Soil Water Flux Estimates From Streaming Potential and Penta-Needle Heat Pulse Probe Measurements.

The growing need for better management of shrinking water (irrigation) resources is magnified by the critical need for sustainable fertilizer application to mitigate pollution of our water resources. The large-scale and often long-lasting consequences of excess application of nitrogen and other nutrients will diminish as improved assessment and detection methods are developed and deployed.  Streaming potential and the penta-needle heat pulse probe, two novel water flux monitoring tools, are evaluated as a first step toward development of a nutrient monitoring tool for increased sustainability in agricultural production.  Our objectives were to develop, test, compare and correlate these two monitoring methods and to demonstrate their capability for assessing soil water and nutrient transport.  Presented are some preliminary results, as well as challenges and limitations of these systems.