Details zur Publikation

Kategorie Textpublikation
Referenztyp Zeitschriften
DOI 10.1016/j.catena.2019.104335
Volltext Autorenversion
Titel (primär) Assessing field-scale variability of soil hydraulic conductivity at and near saturation
Autor Zhang, X.; Wendroth, O.; Matocha, C.; Zhu, J.; Reyes, J.
Quelle Catena
Erscheinungsjahr 2020
Department BOSYS
Band/Volume 187
Seite von art. 104335
Sprache englisch
Keywords Hydraulic conductivity; Pedotransfer functions (PTFs); Spatial variability; Coregionalization; Field scale
Abstract Saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) is a crucial hydraulic property for assessing soil water dynamics. Understanding the spatial variability of Ks in a field is important for site-specific resource management. However, direct measurement of hydraulic conductivity K as a function of soil water pressure head h [K(h)] is time consuming and laborious. Alternatively, pedotransfer functions (PTFs) have been developed to predict Ks indirectly based on more easily measurable soil properties. Although PTFs have been used for decades, their validity for estimating the field-scale spatial variability of Ks remains unclear. The objectives of this study were to characterize the spatial pattern of K(h) at and near saturation in an agricultural field by a coregionalization technique, and in comparison, to evaluate the performance of ROSETTA PTF in characterizing the spatial variability of K(h) at the field scale. Surface soil (7–13 cm) K(h) in the vertical direction was measured at 48 locations in a 71-m by 71-m grid within a no-till farmland. Apparent electrical conductivity was densely measured using a contact sensor Veris 3150 and used as ancillary variable in a coregionalization approach. Experimental semivariograms and cross semivariograms were derived and applied in cokriging to generate K(h) maps. Geostatistical analysis presented similarities in maps of measured K(h) with ROSETTA-predicted K(h) data for a matric potential of −10 cm. However, the strong spatial heterogeneity of measured Ks, which was caused by macropores, observed in the field was not captured by ROSETTA estimates. The results indicated that texture dominated PTFs like ROSETTA, in which soil structure is not considered, might be useful in characterizing the spatial pattern of unsaturated hydraulic conductivity rather than Ks. Field scale Ks maps based on PTF estimates should be evaluated carefully and handled with caution.
dauerhafte UFZ-Verlinkung https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=22830
Zhang, X., Wendroth, O., Matocha, C., Zhu, J., Reyes, J. (2020):
Assessing field-scale variability of soil hydraulic conductivity at and near saturation
Catena 187 , art. 104335 10.1016/j.catena.2019.104335