Journal of Water and Soil Science
Year:2020 | Volume:24 | Issue:2|Papers Count:20

In semi-arid regions, soils are weakly aggregated and subjected to water erosion processes especially rill and interrill erosion. There is no information on the rate of these water erosion types in semi-arid soils located in the hillslopes. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the soils susceptibility to these erosion types in semi-arid region. A laboratory experiment was done in eight soil textures using in a 0. 6 m × 1 m flume a simulated rainfall with 50 mm. h-1 in intensity for 60 min. Rill and interrill erosion rate was measured using soil loss amount per flume area and rainfall duration. Based on the results, both rill and interrill erosion rate were significantly varied among the soils textures (P<0. 001). Silt loam was the most susceptible soil to rill erosion (0. 22 g m-2 sec-1) and interrill erosion (0. 15 g m-2 sec-1), whereas sand didn’ t appear any soil loss by these water erosion types. The compression of soil loss resulted by rill and interrill erosion among the soil tectures showed that rill erosion rate for sandy clay loam, silt loam, loam and sandy loam was 3. 2, 1. 4, 1. 1 and 2. 8 times higher than interrill erosion rate, respectively. These differences were statistically significant. Silt content was the major factor controlling soil loss difference in these soils. This study revealed that the study semi-arid soils having higher silt content appears also higher rill erosion rate than interrill erosion rate.

The Plant Water Resistance Index (CWSI) is a tool that can be used for the rapid monitoring of plant water status, which is a key requirement for the accurate product irrigation management. The purpose of this study was to calculate the CWSI index for bean hares in the Khorramabad region for two methods of surface irrigation and drip tape irrigation. For this purpose, a design was implemented in the form of randomized complete block design and split plot experiment. The main factors included drip tape irrigation (T) and surface irrigation (F), and the cultivars of Chibi cultivars including COS16 (C), Sadri (S) and diluted (K) served as sub-plots. By using the field measurements, the position of the upper and lower base lines was estimated for each treatment in different months and used to calculate the CWSI index. The results showed that CWSI values calculated in the surface irrigation during plant growth period were always higher than those in the drip tape irrigation. The highest value of CWSI index was obtained for the Sadri variety, which was equal to 0. 20 and 0. 26, for the type and surface method, respectively. Statistical analysis showed that the effect of irrigation method on the amount of water stress index was significant at 5% level, but there was no significant difference between different cultivars. According to the results of this study, the threshold values for CWSI were considered to be 0. 19 and 0. 24 for surface and drip tape irrigation respectively, and relationships were presented based on the differences in vegetation and air temperature to determine the irrigation time.

Understanding the quality of groundwater resources, which are the largest available freshwater reservoir, is one of the needs in planning and developing water resources. The purpose of this research was to study the quality changes of groundwater resources in the upstream aquifers of Zayandehrood Dam (1995-2016) and to evaluate water quality in terms of drinking and agricultural consumption and evaluation of IRWQIGC. For this purpose, EC, TDS, SAR, PH, TH, Cl, CO3, Ca, Mg, Na, K, HCO3 and NO3 parameters and heavy elements including zinc, copper, lead, cadmium and arsenic were investigated from laboratory samples. In the upstream aquifers of the Zayandehrood Dam, the water classification was mainly agricultural in the C2-S1 range, and it was generally acceptable in the drinking classes. The amount of heavy elements was allowed. The average amount of nitrate in the Chehelkhaneh, Damanehdaran, Boein-Miandasht and Chadegan aquifers was calculated to be 43. 77, 48. 08, 35. 53 and 26. 36 mg / l, respectively, and the maximum nitrate levels in these areas, however, were often exceeded. Nitrate zoning and IRWQIGC were performed by the kriging method. The lowest index values, which fell into relatively poor classes, were in the south and southwestern parts of Boein-Miandasht and south and south-west of the Chehelkhaneh, and in the central parts of Damanehdaran, and the south of Chadegan.

