Measurement of soil water using Compton scattering

Compton scattering method has been used as a possible tool in the study of the properties of soil for agricultural purposes. In this study, the soil water is determined by using Compton scattering method. The soil sample was collected from Erzurum and a 2 x 2 in. NaI (Tl) scintillation detector measured Compton scattered radiation from the soil sample. The radioactive source used in the experiment was a (133)Ba. The soil samples were irrigated by adding known quantities of water and a standard curve was constructed with the amount of water added versus Compton scattering intensity. It was observed that Compton scattering method in measurement of the soil water has advantages such as practical, inexpensive, non-destructive and fast analysis. Copyright (C) 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.