Soil–machine Interactions as a Driver of Soil Physical Functioning and Carbon Dynamics

Agricultural mechanization has become one of the dominant anthropogenic forces shaping soil physical structure. Beyond its role in improving operational efficiency, machinery exerts mechanical stresses that reorganize pore systems, modify bulk density, alter water and gas fluxes, and influence the long-term stabilization or destabilization of soil organic carbon. Soil–machine interactions are therefore not solely an engineering concern but a critical component of soil functioning, directly affecting productivity, hydrological regulation, and carbon cycling.

Although soil compaction has long been recognized as a major risk of mechanized agriculture, research has largely focused on surface effects or short-term physical changes. A key knowledge gap persists in understanding how mechanical stresses propagate through soil profiles, how structural alterations evolve over time, and how these changes interact with biological activity and biogeochemical processes. In particular, the consequences of mechanization for pore connectivity, oxygen diffusion, root penetration, microbial habitat structure, and carbon persistence remain insufficiently integrated into soil science frameworks.

This issue gains urgency under current climate trajectories. Increasing frequency of extreme rainfall events, shifts in soil moisture regimes, and the expansion of conservation and regenerative practices demand mechanization strategies that preserve soil structural integrity rather than exacerbate degradation. Advances in sensing technologies, proximal soil monitoring, digital soil physics, and modeling now allow unprecedented opportunities to quantify soil mechanical behavior under field conditions and to relate stress distribution to functional soil outcomes.

This Research Topic aims to advance soil science perspectives on soil–machine interactions by emphasizing the links between mechanical forces, soil structure dynamics, and ecosystem processes. We particularly seek contributions that connect physical deformation to hydrological function, gas exchange, biological activity, and carbon stabilization mechanisms across soil depths.

Themes of interest include (but are not limited to):

-Mechanisms of compaction formation, recovery, and structural resilience
-Stress propagation and pore network alteration in soil profiles
-Soil structure–function relationships under mechanized operations
-Effects of mechanization on root growth, microbial habitats, and carbon turnover
-Moisture-dependent soil mechanical behavior
-Long-term impacts of mechanization on soil carbon stabilization
-Sensor-based monitoring of soil structural changes in situ
-Modeling soil deformation and its biophysical consequences
-Mechanization compatible with conservation and regenerative soil management

We encourage submissions combining field measurements, laboratory experiments, imaging approaches (e.g., X-ray CT), and modeling to link mechanical soil behavior with functional soil outcomes.