Long-lived Radionuclides in the Surface Environment (LO-RISE) - Mechanistic Studies of Speciation, Environmental Transport and Transfer
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Southampton
Department Name: Faculty of Engineering & the Environment
Abstract
The impact of radioactivity on humans and the wider environment is controlled by the behaviour of the radionuclides in groundwaters, soils and sediments, and this behaviour is dictated by the quantities of radionuclides, and their chemical forms. We will study some of the radionuclides which are particularly important because they are potentially present in relatively large quantities, are environmentally mobile, and are readily taken up by living organisms. The main radionuclides we are going to study are:
Carbon-14, which occurs in nature, but was produced back in the 1960s and 60s through nuclear weapons testing, and is also present in nuclear wastes; and
Uranium (together with its decay product radium) which is present in nature, and also in some nuclear wastes.
We will use four areas of the UK which contain elevated levels of these radionuclides as our study sites. These are South Terras (an old uranium mine in Cornwall), the Needle's Eye (a uranium mineral vein in SW Scotland), the Esk Estuary in NW England, and offshore sediments in the NE Irish Sea. At these last two sites, the sediments contain elevated levels of radioactivity from authorised Sellafield discharges, mainly in the 1970s.
As well as studying how radioactivity occurs in, and moves through, the soils, waters, plants and (in the offshore sediments) animals, we want to understand the environmental and biological processes which control this movement. To do this, we will do a series of laboratory experiments, looking at the way soil/sediment conditions influence the radionuclide concentrations in solution, the form of the radionuclides in the solution, the way radionuclides are taken up into plants and animals, and the way they are distributed in plant tissues.
We will use the results from our field and laboratory studies to develop and test mathematical models of radionuclide transport and transfer processes. These are important because they allow us to predict behaviour, rather than having to make measurements. These predictive models can be used in assessing environmental impacts, cleaning up contaminated land and predicting the long term impact of radioactive waste disposals.
Carbon-14, which occurs in nature, but was produced back in the 1960s and 60s through nuclear weapons testing, and is also present in nuclear wastes; and
Uranium (together with its decay product radium) which is present in nature, and also in some nuclear wastes.
We will use four areas of the UK which contain elevated levels of these radionuclides as our study sites. These are South Terras (an old uranium mine in Cornwall), the Needle's Eye (a uranium mineral vein in SW Scotland), the Esk Estuary in NW England, and offshore sediments in the NE Irish Sea. At these last two sites, the sediments contain elevated levels of radioactivity from authorised Sellafield discharges, mainly in the 1970s.
As well as studying how radioactivity occurs in, and moves through, the soils, waters, plants and (in the offshore sediments) animals, we want to understand the environmental and biological processes which control this movement. To do this, we will do a series of laboratory experiments, looking at the way soil/sediment conditions influence the radionuclide concentrations in solution, the form of the radionuclides in the solution, the way radionuclides are taken up into plants and animals, and the way they are distributed in plant tissues.
We will use the results from our field and laboratory studies to develop and test mathematical models of radionuclide transport and transfer processes. These are important because they allow us to predict behaviour, rather than having to make measurements. These predictive models can be used in assessing environmental impacts, cleaning up contaminated land and predicting the long term impact of radioactive waste disposals.
Planned Impact
The risk of nuclear industry operations is always a major concern. Whether or not these perceptions of risk are justified, they influence the public and decision-makers very heavily. Moreover, there are major uncertainties associated with radioactivity and the environment, which may lead to a very conservative approach to risk. These conservatisms can lead to overestimation of risk, and costly over-engineering of projects. A proportionate understanding of risk in any nuclear programme is therefore essential for public acceptance, political support and proper cost-detriment analysis. Ultimately, the behaviour of radionuclides in the biosphere dictates the radiological risk they represent, and LO-RISE will substantially improve our understanding of this risk, and of conservatisms in risk assessments, so any organisation with responsibilities for assessing or limiting radiological impact will benefit from LO-RISE.
