Soil infiltration is a key link of the natural water cycle process. Studies on soil permeability are conducive for water resources assessment and estimation, runoff regulation and management, soil erosion modeling, nonpoint and point source pollution of farmland, among other aspects. The unequal influence of rainfall duration, rainfall intensity, antecedent soil moisture, vegetation cover, vegetation type, and slope gradient on soil cumulative infiltration was studied under simulated rainfall and different underlying surfaces. We established a six factor-model of soil cumulative […]

The erosivity potential of rainfalls can be estimated by some indexes, among them the EI30, which is given by the product of kinetic energy (E) and rainfall intensity for a 30-minute period (I30). The purpose of this study was to determine rainfall erosivity, hydrological patterns, return period and probability of occurrence of erosive rainfalls in São Borja, RS, Brazil, based on diary rainfall charts of the FEPAGRO meteorological station, from 1956 to 2003. The duration and accumulated amount of each […]

The planning of agricultural and civil engineering activities must be based on knowledge of rainfall erosion potential. For Quarai, RS, Brazil, the rainfall erosivity and its relationship with precipitation and rainfall coefficient, rainfall patterns and rainfall return period were determined. Daily rainfall data from the 1966-2003 period were used. For each erosive rainfall the segments of the rainfall chart with the same intensity were separated and the data recorded in a worksheet. The mean precipitation and rainfall patterns were estimated, […]

Erosion is largely affected by rainfall intensity. However, few studies in Brazil have been dedicated to evaluate this effect. This research aimed to determine soil and water losses on a Typic Hapludalf soil, submitted to four different rainfall patterns, under the following treatments: rainfall simulation of variable intensity in advanced, intermediary, delayed and constant patterns. Rainfall duration was one hour, with a peak of 120 mm h-1 during 5 min for patterns with variable intensity and 35 mm h-1 for uniform intensity, applied over soil […]

Rainfall characteristics may determine most of the harmful effects of soil erosion. Intensity variation during a rainfall is one of these important rainfall characteristics. However, there is a lack of information about rainfall patterns that occur in Brazil. This research had as objectives the determination of natural erosive rainfalls patterns verified in Santa Maria (RS), and the estimation of rainfall return period for the three patterns proposed. Daily rainfall charts were obtained from the Research Center of Forestry and Soil […]