Experimental Investigation of Polyvinyl Acetate Polymer Application for Wind Erosion Control of Soils

Wind erosion of soils and suspended particles in Iran is one of the serious environmental and agricultural problems which affect agricultural lands, water reservoirs, irrigation canals, drains and etc. Therefore wind erosion control needs attention specially in arid and semi-arid regions. Although in recent years, some polymeric materials have been used for improvement of structural stability, increasing aggregate stability and soil stabilization, but still some important parameters such as kind of polymer, quantity of polymer, efficiency against wind and water erosion, durability in field conditions and environmental impacts should be considered. In this research, Polyvinyl Acetate-based polymer was used for three different soil textures against wind erosion. Then the effect of this polymer on wind erosion control was investigated and its results were compared with water treated soil samples. The results of wind tunnel with a maximum 26 m/s wind velocity showed that there was a significant difference between the erosion of polymer treated and water treated samples and with application of 25 gr/m2 Polyvinyl Acetate, the erosion of Aeolian sands samples reduced to zero in the experimental conditions in relation to water treated samples. For silty and clayey soils treated by polymer, the wind erosion reduced minimum 90% in relation to water treated samples.