Aquaculture 258 (2006) 650 654

Short communication

A simple device for sampling pond sediment

Temdoung Somsiri a, Dang Thi Hoang Oanh b, Supranee Chinabut a,*, Nguyen Thanh Phuong b, Mohamed Shariff c, Fatimah Md. Yusoff c, Kerry Bartie d, Mauro Giacomini e, Michela Robba e, Stefania Bertone f, Geert Huys g, Alan Teale d
a

Aquatic Animal Health Research Institute, Department of Fisheries, Kasetsart University Campus, Jatujak, Bangkok 109000, Thailand b Institute for Marine Aquaculture, College of Agriculture, Can Tho University, Vietnam c Institute of Bioscience, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia d Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK e Dept. of Communication, Computer and System Sciences, University of Genova, Via Opera Pia 13, 16145 Genova, Italy f Research and Computer Science for the Environmental and Biomedical Laboratory, Via Canevari 29/39, 16137 Genova, Italy g Laboratory of Microbiology, Ghent University, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, B-9000 Gent, Belgium

Abstract The sediment and water inter-phase layer in aquaculture ponds is a dynamic zone that plays a crucial role in maintaining the ecological balance of the pond system. An accurate sediment profile of the soft-watery layer that includes several important parameters can only be determined by using an adequate sampling technique. Because most of the commercially available grabs and soil corers currently used do not fulfill these requirements, a new, simple device for sediment sampling was designed in the framework of the European Union (EU)-funded ASIARESIST project. The sampler was used to collect samples from the upper 5 to 10 cm soil layer for bacteriological analysis from aquaculture ponds in Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. The sampler consisted of a three-piece PVC pipe that could be sterilized and had a total length of 230 cm. Each section was threaded at the end except for the top of the first and last section that tapered into a sharp point at an angle of 458. When dismantled into sections, the sampler was convenient to transport and to reassemble at the site of sampling. The sediment sampler proved to be effective in obtaining intact profiles of bottom sediment, including soft sediments, was user-friendly and could be easily constructed at low cost. D 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Sediment; Sampling device; Aquaculture ponds

1. Introduction
* Corresponding author. E-mail addresses: supranee@fisheries.go.th, supraneecb@yahoo.com (S. Chinabut).

The boundary layer between the sediment and water inter-phase in aquaculture ponds is one of the most microbiologically active sites due to the high

rate of organic matter decomposition (Bo strom and Pettersson, 1982; Yusoff et al., 2003a,b). In fact, the redox condition of this layer determines the flux of nutrient release from the sediment into the water column. Under anaerobic conditions, high concentrations of dissolved reactive phosphorus, ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, and hydrogen sulphide are released from the sediment into the water layer (Mortimer, 1941; Mo ller-Andersen, 1974). In most aquaculture ponds, the boundary layer is often anoxic due to a high consumption of dissolved oxygen in the decomposition of unconsumed feed and other organic matter accumulated on pond bottom. Thus, studies targeting this microzone are important in investigating the microbial population dynamics and metabolic processes which are largely responsible for the overall biological balance of the pond environment. In spite of the importance of the microzone in the boundary layer of the pond, adequate sampling devices that enable to collect sediment undisturbed in its natural position are lacking. Most researchers routinely use the Ekman grab samplers to sample pond bottom sediment mainly for benthos and soil physicalchemical analyses. In our experience, however, the Ekman grab is not suitable to collect a sample for soil profiling as can be obtained by soil corer where the sedimentwater microlayer can be sampled undisturbed. On the other hand, most commercially available soil corers cannot be efficiently utilized in aquaculture ponds due to the watery nature of the sediment. This study describes the design of a simple device, which can be used to collect intact sediment samples from various types of pond sediment up to a pond depth of 2 m without disturbing the sediment profile. The experiences of the use of this device for collecting bacterial isolates from the sedimentwatermicrolayer from different aquaculture ponds in Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia are described.

