Articles | Volume 26, issue 22
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5849-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5849-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Technical note
| 
21 Nov 2022
Technical note |
| 21 Nov 2022
| 21 Nov 2022
Technical note: A sigmoidal soil water retention curve without asymptote that is robust when dry-range data are unreliable
Gerrit Huibert de Rooij
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ GmbH, Soil System
Science Dept., Theodor-Lieser-Strasse 4, 06120 Halle (Saale), Germany
Related authors
Benedikt J. Werner, Oliver J. Lechtenfeld, Andreas Musolff, Gerrit H. de Rooij, Jie Yang, Ralf Gründling, Ulrike Werban, and Jan H. Fleckenstein
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 6067–6086, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-6067-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-6067-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Export of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from riparian zones (RZs) is an important yet poorly understood component of the catchment carbon budget. This study chemically and spatially classifies DOC source zones within a RZ of a small catchment to assess DOC export patterns. Results highlight that DOC export from only a small fraction of the RZ with distinct DOC composition dominates overall DOC export. The application of a spatial, topographic proxy can be used to improve DOC export models.
Gerrit Huibert de Rooij, Juliane Mai, and Raneem Madi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 983–1007, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-983-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-983-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The way soils capture infiltrating water affects crops and natural vegetation and groundwater recharge. This retention of soil water is described by a mathematical function that covers all water contents from very dry to water saturated. We combined two existing lines of research to improve the behaviour of a popular function for very dry and very wet conditions. Our new function could handle a wider range of conditions than earlier curves. We provide fits to a wide range of soils.
Conrad Jackisch, Kai Germer, Thomas Graeff, Ines Andrä, Katrin Schulz, Marcus Schiedung, Jaqueline Haller-Jans, Jonas Schneider, Julia Jaquemotte, Philipp Helmer, Leander Lotz, Andreas Bauer, Irene Hahn, Martin Šanda, Monika Kumpan, Johann Dorner, Gerrit de Rooij, Stefan Wessel-Bothe, Lorenz Kottmann, Siegfried Schittenhelm, and Wolfgang Durner
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 683–697, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-683-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-683-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Soil water content and matric potential are central hydrological state variables. A large variety of automated probes and sensor systems for field monitoring exist. In a field experiment under idealised conditions we compared 15 systems for soil moisture and 14 systems for matric potential. The individual records of one system agree well with the others. Most records are also plausible. However, the absolute values of the different measuring systems span a very large range of possible truths.
Benedikt J. Werner, Andreas Musolff, Oliver J. Lechtenfeld, Gerrit H. de Rooij, Marieke R. Oosterwoud, and Jan H. Fleckenstein
Biogeosciences, 16, 4497–4516, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4497-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4497-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Increased dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration in streams can pose a threat to downstream water resources. Analyzing data from an in-stream probe we found that hydroclimatic and hydrological drivers can describe up to 72 % of the observed DOC concentration and composition variability. Variability was found to be highest during discharge events with warm and dry preconditions. The findings suggest an impact of climate change on DOC exports and thus also on downstream water quality.
Gerrit Huibert de Rooij
Geosci. Model Dev. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2018-97, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2018-97, 2018
Publication in GMD not foreseen
Short summary
Short summary
Areas that have few or no weather stations or are subject to climate change still need weather data in order to model the demand for water, the risk of floods and droughts, etc. TEmpotRain generates rainfall, daily temperature extremes, and daily potential evaporation (from the soil) / transpiration (by plants). The physical meaning of the model parameters is clear. This allows realistic values for them to be estimated, even for hypothetical (future) climates for which data are not available.
Raneem Madi, Gerrit Huibert de Rooij, Henrike Mielenz, and Juliane Mai
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 1193–1219, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-1193-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-1193-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Water flows through soils with more difficulty when the soil is dried out. Scant rainfall in deserts may therefore result in a seemingly wet soil, but the water will often not penetrate deeply enough to replenish the groundwater. We compared the mathematical functions that describe how well different soils hold their water and found that only a few of them are realistic. The function one chooses to model the soil can have a large impact on the estimate of groundwater recharge.
