Tensiomark

The ecoTech Tensiomark is a maintenance-free sensor for continuous measurement of soil matric potential (soil water tension) across an exceptionally wide measurement range. Designed for long-term field monitoring, the Tensiomark provides an alternative to conventional water-filled tensiometers where extended measurement range, low maintenance and reliable operation under dry or freezing conditions are required.

Unlike volumetric soil moisture sensors, which measure the quantity of water present within the soil, the Tensiomark measures how strongly that water is held by the soil matrix. Matric potential is therefore particularly useful for understanding plant water availability, drought stress and soil-water dynamics, and for comparing soil-water conditions where differences in soil type can significantly affect the relationship between water content and water availability.

Full-Range Matric Potential Measurement

Conventional tensiometers are principally suited to wetter soil conditions and have a limited measurement range. The Tensiomark extends measurement across pF 0 to pF 7, equivalent to approximately 1 to 10,000,000 hPa, allowing a single sensor to monitor conditions ranging from wet soil through progressive drying and into extremely dry conditions.

This wide measurement range avoids the measurement gaps that can occur when conventional tensiometers dewater during extended dry periods.

Key Features

• Full pF 0–7 measurement range

• Measures approximately 1–10,000,000 hPa

• Continuous measurement of soil matric potential / water tension

• Maintenance-free operation

• Frost resistant for long-term field deployment

• No loss of measurement during dry conditions due to tensiometer dehydration

• Rapid response to changing soil moisture conditions

• SDI-12 digital output as standard

• Optional analogue output

• Soil temperature measurement available via SDI-12

• Suitable for integration with dataloggers, telemetry and complete environmental monitoring stations

Applications

The Tensiomark is particularly suited to long-term soil and environmental monitoring applications where soil-water availability or movement is more important than water content alone.

Typical applications include:

• Agricultural and environmental research

• Plant water availability and drought-stress monitoring

• Irrigation research and management

• Forestry and woodland monitoring

• Peatland and wetland research

• Soil hydrology and water-balance studies

• Catchment research

• Climate-change studies

• Soil science and pedological investigations

• Long-term environmental monitoring networks

Matric Potential vs Volumetric Water Content

Soil water content and matric potential provide different but complementary information.

Volumetric water content describes how much water is present within a given volume of soil. Matric potential describes the energy required to extract that water from the soil.

The relationship between the two varies significantly with soil texture and structure. A particular volumetric water content can therefore represent very different levels of water availability in a sand, loam, clay or organic soil.

For research and monitoring applications, combining matric potential and volumetric water content measurements can provide a considerably more complete understanding of soil-water behaviour than either parameter measured independently.