4th year projects
 2003 -2004

4th year projects 2003 -2004
 

The following list contains information about 4th year projects relevant to undergraduate students of the University of Queensland studying in the Soils and Land Resources area. Please contact the supervisor of the project to obtain more details.

Project titles are added continuously throughout the year.

Students are encouraged to develop their own projects in consultation with academic members of staff.

Projects are grouped under each principal supervisor. Please note that many of the projects have multiple supervisors and prospective students should browse down the entire page  to see all the projects.

Principal supervisor : Assoc. Prof. Hwat Bing So

1. The effect of surface conditions (stones or straw cover, soil compaction) on run-off and soil loss. Surface cover and soil compaction has a major effect on the process of soil loss, and the effect of each type of cover is not necessarily the same, i.e. there are differences between contact cover (stones/gravel/straw) and vegetative cover. There are also differences between vegetative covers such as stoloniferous and tussocky/clumping grasses. These are important options for mines to control erosion, particularly during the early part after reshaping the land surface, and their effects needs to be defined. Interactions with soil types and slopes are also important. This project will concentrate on the effects of degrees of surface cover with straw or stones/gravel, and soil compaction on erosion rates. They will be conducted in the Erosion Processes Lab using the tilting flume-rainfall simulator facility. (two projects here). Supervision: Bing So, Kamal Yatapanage.
    

2. Field rainfall simulations : Infiltration and run-off measurements at the DGA Effluent disposal site. A project dealing with “Land disposal as a final treatment of saline, industrial effluent” is in progress at the Davis Gelatin Australia plant in Beaudesert. The project aims to investigate whether irrigation of pastures and trees is a sustainable way of disposing of the effluent, or if the system needs to be modified to achieve sustainability. One aspect of management that is under consideration is the design of a new improved irrigation scheduling system. Measurements of infiltration rates is required in the field, prior to and after deep ripping. These measurements will be used to fine-tune the irrigation scheduling system. Associated with irrigation is the possibility of excessive application following prolonged wet conditions, creating a situation where run-off will be generated. The probability of Run-off generation requires characterization of the various soil types using the rainfall simulator, followed by modeling.This project is available for two students who needs to work together using the field rainfall simulator for both infiltration and run-off measurements for different soils. It is essential that students interested in this work must be available to conduct their experiments in the summer months soon after the second semester is concluded. Supervision: Bing So, Ross Bigwood, and Kamal Yatapanage.
    
3. Sensitivity analysis of of the MINEerosion model.  The MINErosion package is used for extending predictions of potential erosion on minesites from measurements made using the rainfall simulator. This project will introduce the student to sensitivity analysis of models. It aims to investigate the effect of various soil properties on the predictions from the MINErosion package, as well as conduct some validations of that model. Supervision: Bing So and Kamal Yatapanage.
    
4. The effect of Gypsum on the infiltration, drainage and evaporation of a sodic soil. Sodic soils are increasingly used for growing crops such as sugarcane as good soils suitable for expansion of sugar plantations during times when orices are high, are becoming scarce. Management of these soils are difficult particularly when irrigated with good quality water. The improvement from using gypsum needs to be quantified more clearly and this project is intended to do that. Supervision Bing So, Kamal Yatapanage.
    
5. The effect of texture on hard-setting properties of soils. Hardsetting properties are fundamentally a textural problem, which are common on minesites and agricultural areas. Under agricultural conditions, hardsetting may develop when the soil organic matter (aggregate bonding material) declined as a result of cultivation. Logically increasing soil organic matter should reverse the process. However, it would be useful if we have information of how texture affect the hardsetting properties of a soil. This provide a guide on which soil we should mange more carefully and not allow the soil organic matter to be degraded too far. This will be conducted in the laboratory. Supervision Bing So.
    
6. Effect of Compaction on nutrient diffusion and uptake. The effect of increasing bulk density on the uptake of non-mobile nutrients are important in determining the growth of seedlings, yet there is very little information on the effect of Bulk Density on their movement. We have looked at BD x P interactions. This project will characterise the effect of bulk density and water contents on the diffusion of other nutrients such as K, Zn and compare them with the mobile nutrient such as NO3 or Ca in controlled columns of soils. Supervision: Bing So, Gunnar Kirchhof, Neal Menzies.
    
7. Modelling compaction : Compaction is an inevitable consequence of tillage operations. If a reliable model of soil compaction is available, soil management for avoiding compaction can be readily developed.  This project deals with the adaptation of a laboratory based soil compaction model to field soils. Supervision: Bing So, Gunnar Kirchhof.
    