E. Bloem, M. de Gee, and G. H. de Rooij
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-6993-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-6993-2014, 2014
Manuscript not accepted for further review
G. H. de Rooij
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-83-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-83-2014, 2014
Revised manuscript has not been submitted
B. te Brake, M. J. van der Ploeg, and G. H. de Rooij
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 1933–1949, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1933-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1933-2013, 2013
Benedikt J. Werner, Oliver J. Lechtenfeld, Andreas Musolff, Gerrit H. de Rooij, Jie Yang, Ralf Gründling, Ulrike Werban, and Jan H. Fleckenstein
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 6067–6086, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-6067-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-6067-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Export of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from riparian zones (RZs) is an important yet poorly understood component of the catchment carbon budget. This study chemically and spatially classifies DOC source zones within a RZ of a small catchment to assess DOC export patterns. Results highlight that DOC export from only a small fraction of the RZ with distinct DOC composition dominates overall DOC export. The application of a spatial, topographic proxy can be used to improve DOC export models.
Gerrit Huibert de Rooij, Juliane Mai, and Raneem Madi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 983–1007, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-983-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-983-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The way soils capture infiltrating water affects crops and natural vegetation and groundwater recharge. This retention of soil water is described by a mathematical function that covers all water contents from very dry to water saturated. We combined two existing lines of research to improve the behaviour of a popular function for very dry and very wet conditions. Our new function could handle a wider range of conditions than earlier curves. We provide fits to a wide range of soils.
Conrad Jackisch, Kai Germer, Thomas Graeff, Ines Andrä, Katrin Schulz, Marcus Schiedung, Jaqueline Haller-Jans, Jonas Schneider, Julia Jaquemotte, Philipp Helmer, Leander Lotz, Andreas Bauer, Irene Hahn, Martin Šanda, Monika Kumpan, Johann Dorner, Gerrit de Rooij, Stefan Wessel-Bothe, Lorenz Kottmann, Siegfried Schittenhelm, and Wolfgang Durner
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 683–697, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-683-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-683-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Soil water content and matric potential are central hydrological state variables. A large variety of automated probes and sensor systems for field monitoring exist. In a field experiment under idealised conditions we compared 15 systems for soil moisture and 14 systems for matric potential. The individual records of one system agree well with the others. Most records are also plausible. However, the absolute values of the different measuring systems span a very large range of possible truths.
Benedikt J. Werner, Andreas Musolff, Oliver J. Lechtenfeld, Gerrit H. de Rooij, Marieke R. Oosterwoud, and Jan H. Fleckenstein
Biogeosciences, 16, 4497–4516, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4497-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4497-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
Increased dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration in streams can pose a threat to downstream water resources. Analyzing data from an in-stream probe we found that hydroclimatic and hydrological drivers can describe up to 72 % of the observed DOC concentration and composition variability. Variability was found to be highest during discharge events with warm and dry preconditions. The findings suggest an impact of climate change on DOC exports and thus also on downstream water quality.
Gerrit Huibert de Rooij
Geosci. Model Dev. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2018-97, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2018-97, 2018
Publication in GMD not foreseen
Short summary
Short summary
Areas that have few or no weather stations or are subject to climate change still need weather data in order to model the demand for water, the risk of floods and droughts, etc. TEmpotRain generates rainfall, daily temperature extremes, and daily potential evaporation (from the soil) / transpiration (by plants). The physical meaning of the model parameters is clear. This allows realistic values for them to be estimated, even for hypothetical (future) climates for which data are not available.
Raneem Madi, Gerrit Huibert de Rooij, Henrike Mielenz, and Juliane Mai
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 1193–1219, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-1193-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-1193-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
Water flows through soils with more difficulty when the soil is dried out. Scant rainfall in deserts may therefore result in a seemingly wet soil, but the water will often not penetrate deeply enough to replenish the groundwater. We compared the mathematical functions that describe how well different soils hold their water and found that only a few of them are realistic. The function one chooses to model the soil can have a large impact on the estimate of groundwater recharge.