2. The sampler design The soil-sampling device that is routinely used to collect soil samples from aquaculture ponds was modified by Dr. K. C. Lin at the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand (personal communication) for the purpose of collecting soil samples from the pond

bottom for soil quality analysis. However, the first version of the sampler, which consisted of a single PVC pipe, diameter of 6 cm and length of 30 cm with fine holes on the side, was not found to be suitable for obtaining the uncontaminated benthic boundary layer from the experimental ponds. The disadvantage of this sampler was that it was too short to collect sediment samples from the ponds with an average water depth of 1 to 2 m and the fact that it could not be used to collect soft clay or sandy loam samples. In addition, the original structure and position of the inter-phase layer of the sediment samples was not able to be maintained. Therefore, a modified sediment sampling device was developed. In the first design, the single-piece PVC pipe was lengthened to 100 cm to ensure that the end remained above the water level. However, the additional length made the sampler heavy, difficult to remove the soil sample from the tube, and the soil sample tended to be lost from the side holes together with the water. The initial design was improved by using a smaller PVC pipe of 5.5 cm in diameter consisting of three pieces. The bottom piece (B1) was 100 cm long with a sharp end, to insert into the bottom sediment, and contained the soil sample. This section was tapered into a sharp point for smooth entry into the sediment. The top and bottom sections were threaded onto the middle section (Fig. 1). There were no side holes in the bottom piece so that it retained the soil sample as in the natural condition. The middle piece (B2) was 45 cm long with 5 rows of holes that were 5 cm apart. As the sampler was lifted above the pond water surface, water flowed out from these holes, and the resulting reduced water pressure avoided moving the soil sample out from the lower end of the pipe. In addition, the partial loss of the water made lifting the whole pipe out of the water easier. The top piece (B3) was 90 cm long and the overall shape was similar to section B2. This top piece could be connected to section B2 to give an additional length to the pipe if necessary depending on the water depth. Both the top and middle pieces (B3 and B2) were separated after the pipe was emerged from the water. The iron plunger (A) was designed to push the soil sample out from B1. The bottom end of the plunger had a round iron plate of 4 cm diameter and was joined to the 100 cm long iron rod plunger with a 15 cm long holding bar. In

Fig. 1. Diagram of bASIARESIST sediment samplerQ.

order to release the soil sample from the sampler, the plunger was inserted through the bottom end of B1 and gently pushed upwards until the upper surface of the sediment appeared at the top end of the pipe. The

relevant samples could then be collected by slicing the sediment core into different layers and then removed and stored in sterilized plastic bags or other appropriate containers for further analysis.

Fig. 2. Force fields during pipe movement at 4 speeds.

A semi-quantitative model of the movement of the sediment in the pipe during the coring process was set up. Equations and parameters were taken from other models present in literature (Beavers and Joseph, 1967; Boudreau and Bennett, 1999). In this model, a perfect vertical movement was considered. The results of this model showed that the vertical speed was a key factor in avoiding the modification of the sediment layers. Applying four speeds for the model (uniform speed in both directions) ranging from 5 to 20 cm/s and model demonstrated (Fig. 2) that at this range of speed there were no significant forces affecting the central part of the collected core. The sediment sampler is named the bASIARESIST sediment samplerQ from sampling activities undertaken as part of the EU-funded research project on Hazard Analysis of Antimicrobial Resistance in South East Asian Aquaculture Environment (ASIARESIST). The sediment sampler was first tested in Thailand and then sent out to other project partners in Vietnam and Malaysia for sampling sediment from aquaculture ponds.

jetty without disturbing the sediment layers. The sharp end of the bottom section enabled the sampler to penetrate and hold the sediment samples. The high water column inside the sampler stabilised the water sediment inter-phase whilst the samples were being retrieved from the water. The sampler was found to be useful in collecting intact sediment samples from muddy pond bottoms. In shrimp ponds, most of the sediments tend to be soft in consistency. Normally, it is extremely difficult to collect sediment samples from these ponds without mixing the sediment layers, and causing a dilution effect with the overlying water. The ASIARESIST sediment sampler was found to be user friendly and reliable in collecting soft sediment samples with intact sediment profiles as evidenced by multiple sampling and visual inspection of the sediment core. In addition, the sampler was also applied in fish ponds where the sediment was of a clay- or sandy-type. In conclusion, ASIARESIST sediment sampler was found to be inexpensive and simple to manufacture, robust, user-friendly and reliable for sampling even soft sediments. The sampler costs approximately 20 Euro to manufacture thus making it attractive an device for pond managers and scientists in developing countries.

Acknowledgements This project was supported by the EU project EUICA4-CT-2001-10028 entitled Hazard Analysis of Antimicrobial Resistance Associated with Asian Aquacultural Environments (ASIARESIST). G.H. is a postdoctoral fellow of the Fund for Scientific ResearchFlanders (Belgium) (F.W.O.-Vlaanderen).

References
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3. Application of the sediment sampler The sampler was successfully used in the three Asian project partner countries, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, to collect sediment samples from different aquaculture systems. The adjustable length of the sampler (maximum length of 230 cm) allowed the sediment samples to be collected from a boat or a

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