Two distinct groups of beneficiaries can be identified:
1. Government, Industry, and Regulators. Government sets policy for the UK nuclear industry and has clearly stated that the "safety and security of nuclear power is of paramount concern". Our findings will be disseminated both through our project partners and also by LO-RISE academics' involvement in policy and strategy activities, so that LO-RISE will inform and improve policy making. The owners and operators of nuclear licensed sites (NDA, its Site Licence Companies, MOD and its contractors), the implementers of geological disposal (NDA-RWMD); and the nuclear industry regulators (primarily EA in England and Wales, SEPA in Scotland, though ONR may also have an interest), are responsible for delivering Government's policy objectives, and LO-RISE will support development and delivery of Site Lifetime Plans, or equivalent. At the operational level, the nuclear industry relies heavily on a very diverse supply chain. LO-RISE will help these contractors develop and implement improved solutions at the project level, for deployment in the UK and overseas.
2. The Wider Stakeholder Community, and the Public. Even in 'nuclear' communities, new nuclear projects are controversial. This is clearly illustrated by, for example, 'Stop Hinkley' or the controversy around the MRWS process in west Cumbria. Objective research has a vital role in providing trusted information to inform these debates, and LO-RISE will contribute to this through specifically tailored outreach and impact activities.
Two distinct groups of beneficiaries can be identified:
1. Government, Industry, and Regulators. Government sets policy for the UK nuclear industry and has clearly stated that the "safety and security of nuclear power is of paramount concern". Our findings will be disseminated both through our project partners and also by LO-RISE academics' involvement in policy and strategy activities, so that LO-RISE will inform and improve policy making. The owners and operators of nuclear licensed sites (NDA, its Site Licence Companies, MOD and its contractors), the implementers of geological disposal (NDA-RWMD); and the nuclear industry regulators (primarily EA in England and Wales, SEPA in Scotland, though ONR may also have an interest), are responsible for delivering Government's policy objectives, and LO-RISE will support development and delivery of Site Lifetime Plans, or equivalent. At the operational level, the nuclear industry relies heavily on a very diverse supply chain. LO-RISE will help these contractors develop and implement improved solutions at the project level, for deployment in the UK and overseas.
2. The Wider Stakeholder Community, and the Public. Even in 'nuclear' communities, new nuclear projects are controversial. This is clearly illustrated by, for example, 'Stop Hinkley' or the controversy around the MRWS process in west Cumbria. Objective research has a vital role in providing trusted information to inform these debates, and LO-RISE will contribute to this through specifically tailored outreach and impact activities.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
Tiina Roose (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Ahmed S
(2015)
Imaging the interaction of roots and phosphate fertiliser granules using 4D X-ray tomography
in Plant and Soil
Boghi A
(2018)
A Model of Uranium Uptake by Plant Roots Allowing for Root-Induced Changes in the soil.
in Environmental science & technology
Cooper LJ
(2017)
Fluid flow in porous media using image-based modelling to parametrize Richards' equation.
in Proceedings. Mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences
Daly K
(2017)
Modelling water dynamics in the rhizosphere
in Rhizosphere
Daly KR
(2018)
Determination of macro-scale soil properties from pore scale structures: image-based modelling of poroelastic structures.
in Proceedings. Mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences
Daly KR
(2016)
Image-based modelling of nutrient movement in and around the rhizosphere.
in Journal of experimental botany
Darmovzalova J
(2019)
Uranium diffusion and time-dependent adsorption-desorption in soil: A model and experimental testing of the model
in European Journal of Soil Science
Duncan S
(2018)
Mathematical modelling of water and solute movement in ridged versus flat planting systems
in European Journal of Soil Science
Duncan S
(2017)
Mathematical modelling of water and solute movement in ridge plant systems with dynamic ponding
in European Journal of Soil Science
Duncan SJ
(2019)
Multiple Scale Homogenisation of Nutrient Movement and Crop Growth in Partially Saturated Soil.