E. Bloem, M. de Gee, and G. H. de Rooij
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-6993-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-6993-2014, 2014
Manuscript not accepted for further review
G. H. de Rooij
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-83-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-83-2014, 2014
Revised manuscript has not been submitted
B. te Brake, M. J. van der Ploeg, and G. H. de Rooij
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 1933–1949, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1933-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1933-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Subject: Vadose Zone Hydrology | Techniques and Approaches: Theory development
The dimensions of deep-layer soil desiccation and its impact on xylem hydraulic conductivity in dryland tree plantations
Prediction of absolute unsaturated hydraulic conductivity – comparison of four different capillary bundle models
Hydro-pedotransfer functions: A roadmap for future development
Prediction of the absolute hydraulic conductivity function from soil water retention data
Mixed formulation for an easy and robust numerical computation of sorptivity
Signal contribution of distant areas to cosmic-ray neutron sensors – implications for footprint and sensitivity
Compaction effects on evaporation and salt precipitation in drying porous media
Evaporation front and its motion
Hysteresis in soil hydraulic conductivity as driven by salinity and sodicity – a modeling framework
HESS Opinions: Unsaturated infiltration – the need for a reconsideration of historical misconceptions
Sigmoidal water retention function with improved behaviour in dry and wet soils
The challenges of an in situ validation of a nonequilibrium model of soil heat and moisture dynamics during fires
Anatomy of the 2018 agricultural drought in the Netherlands using in situ soil moisture and satellite vegetation indices
Beyond Perrault's experiments: repeatability, didactics and complexity
Mechanisms of consistently disjunct soil water pools over (pore) space and time
Energy states of soil water – a thermodynamic perspective on soil water dynamics and storage-controlled streamflow generation in different landscapes
Hydrological characterization of cave drip waters in a porous limestone: Golgotha Cave, Western Australia
Soil water stable isotopes reveal evaporation dynamics at the soil–plant–atmosphere interface of the critical zone
Soil water migration in the unsaturated zone of semiarid region in China from isotope evidence
Governing equations of transient soil water flow and soil water flux in multi-dimensional fractional anisotropic media and fractional time
A thermodynamic formulation of root water uptake
Soil–aquifer phenomena affecting groundwater under vertisols: a review
How effective is river restoration in re-establishing groundwater–surface water interactions? – A case study
Recharge estimation and soil moisture dynamics in a Mediterranean, semi-arid karst region
Relations between macropore network characteristics and the degree of preferential solute transport
Impacts of conservation tillage on the hydrological and agronomic performance of Fanya juus in the upper Blue Nile (Abbay) river basin
Averaged water potentials in soil water and groundwater, and their connection to menisci in soil pores, field-scale flow phenomena, and simple groundwater flows
Nana He, Xiaodong Gao, Dagang Guo, Yabiao Wu, Dong Ge, Lianhao Zhao, Lei Tian, and Xining Zhao
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 1897–1914, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1897-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1897-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Deep-layer soil desiccation (DSD) can restrict the sustainability of deep-rooted plantations in water-limited areas. Thus, we explored the extreme effects of DSD based on mass data published and measured on the Loess Plateau and found that the permanent wilting point is a reliable indicator of the moisture limitation of DSD, regardless of tree species, with the corresponding maximum root water uptake depth varying among climatic zones. These dimensions increased the risk of planted trees' death.
Andre Peters, Sascha C. Iden, and Wolfgang Durner
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 4579–4593, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-4579-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-4579-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
While various expressions for the water retention curve are commonly compared, the capillary conductivity model proposed by Mualem is widely used but seldom compared to alternatives. We compare four different capillary bundle models in terms of their ability to fully predict the hydraulic conductivity. The Mualem model outperformed the three other models in terms of predictive accuracy. Our findings suggest that the widespread use of the Mualem model is justified.
