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**8** 

**Impact of Rainfall Microstructure on** 

*2Desertification Research Institute, National Center for Research, Khartoum* 

Rainfall represents the major driver of soil detachment in erosion processes. The potential of rainfall to detach soil has been defined as rainfall erosivity. The relationship between rainfall intensity and rainfall drop size distribution (DSD) controls various rainfall characteristics including the rainfall erosivity (Abd Elbasit et al., 2010). The relationship between rainfall intensity and rainfall erosivity differs due to geographical location under natural rainfall (Hudson 1965; Wischmeier and Smith, 1978; Zanchi and Torri, 1980; Van Dijk et al., 2002) and due to type and configuration of rainfall simulators under simulated rainfall (Hall, 1970; Olayemi and Yadav, 1983; Auerswald et al., 1992; Salles and Poesen, 2000). The role of rainfall microstructure on the determination of rainfall erosivity has attracted several researchers in the past. However, our understanding on this subject is still limited due to the lack of equipments that are able to measure the rainfall drop parameters and ultimately the rainfall kinetic energy. Several indices have been suggested to quantify the rainfall erosivity (Abd Elbasit et al., 2010). Generally, the suitable erosivity index must include the drop mass and velocity as major variables for raindrop power determination. The erosivity index has

> *E mv*

The most used indices are raindrop kinetic energy (KE) and momentum (M). In the KE and M the α is equal to one where the β is equal to two in KE and one in M. In general, the raindrop fall velocity can be related to drop size by a power relationship. Accordingly, the raindrop size distribution affect both constituents of rainfall erosivity. Thus, theoretically the rainfall DSD (or rainfall micro-structure) has a great impact on rainfall erosivity. In this study, the impact of rainfall microstructure on rainfall erosivity and splash soil erosion

where *m* is drop mass in (kg); *v* is fall-velocity (m s-1); α and β are coefficients.

been described by Epema and Riezebos, 1983 as follows:

**1. Introduction** 

**Erosivity and Splash Soil Erosion** 

Mohamed A. M. Abd Elbasit1,2, Hiroshi Yasuda1,

*1Arid Land Research Center, Tottori University, Tottori* 

(1)

**Under Simulated Rainfall** 

Atte Salmi3 and Zahoor Ahmad1

*3Vaisala Oyj, Helsinki,* 

*1Japan 2Sudan 3Finland* 