8. Effect of Lime application on soil strength in Vertosols. Previous work with Calcium amelioration of sodic soils has shown that the use of small quantities of lime (Ca carbonates) on Vertisols can have very large effects on soil structural stability as well as soil strength. The mechanism involved in this is not clear at this stage. However, these effects needs to be quantified as the potential application of this phenomenon can be very significant. This will be conducted as a laboratory or glasshouse study. Supervision Bing So.
    
9. Water uptake characteristics of native trees and vegetation. Native trees and vegetation are important in the rehabilitation of degraded or disturbed lands, such as mined lands, waterlogging, salinity etc. The use of native vegetation probably give the best chances for the development of a sustainable ecosystem, however there is very little known about the water use characteristics of these plants. Without this information, it is difficult to match plants to the ability of the soil or spoil material for supplying the water requirements of the plants. This project will be conducted under glasshouse conditions or in the field using a set of equipment that we have developed to measure the various aspect of plant water use. Supervision: Bing So and Kamal Yatapanage.
    
10.  Modelling capillary barriers and their drainage characteristics. In the rehabilitation of toxic waste such as toxic tailings from ore extraction processes, the tailings must be capped with a sufficiently deep material that can act as a plant growth material. However capillary rise of the toxic material will progressively render the capping system unsuitable for plant growth. Therefore a capillary barrier is needed to reduce or prevent the upward movement of these solutes. One dimensional or two dimensional hydrology models can be used to design such systems. Supervision: Bing So, Kamal Yatapanage.

Principal supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dave Edwards

1. Nutrition of yams (Dioscorea spp.) ACIAR have funded a new research project on nutritional disorders of yams, which commenced on 1 July 1999. In this project, basic studies on the development and recording of nutrient deficiency and toxicity symptoms and on the derivation of critical nutrient concentrations in plant parts associated with deficiency and toxicity will be conducted at UQ, mostly using our glasshouse facilities. This research will be supplemented by field trials and nutrient survey work in Tonga, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea. An opportunity exists for students to conduct growth response experiments using solution and/or soil culture in the glasshouse aimed at describing nutrient deficiency (phosphorus, potassium, nitrogen) and determining the most appropriate index tissue and the critical concentration in that tissue. Supervision Dave Edwards.

2. Effects of boron supply on reproductive development of field crops. Dr Adil Asad is a UQ Postdoctoral Fellow who is working on the effects of boron supply on reproductive development of canola and sunflower. This work follows on from the very detailed work of Dr Veronica Chapman on effects of solution boron concentration on vegetative growth of a wide range of winter growing crop species. Solution culture will be used to study the effect of boron supply on reproductive development of other field crops; possibly chickpea, field pea or even soybean.  Supervision Dave Edwards.

3. Effects of nutrient supply on nodulation of legumes that form nodules at the junctions of lateral roots. In contrast to most legumes which develop infection threads in root hairs, peanut and Stylosanthes species form nodules at the junctions of lateral roots. Detailed studies have shown that the relatively short root hairs present in these junctions are not necessary for nodulation to occur; studies with peanut have shown that nodulation still occurs in circumstances where the presence of the root hairs has been negated by moderately high solution Al concentrations. Little is known about the impact of deficiencies and toxicities of essential elements on nodulation of peanut and Stylosanthes species. Solution culture studies will be conducted to examine the effect of phosphorus or sulfur deficiency or of manganese toxicity on root hair development and nodulation in either peanut or one of the Stylosanthes species. Supervision Dave Edwards.

4. Nutrient status of vegetables, fruits and cereals. It is well known that Zn deficiency is a major limitation to the intellectual development of young children in many of the lesser-developed countries. Recent evidence also implicates Fe as another micronutrient that is often present in limiting supply in various foods, but particularly cereals such as rice. A useful project could be developed around the determination of Zn and Fe concentrations in common fruits, vegetables and cereals obtained from either the supermarket or from the Rocklea Markets, where we may be able to trace the origin of our samples. Supervision Dave Edwards.

 

Principal supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Neal Menzies

1. Struvite as a fertilizer material.
   One of the problems of disposing of sewage effluent is its high nutrient content, particularly N and P.  One means of removing N and P from effluent is to alter solution conditions in order to precipitate out the NH₄-Mg-PO₄ mineral struvite.  At present the technology to do this is available, but adoption of this technology is limited by the cost of operation.  One possible offset to the cost would be to sell the struvite as a fertilizer material.  Little is known of the behavior of this mineral in soil systems, and it fertilizer value has not been widely tested.  The project would consist of glasshouse plant growth trials to evaluate the availability of N, Mg and P from the struvite, supported by laboratory studies of the mineral's solubility.  Supervision Neal Menzies, Steve Harper (DPI), Phil Moody (NR&M).
    

