| Unit name | Soils and Environmental Analysis |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EASC20032 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Hornibrook |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
Successful completion of year 1 of the Environmental Geoscience programme curriculum |
| Co-requisites |
n/a |
| School/department | School of Earth Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
This unit is an introduction to the biology, mineralogy, chemistry and physics of soils, including how soils form and evolve, methods of soil classification, the global distribution of soil types, the diversity and role of macro- and micro-organisms in soils, and how moisture and heat move within soils. Practical sessions are focused on learning field and laboratory skills necessary for analysis of water, solids and organic matter in soil environments. The majority of these analytical methods are transferable to other low temperature terrestrial and aqueous environments. Participation in a weekend field trip and attendance at practical sessions are mandatory
The soils content has been integrated with an analytical methods unit because of the excellent opportunity that soils afford for developing skills in sampling and analysis of liquids, solids and gases. Lecture content also includes a diverse range of analytical methods topics including collection, storage and treatment of samples, selection of analytical methods, standardisation and calibration, handling of analytical data (concentration units, significant figures, accuracy and precision, errors, rejection of data, detection limits, and quality control), common problems in environmental analysis and ethics in data collection, processing and reporting.
Practical sessions are focused on learning field and laboratory skills necessary for analysis of water, gas, and solids in soil environments. The majority of these analytical methods are transferable to other low temperature terrestrial and aqueous environments. A key aspect of the applied practicals is to introduce students to safe practices that are essential when working with common analytical methods in research or commercial laboratories.
On successful completion of the unit, you will be able to:
30 x 1 hr lectures
10 x 3 hrs practicals
One day local field course
This unit constitutes 20 credit points and 200 marks to your end-of year results. Your final mark will be based entirely (100%) on coursework. Assessment will be based on Faculty of Science marking criteria.
Lecture and practical material builds upon itself. To ensure that students are keeping pace, a series of short tests will be held during lecture sessions. The dates for tests will be provided in week 1. Tests will be in a multiple choice format and will comprise 40% of the unit mark. The independent report counts for the remaining 60% of the unit grade.
Attendance at practicals and the weekend field trip are mandatory. Students will work in groups but write-up of the analytical report is an independent task.
Assessment will be completed in accordance with the University Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes, available online at http://www.bristol.ac.uk/esu/assessment/codeonline.html
Brady, NC & Weil, RR., The Nature and Properties of Soils, 13th ed.; Radojevic, Miroslav & Bashkin, Vladimir N., Practical Environmental Analysis (Hardcover); Soil Science: Methods & Applications.