in Bulletin of mathematical biology
Description | We have discovered how the patchiness of soil binding sites for solutes like Uranium influence the bulk soil behaviour and solute movement. In particular we found that patchiness is only a secondary effect above the overall bulk effect. |
Exploitation Route | Models developed for Urainum are possibly, with minor modifications, applicable to other strongly bound nutrients in the soil. |
Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink |
Description | Our finding are continuing to inform discussions about the faith and behaviour of radio nucleates in the natural environment. |
First Year Of Impact | 2016 |
Sector | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Energy,Environment |
Impact Types | Policy & public services |
Description | The Parliamentary and Scientific Committee Discussion meeting on "Are we looking after our soils?" organised by Stephen Metcalfe MP |
Geographic Reach | National |
Policy Influence Type | Contribution to a national consultation/review |
Impact | This meeting on Nov 3rd 2015 was to discuss the importance of soils on the UK plc. One of the recommendations was to look into introducing "caring for soils" into farmer tenancy agreements as part of the revised bill dealing with short term tenants. Ie similar to housing tenants who are required to take care of the house they are renting and hand it back in a good conditions, it was suggested that the farmers should also take care of the soil and hand it back in equally good or improved conditions at the end of their term. |
Description | ERC Consolidator Grant |
Amount | € 1,996,246 (EUR) |
Funding ID | 646809 |
Organisation | European Research Council (ERC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | Belgium |
Start | 09/2015 |
End | 08/2020 |
Title | Data associate with the paper The effect of non-uniform microscale distribution of sorption sites on solute diffusion in soil S. A. Masum, G. J. D. Kirk, K. R. Daly, T. Roose DOI: 10.1111/ejss.12353 |
Description | The effect of non-uniform microscale distribution of sorption sites on solute diffusion in soil S. A. Masum, G. J. D. Kirk, K. R. Daly, T. Roose DOI: 10.1111/ejss.12353 |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | The effect of non-uniform microscale distribution of sorption sites on solute diffusion in soil S. A. Masum, G. J. D. Kirk, K. R. Daly, T. Roose DOI: 10.1111/ejss.12353 |
Description | An invited talk at Bayer CropScience's Workshop titled "Soil and Root Health" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Feb 2016: Bayer CropScience's - Soil and Root Health Symposium. This event will take place on February 16-17, 2016 at the headquarter campus of Bayer CropScience at Monheim, Germany. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Conference talk |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | talk titled "Image based modelling of nutrient uptake by root hairs" K.R. Daly, S.D. Keyes, S. Masum and T. Roose sparked questions and discussions afterwards at the Rhizosphere 2015 conference in Maastricht in June 2015. After the talk several people in the audience approach us for potential collaborations and visits to our lab. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
Description | Conference: Complex Soil Systems, Berkeley |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | An interesting conference about soils and the use of complex systems as studied in my phD (first year). A field trip to agricultural sties and the use of an augur was priceless. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://esd1.lbl.gov/research/programs/ERWR/soils_conference/ |
Description | Conference: Phosphorus in Soils and Plants, Montpelier |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Conference in the south of France concerning all aspects of plants, soil and biology. Lots was learnt about the biology of the soil. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://psp5-2014.cirad.fr |
Description | Conference: Rhizo4, Maastricht |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | A large conference held every 4 years concerning all aspects of plant and soil modelling given to a wide audience. Great networking opportunity and experience of lots of other academic work in a similar field. Poster entitled "Using a whole plant crop model to assess phosphate fertiliser use in barley". |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://www.rhizo4.org |
Description | Feb 14-17 2018 Phenome 2018 Tuscon Arizona US. Keynote speaker for the theme "Algorithms and Data Management for Phenotype Quantification and Analysis". |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Feb 14-17 2018 Phenome 2018 Tuscon Arizona US. Keynote speaker for the theme "Algorithms and Data Management for Phenotype Quantification and Analysis". |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Image based modelling of multi fluid flow and nutrient transport in a root-soil system |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | K.R. Daly, S.D. Keyes and T. Roose. Image based modelling of multi-fluid flow and nutrient transport in a root-soil system. Gordon Research Conference 2014, 06/07/2014-11/07/2014. increase in visibility and new collaborations |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | July 2018 Plenary speaker at Society of Mathematical Biology conference in Sydney. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | July 2018 Plenary speaker at Society of Mathematical Biology conference in Sydney. