES, online peer-reviewed journal of EEGS. To cite this publication use:

Abstract

On-the-go sensors, designed to measure soil electrical resistivity (ER) or electrical conductivity (EC) are vital for faster non-destructive soil mapping in precision agriculture, civil and environmental engineering, archaeology and other near-surface applications. Compared with electromagnetic methods and ground penetrating radar, methods of EC/ER measured with direct current and four-electrode probe have fewer limitations and were successfully applied on clayish and saline soils as well as on highly resistive sandy soils, such as Alfisols and Spodosols. However, commercially available contact devices, which utilize a four-electrode principle, are bulky, very expensive, and can be used only on fallow fields. Multi-electrode ER-imaging systems applied in deep geophysical explorations are heavy, cumbersome and their use is usually cost-prohibited in many near-surface applications, such as forestry, archaeology, environmental site assessment and cleanup, and in agricultural surveys on farms growing perennial horticultural crops, vegetables, or turf-grass. In such applications there is a need for accurate, portable, low-cost device to quickly check resistivity of the ground on-a-spot, especially on the sites non-accessible with heavy machinery.

Location

Bedmar, A.P., and Araguás, L.A., 2002, Detection and prevention of leaks from dams: Taylor & Francis, Exton, PA.

Carrow, R.N., and Duncan, R.R., 2004, Soil salinity monitoring: present and future: Golf course management, no. November, p. 89-92.

Corwin, R., 1990, The self-potential method for environmental and engineering applications: Geotechnical and Environmental Geophysics, Soc. Expl. Geophysics, Tulsa, OK, p. 127-143.

LandMapper ERM-02, in addition to electrical conductivity and resistivity measurements also allows non-invasively measure natural electrical potentials in soils and plants when two special non-polarizing electrodes are connected to MN terminals (Figure 3).

Electrical geophysical methods are classified as methods measuring natural electrical potentials of the ground without introducing additional electrical field and methods utilizing artificial electrical or electromagnetic fields to measure soil electrical parameters. Method of self-potential (SP) measures the naturally existing electrical potentials in soils and “bio-potentials” in plant, which are important in agriculture. Despite growing popularity of electrical resistivity/conductivity methods in agriculture, method of self-potential is rarely used.

Table 2. Technical Specifications of LandMapper ERM-02

Range of measurements   ……………………………………….……..    ER= 0.1-1 10⁶ Ohm m

The newest model, LandMapper ERM-02, can automatically output EC or ER, accepts four-electrode probes of any configuration, including dipole-dipole and rectangular probes, reaches down to 10 m depth in most soils and stores up to 999 resistivity values in non-volatile memory. Also, ERM-02 model can be used to measure natural electrical potentials in soils, plants and other media with two non-polarizing electrodes (Figs. 2&3).