Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Effects of Groundwater Depth on the Soil Evaporation in Horqin Sandy Land, China

  • Published:
Chinese Geographical Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The interactions between groundwater depth and soil hydrological processes, play an important role in both arid and semi-arid ecosystems. The effect of groundwater depth on soil water variations were neglected or not explicitly treated. In this paper, we combine a simulation experiment and a water flow module of HYDRUS-1D model to study the variation in soil evaporation under different groundwater depth conditions and the relationship between groundwater depth and evaporation efficiency in Horqin Sandy Land, China. The results showed that with an increase in groundwater depth, the evaporation of soil and the recharge of groundwater decrease. In this study, the groundwater recharge did not account for more than 21% of the soil evaporation for the depths of groundwater examined. The soil water content at 60 cm was less affected by the evaporation efficiency when the mean groundwater depth was 61 cm during the experimental period. In addition, the evaporation efficiency (the ratio of actual evaporation to potential evaporation) decreases with the increase in groundwater depth during the experiment. Furthermore, the soil evaporation was not affected by groundwater when the groundwater depth was deeper than 239 cm.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abolafia-Rosenzweig R, Badger A M, Small E et al., 2020. A continental-scale soil evaporation dataset derived from Soil Moisture Active Passive satellite drying rates. Scientific Data, 7(1): 406. doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-020-00748-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alamusa, Jiang Deming, Pei Ttiefan, 2003. Relationship between root system distribution and soil moisture of artificial caragana icrophylla vegetation in sandy land. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 17(3): 78–81.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blain G C, de Matos Pires R C, 2011. Variabilidade temporal da evapotranspiração real e da razão entre evapotranspiração real e potencial em Campinas, Estado de São Paulo. Bragantia, 70(2): 460–170. doi: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0006-87052011000200030

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brendel O, 2021. The relationship between plant growth and water consumption: a history from the classical four elements to modern stable isotopes. Annals of Forest Science, 78(2): 47. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13595-021-01063-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen X, Hu Q, 2004. Groundwater influences on soil moisture and surface evaporation. Journal of Hydrology, 297(1): 285–300. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2004.04.019

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Camargo M B P, Ortolani A A, Júnior M J P et al., 1999. Modelo agrometeorológico de estimativa de produtividade para o cultivar de laranja Valência Agrometeorological model for yield prediction of orange cultivar Valência. Bragantia, 58(1): 171–178. doi: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0006-87051999000100016

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guo Zhongsheng, Shao Ming’an, 2003. Soil water carrying capacity of vegetation and soil desiccation in artificial forestry and grassland in semi-arid regions of the Loess Plateau. Acta Ecologica Sinica, (8): 1640–1647. (in Chinese)

  • Han S M, Yang Y H, Lei Y P et al., 2008. Seasonal groundwater storage anomaly and vadose zone soil moisture as indicators of precipitation recharge in the piedmont region of Taihang Mountain, North China Plain. Hydrology Research, 39(5–6): 479–495. doi: https://doi.org/10.2166/nh.2008.117

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hu Shu’jun, Song Yudong, Tian Changyan et al., 2005. Relationship between water surface evaporation and phreatic water evaporation when phreatic water buried depth is zero for different soil in Tarim River basin. Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering, (S1): 80–83. (in Chinese)

  • Huang Yuanyang, Chen Xi, Zhang Zhicai et al., 2015. Modeling of variation of soil water storage with groundwater table and its influences on transpiration flux. Journal of Hohai University(Natural Sciences), 43(6): 562–568. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Huo S Y, Jin M G, Liang X et al., 2020. Estimating impacts of water-table depth on groundwater evaporation and recharge using lysimeter measurement data and bromide tracer. Hydrogeology Journal, 28(3): 955–971. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-019-02098-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ibrahimi M K, Miyazaki T, Nishimura T et al., 2014. Contribution of shallow groundwater rapid fluctuation to soil salinization under arid and semiarid climate. Arabian Journal of Geoscience, 7(9): 3901–3911. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-013-1084-1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs E M, Bertassello L E, Rao P S C, 2020. Drivers of regional soil water storage memory and persistence. Vadose Zone Journal, 19(1): e20050. doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/vzj2.20050

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jia Yunmao, 2008. Experimental Study of Phreatic Evaporation at Different Depth of Groundwater Table. Journal of Irrigation & Drainage, 27(6): 71–73. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Jin X M, Zhang Y K, Tang Y et al., 2014. Quantifying bare soil evaporation and its relationship with groundwater depth. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 35(21): 7567–7582. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/01431161.2014.975374

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kroes J, Van Dam J, Supit I et al., 2019. Agrohydrological analysis of groundwater recharge and land use changes in the Pampas of Argentina. Agricultural Water Management, 213: 843–857. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2018.12.008

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu X P, He Y H, Zhang T H et al., 2015. The response of infiltration depth, evaporation, and soil water replenishment to rainfall in mobile dunes in the Horqin Sandy Land, Northern China. Environmental Earth Sciences, 73(12): 8699–8708. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-015-4125-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Luo Y, Sophocleous M, 2010. Seasonal groundwater contribution to crop-water use assessed with lysimeter observations and model simulations. Journal of Hydrology, 389(3–4): 325–335. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2010.06.011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mosase E, Ahiablame L, Park S et al., 2019. Modelling potential groundwater recharge in the Limpopo River Basin with SWAT-MODFLOW. Groundwater for Sustainable Development, 9(4): 100260. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gsd.2019.100260