Given the climatic changes and threats to food security in recent years, they have have become a major issue in agricultural climatology. The present study aimed to investigate the status of agricultural climate suitable for the cultivation of rice in the light of the influential climatic conditions in the past. Given the effect of temperature and the amount of precipitations on rice growth and the sensitivity of rice to these two variables, the study examined the predicted future temperature and rainfall and their effects on rice. Data related to the temperature and rainfalls were obtained from the Meteorological Organization. Additionally, the temperature and agricultural potential of the region were considered. By preparing the agricultural calendar for the cultivation of rice, the correlation between temperature, precipitation and rice productivity was calculated using the Spearman Correlation coefficient. By using the SDSM model, future data and temperature and precipitation return period were determined in the SMADA software. The results demonstrated that minimum spring temperature tended to be late spring. The minimum temperature had the highest impact in April, the maximum temperature had the highest impact in July and the maximum rainfall had the highest effect in both June and July. Based on the results of the prediction models, the studied region would experience an increase in temperature and rainfall by providing favorable conditions for the cultivation of rice. However, delays in the cold season and shortness of the growth period increased the risks associated with the cultivation of rice in this period.

In this study, the discharge coefficient of sharp-crested weirs located on circular channels was modeled using the ANFIS and ANFIS-Firefly (ANFIS-FA) algorithm. Also, the Monte Carlo simulations (MCs) were used to enhance the compatibilities of the soft computing models. However, the k-fold cross validation method (k=5) was used to validate the numerical models. According to the input parameters, four models of ANFIS and ANFIS-FA were introduced. Analyzing the numerical results showed that the superior model simulated the discharge coefficient as a function of the Froude number (Fr) and the ratio of flow depth over weir crest to the weir crest height (h/P). The values of the mean absolute relative error (MARE), root mean square error (RMSE) and correlation coefficient (R) for the superior model were calculated 0. 001, 0. 002 and 0. 999, respectively. However, the maximum error value for this study was less than 2%.

Sand mining from rivers is one of the biggest concerns in the science today. Certain principles and rules for choosing the right place for mining materials and the amount of this mining are missing in the design codes. Therefore, mining of river materials from sites with less potential and near structures has been occasionally seen. In the present study, it has been attempted to reinforce the structure to control the impact of the mining of material, which results in the increased scour by changing the flow pattern around the structure. The experiments were carried out in two simple and armed modes, in sand bed with a grain size of 0. 78 mm, with a length of 4. 25 meters, inside a canal of 13 meters in length and 1. 2 meters in width. The extent of scouring along the longitudinal and transverse directions in different times from the start to the scouring equilibrium was investigated for all substrates under sub-critical flow conditions (range 0. 5-0. 25). The results showed that the use of a cable-protected method in the upstream pit led to 29. 6% reduction in the maximum scour depth at the front and 34% reduction in the back of the pier; also, in the downstream of the pit, it reduced the maximum scour depth by 15% at the front of the pier. Therefore, the cable arrangement used at the piers surface, according to the current research method, resulted in a significant reduction in the depth and extent of scouring in the pier group of the bridge.

Nowadays, one of the ways to confront with the micronutrients deficiency is application of Nano materials to increase the availability of elements such as zinc for plants. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of functionalized iron oxide nanoparticles and zinc sulfate chemical fertilizer on the zinc chemical forms in soil solution phase and its correlation with zinc concentrations and uptake in wheat. This study was carried out in a completely randomized design with three replications. Treatment consisted of functionalized iron oxide nanoparticles of Hydroxyl (OH), Carboxyl (COOH) and Amine (NH2), each at three levels (100, 200 and 300 mg. kg-1), ZnSO4 (40 kg. ha-1) and Control (without using iron oxide nanoparticles). At the end of the cultivation period, soil chemical properties such as pH, soil available zinc and dissolved organic carbon and concentrations and the uptake of zinc in plant were measured. The results showed that pH, available zinc and dissolved organic carbon content of soil solution were significantly affected by the treatments. The results obtained from the Visual MINTEQ Geochemical model showed that the highest amount of the free form of zinc (Zn2+) was obtained at the level of 300 mg. kg-1 of carboxyl iron oxide nanoparticles. Also, the experimental treatments significantly influenced the concentration of Zn-DOM species. The positive and significant correlation between Zn+2 and Zn-DOC species with the concentration and total Zn uptake of wheat indicated that these pools of Zn could be liable species in soil. The results of this study, therefore, showed that the application of functionalized iron oxide nanoparticles could help to improve soil conditions in order to increase the zinc availability for plants.

In the last few decades, the use of porous concrete to cover the sidewalks and pavements as an interface to collect the urban runoff has been increased. This system is economically more efficient than other runoff-pollution reduction methods. To design a runoff control system and reduce its pollution, it is necessary to determine the hydraulic and dynamic properties of the porous concrete (with and without additives). In this research, the effects of cement type (2 and 5), water to cement ratio (0. 35, 0. 45 and 0. 55), fine grains percent (0, 10 and 20%), the type of additive (pumice, industrial pumice, perlite and zeolite), and the added additive percent (5, 10, 15 and 20%) on the physical properties of the porous concrete (porosity, hydraulic conductivity and compressive strength), each with three replications, were investigated using robust design. Qualitek-4 software was also used to discuss the results. The results showed that to obtain the highest porosity in the mixing scheme of the porous concrete, no fine grains, cement type 2 and 15% industrial pumice should be used, and water to cement ratio should be 0. 35. Also, the water to cement ratio of 0. 55, 0% fine grains, type 2 cement and 15% industrial pumice resulted in the highest value of hydraulic conductivity in the porous concrete. Finally, the water to cement ratio of 0. 55, 20% fine grains, type 2 cement and 5% zeolite led to the maximum compressive strength. In general, it was not possible to reach a logical conclusion in this research with the least costs without employing the robust design.

Inclined drop is one of the supercritical flow producers used in open channels to reduce slope and elevation of the ground. Given that the application of horizontal and vertical screen in the downstream of this drop as an energy dissipater can be effective in the n energy dissipation of flow, in the present study, 180 different experiments were performed to investigate the energy dissipation of flow. The results showed that the angle of the drop had no marginal impact on energy dissipation and the relative depth of downstream of inclined drop equipped with a vertical screen, but increasing the porosity of screen caused enhancement in both parameters. Also, for the inclined drop equipped with a horizontal screen, by increasing angle and decreasing the porosity of screen, the energy dissipation and relative depth of downstream were raised. Also, for inclined drop equipped with a horizontal screen, by increasing the angle and decreasing the porosity of screen, the energy dissipation and relative depth of downstream were enhanced. For a constant relative critical depth, the relative depth of downstream and the energy dissipation of the inclined drop equipped with a horizontal screen considered the function of the wetted length of screen and length of the drop. For vertical screen, it is only a function of screen porosity.

Increase in population, agricultural development, and the reduction of surface water resources have resulted in an untapped harvest of ground water. On the other hand, the lack of attention to the balance between the exploitation and recharge of aquifers has led to a drop in water level in the aquifer. To understand the behavior of the ground water system and the status of resources and uses in the basin, as well as the situation of water exchange in these two parts, it is possible to connect reliable groundwater and surface water models The purpose of this study was to simulate Gorganroud aquifer flow by using using the groundwater model to understand the behavior of the aquifer system in different hydrological conditions and to provide a management solution to improve the supply and demand conditions. First, the status of the aquifer under study was simulated by using the information available in the area by Modflow; then the groundwater model results were transferred to the Water Evaluation and Planning model (WEAP) by the LINK KITCHEN Software. Then different management scenarios including increased irrigation efficiency in agriculture, the use of refinery effluents and the reduction of river flow due to climate changes were considered as two combinations of the above scenarios to alleviate water demand under this scenario; so, projections for a period of 20 years water resources of the basin were studied. The results of modflow calibration showed that there was a good agreement between observation and simulated water table, such that the RMSE for Steady and Transient condition was 0/972 and 0/97, respectively. The results also showed that simultaneously applying multiple water management strategies seems to be better than any of its individual states, thereby reducing water withdrawal on various resources.

