The effect of conservation practices in sloped croplands on soil hydraulic properties and root‐zone moisture dynamics

Rain‐induced erosion and short‐term drought are the two factors that limit the productivity of croplands in the red soil region of subtropical China. The objective of this study was to estimate the effects of conservation practices on hydraulic properties and root‐zone water dynamics of the soil. A 3‐year experiment was performed on a slope at Xianning. Four treatments were evaluated for their ability to reduce soil erosion and improve soil water conditions. Compared with no practices (CK) and living grass strips (GS), the application of polyacrylamide (PAM) significantly reduced soil crust formation during intense rainfall, whereas rice straw mulching (SM) completely abolished soil crust formation. The SM and PAM treatments improved soil water‐stable aggregates, with a redistribution of micro‐aggregates into macro‐aggregates. PAM and SM significantly increased the soil water‐holding capacity. These practices mitigated the degradation of the soil saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) during intense rainfalls. These methods increased soil water storage but with limited effects during heavy rainfalls in the wet period. In contrast, during the dry period, SM had the highest soil water storage, followed by PAM and CK. Grass strips had the lowest soil water storage because of the water uptake during the vigorous grass growth. A slight decline in the soil moisture resulted in a significant decrease in the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity (Ku) of the topsoil. Therefore, the hydraulic conductivity in the field is governed by soil moisture, and the remaining soil moisture is more important than improving soil properties to resist short‐term droughts. As a result, SM is the most effective management practice when compared with PAM and GS, although they all protect the soil hydraulic properties during wet periods. These results suggest that mulching is the best strategy for water management in erosion‐threatened and drought‐threatened red soils. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical simulation of agricultural sediment and pesticide runoff: RZWQM and PRZM comparison

Agricultural sediment and pesticide runoff is a widespread ecological and human health concern. Numerical simulation models, such as Root Zone Water Quality Model (RZWQM) and Pesticide Root Zone Model (PRZM), have been increasingly used to quantify off‐site agricultural pollutant movement. However, RZWQM has been criticized for its inability to simulate sedimentation processes. The recent incorporation of the sedimentation module of Groundwater Loading Effects of Agricultural Management Systems has enabled RZWQM to simulate sediment and sediment‐associated pesticides. This study compares the sediment and pesticide transport simulation performance of the newly released RZWQM and PRZM using runoff data from 2 alfalfa fields in Davis, California. A composite metric (based on coefficient of determination, Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency, index of agreement, and percent bias) was developed and employed to ensure robust, comprehensive assessment of model performance. Results showed that surface water runoff was predicted reasonably well (absolute percent bias <31%) by RZWQM and PRZM after adjusting important hydrologic parameters. Even after calibration, underestimation bias (?89% ≤ PBIAS  ≤ ?36%) for sediment yield was observed in both models. This might be attributed to PRZM's incorrect distribution of input water and uncertainty in RZWQM's runoff erosivity coefficient. Moreover, the underestimation of sediment might be less if the origin of measured sediment was considered. Chlorpyrifos losses were simulated with reasonable accuracy especially for Field A (absolute PBIAS  ≤ 22%), whereas diuron losses were underestimated to a great extent (?98% ≤ PBIAS  ≤ ?65%) in both models. This could be attributed to the underprediction of herbicide concentration in the top soil due to the limitations of the instantaneous equilibrium sorption model as well as the high runoff potential of herbicide formulated as water‐dispersible granules. RZWQM and PRZM partitioned pesticides into the water and sediment phases similarly. According to model predictions, the majority of pesticide loads were carried via the water phase. On the basis of this study, both RZWQM and PRZM performed well in predicting runoff that carried highly adsorptive pesticides on an event basis, although the more physically based RZWQM is recommended when field‐measured soil hydraulic properties are available.     

δ18O and δ13C in fossil shells of Radix sp. from the sediment succession of a dammed palaeo‐lake in the Yarlung Tsangpo valley,Tibet, China

A series of confirmed and suspected dammed palaeo‐lake sedimentary successions is scattered within the middle Yarlung Tsangpo valley in Tibet. However, the chronology, the genesis of the dam and its location, the water level of the dammed lake, the process of dam failure and the spatiotemporal relationships between the sedimentary successions remain controversial. Here, we focus on one sedimentary succession of the suspected dammed palaeo‐lake at Xigazê. We measured the grain‐size distribution, magnetic susceptibility, organic and inorganic carbon content, and δ¹³C_org and δ¹⁵N_total ratios of the sediments. In addition, we measured the δ¹⁸O_shell and δ¹³C_shell values of modern and fossil Radix sp. shells, and the δ¹⁸O_water and δ¹³C_DIC values of the ambient water with different hydrological regimes. The results indicate that the δ¹⁸O_shell values of modern Radix sp. and the δ¹⁸O_water of the ambient water body significantly depend on its hydrological status. In addition, a strong positive relationship was observed between δ¹⁸O_shell values of modern Radix sp. shells and the δ¹⁸O_water of the ambient water on the Tibetan Plateau. According to this correlation, the δ¹⁸O_water values of the palaeo‐water body are reconstructed using the δ¹⁸O_shell values of Radix sp. fossil shells in the Xigazê section. Further, based on the δ¹⁸O_shell values of fossil Radix sp., the reconstructed δ¹⁸O_water of the palaeo‐water body and the specific habitats of Radix sp., we infer that the sedimentary succession in the Xigazê broad valley was mainly formed within the backwater terminal zone of a dammed palaeo‐lake and that the elevation of the water level of the lake was approximately 3811 m a.s.l. AMS ¹⁴C dating indicates that the deposits of the dammed palaeo‐lake were formed at about 33–22 cal. ka BP. Finally, the presence of Radix sp. fossil shells within the Xigazê section suggests that Radix sp. survived the late Last Glacial Period on the Tibetan Plateau.     

