Einfluss von Regenmustern auf Splash-Erosion von sandigem Lehm

There are still uncertainties in defining the impact of different rainfall intensities on splash erosion. To explore them, a laboratory study with a rainfall simulator has been conducted with an increasing, decreasing and a constant rainfall intensity. The simulated rain has been applied on a sandy loam soil. All patterns had an average rainfall intensity of 24.7 mm h⁻¹ and consisted of three intensity levels which were applied for 20 min per level. The eroded soil was collected after each intensity level. The decreasing rainfall pattern led to 32% more splash erosion than the increasing one. Splash erosion was more intense, applied at the end of a simulation, due to the cumulative effect of the raindrop's kinetic energy and a thin water layer. By extrapolation of the linear regression, a minimum rainfall intensity to initiate splash erosion can be accepted between 10 mm h⁻¹ and 15 mm h⁻¹.