Laboratory Experiments Unravel the Mechanisms of Snowmelt Erosion in Northeast China’s Black Soil: The Key Role of Supersaturation-Driven and Layered Moisture Migration

Songshi Zhao, Haoming Fan () and Maosen Lin
Additional contact information
Songshi Zhao: College of Water Conservancy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 110866, China
Haoming Fan: College of Water Conservancy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 110866, China
Maosen Lin: College of Water Conservancy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 110866, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 19, 1-17

Abstract: Snowmelt runoff is a major soil erosion trigger in mid-to-high latitude and altitude regions. Through runoff plot observations and simulations in the northeastern black soil region, this study reveals the key regulatory mechanism of water migration on snowmelt erosion. Results demonstrate that the interaction between thawed upper and frozen lower soil layers creates a significant hydraulic gradient during snowmelt. Impermeability of the frozen layer causes meltwater accumulation and moisture supersaturation (>47%, exceeding field capacity) in the upper layer. Freeze–thaw action accelerates vertical moisture migration and redistributes shallow moisture by increasing porosity. This process causes soils with high initial moisture to reach supersaturation faster, triggering earlier and more frequent erosion. Gray correlation analysis shows that soil moisture migration’s contribution to erosion intensity is layered: migration in shallow soil (0–10 cm) correlates most strongly with surface erosion; migration in deep soil (10–15 cm) exhibits a U-shaped contribution due to freeze–thaw front boundary effects. A regression model identified key controlling factors (VIP > 1.0): changes in bulk density, porosity, and permeability of deep soil significantly regulate erosion intensity. The nonlinear relationship between erosion intensity and moisture content (R 2 = 0.82) confirms supersaturation dominance. Physical structure and mechanical properties of unfrozen layers regulate erosion dynamics via moisture migration. These findings clarify the key mechanism of moisture migration governing snowmelt erosion, providing a critical scientific foundation for developing targeted soil conservation strategies and advancing regional prediction models essential for sustainable land management under changing winter climates.

Keywords: snowmelt erosion; freeze–thaw cycle; moisture migration; erosion condition; erosion mechanism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/19/8737/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/19/8737/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:19:p:8737-:d:1760746

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().