Tobias Karl David Weber, Lutz Weihermüller, Attila Nemes, Michel Bechtold, Aurore Degré, Efstathios Diamantopoulos, Simone Fatichi, Vilim Filipović, Surya Gupta, Tobias L. Hohenbrink, Daniel R. Hirmas, Conrad Jackisch, Quirijn de Jong van Lier, John Koestel, Peter Lehmann, Toby R. Marthews, Budiman Minasny, Holger Pagel, Martine van der Ploeg, Simon Fiil Svane, Brigitta Szabó, Harry Vereecken, Anne Verhoef, Michael Young, Yijian Zeng, Yonggen Zhang, and Sara Bonetti
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1860, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-1860, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Pedotransfer functions (PTFs) are used to predicts parameters of models describing the hydraulic properties of soils. The appropriateness of these predictions critically rely on the nature of the datasets for training the PTFs as well the physical comprehensiveness of the models. This roadmap papers is addressed at PTF developers and users, and critically reflects the utility and future of PTFs. To this end, we present a manifesto aiming at a paradigm shift in PTFs research.
Andre Peters, Tobias L. Hohenbrink, Sascha C. Iden, Martinus Th. van Genuchten, and Wolfgang Durner
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 1565–1582, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-1565-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-1565-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The soil hydraulic conductivity function is usually predicted from the water retention curve (WRC) with the requirement of at least one measured conductivity data point for scaling the function. We propose a new scheme of absolute hydraulic conductivity prediction from the WRC without the need of measured conductivity data. Testing the new prediction with independent data shows good results. This scheme can be used when insufficient or no conductivity data are available.
Laurent Lassabatere, Pierre-Emmanuel Peyneau, Deniz Yilmaz, Joseph Pollacco, Jesús Fernández-Gálvez, Borja Latorre, David Moret-Fernández, Simone Di Prima, Mehdi Rahmati, Ryan D. Stewart, Majdi Abou Najm, Claude Hammecker, and Rafael Angulo-Jaramillo
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 895–915, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-895-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-895-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Sorptivity is one of the most important parameters for quantifying water infiltration into soils. In this study, we propose a mixed formulation that avoids numerical issues and allows for the computation of sorptivity for all types of models chosen for describing the soil hydraulic functions and all initial and final conditions. We show the benefits of using the mixed formulation with regard to modeling water infiltration into soils.
Martin Schrön, Markus Köhli, and Steffen Zacharias
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 723–738, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-723-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-723-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
This paper presents a new analytical concept to answer long-lasting questions of the cosmic-ray neutron sensing community, such as
what is the influence of a distant area or patches of different land use on the measurement signal?or
is the detector sensitive enough to detect a change of soil moisture (e.g. due to irrigation) in a remote field at a certain distance?The concept may support signal interpretation and sensor calibration, particularly in heterogeneous terrain.
Nurit Goldberg-Yehuda, Shmuel Assouline, Yair Mau, and Uri Nachshon
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 2499–2517, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2499-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2499-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
In this work the interactions between soil compaction, evaporation, and salt accumulation at the vadose zone are discussed. Changes at the micro and macro scales of the soil physical and hydraulic properties were studied using high-resolution imagining techniques, alongside column experiments, aiming to characterize water flow and evaporation processes at natural, compacted, and tilled soil conditions. In addition, salt accumulation at the soil profile was examined for these setups.
Jiří Mls
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 397–406, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-397-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-397-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
In the paper the evaporation front is considered the interface that separates the wet part of a porous medium from its dry surroundings, and its exact definition in time and space is given. Subsequently, the law of the front's motion is derived. The general problem governing completely the front's motion is formulated and, for a special case, solved numerically. It is shown that the solution makes it possible to locate the rate of vaporization in time and space.