2. Zeolite / Rock phosphate fertilizers for horticultural use.
   Over the past couple of years we have been investigating a novel fertilizer technology which we believe is capable of supplying P in response to plant demand.  If true, this would be the ideal slow release fertilizer for horticultural usage.  Earlier researchers believed that the combination of ammonium-zeolite and rock phosphate supplied P to the plant through a process of exchange enhanced dissolution.  Our work has demonstrated that this is probably not true, and that the rock phosphate dissolution occurs because of plant induced acidification of the rhizosphere in response to supply of N as ammonium.  Several projects are possible within this general area, ranging from investigation of agronomic / horticulture / nursery aspects of the fertilizer technologies' use through to detailed studies of the processes occurring within the fertilizer band.  There is also the opportunity to investigate the interaction of this novel technology with the beneficial action of rhizosphere microorganisms (bacteria, mycorrhizal fungi). This area of research combines plant nutrition, plant physiology, agronomy and soil chemistry.  Supervision, Neal Menzies, Mal Hunter (horticultural consultant), Peter Dart.
    

3. Copper toxicity in Australian native trees.
   We have recently developed techniques which permit us to achieve the low, but constant solution copper concentrations required to effectively evaluate the toxicity of copper to plants.  In 2001, Anna Sheldon used this technique to demonstrate that micro-structural damage to plant roots occurs at Cu concentrations of < 1 uM.  This places Cu as an even more toxic element than Al.  Several avenues exist for further research in this area.  We have mastered control of Cu in solution using a resin bufferng system, and have developed a system for contaminating soils without markedly changing other characteristics like pH - so both solution and soil culture experiments are feasible.  Supervision  Neal Menzies, Colin Asher.
    

4. Plant and micro-organism function in acid saline soil
   Disposal of saline high ammonium-N effluent from a gelatin plant has resulted in the development of soils which are both saline and acidic.  These soils may behave quite differently to the non-saline acid soils normally encountered.  We have observed high ammonium concentrations in some samples, indicating that nitrification may be inhibited by the acid conditions, though this may also simply be the effect of the saline conditions.  Project could look at the various aspects presenting limitations (acidity, salinity) to plant and micro-organism function.  Supervision,  Neal Menzies, Peter Dart, Ross Bigwood.

5. Nitrogen response and salinity tolerance of Rhodes grass. Rhodes grass is an ideal species for use in revegetation settings and in effluent disposal schemes because of its known salinity tolerance.  We are currently investigating strategies for the disposal of saline, high nitrogen waste from a gelatine plant in Beaudesert.  One option in this situation is irrigation of Rhodes grass pastures for the production of hay.  In this approach nitrogen removal would be achieved through its capture by the Rhodes grass.  One constraint to the assessment of this option is our limited knowledge of the response of Rhodes grass to nitrogen supply and to salinity.  The objectives of this project would be to determine the yield response of Rhodes grass to nitrogen and salinity, and the capacity of the grass to sequester both nitrogen and salt.  The project would consist primarily of glasshouse studies at St Lucia, but could also include a field component on the Beaudesert site. Supervision, Neal Menzies, Ross Bigwood, Bing So.

    

Principal supervisor: Dr Peter Dart

1. Nodulation characteristics of the Acacia crassicarpa/A. aulacocarpa group. Plants in this group of taxonomically related species from northern Australia have much promise as planted trees in the tropics for timber products. In field plantings in Mindanao, Philippines A.peregrina was well nodulated and A. disparrima poorly nodulated. This project will investigate with glasshouse trials the pattern of nodulation with rhizobia strains isolated from related acacia plants to see whether nodulation characteristics can be used as a taxonomic criterion. The project will also be instrumental in selecting a suitable rhizobia strain for use as an inoculant in nurseries. The trial will measure plant growth, N fixation and nodulation of various host species and provenances with a range of rhizobia strains. Nodule structure could also be studied using light and electron microscopy. Supervision Peter Dart.
    