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | K.R. Daly, S.D. Keyes and T. Roose, Image based modelling of plant scale soil properties, BSSS/SSP conference 7th-8th September 2016 (poster) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Poster at the British Soil Science Society Conference: K.R. Daly, S.D. Keyes and T. Roose, Image based modelling of plant scale soil properties, BSSS/SSP conference 7th-8th September 2016 (poster) |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Keynote talk at Keystone 2016 "Microphytobiomes". Title of the talk "Multiscale Modelling of Plant-Soil Interaction" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Nov 2016: Keystone Symposia on Molecular and Cellular Science. Invited to give a Keynote address by Drs. Jan E. Leach, Kellye A. Eversole, Jonathan A. Eisen, Gwyn Beattie and Marcos A. Machado, we are Keystone Symposia on Phytobiomes: From Microbes to Plant Ecosystems, held in Santa Fe. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | https://www.keystonesymposia.org/17S2 |
Description | Keynote talk at Kirkham Conference 2016 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | April 2016: Kirkham conference invited speaker; talk titled "Multiscale mathematical modelling of plant-soil interaction" |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | https://www.soils.org/membership/divisions/soil-physics-and-hydrology/kirkham-conferences |
Description | Mechanical and biophysical constraints affecting soil bioturbation by earthworms and plant roots. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Ruiz, S., 2018., July. Mechanical and biophysical constraints affecting soil bioturbation by earthworms and plant roots. In 11th European Conference on Mathematical and Theoretical Biology (ECMTB). Location: Lisbon, Portugal Dates: 23/07/2018-27/07/2018 Number of people: 10-20 Demographic: Scientists, Professors |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Meet the scientist, Sherborne House School 11th March 2016 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | Primary school outreach event during the Science week: Meet the scientist, Sherborne House School 11th March 2016 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
Description | Minisymposia at BAMC titled "Multi scale analysis of porous media" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Porous materials are a fundamental building block of many terrestrialmaterials, eco-systems, biological tissues, and manmade engineering materials. There are numerous examples of porous materials for which enhanced modelling and optimisation techniques will offer significant gains in efficiency and productivity. In agriculture, 30% of UK wheat currently needs to be grown on drought-prone land, where yields are limited by the scarcity of water in the soil. In the construction industry, the reuse of pulverised fuel ash as a low porosity material for flood embankments is limited by the potential leaching of heavy metals into the surrounding environment. To overcome these, and many other problems there is a clear need to go beyond idealised models and develop a more detailed understanding of flow and transport phenomena in such systems. The mathematics of multiscale modelling in porous media is a rapidly growing field with wide ranging applications and collaborative opportunities. In this mini symposium we will discuss the mathematics of porous media. We will focus on pore scale and continuous descriptions of transport, fluid dynamics and structural mechanics. In addition talks will focus on how asymptotic techniques can be used to exploit the large variations in scales within these materials to link properties on the pore scale to macro-scale observations. Whilst the main focus of the session is on the mathematical developments occurring in different areas of porous media, we will also focus on application and how mathematical techniques can be integrated with Computed Tomography and continuum scale measurements to inform industry practise, answer fundamental questions, and optimise porous materials across a range of different applications Speakers The session will include talks from five speakers working in different areas of porous media at different scales. Dr Keith Daly - University of Southampton Combining homogenisation theory and image based modelling to predict the poro-elastic properties of multi-constituent soils Dr Laura Cooper - University of Warwick Macroscopic effects of microscale interfaces Dr Rebecca Shipley - University College London Porous medium models to predict spatial heterogeneity in anti-cancer therapy efficacy Mr Simon Duncan - University of Southampton Solute movement and uptake in dynamic poroelastic materials Dr Matteo Icardi - University of Nottingham Upscaling reactive and electrochemical transport in porous media |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | On the Need to Establish an International Soil Modelling Consortium |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Type Of Presentation | keynote/invited speaker |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Conference presentation preparation for Complex Soil Systems Conference in Berkeley Sept 3-5 2014. Full list of authors of this presentation is: Vereecken H., Vanderborght J., Schnepf A., Brüggemann N., Amelung W., Herbst M., Javaux M., Van der Zee S.E.A.T.M., Or D., Šimunek J., van Genuchten M. Th., Vrugt J.A., Hopmans J.W., Young M.H., Baveye P., Pachepsky Y., Vanclooster M., Hallett P.D., Tiktak A., Jacques D., Vogel T., Jarvis N., Finke P., Jiménez J.J., Garnier P., Li C., Ogee J, Mollier A., Lafolie F., Cousin I., Pot V., Maron P.A., Roose T., Wall D.H., Schwen, A., Doussan C., Vogel H.J., Govers G., Durner W., Priesack E., Roth K., Horn R., Kollet S., Rinaldo A., Whitmore A., Goulding K., Parton, W.J. Establishment of the world wide soil modelling consortium. