Cw. Watts et Ar. Dexter, SOIL FRIABILITY - THEORY, MEASUREMENT AND THE EFFECTS OF MANAGEMENT AND ORGANIC-CARBON CONTENT, European journal of soil science, 49(1), 1998, pp. 73-84
The weakest link between particles or aggregates determines the streng
th of soil. We have re-examined the theory and, as a result, have re-d
efined friability, F, as the coefficient of variation of soil tensile
strength. The formal relationship between the parameter i/alpha of the
weakest link theory of strength, which has previously been used as a
measure of friability, and the newly defined measure, F, is described
by a simple equation which has an accuracy of within 2% over the range
of interest. The quantity F is used to show that friability reaches m
aximum at water contents around the lower plastic Limit, that mechanic
al disturbance of wet soil by tillage reduces the friability, and that
friability is strongly positively correlated with the organic carbon
content of the soil. These results show the merit of measuring friabil
ity for determining the optimum water content for tillage, for quantif
ying the damage done by different tillage practices, and as a theoreti
cally based index of soil physical quality.