About

The soil science group at UNSW is involved with and interested in the use of ancillary data from remote and proximal soil sensors and their application to digital soil mapping. The group has at its disposal and regular uses remote and proximal sensed gamma-ray spectrometry data (i.e. Radiation Solutions RS240 and RS700) as well as proximal sensed electromagnetic (EM) induction instruments (i.e. Geonics EM31, EM34 and a DUALEM-421).

The group publishes research in the areas of digital soil mapping of soil properties (e.g. clay, salinity and CEC) as well as identifying soil management zones or soil types. The research is undertaken mostly at the field scale but also using data sets acquired at multiple farms and districts scales. In recent investigations, research has been carried out with scientists in England (British Geological Survey), Portugal (Universidade de Lisboa), Spain (IFAPA), Morocco (INRA) and USA (USDA-ARS). In Australia, research has been undertaken in NSW (University of Sydney), Nth Queensland (HCPSL) and Western Australia (Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry).

Over the last five years, the group has been pioneering the area of developing 2-d, 3-d and 4-d electromagnetic conductivity imaging (EMCI) capabilities using a DUALEM-421 and EM4Soil software. Applications have included the development of EMCI to assess soil salinity and freshwater plumes emanating from beneath a large earthen water storage and 2-d time lapse imaging of water and forecasting beneath irrigated legume crops. 4-d imaging has also been shown to be possible and to understand the dynamics of beachface salinity.

People

The group is led by Dr John Triantafilis with many fabulously friendly and "hardly" working postgraduate students, including:

  • Mr Jingyi Huang who is currently working on completing his PhD thesis (Mapping and monitoring soil water dynamics using electromagnetic conductivity imaging)
  • Mr Ehsan Zare, who is currently working on completing his MPhil thesis (Digital soil mapping of landscape units and salinity across the Bourke Irrigation District)
  • Mr Muddassar Muzzamil, who is currently undertaking an MPhil thesis (Digital soil mapping of particle size fractions and soil management zones at the field scale)
  • Mr Triven Koganti, who is currently undertaking an MPhil thesis (Using geophysical methods to map landfill leachate plumes).

In this section

Australasian Biogeography and Natural Classification

Australasian Biogeography and Natural Classification (The Ebach Lab) is a biogeography and systematics research group headed by Dr Malte C. Ebach.

Geological Evolution, Ore Deposits, Exploration and Energy (GEODEE)

The GEODEE group has been informally running for a number of years and encompasses geological research undertaken at UNSW by current academics, visiting fellows and their students.

Human geography

Human geography is the human oriented arm of geography, the study of the Earth. In BEES, our research includes the study of the Earth, particularly during the Anthropocene, communities and cultures.

Palaeoanthropology Research Laboratory (PEARL)

Palaeoanthropology is the scientific investigation of human evolution focusing on evidence provided by the human fossil, archaeological and palaeoecological records.

Palaeoecology Lab

The ESSRC Palaeoecology Lab uses of a variety of palaeoenvironmental techniques to examine climate change/variability, human impacts and ecosystem response to such perturbations.

Prehistory and palaeoenvironment of Australia, New Guinea and the Pacific

Our research group is currently engaged in a field and lab-based program investigating the peopling of Sahul, settlement history, palaeoenvironment and resource use.

Rip current and surf hazard research

Since 2011, Professor Robert Brander, along with research colleagues and students within the School of BEES, have been working on both physical and social aspects of the beach rip current hazard.

Soil science

The soil science group at UNSW is involved with and interested in the use of ancillary data from remote and proximal soil sensors and their application to digital soil mapping.

The Mark Wainwright Analytical Centre

The Mark Wainwright Analytical Centre (MWAC) is a network of centralised cutting-edge facilities and expert staff that are open to the entire UNSW research community and beyond.

The PRECISE Network

The potential of regional extreme sea-level rise remains a key socioeconomic uncertainty for millions across the Asia-Pacific region due to the likely impacts on coastal erosion, inundation and for water resource management.

UNSW IceLab

UNSW IceLab provides high-precision water chemistry analysis and fluorescence spectrometry capability to analyse dissolved organic matter (DOM).