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | On the need to establish an international soil modelling consortium |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Type Of Presentation | keynote/invited speaker |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | This was a presentation at the Soil Science Society of America Meeting in Longreach CA Nov 2-5 2014 Full author list of the presentation is: Vereecken H., Vanderborght J., Schnepf A., Brüggemann N., Amelung W., Herbst M., Javaux M., Van der Zee S.E.A.T.M., Or D., Šimunek J., van Genuchten M. Th., Vrugt J.A., Hopmans J.W., Young M.H., Baveye P., Pachepsky Y., Vanclooster M., Hallett P.D., Tiktak A., Jacques D., Vogel T., Jarvis N., Finke P., Jiménez J.J., Garnier P., Li C., Ogee J, Mollier A., Lafolie F., Cousin I., Pot V., Maron P.A., Roose T., Wall D.H., Schwen, A., Doussan C., Vogel H.J., Govers G., Durner W., Priesack E., Roth K., Horn R., Kollet S., Rinaldo A., Whitmore A., Goulding K., Parton, W.J. Formation of the international soil modelling consortium |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
Description | Root induced compaction alleviation by root hairs -visualization with synchrotron imaging |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Talk at the European Geophysical Union conference in Vienna Spring 2018. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Scaling the impact of rhizosphere processes - from imaged pore scale nutrient uptake to full field continuum models. |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Ruiz, S., et al., 2018., December. Scaling the impact of rhizosphere processes - from imaged pore scale nutrient uptake to full field continuum models. In AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts. Location: Washington D.C., USA Dates: 10/12/2018-14/12/2018 Number of people: 10-20 Demographic: Scientists, Professors, Students |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Talk titled " A model of uranium uptake by plant roots allowing for root-induced changes in the soil" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | a. A model of uranium uptake by plant roots allowing for root-induced changes in the soil b. T Roose, GJD Kirk, Boghi c. We develop a model with which to study the poorly-understood mechanisms of uranium uptake by plants. The model is based on equations for the transport and reaction of uranium and acids and bases in the rhizosphere around cylindrical plant roots. It allows for the speciation of uranium with hydroxyl, carbonate and organic ligands in the soil solution; the nature and kinetics of sorption reactions with the soil solid; and the effects of root-induced changes in rhizosphere pH. A sensitivity analysis showed the importance of soil sorption and speciation parameters as influenced by soil pH and CO2pressure; and of root geometry and root-induced acid-base changes linked to the form of nitrogen taken up by the root, but not the root absorbing power for uranium. Simplified empirical models for uranium uptake by different plant species and soil types must account for these effects. d. RATE final meeting, January 15th-17th 2018, Central Hall Westminster, London, UK. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Talk titled "Imaging and modelling of rhizosphere processes" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Geophysical Research Abstracts Vol. 20, EGU2018-18157, 2018 EGU General Assembly 2018 © Author(s) 2018. CC Attribution 4.0 license. Imaging and modelling of rhizosphere processes Arjen van Veelen, Nico Koebernick, Dan McKay Fletcher, Callum Scotson, Keith Daly, Robbie Mayone, Simon Duncan, and Tiina Roose University of Southampton, Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, United Kingdom (a.van-veelen@soton.ac.uk) Most human food relies on the production of crops. Crops get their nutrients and water from the soil. In addition, soil has many other important functions, including the buffering of hydrological systems to prevent flooding and the provision of a carbon sink, lowering atmospheric carbon. Although bulk soil chemical processes are relatively well understood, there is a critical lack of studies characterising the dynamics of physico-chemical properties in the rhi- zosphere, such as nutrient cycles and release of plant exudates. These changes to the soil can drastically change the soil's hydraulic, nutrient and carbon functionality. This emphasises the importance to visualise physico-chemical information, in order to understand key processes of plant-soil interactions. In our interdisciplinary project, Data Intensive Modelling of the Rhizosphere Processes (DIMR), we aim to characterise and visualise these dynamics. The aim of the programme is to visualise pore geometry in soils using X-ray Computed Tomography (CT), com- bined with Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging (NMRI) to visualize plant exudates and water distribution. In addition, we use synchrotron X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) to understand both soil chemistry and speciation at the root-soil interface, all leading to a better understanding of rhizosphere processes. These methods can be combined with predictive models of soil-root processes to understand rhizosphere functionality. We will discuss how chemical data obtained from both NMR and XRF and XAS spectroscopy can enable a step change in multiscale modelling of rhizosphere processes. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |