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• 1. [Article] Automated water balance procedure for large-scale experimental databases based on soil moisture

  Based on the determination of the zero-flux plane, a water balance procedure for large-scale experimental databases was automated to estimate the soil water balance based on soil water content distribution ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Automated water balance procedure for large-scale experimental databases based on soil moisture Author: Grayson, Susana Maria Based on the determination of the zero-flux plane, a water balance procedure for large-scale experimental databases was automated to estimate the soil water balance based on soil water content distribution with depth through time. The automated procedure was verified using data from the BOREAS project obtained in three Intensive Field Campaigns during the spring and summer of 1994. The data used correspond to four tower sites measuring atmospheric fluxes above the forest canopy from the Northern and Southern Study Areas and are designated according to the predominant vegetation in the area as Old Jack Pine and Young Jack Pine. The total hydraulic head through time at these sites is determined to identify the position of the zero-flux plane, which separates that part of the soil profile in which water flow is upward from the region in which the water flow is downward. In conjunction with precipitation and soil water content data, the procedure allows estimation of the actual soil water balance, the water used from the region above the zero-flux plane being evapotranspiration, and the change in soil water content below the mean zero-flux plane being drainage. Prior to this study, no published attempt had been made to automate a water balance procedure for large-scale experimental databases based on the position of the zero-flux plane and soil water content distribution through time. Title: Automated water balance procedure for large-scale experimental databases based on soil moisture Author: Grayson, Susana Maria Based on the determination of the zero-flux plane, a water balance procedure for large-scale experimental databases was automated to estimate the soil water balance based on soil water content distribution with depth through time. The automated procedure was verified using data from the BOREAS project obtained in three Intensive Field Campaigns during the spring and summer of 1994. The data used correspond to four tower sites measuring atmospheric fluxes above the forest canopy from the Northern and Southern Study Areas and are designated according to the predominant vegetation in the area as Old Jack Pine and Young Jack Pine. The total hydraulic head through time at these sites is determined to identify the position of the zero-flux plane, which separates that part of the soil profile in which water flow is upward from the region in which the water flow is downward. In conjunction with precipitation and soil water content data, the procedure allows estimation of the actual soil water balance, the water used from the region above the zero-flux plane being evapotranspiration, and the change in soil water content below the mean zero-flux plane being drainage. Prior to this study, no published attempt had been made to automate a water balance procedure for large-scale experimental databases based on the position of the zero-flux plane and soil water content distribution through time. Close

• 2. [Article] Flow processes in the dry regime : the effect on capillary barrier performance

  Engineered capillary barriers typically consist of two layers of granular materials designed so that the contrast in sediment hydrologic properties and sloping interface retains infiltrating water in the ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Flow processes in the dry regime : the effect on capillary barrier performance Author: Jansik, Danielle P. Engineered capillary barriers typically consist of two layers of granular materials designed so that the contrast in sediment hydrologic properties and sloping interface retains infiltrating water in the upper layer. We report here on the results of two bench-top capillary barrier experiments, and associated modeling. These experiments were conducted to better understand the behavior of capillary barriers in particular with respect to an engineered barrier system proposed at the potential high-level nuclear waste site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, where different engineered barriers have been under consideration throughout the site development process (Carter and Pigford 2005; Tidwell et al. 2003). We measured hydrologic parameters for both coarse materials using standard methods and found that the two materials had similar hydrologic properties despite being morphologically different (round, uniform vs. angular, non-uniform). The rounded sand provided a better functioning capillary barrier than the angular sand, but neither experiment could be characterized as a perfectly working capillary barrier. In both cases, more than 93% of the infiltrating water was successfully diverted from the lower layer, but infiltration into the underlying layer was observed in both systems. Our experimental results show that capillary barriers designed based on standard hydrologic property measurements may result in invalid prediction of the system behavior. Moreover, our numerical simulations of these experiments show that the predicted capillary barrier performance was highly sensitive to physically realistic variability in model hydrologic parameter values. Based on this work, we believe that other non-continuum processes such as vapor diffusion and film flow contribute to the observed phenomena and are important aspects to consider with respect to capillary barrier design, as well as dry vadose zone processes in general. By applying a theoretical film flow equation representative of sediment surface geometries we were able to show that infiltration into the underlying sediment layer can be dominated by water film flow, a characteristic that is typically not considered in mainstream numerical models. Title: Flow processes in the dry regime : the effect on capillary barrier performance Author: Jansik, Danielle P. Engineered capillary barriers typically consist of two layers of granular materials designed so that the contrast in sediment hydrologic properties and sloping interface retains infiltrating water in the upper layer. We report here on the results of two bench-top capillary barrier experiments, and associated modeling. These experiments were conducted to better understand the behavior of capillary barriers in particular with respect to an engineered barrier system proposed at the potential high-level nuclear waste site at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, where different engineered barriers have been under consideration throughout the site development process (Carter and Pigford 2005; Tidwell et al. 2003). We measured hydrologic parameters for both coarse materials using standard methods and found that the two materials had similar hydrologic properties despite being morphologically different (round, uniform vs. angular, non-uniform). The rounded sand provided a better functioning capillary barrier than the angular sand, but neither experiment could be characterized as a perfectly working capillary barrier. In both cases, more than 93% of the infiltrating water was successfully diverted from the lower layer, but infiltration into the underlying layer was observed in both systems. Our experimental results show that capillary barriers designed based on standard hydrologic property measurements may result in invalid prediction of the system behavior. Moreover, our numerical simulations of these experiments show that the predicted capillary barrier performance was highly sensitive to physically realistic variability in model hydrologic parameter values. Based on this work, we believe that other non-continuum processes such as vapor diffusion and film flow contribute to the observed phenomena and are important aspects to consider with respect to capillary barrier design, as well as dry vadose zone processes in general. By applying a theoretical film flow equation representative of sediment surface geometries we were able to show that infiltration into the underlying sediment layer can be dominated by water film flow, a characteristic that is typically not considered in mainstream numerical models. Close

• 3. [Article] Comparing Large-Scale Hydrological Model Predictions with Observed Streamflow in the Pacific Northwest: Effects of Climate and Groundwater

  To the best of our knowledge, one or more authors of this paper were federal employees when contributing to this work. This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article is copyrighted by the American ...

  Citation × Citation Citation Abstract Copy Title: Comparing Large-Scale Hydrological Model Predictions with Observed Streamflow in the Pacific Northwest: Effects of Climate and Groundwater Author: Mauger, Guillaume S., Arismendi, Ivan, Safeeq, Mohammad, Grant, Gordon E., Lee, Se-Yeun, Hamlet, Alan F. To the best of our knowledge, one or more authors of this paper were federal employees when contributing to this work. This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article is copyrighted by the American Meteorological Society and can be found at: http://journals.ametsoc.org/loi/hydr. Title: Comparing Large-Scale Hydrological Model Predictions with Observed Streamflow in the Pacific Northwest: Effects of Climate and Groundwater Author: Mauger, Guillaume S., Arismendi, Ivan, Safeeq, Mohammad, Grant, Gordon E., Lee, Se-Yeun, Hamlet, Alan F. To the best of our knowledge, one or more authors of this paper were federal employees when contributing to this work. This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article is copyrighted by the American Meteorological Society and can be found at: http://journals.ametsoc.org/loi/hydr. Close