Digital soil mapping plays an important role in upgrading the knowledge of soil survey in line with the advances in the spatial data of infrastructure development. The main aim of this study was to provide a digital map of the soil family classes using the random forest (RF) models and boosting regression tree (BRT) in a semi-arid region of Ilam province. Environmental covariates were extracted from a digital elevation model with 30 m spatial resolution, using the SAGAGIS7. 3 software. In this study area, 46 soil profiles were dug and sampled; after physico-chemical analysis, the soils were classified based on key to soil taxonomy (2014). In the studied area, three orders were recognized: Mollisols, Inceptisols, and Entisols. Based on the results of the environmental covariate data mining with variance inflation factor (VIF), some parameters including DEM, standard height and terrain ruggedness index were the most important variables. The best spatial prediction of soil classes belonged to Fine, carbonatic, thermic, Typic Haploxerolls. Also, the results showed that RF and BRT models had an overall accuracy and of 0. 80, 0. 64 and Kappa index 0. 70, 0. 55, respectively. Therefore, the RF method could serve as a reliable and accurate method to provide a reasonable prediction with a low sampling density.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between time and spatial features of meteorological, hydrological and agricultural droughts in Karoon 1 Dam basin. Meteorological and statistical data were accordingly selected to evaluate the drought situation between 1993 and 2016. The results showed that hydrological droughts occurred in the meteorological drought and had a very high correlation with this year's meteorological drought. The most severe droughts occurred between 2006 and 2011. Studies also showed that every three years, the basin was accompanied by a meteorological drought and then a hydrological drought. The results also showed that the highest correlation was observed with the 12-month meteorological index, with a delay of 3 months, and the 6-month meteorological and hydrological index with a delay of 3 months and a three-month hydrological drought index with a delay of two months. Therefore, it could be concluded that hydrological droughts showed a delay of almost two to three months in the entire catchment area; since this period was 4 months or more, the correlation between these two indicators was eliminated and decreased. Also, due to drought zones, during the period from 1993 to 2009, most of the droughts were caused by rainfall reduction in the southwest of the province, and this was associated with a reduction in runoff in its hydrometric stations. Of course, in 2009-2012, the runoff status had been temporarily improved, and from 2012 to 2017, the drought situation had again returned spatially to the previous routine.

Due to the limited water resources and growing population, food security and environmental protection have become a global problem. Increasing water productivity of agricultural products is one of the main solutions to cope with the difficulties. By optimizing applied water and nitrogen fertilizer, the pollution of groundwater could be deceased and the water productivity could be increased. The aim of this research was to determine the relationships between water productivity (IRWP) and water use efficiency (WUE) and different amounts of applied water (irrigation + rain fed) and nitrogen (applied and residual). This study was conducted on wheat (Triticum aestivum L., cv. Shiraz) in Shiraz University School of Agriculture, based on a split-plot design with three replications, in 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 periods. Irrigation treatments varied from zero to 120% of full irrigation depth, and nitrogen fertilizer treatments varied from zero to 138 kg ha-1 under basin irrigation system. The experimental data of the first and second years were used for the calibration and validation of the proposed relationships, respectively. The calibrated equations using the dimensionless ratios of irrigation depth plus rainfall, actual evapotranspiration and nitrogen fertilizer plus soil residual nitrogen to their amounts in full irrigation and maximum fertilizer amounts were appropriate for the estimation of water productivity and water use efficiency. The values of the determination coefficient (R2) for water productivity and water use efficiency (0. 88 and 0. 93, respectively), and the values of their normalized root mean square error (NRMSE) (0. 2 and 0. 13, respectively) showed a good accuracy for the estimation of IRWP and WUE.

In arid and semi-arid ecosystems, isolated trees significantly influence the soil properties and can have a great impact on the soil fertility as well as the conservation and improvement of soil quality. This investigation was conducted to examine the influence of wild almond (Amygdalus arabica Olive. ) trees having different ages on the physical and chemical soil properties. Soil samples were taken from the depths of 0-20, 40-60, 80-100 and 120-140 cm at two distances from the tree crown including the basal area (referred to as the rhizosphere) and the canopy edge in 3 replications for the 30, 50, and 130 year-old stands and also, in a control site, all in the Anjarak area, southeast of Baft city, Kerman Province. Soil properties including pH, EC, organic matter, calcium carbonate equivalent, available and non-exchangeable potassium and soil texture were measured in all samples. The results indicated that the measured soil properties in different depths in the study area had been influenced by the age and the canopy size of the wild almond trees. The highest and the lowest amount of pH were found in the control soil and the soils covered by 130 year-old trees, respectively. Besides, the electrical conductivity of the soil under the tree crown was more than that of the soil in the canopy edge. The accumulation of C, N, and other nutrients under the tree canopies resulted in the creation of fertility islands surrounding the trees. Furthermore, the soil physical and chemical properties were greatly improved with the increase in the tree age of Amygdalus arabica Olive. As the conclusion, wild almond trees could have very positive effects on soil properties. Therefore, it is essential to protect the trees. Otherwise, the risk of soil quality reduction would be increased and soils might become more susceptible to soil erosion.

