Hydraulic resistance analyses governed by Froude Number on laminar flow on semiarid crops and Shrubs by linear regression.
Laminar sheet flow, Reynolds and Froude numbers, gravitational waves, soil cover, semiarid environment.
The sheet flow hydraulics study is crucial for understanding the hydrologic and water erosion processes on the atmosphere-soil interface. This background is essential to plan and establish soil and water practices. To achieve this understanding, was investigated the hydraulic resistance generated by grass, litter, Palm, and agroforestry, as well as bare soil, and hydraulically observed who dominates this surface flow. It used a database from the Soil Conservation Engineering Laboratory/UFRPE with laminar sheet flow and low Reynolds numbers. A soil surface under palm forage had occurred a soil surface crust that reduced the soil water infiltration and increased the water discharge. The linear regression study between hydraulic resistance and Froude number in laminar flow with Reynolds number until 100 under semiarid crops confirms that the hydraulic resistance was governed by Froude number. The agroforestry and litter layer showed the highest hydraulic resistance permitting better water infiltration on soil and flow retard, showing their importance as a strategy to mitigate the water erosion processes in semiarid environments.