Isaac Kramer, Yuval Bayer, Taiwo Adeyemo, and Yair Mau
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1993–2008, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1993-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1993-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Salinity and sodicity can cause irreversible degradation to soil, threatening agricultural production and food security. To date, very little is known about the degree to which soil degradation can be reversible. We introduce a model for describing this partial reversibility (hysteresis) and lay out the experimental procedures necessary for characterizing the soil in this regard. We must shift our focus from degradation measurements to reversal measurements so that we can maintain healthy soils.
Peter F. Germann
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1097–1101, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1097-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1097-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
This is the last paper submitted by Peter Germann before he died in December 2020. Peter reviews the development of capillary flow theory since the work of Briggs (1897) and Richards (1931), who raised capillary flow to a soil hydrological dogma. Attempts to correct the dogma led to concepts of non-equilibrium flow, macropore flow, and preferential flow during infiltration. Viscous film flow is proposed as an alternative approach to capillarity-driven flow during unsaturated infiltration.
Gerrit Huibert de Rooij, Juliane Mai, and Raneem Madi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 983–1007, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-983-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-983-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The way soils capture infiltrating water affects crops and natural vegetation and groundwater recharge. This retention of soil water is described by a mathematical function that covers all water contents from very dry to water saturated. We combined two existing lines of research to improve the behaviour of a popular function for very dry and very wet conditions. Our new function could handle a wider range of conditions than earlier curves. We provide fits to a wide range of soils.
William J. Massman
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 685–709, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-685-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-685-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Increasing fire frequency and severity now poses a threat to most of the world's wildlands and forested ecosystems and their benefits. The HMV (Heat–Moisture–Vapor) model is a tool to manage fuels to help mitigate the consequences of fire and promote soil and vegetation recovery after fire. The model's performance is surprisingly good, but it also provides insights into the existence of previously unobserved feedbacks and other physical processes that occur during fire.
Joost Buitink, Anne M. Swank, Martine van der Ploeg, Naomi E. Smith, Harm-Jan F. Benninga, Frank van der Bolt, Coleen D. U. Carranza, Gerbrand Koren, Rogier van der Velde, and Adriaan J. Teuling
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 6021–6031, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-6021-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-6021-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
The amount of water stored in the soil is critical for the productivity of plants. Plant productivity is either limited by the available water or by the available energy. In this study, we infer this transition point by comparing local observations of water stored in the soil with satellite observations of vegetation productivity. We show that the transition point is not constant with soil depth, indicating that plants use water from deeper layers when the soil gets drier.
Stefano Barontini and Matteo Settura
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 1907–1926, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1907-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1907-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
More than 300 years after its first appearance, Perrault's De l'origine des fontaines provokes intriguing stimuli and suggestions. We discuss its epistemological relevance through the lens of the repeatability of the experiments, of the didactic aspects which arise for modern teaching of hydrology, and of the author's attitude in facing the complexity of the hydrological processes. The analysis shows that the birth of modern hydrology and the scientific revolution were closely entwined.
Matthias Sprenger, Pilar Llorens, Carles Cayuela, Francesc Gallart, and Jérôme Latron
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 2751–2762, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2751-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2751-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
We find that the stable isotopic compositions of mobile and matrix bound soil water are continuously different over 8 months. Long-term data further show that these isotopic differences result from the refilling of small soil pores by isotopically depleted rains during low soil moisture conditions. Thus, subsurface water is not well mixed, but flow velocities and storage in soils are highly variable; this has important implications for ecohydrological studies and soil hydrological modeling.
Erwin Zehe, Ralf Loritz, Conrad Jackisch, Martijn Westhoff, Axel Kleidon, Theresa Blume, Sibylle K. Hassler, and Hubert H. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 971–987, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-971-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-971-2019, 2019
Kashif Mahmud, Gregoire Mariethoz, Andy Baker, and Pauline C. Treble
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 977–988, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-977-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-977-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
This study explores the relationship between drip water and rainfall in a SW Australian karst, where both intra- and interannual hydrological variations are strongly controlled by seasonal variations in recharge. The hydrological behavior of cave drips is examined at daily resolution with respect to mean discharge and the flow variation. We demonstrate that the analysis of the time series produced by cave drip loggers generates useful hydrogeological information that can be applied generally.