In the present study, six soil profiles belonging to five soil types were dug, described and sampled. Soil samples were analyzed for the determination of different physicochemical properties and total and DTPA-extractable iron (Fe), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), manganese (Mn), lead (Pb), and cadmium (Cd). Considering the variability of pH and calcium carbonate equivalent, the examined soils were alkaline and calcareous. A considerable change in the values of the DTPA fraction of Fe (1. 4-25. 8 mg/kg), Zn (0. 01-3. 3 mg/kg), Cu (0. 32-6. 2 mg/kg), Mn (1-11. 8 mg/kg), Cd (0. 05-0. 12 mg/kg) and Pb (0. 22-2. 56 mg/kg) as well as in the total fraction of Fe (10. 6-20. 6 g/kg), Zn (35-67. 5 mg/kg), Cu (9 to 26. 40 mg/kg), Mn (262-588. 8 mg/kg), Cd (0. 5-1. 75 mg/kg) and Pb (17-31. 3 mg/kg) was observed in different soils. The content and pattern of both DTPA and total fraction of the metal were varied among the soil types, which could be related to several processes such as the diversity of weathering rate, geomorphologic condition, soil formation process, different physicochemical properties of soils, and the inputs of different agrochemical compounds. The concentration of both DTPA and total fraction of the metal were in the acceptable maximum level in the majority of the soil samples.

The use of additives to modify the physical, chemical and mechanical properties of soil and soil stabilization is one of the most common methods that have a history. By adding one or more additives to the soil and carrying out the required measures, the engineering properties of soils could be improved due to chemical reactions. Selecting the type and amount of additive depends on several factors such as: soil type, stabilization purpose, additives inherent characteristics, etc.; these are determined based on the technical and economic aspects of the projects. In this study, the effects of the simultaneous use of three types of additives including lime, stone powder and polypropylene fibers on the unconfined compressive strength of a clayey soil were investigated. To do this, four different levels of lime (0, 2, 3 and 5 percent by weight of soil) and four different levels of stone powder waste (0, 2, 5 and 10 percent by weight of soil) and Polypropylene fibers with different percentages in five levels of 0, 0. 25, 0. 5 and 1 percent by weight of soil were added into a high plastic clay soil classified as CH. Then, some physical and mechanical characteristics of different mixtures including plasticity, compaction and unconfined compressive strength were determined. The results showed that the samples were stabilized with lime and stone powder waste and reinforcement them with polypropylene fibers modified Atterberg Limits, optimum moisture and maximum dry density of the mixtures. Also, it was found that a combination of waste stone powder, lime and polypropylene fibers containing 5, 5 and 1 percent by weight of soil increased the unconfined compressive strength 8-fold, as compared to the natural soil. The curing time also had a significant impact on the compressive strength of the treated samples in which the 28-day compressive strength of was found to be about 2 times of the 7-day samples.

The present study aimed to evaluate the growth and water use efficiencies of eight late-maturing corn hybrids in comparison to the common use of KSC704 and Maxima-FAO530 under different water-nitrogen management systems. Two irrigation regimes (based on 50% soil-water depletion as the normal irrigation and, on average. 16% less than normal as the deficit irrigation) and two nitrogen (N) application managements (3 and 16 split-application of 150 kg N from Urea, 45% N) were induced using the split-split plot experiment based on a completely randomized block design with four replications at Research Field of Isfahan University of Technology on 2017. The results showed that yield, forage and leaf area index were significantly (P<0. 01) affected by the interaction of three studied factors (Irrigation × Nitrogen × Corn hybrid). For different corn hybrids, more water use efficiencies were achieved by deficit-irrigation regime and 16-split-applyication of N; in this regard, the SC719 hybrid had the highest value of 3. 45 kg m-3. Generally, the performances of the studied late maturing corn hybrids were higher than those of the control hybrids of SC704 and SC530 at this planting date, which could be improved by using the deficit-irrigation regime and more split-application of the N fertilizer.

