ORIGINAL PAPER Variations in dust-related PM 10 emission from an arid land due to surface composition and topsoil disturbance Avraham Edri 1 & Avraham Dody 2 & Smadar Tanner 1 & Nitzan Swet 1 & Itzhak Katra 1 Received: 27 May 2016 /Accepted: 18 August 2016 # Saudi Society for Geosciences 2016 Abstract Aeolian (wind) erosion is most common in arid regions. The resulted emission of PM 10 (particulate matter that is smaller than 10 μm in diameter) from the soil has many environmental and socioeconomic consequences such as soil degradation and air pollution. Topsoil resistance to aeolian transport highly depends on the surface composition. The study aim was to examine variations in PM 10 fluxes in a desert-dust source due to surface composition and topsoil dis- turbance. Aeolian field experiments using a boundary layer wind tunnel alongside soil composition analysis were integrat- ed in this study. The results show variations in PM 10 fluxes (ranging from 9.5 to 524.6 mg m -2 min -1 ) in the studied area. Higher wind velocity increased significantly the PM 10 fluxes in all surface compositions. A short-term natural disturbance caused changes in the aggregate soil distribution (ASD) and increased significantly PM 10 emissions. Considering that PM 10 contains clays, organic matter, and absorbed elements, the recorded PM 10 fluxes are indicative of the potential soil loss and degradation by wind erosion in such resource-limited ecosystems. The findings have implications in modeling dust emission from a source area with complex surfaces. Keywords Soil erosion . Sand flux . Aeolian processes . Soil loss . Dust source . Saltators Introduction Aeolian (wind) soil erosion is a common process in arid re- gions that can lead to dust emission into the atmosphere. Dust emission has significant impacts on the Earth’ s systems de- pending on the physical and chemical characteristics of the topsoil (Shao, 2008). The emission of dust from soils is a major concern due to soil degradation by loss of clays (< 2 μm) and fine silt (< 10 μm), and absorbed nutrients. In addition, emission of PM 10 and PM 2.5 (particulate matter that is smaller than 10 and 2.5 μm in diameter, respectively) to the atmosphere increases air pollution and health risks particularly in arid environments (Ganor et al., 2009; Krasnov et al., 2014; Vodonos et al., 2014; Yitshak-Sade et al., 2015). The surface characteristics determine the critical value (threshold) of wind (friction) velocity at which the aerody- namic drag is enough to dislodge particles from the surface and initiate their transport (Bagnold, 1941; Kok et al., 2012). Direct aerodynamic lifting is a dominant mechanism for loose fine-particle emission such as PM 10 . However, emission of cohesive fine particles (e.g., clays) is enabled only under higher wind velocities and/or under saltation flow (Bagnold, 1941; Kok et al., 2012). The presence of sand particles in the soil enables the entrainment of fine particles (clay and silt) by ballistic impact (saltation bombardment) (Shao et al., 1993). Surface cover such as vegetation and rock fragments increases surface roughness and thus reduces near-surface wind * Itzhak Katra katra@bgu.ac.il Avraham Edri polaedri@gmail.com Avraham Dody dodik@post.bgu.ac.il Smadar Tanner tanner@post.bgu.ac.il Nitzan Swet swet@post.bgu.ac.il 1 Department of Geography and Environmental Development, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Be’er-Sheva, Israel 2 Environmental Research Unit, Nuclear Research Center-Negev, Be’er-Sheva, Israel Arab J Geosci (2016) 9:607 DOI 10.1007/s12517-016-2651-z