Analysis of soils using photonic techniques for the development of portable equipment for in situ measurements.

• Grant number: 12/22196-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: May 01, 2013
• End date: February 28, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Soil Science
• Principal Investigator: Débora Marcondes Bastos Pereira
• Grantee: Jader de Souza Cabral
• Host Institution: Embrapa Instrumentação Agropecuária. Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (EMBRAPA). Ministério da Agricultura, Pecuária e Abastecimento (Brasil). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 98/14270-8 - Center for Optical and Photonics Science, AP.CEPID

Abstract

Brazil is the world's largest producer of cane sugar, consequently, is a leader in the production of bioethanol, a clean and renewable energy that agrees with the model of sustainable economy as discussed and pursued by our society. Our state of São Paulo concentrates 60% of national production, representing a sizeable share in the global production scale. All this economic potential is closely monitored by the scientific community, which develops numerous studies seeking an improvement in production efficiency and reduced environmental impacts of planting. However, the study of soil planting areas need results concerning the contents and structural forms of organic matter (OM), as well as the dependence of the accumulation of carbon in the soil according to the type of handling thereof. It is in this context that the present project is based, which aims to employ photonic techniques, with potential portability for in situ analysis, in the study of the soil used in planting cane sugar, considering the different types of management. The techniques: laser induced fluorescence spectroscopy (LIFS), time resolved fluorescence spectroscopy and optical emission laser induced plasma (LIBS)will be used and the data analysis will be done using chemometric resources, including the PARAFAC technique.