2. Soil populations of rhizobia nodulating the Acacia aulocarpa, A. disparrima, A. peregrina complex. Specificities in nodulation exist within this related complex of plants which are being tested for their potential as plantation species. This project would examine the distribution of the rhizobia strains which nodulate these species by examining the nodulation patterns when the plants are inoculated with soil extracts from different tropical locations where they might be grown in plantations. The project would also develop a plant infection most-probable-number method to count the rhizobia populations in soil that nodulate the specific acacia species. Supervision Peter Dart.
    

3. Mycorrhizal development and seedling survival and growth in Eucalyptus cloeziana.  E.cloeziana or Gympie messmate is a valuable tree used as poles and for structural timber. It is a species being recommended for native hardwood plantations in Queensland but there are problems establishing it in the nursery. One of the contributing factors may be a need to establish an effective mycorrhizal association in the nursery. This project will examine the effect inoculation with various mycorrhizal strains has on seedling survival and growth and the interaction with various potting media and nutrient supply. Supervision Peter Dart.
    

4. Biological control of plant pathogens. Various bacteria in the soil produce antibiotics which inhibit fungal pathogen growth on agar plates. This project will assess whether the bacteria inhibit disease development in pot culture when they are used as seedling inoculants for plants grown in the presence of pathogens in the rooting media. Fusarium wilt of cotton, a major new disease problem for cotton grown in Australia will be the target system. The project will develop a bioassay system for screening potential inoculant strains which then will be tested for disease prevention in glass house trials growing cotton in soil conducive to disease, in large pots. Supervision Peter Dart.
    

5. Microbial biomass in poorly producing field “hot spots”. Precision farming and aerial imaging have identified parts of fields where crop growth and yield are less than in the remainder of the field despite there being no obvious differences in soil chemical and physical characteristics or topography. This project will assess how soil microbial biomass varies across these sites on fields of vertosols in the Dalby district where the farmer group is concerned about the microbial aspects of soil health in minimum tillage production systems where regular use is made of herbicides. Supervision Peter Dart.
   Nutrient deficiency symptoms of Acacia mangium. Mangium originally from northern Australia and PNG is being grown widely in plantations in S E Asia. A widespread problem is the yellow mangium syndrome where plants have yellow leaves and grow poorly. This project will use nutrient solution culture systems to investigate the nutrient deficiency symptoms of this important legume. Concentrations of nutrients in leaves with symptoms will be determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission Spectroscopy. Supervision Peter Dart.
    

6. Nutrient deficiency symptoms in Eucalyptus cloesiana and E.tereticornis. These two species have great potential as planted hardwoods for high value timber in Queensland, Asia and Africa. Nutrient deficiencies in the field can drastically limit growth. This project will use nutrient solution culture techniques to develop deficiency symptoms. Leaf nutrient contents will be analysed at various stages of symptom development. Supervision Peter Dart.
    

7. Nutrient deficiency symptoms in Eucalyptus cloesiana and E.tereticornis. These two species have great potential as planted hardwoods for high value timber in Queensland, Asia and Africa. Nutrient deficiencies in the field can drastically limit growth. This project will use nutrient solution culture techniques to develop deficiency symptoms. Leaf nutrient contents will be analysed at various stages of symptom development. Supervision Peter Dart.

 Principal supervisor: Dr Gunnar Kirchhof  

1.  How to sample and measure Ksat (saturated Hydraulic Conductivity). This project will focus on assessing spatial and temporal variations of Ksat, and the influence of sample size.  Supervision Gunnar Kirchhof.

2. Sensitivity of water balance models to soil hydraulic properties. Parameters that describe the pF-curve are important input data for mechanistic models.  Due to data-noise, these parameters vary depending on the statistical methods used to calculate them; does it matter?   What are the most important parameters?  Some think that PAW is all we need to run the models - is this correct or does it oversimplify water movement?  Supervision Gunnar Kirchhof.

3. Acid sulfate soil drainage interception.  Brisbane airport corporation has installed lime slots around drains on acid sulfate soils.  This project would assess water movement and pH-changes from the slots and into the drains.  Supervision Gunnar Kirchhof.

4. Tracking deep drainage and salt movement from effluent irrigation. Davis Gelatine (Beaudesert):  monitoring and coring to 6 m.  Supervision Gunnar Kirchhof.

5. How stable are the lanes in controlled traffic systems?  Does compaction in traffic lanes spread, or deepen with time.  Supervision Gunnar Kirchhof.

6. Use of video camcorders to measure raindrop impact energy.  This project is a real challenge and would suit a technically minded individual with strong problem solving capability. Supervision Gunnar Kirchhof.