En ambientes semiáridos la erosión eólica es el principal proceso de degradación del suelo que dificulta el desarrollo de sistemas sustentables. Es por ello, que el objetivo general de esta tesis fue: seleccionar indicadores edáficos del estado y la tendencia de degradación del suelo por erosión eólica, y generar modelos predictivos y explicativos de este proceso para la RSCA. Sus objetivos específicos fueron: 1) determinar la utilidad de la fracción erosionable (FE) y de la estabilidad estructural en seco (EES) como indicadores de susceptibilidad a la erosión eólica, 2) definir contenidos críticos de propieda-des de suelo con FE y EES, 3) validar características morfoló-gicas del suelo como índices del estado de degradación por erosión eólica, 4) evaluar el cambio textural del horizonte su-perficial como índice de la selección producida por erosión eóli-ca, 5) estimar el patrón de acumulación de arcilla en agrega-dos de suelos degradados de texturas contrastantes y 6) cuantificar las pérdidas relativas de nutrientes en función de la velocidad del viento y la duración de las tormentas. En ca-torce pares de suelos: uno cultivado (C) y otro sin cultivar (SC) comparamos: FE y EES; el espesor del horizonte A y la profundidad hasta la acumulación de carbonato; y la textura superficial (DTPT). En función de DTPT, seleccionamos tres suelos contrastantes, en los cuales comparamos sus texturas, pero con dispersión mínima (DTPMIN) y la relación DTPMIN/T. Por último, estudiamos el efecto de combinaciones contrastan-tes de velocidad y duración de tormentas en la pérdida relati-va de nutrientes usando un túnel de viento. FE y EES fueron indicadores de degradación útiles en suelos de textura inter-media, siendo sensibles al manejo y excediendo valores umbra-les en algunos suelos cultivados. FE y EES se relacionaron con carbono orgánico, óxidos de aluminio y arcilla en modelos que permitieron identificar valores críticos por debajo de los cuales la resistencia del suelo contra la erosión se reduce drástica-mente. El espesor del horizonte A fue menor en C que en SC en todos los sitios. La profundidad hasta la acumulación de carbonato fue similar entre C y SC. El contenido de limo + arcilla fue menor en C que en SC en la mayoría de los sitios, implicando un proceso de degradación irreversible. Los suelos de textura más fina perdieron mayor proporción de limo y los suelos de textura intermedia mayor proporción de arcilla. La relación DTPMIN/T en arcillas aumentó en C comparado con SC en el suelo franco lo que coincidió con una reducción de esta relación en partículas >250 μm, indicando una disminu-ción en la capacidad para preservar arcillas de procesos de suspensión en agregados de mayor tamaño. La simulación de eventos de erosión eólica con diferentes intensidades y dura-ciones no produjo pérdidas diferenciales de nutrientes. Con-cluimos que los indicadores seleccionados muestran que la erosión eólica ha disminuido la sustentabilidad de los sistemas productivos de la RSCA, y que el uso de índices relacionados con la resistencia del suelo a la erosión eólica con valores críticos asociados, será útil como indicador predictivo en de-terminados suelos. / In semiarid environments, wind erosion is the main soil degra-dation process which hinders the development of sustainable agro-ecosystems. Therefore, the general objective of this thesis was: to select soil indicators of the state and the ten-dency of soil degradation by wind erosion, and to generate predictive and explanatory models of this process to the RSCA. The specific objectives were: 1) to determine the uti-lity of the erodible fraction (FE) and the dry aggregate stabi-lity (EES) as indicators of the susceptibility to wind erosion, 2) to define critical contents of soil properties with FE and EES, 3) to validate soil morphological characteristics as indica-tors of the state of soil degradation by wind erosion, 4) to evaluate soil textural changes of topsoil as indicators of the selection produced by wind erosion in soils of different initial textures, 5) to estimate the patron of clay accumulation in aggregates of degraded soils of different textures and 6) to quantify the relative losses of soil nutrients in function of speed and duration of wind erosion events. In fourteen paired soils: one cultivated (C) and another uncultivated (SC), we compared: FE and EES; the A horizon thickness and the depth to carbonate accumulation; and soil texture (DTPT). In func-tion of DTPT, we selected three contrasting soils in which, we compared their textures, but using minimum dispersion (DTP MIN) and the quotient DTPMIN/T. Last, we studied the