A bounding surface model for anisotropically overconsolidated clay incorporating thermodynamics admissible rotational hardening rule

A bounding surface model is formulated to simulate the behavior of clays that are subject to an anisotropic consolidation stress history. Conventional rotational hardening is revisited from the perspective of thermodynamics. As the free energy cannot be accumulated infinitely upon critical state failure, the deviatoric back stress must vanish. This requires the rotated yield surface to be turned back to eventually align on the hydrostatic axis in the stress plane. Noting that most of the previous propositions violate this restriction, an innovative rotational hardening rule is formulated that is thermodynamically admissible. The bounding surface framework that employs the modified yield surface is applied to simulate elastoplastic deformations for overconsolidated clays, with which the overprediction of strength on the “dry” side can be greatly improved with reasonable results. Other important features, including contractive or dilative response and hardening or softening behavior, can also be well-captured. It has been shown that the model can simulate three types of reconstituted clays that are sheared with initial conditions over a wide range of anisotropic consolidation stress ratios and overconsolidation ratios under both triaxial undrained and drained conditions. Limitations and potential improvement of the model regarding the fabric anisotropy at critical state have been discussed.     

Efficient estimation of flood forecast prediction intervals via single‐ and multi‐objective versions of the LUBE method

Prediction intervals (PIs) are commonly used to quantify the accuracy and precision of a forecast. However, traditional ways to construct PIs typically require strong assumptions about data distribution and involve a large computational burden. Here, we improve upon the recent proposed Lower Upper Bound Estimation method and extend it to a multi‐objective framework. The proposed methods are demonstrated using a real‐world flood forecasting case study for the upper Yangtze River Watershed. Results indicate that the proposed methods are able to efficiently construct appropriate PIs, while outperforming other methods including the widely used Generalized Likelihood Uncertainty Estimation approach. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Using hysteretic behaviour and hydrograph classification to identify hydrological function across the “hillslope–depression–stream” continuum in a karst catchment

In cockpit karst landscapes, fluxes from upland areas contribute large volumes of water to low-lying depressions and stream flow. Hydrograph hysteresis and similarity between monitoring sites is important for understanding the space–time variability of hydrologic responses across the “hillslope–depression–stream” continuum. In this study, the hysteretic feature of hydrographs was assessed by characterizing the loop-like relationships between responses at upstream sites relative to subsurface discharge at the outlet of a small karst catchment. A classification of hydrograph responses based on the multi-scale smoothing Kernel -derived distance classifies the hydrograph responses on the basis of similarities between hillslope and depression sites, and those at the catchment outlet. Results demonstrate that the temporal and spatial variability of hydrograph hysteresis and similarity between hillslope flow and outlet stream flow can be explained by the local heterogeneity of depression aquifer. Large depression storage deficits emerging in the highly heterogeneous aquifer produce strong hysteresis and multiple relationships of upstream hydrographs relative to the outlet subsurface discharge. In contrast, when depression storage deficits are filled during consecutive rainfall events, depression hydrographs at the high permeability sites are almost synchronous or exhibit a monotonous function with the hydrographs at the outlet. This reduced hydrograph hysteresis enhances preferential flow paths in fractured rocks and conduits that can accelerate the hillslope flow to the outlet. Therefore, classification of hydrograph similarities between any upstream sites and the catchment outlet can help to identify the dominant hydrological functions in the heterogeneous karst catchment.     

Investigation of the elevation of saltwater wedge due to subsurface dams

Subsurface dams are rather effective and used for the prevention of saltwater intrusion in coastal regions around the world. We carried out the laboratory experiments to investigate the elevation of saltwater wedge after the construction of subsurface dams. The elevation of saltwater wedge refers to the upward movement of the downstream saltwater wedge because the subsurface dams obstruct the regional groundwater flow and reduce the freshwater discharge. Consequently, the saltwater wedge cannot further extend in the longitudinal direction but rises in the vertical profile resulting in significant downstream aquifer salinization. In order to quantitatively address this issue, field-scale numerical simulations were conducted to explore the influence of various dam heights, distances, and hydraulic gradients on the elevation of saltwater wedge. Our investigation shows that the upward movement of the saltwater wedge and its areal extension in the vertical domain of the downstream aquifer become more severe with a higher dam and performed a great dependence on the freshwater discharge. Furthermore, the increase of the hydraulic gradient and the dam distance from the sea boundary leads to a more pronounced wedge elevation. This phenomenon comes from the variation of the freshwater discharge due to the modification of dam height, location, and hydraulic gradient. Large freshwater discharge can generate greater repulsive force to restrain the elevation of saltwater wedge. These conclusions provide theoretical references for the behaviour of the freshwater–seawater interface after the construction of subsurface dams and help optimize the design strategy to better utilize the coastal groundwater resources.