Greater desertification control using sand trap simulations

(Springer) In the fight against desertification, so-called straw checkerboard barriers (SCB) play a significant role. SCB consists of half -exposed criss-crossing rows of straws of wheat, rice, reeds, and other plants. The trouble is that our understanding of the laws governing wind-sand movement in SCB and their surrounding area is insufficient. Now, researchers in China have performed a numerical simulation of the sand movement inside the SCB, described in a paper just published in EPJ E.