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nasr J B, Bachta M S, 2018. Conflicts and water governance challenge in irrigated areas of semi-arid regions. Arabian Journal of Geosciences, 11(23): 753. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-018-4075-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neuman C H, 1974. Spin echo of spins diffusing in a bounded medium. Journal of Chemical Physics, 60(11): 4508–1511. doi: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1680931

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pan D L, Yang S W, Song Y Q et al., 2019. The tradeoff between soil erosion protection and water consumption in revegetation: Evaluation of new indicators and influencing factors. Geoderma, 347: 32–39. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2019.02.003

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Richards L A, 1931. Capillary conduction of liquids in porous mediums. Physics, 1(5): 318–333. doi: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1745010

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shou Wenkai, Hu Feilong, Alamusa et al., 2013. Methods for studying water cycle and water sources in arid regions based on SPAC system. Chinese Journal of Ecology, 32(8): 2194–2202. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Šimůnek J, van Genuchten M T, Šejna M, 2008. Development and applications of the HYDRUS and STANMOD software packages and related codes. Vadose Zone Journal, 7(2): 587–600. doi: https://doi.org/10.2136/vzj2007.0077

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Soylu M E, Istanbulluoglu E, Lenters J D et al., 2011. Quantifying the impact of groundwater depth on evapotranspiration in a semi-arid grassland region. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 15(3): 787–806. doi: https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-15-787-2011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sun Hongyong, Zhang Xiying, Zhang Yongqiang et al., 2002. Determination of daily evaporation and evaportranspiration of summer corn fields by Large-scale Lysimeter and Micro-Lysimeters. Agricultural Reseach in the Arid Areas, 20(4): 72–75.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tuo Yunfei, Fei Liangjun, Yang Luhua et al., 2008. Experimental study on crop evaportranspiration model based on SPAC system. Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering, 24(1): 29–34.

    Google Scholar 

  • van Genuchten M T, 1980. A closed-form equation for predicting the hydraulic conductivity of unsaturated soils. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 44(5): 892–898. doi: https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj1980.03615995004400050002x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Voortman B R, Fujita Y, Bartholomeus R P et al., 2017. How the evaporation of dry dune grasslands evolves during the concerted succession of soil and vegetation. Ecohydrology, 10(4): e1848. doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/eco.1848

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang Jing, Zhu Qingke, Liu Zhongqi et al., 2011. Dynamics of Soil Water Content under Different Forestland in the Loess Hilly Region. Research of Soil and Water Conservation, 18(1): 220–223. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang S J, Wei Y Q, 2019. Water resource system risk and adaptive management of the Chinese Heihe River Basin in Asian arid areas. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, 24(7): 1271–1292. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11027-019-9839-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang Xiaoyong, Hou Haobo, 2008. Study on shallow groundwater evaporation laws of crops and bare soil. Journal of Hydroelectric Engineering, 27(4): 60–65. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Yang L, Wei W, Chen L D et al., 2012. Response of deep soil moisture to land use and afforestation in the semi-arid Loess Plateau, China. Journal of Hydrology, 475: 111–122. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2012.09.041

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhai Cuixia, Ma Jian, Li Yan, 2007. Simulated water fluxes during the growing season in semiarid grassland ecosystems under severe drought conditions. Arid Land Geography, 30(6): 805–811. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhang N, Liu C Y, 2014. Simulated water fluxes during the growing season in semiarid grassland ecosystems under severe drought conditions. Journal of Hydrology, 512: 69–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang Ying, Zheng Xilai, Wu Chengcheng et al., 2011. Phreatic evaporation in Phragmites communis wetlands of the Liao-he Estuary. Journal of Zhejiang A & F University, 28(4): 569–575. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhang Yongming, Hu Shjun, Zhai Luxin et al., 2009. Models for calculating phreatic evaporation from bare soil in Tarim Basin. Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering, 25(1): 27–32.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhang Z D, Huang M B, 2021. Effect of root-zone vertical soil moisture heterogeneity on water transport safety in soil-plant-atmosphere continuum in Robinia pseudoacacia. Agricultural Water Management, 246: 106702. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/J.AGWAT.2020.106702

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhao M, Wang W K, Wang Z F et al., 2020. Water use of Salix in the variably unsaturated zone of a semiarid desert region based on in-situ observation. Journal of Hydrology, 591: 125579. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2020.125579

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zheng H, Gao J X, Teng Y G et al., 2015. Temporal variations in soil moisture for three typical vegetation types in inner Mongolia, northern China. Plos One, 10(3): e0118964. doi: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0118964

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Ulanaodu Desertification Combating Ecological Station for providing climate data of this region.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Forest Ecology and Management, Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, 110000, China

    Tingting Yang, Musa Ala, Dexin Guan & Anzhi Wang

  2. College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Liaoning Technical University, Fuxin, 123000, China

    Tingting Yang

Authors
  1. Tingting Yang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Musa Ala
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Dexin Guan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Anzhi Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Anzhi Wang.

Additional information

Foundation item

Under the auspices of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 31770755, 31670712), Key Projects of Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. KFZD-SW-305)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Yang, T., Ala, M., Guan, D. et al. The Effects of Groundwater Depth on the Soil Evaporation in Horqin Sandy Land, China. Chin. Geogr. Sci. 31, 727–734 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11769-021-1220-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11769-021-1220-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation