Field comparison of methods for estimating groundwater discharge by evaporation and evapotranspiration in an arid-zone playa

Shanafield, M; Cook, PG; Gutiérrez-Jurado, HA; Faux, R; Cleverly, J; Eamus, D

Field comparison of methods for estimating groundwater discharge by evaporation and evapotranspiration in an arid-zone playa

Shanafield, M Cook, PG Gutiérrez-Jurado, HA Faux, R

Cleverly, J

Eamus, D

Permalink

Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Journal of Hydrology, 2015, 527 pp. 1073 - 1083
Issue Date:: 2015-08-01

Closed Access

	Filename	Description	Size
	field comparisons of estimating GW dishcarge J of Hydr 2015.pdf	Published Version	2.24 MB	Adobe PDF	View/Open

Copyright Clearance Process

Recently Added
In Progress
Closed Access

This item is closed access and not available.

Full metadata record

Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Shanafield, M	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Cook, PG	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Gutiérrez-Jurado, HA	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Faux, R https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9761-9832	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Cleverly, J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2731-7150	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Eamus, D https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2765-8040	en_US
dc.date.issued	2015-08-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Journal of Hydrology, 2015, 527 pp. 1073 - 1083	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	0022-1694	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/37852
dc.description.abstract	© 2015 Elsevier B.V. Evaporative losses typically play a substantial role in the water balances of arid regions. However, they are often poorly understood due to low flux rates and difficulty in direct measurement. We compared six field methods to quantify groundwater discharge due to evaporative and evapotranspirative fluxes from Stirling Swamp, a playa in central Australia; Bowen ratio-energy balance (BREB), maximum entropy production (MEP), chloride and stable isotope profiling, change in groundwater level, and 14C profiles within the aquifer. The latter method has not been previously used to determine groundwater discharge. Evaporative groundwater discharge estimates varied between 0 and 300mm/y, partly due to variability in spatial and temporal scales captured by the individual methods. Within playa systems where evapotranspiration within the soil is negligible but the depth to groundwater is small, land surface energy balances were found to have the advantage of integrating over hundreds of metres, and when upscaled to annual estimates they agreed well with expected evaporative flux values. Soil profile methods yielded a wide range of results depending on the values of several constants that must be assumed, and the assumption of steady state was found to be a disadvantage. Groundwater methods also had the advantage of integrating over some distance within the aquifer; however, advective transport in the subsurface may have led to under-estimation of evaporative flux with these methods.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Journal of Hydrology	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.jhydrol.2015.06.003	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Environmental Engineering	en_US
dc.title	Field comparison of methods for estimating groundwater discharge by evaporation and evapotranspiration in an arid-zone playa	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	527	en_US
utslib.for	0602 Ecology	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science/School of Life Sciences
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	527	en_US

Abstract:

© 2015 Elsevier B.V. Evaporative losses typically play a substantial role in the water balances of arid regions. However, they are often poorly understood due to low flux rates and difficulty in direct measurement. We compared six field methods to quantify groundwater discharge due to evaporative and evapotranspirative fluxes from Stirling Swamp, a playa in central Australia; Bowen ratio-energy balance (BREB), maximum entropy production (MEP), chloride and stable isotope profiling, change in groundwater level, and 14C profiles within the aquifer. The latter method has not been previously used to determine groundwater discharge. Evaporative groundwater discharge estimates varied between 0 and 300mm/y, partly due to variability in spatial and temporal scales captured by the individual methods. Within playa systems where evapotranspiration within the soil is negligible but the depth to groundwater is small, land surface energy balances were found to have the advantage of integrating over hundreds of metres, and when upscaled to annual estimates they agreed well with expected evaporative flux values. Soil profile methods yielded a wide range of results depending on the values of several constants that must be assumed, and the assumption of steady state was found to be a disadvantage. Groundwater methods also had the advantage of integrating over some distance within the aquifer; however, advective transport in the subsurface may have led to under-estimation of evaporative flux with these methods.

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:

http://hdl.handle.net/10453/37852