Recharge and Infiltration Mechanisms of Soil Water in the Floodplain Revealed by Water-Stable Isotopes in the Upper Yellow River

Jiaxin Wang, Mingjun Zhang, Athanassios A. Argiriou, Shengjie Wang, Deye Qu, Yu Zhang and Pengyan Su
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Jiaxin Wang: College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Mingjun Zhang: College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Athanassios A. Argiriou: Laboratory of Atmospheric Physics, Department of Physics, University of Patras, GR-265 00 Patras, Greece
Shengjie Wang: College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Deye Qu: College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Yu Zhang: College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Pengyan Su: College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 16, 1-18

Abstract: The stable isotopes ( δ D and δ 18 O) in soil water allow tracing of the flow and transportation of water in the soil. However, there are few studies on the use of soil water stable isotopes to explore the soil water in the floodplain, especially in determining the soil water source and infiltration mechanism. The Bayesian mixing model (MixSIAR) was integrated with the line conditioned excess (lc-excess) of stable isotopes ( δ D and δ 18 O) in precipitation, soil water (0–150 cm), river water, and groundwater to determinate the source and recharge mechanisms of two different soil profile types in the floodplain of the upper Yellow River in Lanzhou, China. The results showed that soil water below 80 cm was affected by river water recharge, affecting soil water content and stable isotopic composition at S1 sampling points (profile parallel to river water); this effect was not observed at S2 (profile is higher than the river water) sampling points. The isotopic compositions of the soil water sources at the two sampling points (S1: δ D = −77.41‰, δ 18 O = −11.01‰; S2: δ D = −74.02‰, δ 18 O = −10.56‰) were depleted more than those in the long-term amount-weighted precipitation isotopes ( δ D = −56.30‰, δ 18 O = −8.17‰). The isotope signatures of soil water sources are similar to the isotope characteristics of some high-intensity precipitation events (≥30 mm/day), indicating that soil water originates from a fraction of the total precipitation. The piston flow (60%) and the preferential flow (40%) coexist, but soil moisture and rainfall intensity will affect the sequence of the two infiltration methods. This study provides insights for understanding the hydrological process of the upper Yellow River and evaluating groundwater quality and protecting the floodplain environment.

Keywords: stable isotopes; Bayesian mixing model; lc-excess; piston and preferential flow; Yellow River (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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