An overview of the experimental research use of lysimeters

Abstract

The lysimeter is most often defined as a box filled with soil with an intact structure for measuring the amount of infiltration and evapotranspiration in natural conditions. At the bottom of the device there is an outflow for atmospheric precipitation water infiltrating to a measuring container. Lysimeter studies are included in the group of dynamic leaching tests in which the leaching solution is added in a specified volume over a specific period of time. Lysimeter studies find applications in, amongst others, agrotechnics, hydrogeology and geochemistry. Lysimeter tests may vary in terms of the type of soil used (anthropogenic soil, natural soil), sample size, leaching solution, duration of the research and the purpose for conducting it. Lysimeter experiments provide more accurate results for leaching tests compared with static leaching tests. Unlike several-day tests, they should last for at least a year. There are about 2,500 lysimeters installed in nearly 200 stations around Europe. The vast majority of these (84%) are non-weighing lysimeters. There are a few challenges for lysimeter research mostly connected with the construction of the lysimeter, estimating leaching results and calibrating numerical transport models with data obtained from lysimeters. This review is devoted to the analysis of the principal types of lysimeters described in the literature within the context of their application. The aim of this study is to highlight the role of lysimeters in leaching studies.