effect of contrasting combinations of wind speed and time using a portable wind tunnel. FE and EES were useful soil degradation indicators in medium textured soils, where they were sensible to management, exceeding threshold values in some cultiva-ted soils. FE and EES were related to organic carbon, alumi-num oxides and clay by logarithmic and exponential models which allow the identification of critical values below which the soil resistance to wind erosion reduces drastically. The A horizon thickness was lower in C than in SC in all sites. The depth to carbonate was similar between C and SC. The con-tent of silt plus clay was lower in C compared to SC in the majority of soils, which means an irreversible soil degradation process. Finer soils lost higher proportion of silt and medium textured soils lost higher proportion of clay. The quotient DTP MIN/T to clay increased in C compared to SC in the loam soil, which agreed with a decreased of DTP MIN/T to >250 μm particles, indicating a reduction of the capacity to preserve clay from suspension processes in aggregates of larger size. The simulation of wind erosion events with different inten-sities and durations did not produced differential losses of soil nutrients. We concluded that the indicators selected show that wind erosion has reduced the sustainability of agricultural systems of the RSCA, and that the use of indicators related to soil resistance to wind erosion associated to critical values will be useful as a predictive indicator on medium-textured soils.

Tesis para optar al grado de Doctor en Ciencias de la Ingeniería, Mención Ingeniería Química y Biotecnología / Nowadays, the increase in the industrial production is causing environmental problems when appropriate planning and control are absent. To overcome this situation, the Eco-Industrial Parks (EIPs) arise as a new way to plan and design industrial complexes, where the companies located together are connected with each other to achieve sustainability advantages for its participants and the sector. Since these advantages depend on its configuration, a proper planning and design is critical. Moreover, the stability of this network plays a significant part when a participant suffers a stop in production. This work seeks to propose a mathematical-based design of an EIP to promote and support the implementation of industrial networks with sustainability and security objectives. To achieve this goal, (i) a database of sustainability indicators is built and four criteria for their selection are proposed; (ii) a resilience indicator for EIPs is defined to improve their operation security; and (iii) a multi-objective optimization problem is formulated to design EIPs. A significant set of sustainability indicators are listed and classified regarding the number of assessed dimensions: \textit{single}, if one sustainability dimensions is assessed, and \textit{integrated}, if two or three are assessed. Moreover, to select a subset of proper indicators, four criteria are proposed: understanding, pragmatism, relevance, and partial representation of sustainability. An indicator is constructed and proposed to follow the resilience of an EIP, improving the security of the whole system by considering the dynamic of the participants to endure a disruptive event. This indicator is based on two main characteristics of an industrial network: its topology and its operation; which are respectively assessed by the weighted sum of two sub-indicators: Network Connectivity Index (NCI) and Flow Adaptability Index (φ). A multi-objective optimization model is constructed based on the industrial complex of Ulsan, in South Korea, in order to design a sustainable and resilient EIP. This model considers a subset of sustainability indicators and the proposed resilience indicator. The sustainability indicators are filtered with the four criteria for selection. The resulting configurations improve all the considered aspects at the same time, allowing to design an EIP with focus on its sustainability and resilience. The use of the resilience indicator as an additional objective allows to compose an EIP with an improved adaptation to reality, addressing the reluctance of the industries to participate in this industrial network. Finally, the optimization model achieves the systematic design of new EIPs, considering the sustainability and resilience aspects as objectives in the optimization. This tool could play an important role in supporting decision-makers to design industrial networks, generating new, more sustainable and more resilient alternatives. / CONICYT-PCHA/Doctorado Nacional/2014-21140400