Matthias Sprenger, Doerthe Tetzlaff, and Chris Soulsby
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3839–3858, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3839-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3839-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
We sampled the isotopic composition in the top 20 cm at four different sites in the Scottish Highlands at 5 cm intervals over 1 year. The relationship between the soil water isotopic fractionation and evapotranspiration showed a hysteresis pattern due to a lag response to onset and offset of the evaporative losses. The isotope data revealed that vegetation had a significant influence on the soil evaporation with evaporation being double from soils beneath Scots pine compared to heather.
Yonggang Yang and Bojie Fu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 1757–1767, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-1757-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-1757-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
This paper investigates soil water migration processes in the Loess Plateau using isotopes. The soil water migration is dominated by piston-type flow, but rarely preferential flow. Soil water from the soil lay (20–40 cm) contributed to 6–12% of plant xylem water, while soil water at the depth of 40–60 cm is the largest component (range from 60 to 66 %), soil water below 60 cm depth contributed 8–14 % to plant xylem water, and only 5–8 % is derived from precipitation.
M. Levent Kavvas, Ali Ercan, and James Polsinelli
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 1547–1557, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-1547-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-1547-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
In this study dimensionally consistent governing equations of continuity and motion for transient soil water flow and water flux in fractional time and in fractional multiple space dimensions in anisotropic media are developed. By the introduction of the Brooks–Corey constitutive relationships, an explicit form of the equations is obtained. The developed governing equations, in their fractional time but integer space forms, show behavior consistent with the previous experimental observations.
Anke Hildebrandt, Axel Kleidon, and Marcel Bechmann
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 3441–3454, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3441-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3441-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
This theoretical paper describes the energy fluxes and dissipation along the flow paths involved in root water uptake, an approach that is rarely taken. We show that this provides useful additional insights for understanding the biotic and abiotic impediments to root water uptake. This approach shall be applied to explore efficient water uptake strategies and help locate the limiting processes in the complex soil–plant–atmosphere system.
D. Kurtzman, S. Baram, and O. Dahan
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 1–12, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
Vertisols are cracking clayey, arable soils that often overlay groundwater reservoirs. The soil cracks enable flow that bypasses soil blocks, which results in both relatively fresh recharge of the underlying groundwater and contamination with reactive contaminants. These special phenomena, as well as unique mechanism of salinization after cultivation and relative resilience to contamination by nitrate typical to groundwater under vertisols, are reviewed in this study.
A.-M. Kurth, C. Weber, and M. Schirmer
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 2663–2672, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-2663-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-2663-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
This study investigates the effects of river restoration on groundwater–surface water interactions in a losing urban stream. Investigations were performed using Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS). The results indicate that the highest surface water downwelling occurred at the tip of a gravel island newly installed during river restoration, leading to the conclusion that in this specific setting, river restoration was effective in locally enhancing groundwater–surface water interactions.
F. Ries, J. Lange, S. Schmidt, H. Puhlmann, and M. Sauter
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 1439–1456, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-1439-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-1439-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
Soil moisture was observed along a strong semi-arid climatic gradient in a Mediterranean karst area. Soil moisture data and soil hydraulic modelling with Hydrus-1D revealed a strong dependency of percolation fluxes with rainfall amounts and intensity during heavy rainfall events. Spatial and temporal extrapolation of the model illustrated the high variability of seasonal percolation amounts among single years and showed strong correlations between soil depth and potential groundwater recharge.
M. Larsbo, J. Koestel, and N. Jarvis
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 5255–5269, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-5255-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-5255-2014, 2014
Short summary
Short summary
The characteristics of the macropore network determine the potential for fast transport of solutes through soil. Such characteristics computed from 3-dimensional X-ray tomography images were combined with measured solute breakthrough curves and near-saturated hydraulic conductivities. At a given flow rate, smaller macroporosities, poorer local connectivity of the macropore network and smaller near-saturated hydraulic conductivities resulted in a greater degree of preferential transport.
