Short project description

Macropores are large, continuous soil pores formed by root channels, earthworms, and shrink–swell processes enabling rapid preferential transport of water and solutes through the soil profile.  This project investigates how drought‑induced soil water repellency influences the initiation and intensity of macropore flow during rewetting events. Soil water repellency increases as soils dry, reducing matrix infiltrability and diverting infiltration into connected macropores once rainfall exceeds a threshold.  The project will quantify how soil repellency alters infiltration dynamics and bypass flow risk. Through controlled drying–rewetting experiments, infiltration tests, and dye tracing, the study will assess how hydrophobicity delays matrix wetting and at the same time increases the risk of macropore flow. The results will improve understanding of how drought, hydrophobicity, and soil structure interact to shape preferential flow pathways, with implications for solute leaching, groundwater protection, and soil management under a changing climate. The content of the project will depend on the extend.

Is field work part of the topic? Yes

Is lab work part of the topic? Yes

I coding part of the thesis topic? No