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    Synthesis, Characterization, and Application of Superhydrophobic Sands in Desert Agriculture

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    MS Thesis_Joel Reihmer_Spring 2017.pdf
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    Description:
    MS Thesis_Joel Reihmer_Spring 2017
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    Type
    Thesis
    Authors
    Reihmer, Joel W. cc
    Advisors
    Mishra, Himanshu cc
    Committee members
    Tester, Mark A. cc
    Ghaffour, NorEddine cc
    Program
    Environmental Science and Engineering
    KAUST Department
    Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE) Division
    Date
    2017-04
    Embargo End Date
    2018-05-11
    Permanent link to this record
    http://hdl.handle.net/10754/623472
    
    Metadata
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    Access Restrictions
    At the time of archiving, the student author of this thesis opted to temporarily restrict access to it. The full text of this thesis became available to the public after the expiration of the embargo on 2018-05-11.
    Abstract
    A sustainable supply of fresh water for the human population is a global concern. Intriguingly, about 70% of the total fresh water consumed in the world annually is claimed by agriculture alone; this fraction is even higher in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, where natural regeneration of groundwater is the slowest. Thus, there is a serious need for innovative materials and technologies to enhance the efficiency water usage in agriculture. To this end, plastic mulches have been employed across the developed world to minimize evaporative loss of water from top-soils. While plastic mulches are inexpensive, they do require specialized farm machinery for installation and long processing times. On one hand, plastic mulches have proven to increase crop yields, but on the other their non-biodegradability poses serious environmental concerns. In response, development of low-cost bio-/photo-degradable artificial mulches remains an area of intense research. In this thesis, we report on a novel superhydrophobic material exploiting inexpensive simple components to reduce the amount of water required for irrigation in agriculture by suppressing evaporative losses from the top-soil. Our material consists of ordinary beach sand coated with < 20 nm thick layer of paraffin wax. We synthesized and extensively characterized our material and applied them as mulches for tomato and barley plants at the KAUST greenhouse. We found that when a ~5 mm thick layer of superhydrophobic sand was placed onto the top-soil in pots, it dramatically suppressed evaporative losses and significantly enhanced the yields. Our preliminary field-scale experiments with tomatoes and barley crops at the Hada Al Sham site corroborate these results. Our approach might find applications in desert agriculture and other fields and alleviate water stress in the MENA region.
    Citation
    Reihmer, J. W. (2017). Synthesis, Characterization, and Application of Superhydrophobic Sands in Desert Agriculture. KAUST Research Repository. https://doi.org/10.25781/KAUST-SRISH
    DOI
    10.25781/KAUST-SRISH
    ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
    10.25781/KAUST-SRISH
    Scopus Count
    Collections
    Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering (BESE) Division; Environmental Science and Engineering Program; MS Theses

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