One of the most important and complex processes in the watersheds is the identification and prediction of surface water changes. The main processes associated with surface water include precipitation, percolation, evapotranspiration and runoff. In this research, the semi-distributed model, SWAT, was used to simulate ground water and surface water in Semnan catchment in a monthly scale. A sensitivity analysis was perfomed to evaluate and demonstrate the influence of the model parameters on the four major components of water budget including surface runoff, lateral flow, groundwater and evapotranspiration. River discharge data from 2004 to 2014 were used for the calibration and those of 2014 to 2016 were applied for the validation. The results of sensitivity analysis showed that the most sensitive parameters were: SoL_K(Saturated hydraulic conductivity), CH_K2 (Effective hydraulic conductivity in main channel), RCHRG_DP(Deep aquifer percolation fraction and CN2 (Moisture condition II curve number). The simulation accuracy using Nash-Sutcliffe and coefficient of determination for Shahrmirzad, Darjazin, and Haji Abad hydrometric stations was about 0. 60 to 0. 80 and 0. 80 to 0. 90 for the calibration and validation period, respectively, showing a good performance in the simulation of river flow. According to the water balance results, about 87. 6% of the total inflow into the watershed was actual evapotranspiration, 3% was surface run off, 3% was percolation, and the rest was related to the soil moisture storage.

Understanding the abundance of clay minerals in soil and also, their spatial variability can provide more comprehensive information about soil properties, behavior and functions. The objectives of this research were: (i) to map the spatial distribution of the dominant clay minerals in the soils of Isfahan Province and its relationship with climate and parent materials, and (ii) to determine the quantity of the dominant clay minerals in different climatic classes of Isfahan Province. The amount of palygorskite, illite, expanded minerals and chlorite were semi-quantitatively determined for 100 soil samples collected from Isfahan Province. Maps of the dominant clay minerals were prepared by the Inverse Distance Weighting method. The results showed that palygorskite mostly occurred in the soils of dry areas with higher temperature throughout the province. This mineral was not present in the more humid areas of the province. Besides, palygoskite was found to be dominant in the soils derived from the Qom Formation, as well as Lower and Upper Red Formations belonging to Miocene and Pliocene. It seems, therefore, that the parent material plays a major role in entering palygoskite to the soil system, while the dry climate mostly guarantees the stability of this clay minerals and, to some extent, its limited neoformation in such soils. Both illite and chlorite occur in all soils throughout the province, regardless of their climate, following no particular trend. This may indicate that parent materials play a major role in the occurrence of these minerals. Both climate and parent material appear to have affected the distribution of expandable clays in the soils. In more humid areas of the province (west and southwest), climate plays a larger role in the distribution of this mineral. In other areas of the study region, especially in the eastern parts of the province with a much drier climate, the role of the parent material on the dominant soil clay minerals is more pronounced.

Estimating the ecological water footprint and the virtual water trade in different agricultural crops in arid and semi-arid regions can help better manage the limited water resources. This research calculated temporal and spatial ecological water footprint of rain-fed and irrigated almond production in national and provincial scale using during 2008 to 2014. The results show that annual average water footprint in rainfed almond is 9. 2 m3/kg, which the share of green and grey water is 72% and 28%, respectively which Ilam and Kohgiloyeh & Boyerahmad have a largest share in green water footprint with 91% and 90%, respectively. In adition to, in irrigated almond, the annual average water footprint is 11. 4 m3/kg, which the share of green, blue and grey water is 0. 19%, 71% and 10%, respectively. Sistan & Balouchestan, Khuzestana and Hormozgan have the highest share in blue water footprint. The total volume of water footprint of rainfed and irrigated almond production is 1923 and 8242 MCM, respectively. Also, results show that about 92 percent of the total volume virtual water (equivalent to 9343 MCM per year) in almond production, has been exported to other countries through the virtual water trade.