Phytolith transport in sandy sediment: Experiments and modeling

Two modeling approaches were tested against the experimental data of the high-frequency irrigation treatment. The first model was a convection-dispersion model with attachment, detachment and straining terms. In the second model, reversibility of straining was additionally taken into account. Both models resulted in an equally good agreement with observations. However, the long-term predictions calculated with the two approaches were contradictory. The first model showed no significant translocation after a period of thousand years, whereas the second model predicted that phytoliths would on average be displaced by 19 cm. We hence conjecture that our set of observations was not sufficient to distinguish between two models. Long-term experiments on phytolith transport in undisturbed soil are required to ascertain proper modeling of phytolith transport in a sandy soil.