M. Temesgen, S. Uhlenbrook, B. Simane, P. van der Zaag, Y. Mohamed, J. Wenninger, and H. H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 16, 4725–4735, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-4725-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-16-4725-2012, 2012
G. H. de Rooij
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 15, 1601–1614, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-1601-2011, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-1601-2011, 2011
Cited articles
Assouline, S. and Or, D.: Conceptual and parametric representation of soil
hydraulic properties: a review, Vadose Zone J., 12, 1–20,
https://doi.org/10.2136/vzj2013.07.0121, 2013.
Bittelli, M. and Flury, M.: Errors in water retention curves determined
with pressure plates, Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 73, 1453–1460,
https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2008.0082, 2009.
Brooks, R. H. and Corey, A. T.: Hydraulic properties of porous media,
Colorado State University, Hydrology Paper No. 3, 27 pp., 1964.
Davis, J. L. and Annan, A. P.: Ground penetrating radar to measure soil
water content, in: Methods of soil analysis. Part 4 – Physical methods,
edited by: Dane, J. H. and Topp, G. C., Soil Science Society of America,
Inc., Madison, Wisconsin, USA, https://doi.org/10.2136/sssabookser5.4, 446–463, 2002.
Dettmann, U., SoilHyp: Soil Hydraulic Properties,
https://rdrr.io/cran/SoilHyP/ (last access: 1 April 2022), 2021.
de Rooij, G.: Fitting the parameters of the RIA parameterization of the soil
water retention curve (1.1), Zenodo [code], https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7271284, 2022.
de Rooij, G. H., Mai, J., and Madi, R.: Sigmoidal water retention function with improved behaviour in dry and wet soils, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 983–1007, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-983-2021, 2021.
Du, C.: Comparison of the performance of 22 models describing soil water
retention curves from saturation to oven dryness, Vadose Zone J., 19,
e20072, https://doi.org/10.1002/vzj2.20072, 2020.
Duan, Q. Y., Gupta, V. K., and Sorooshian, S.: Shuffled complex evolution
approach for effective and efficient global minimization, J.
Opti. Theory Appl., 76, 501–521, 1993.
Duan, Q., Sorooshian, S., and Gupta, V.: Effective and efficient global
optimization for conceptual rainfall–runoff models, Water Resour. Res., 28,
1015–1031, 1992.
Duan, Q., Sorooshian, S., and Gupta, V.: Optimal use of the SCE–UA global
optimization method for calibrating watershed models, J. Hydrol., 158,
265–284, 1994.
Durner, W.: Hydraulic conductivity estimation for soils with heterogeneous
pore structure, Water Resour. Res., 30, 211–223, 1994.
Ferré, P. A. and Topp, G. C.: Time domain reflectometry, in: Methods of
soil analysis. Part 4 – Physical methods, edited by: Dane, J. H. and Topp,
G. C., Soil Science Society of America, Inc., Madison, Wisconsin, USA,
434–446, https://doi.org/10.2136/sssabookser5.4, 2002.
Fuentes, C., Haverkamp, R., Parlange, J.-Y., Brutsaert, W., Zayani, K.,
and Vachaud, G.: Constraints on parameters in three soil–water capillary
retention functions, Trans. Porous Media, 6, 445–449, 1991.
Ippisch, O., Vogel, H.-J., and Bastian, P.: Validity limits for the van
Genuchten–Mualem model and implications for parameter estimation and
numerical simulation, Adv. Water Resour., 29, 1780–1789,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advwatres.2005.12.011, 2006.
