A Computer Simulation Study of the Rainfall Infiltration and Evaporation Process of Sand-Mulched Field

Abstract:

In the arid areas of northwest China, sand-mulched field is an indigenous dry farming technique to reduce evaporation and conserve the limited rainfall for reliable crop production. The numerical simulation was carried out for analysis of the rainfall infiltration and evaporation process of sand-mulched field. Simulation results indicated that there were signifecant differences between the sand-mulched soil and that without mulch (control). Sand mulch on surface of soil may be effective in increasing infiltration and reducing runoff and evaporation. When the rainfall intensity is less than soil saturated hydraulic conductivity, sand mulch has little effect on the movement of soil infiltration wetting front. When the rainfall intensity is greater than the saturated permeability, the wetting front speed in sand-mulched soil is faster than that in bare soil during infiltration. During the simulation time, the runoff of sand-mulched soil is less than that of soil without mulch, variation in water potential of the sand-mulched soil is only 11% of that of the bare soil under the condition with evaporation intensity 0.6mm/h. Sand mulch can reduce water movement out of the soil by reducing the evaporation rate.

• Periodical: Advanced Materials Research (Volumes 532-533)
• Pages: 1182-1185
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.532-533.1182
• Online since: June 2012
• Authors: Hong Cheng Zhao, Hong Tao Peng, Ge Fei Li, Xin Ping Zhang, Bo Xuan Gu
• Keywords: Computer Simulation, Evaporation, Rainfall Infiltration, Rainfall Intensity, Sand-Mulched Field

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