Lawrence, D. M., Fisher, R. A., Koven, C. D., Oleson, K. W., Swenson, S. C., Bonan, G., Collier, N., Ghimire, B., van Kampenhout, L., Kennedy, D., Kluzek, E., Lawrence, P. J., Li, F., Li, H., Lombardozzi, D., Riley, W. J., Sacks, W. J., Shi, M., Vertenstein, M., Wieder, W. R., Xu, C., Ali, A. A., Badger, A. M., Bisht, G., van den Broeke, M., Brunke, M. A., Burns, S. P., Buzan, J., Clark, M., Craig, A., Dahlin, K., Drewniak, B., Fisher, J. B., Flanner, M., Fox, A. M., Gentine, P., Hoffman, F., Keppel-Aleks, G., Knox, R., Kumar, S., Lenaerts, J., Leung, L. R., Lipscomb, W. H., Lu, Y., Pandey, A., Pelletier, J. D., Perket, J., Randerson, J. T., Ricciuto, D. M., Sanderson, B. M., Slater, A., Subin, Z. M., Tang, J., Thomas, R. Q., Val Martin, M., and Zeng, X.: The Community Land Model version 5: Description of new
features, benchmarking, and impact of forcing uncertainty, J.
Adv. Model. Earth Syst., 11, 4245–4287,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2018MS001583, 2019.
Madi, R., de Rooij, G. H., Mielenz, H., and Mai, J.: Parametric soil water retention models: a critical evaluation of expressions for the full moisture range, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 1193–1219, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-1193-2018, 2018.
National Agricultural Library: UNSODA Database, USDA [data set],
https://data.nal.usda.gov/dataset/unsoda-20-unsaturated-soil (last access: 22 July 2020), 2015.
Nemes, A., Schaap, M. G., Leij, F. J., and Wösten, J. H. M.: Description
of the unsaturated soil hydraulic database UNSODA version 2.0, J. Hydrol.,
251, 152–162, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-1694(01)00465-6, 2001.
Or, D. and Tuller, M.: Liquid retention and interfacial area in variably
saturated porous media: Upscaling from single–pore to sample–scale model,
Water Resour. Res., 35, 3591–3605, 1999.
Rossi, C., and Nimmo, J. R.: Modeling of soil water retention from
saturation to oven dryness, Water Resour. Res., 30, 701–708, 1994.
Schneider, M. and Goss, K.-U.: Prediction of the water sorption term in
air dry soils, Geoderma, 170, 64–69,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2011.10.008, 2012.
Šimůnek, J., van Genuchten, M. Th., and Šejna, M.: Recent
developments and applications of the HYDRUS computer software packages,
Vadose Zone J., 15, 1–25, https://doi.org/10.2136/vzj2016.04.0033,
2016.
Solone, R., Bittelli, M., Tomei, F., and Morari, F.: Errors in water
retention curves determined with pressure plates: Effects on the soil water
balance, J. Hydrol., 470–471, 65–74,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2012.08.017, 2012.
SWAP Soil Water Atmosphere Plant, https://www.swap.alterra.nl/, last access:
10 August 2022.
Tuller, M. and Or, D.: Water films and scaling of soil characteristic
curves at low water contents, Water Resour. Res., 41, W09403,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2005WR004142, 2005.
Twarakavi, N. K. C., Šimůnek, J., and Schaap, M. G.: Can
texture–based classification optimally classify soils with respect to soil
hydraulics?, Water Resour. Res., 46, W01501,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2009WR007939, 2010.
van Genuchten, M. Th.: A closed–form equation for predicting the hydraulic
conductivity for unsaturated soils, Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 44, 892–898,
1980.
Wang, Y., Ma, R., and Zhu, G.: Improved prediction of hydraulic conductivity
with a soil water retention curve that accounts for both capillary and
adsorption forces, Water Resour. Res., 58, e2021WR031297,
https://doi.org/10.1029/2021WR031297, 2022.
Short summary
The way soils capture infiltrating water affects crops and natural vegetation as well as groundwater recharge. This retention of soil water is captured by a mathematical function that covers all water contents from very dry to water-saturated. Unfortunately, data in the dry range are often absent or unreliable. I modified an earlier function to be more robust in the absence of dry-range data, and present a computer program to estimate the parameters of the new function.
The way soils capture infiltrating water affects crops and natural vegetation as well as...
