Simulation and Regulation Technology of Water and Salt Migration in Saline-alkali Dryland

A special issue of Agriculture (ISSN 2077-0472). This special issue belongs to the section "Agricultural Water Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 July 2023) | Viewed by 11035

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Key Laboratory of Crop Water Use and Regulation, Farmland Irrigation Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Science, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Xinxiang 453003, China
Interests: irrigation management; climate change; crop water use efficiency; salt stress physiology of crops; model simulation
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Co-Guest Editor
Institute of Farmland Irrigation, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
Interests: soil nitrogen cycle; greenhouse gas emissions; irrigation management; water use efficiency; poor quality water
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Water shortage and soil salinization are important environmental problems all around the world, especially in the arid and semi-arid region, which has restricted the sustainable development of agriculture. To improve agricultural water efficiency, reduce soil secondary salinization and realize sustainable development of agricultural production in arid and semi-arid areas, it is important to explore the law of water and salt migration in saline-alkali dryland, adopt reasonable irrigation and drainage technology, cultivation mode and irrigation system, and regulate the process of water and salt in farmland scientifically.

As dramatic changes in global climate and critcial contradictions in regional water resource shortage, problems including the soil salinization in arid areas, the efficient utilization of resources and sustainable development of agriculture environment have become the important content and hotspot under the framework of global change research, attracting a great deal of attention from government decision makers and scholars from related research fields. Therefore, this edition aims to describe this Special Issue in your journal to reflect the research progress in the theory, technology and methods of water efficiency assessment in saline-alkali land.

Dr. Jingsheng Sun
Dr. Guangshuai Wang
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • irrigation management
  • climate change
  • soil salinization
  • water and salt process in farmland
  • crop water use efficiency
  • salt stress physiology of crops
  • model simulation

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 5673 KiB  
Article
Experimentally Based Numerical Simulation of the Influence of the Agricultural Subsurface Drainage Pipe Geometric Structure on Drainage Flow
by Zhe Wu, Chenyao Guo, Haoyu Yang, Hang Li and Jingwei Wu
Agriculture 2022, 12(12), 2174; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12122174 - 18 Dec 2022
Viewed by 1791
Abstract
The geometric structure of corrugated plastic pipes affects performance in agricultural subsurface drainage systems. To explore the influence of pipe geometry on flow field characteristics and the characterization of water movements, we developed a three-dimensional (3D) steady-state subsurface drainage model based on computational [...] Read more.
The geometric structure of corrugated plastic pipes affects performance in agricultural subsurface drainage systems. To explore the influence of pipe geometry on flow field characteristics and the characterization of water movements, we developed a three-dimensional (3D) steady-state subsurface drainage model based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD). An analysis of the CFD and sand tank results indicated that the proposed model can accurately simulate the subsurface drainage process (R2 = 0.99). The corrugation structure parameters of the drainpipe, including the outside diameter, corrugation valley width and corrugation height, were taken as the objects for this study, and the influence of corrugation parameters on drainage discharge was orthogonally analysed. During drainage, the soil water initially collects in the corrugation valley and then approximately ninety percent of the water flows into the pipe through the bottom perforations; increasing the contact face area between the corrugation valley and soil can increase the flow rate of the drainpipe and the water table height above the pipe, which decreases the intersection position of the pipe and water table. The results of the analysis of the range and variance of the orthogonal experiment showed that the order of the primary and secondary factors influencing the drainage discharge was the outside diameter, corrugation valley width and corrugation height, with the outside diameter being most critical influencing factor. Full article
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14 pages, 5569 KiB  
Article
Effects of Subsurface Drainage on Soil Salinity and Groundwater Table in Drip Irrigated Cotton Fields in Oasis Regions of Tarim Basin
by Yuhui Yang, Dongwei Li, Weixiong Huang, Xinguo Zhou, Zhaoyang Li, Xiaomei Dong and Xingpeng Wang
Agriculture 2022, 12(12), 2167; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12122167 - 16 Dec 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1797
Abstract
As one global issue, soil salinization has caused soil degradation, thus affecting the sustainable development of irrigated agriculture. A two-year study was conducted in 2018 and 2019 to identify the effects of subsurface drainage spacing on soil salinity and groundwater level, the latter [...] Read more.
As one global issue, soil salinization has caused soil degradation, thus affecting the sustainable development of irrigated agriculture. A two-year study was conducted in 2018 and 2019 to identify the effects of subsurface drainage spacing on soil salinity and groundwater level, the latter of which is in a high-water table in drip irrigation cotton fields in the Tarim Basin oasis in southern Xinjiang, China. Three subsurface drainage treatments, with a drain spacing of 10 m (W10), 20 m (W20), and 30 m (W30), respectively, and a drainage-absent treatment (CK), are tested. With CK, soil salinity in the 0–60 cm layer was accumulated within a year. In contrast, the subsurface drainage reduced the soil salinity at a leaching rate of 10–25%. When decreasing the drain spacing, it was found that the soil desalination rate increased significantly (p < 0.05) with good repeatability. Experimental results showed that the fitting equation of the soil salinity leaching curve could accurately describe the soil salinity leaching pattern of drip irrigation, and thus could be further used to inversely determine the theoretical drip irrigation leaching quota for those soils with different salinity degrees. As such, subsurface drainage could effectively control the groundwater table. Compared with CK, subsurface drainage deepened the groundwater table and mitigated the fluctuation of the groundwater level. These effects were strengthened by reducing the drain spacing. Correspondingly, the influence of the fluctuation of the groundwater table was reduced. Full article
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21 pages, 6000 KiB  
Article
Water-Salt Thresholds of Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) under Film Drip Irrigation in Arid Saline-Alkali Area
by Yunfeng Li, Quanqing Feng, Dongwei Li, Mingfa Li, Huifeng Ning, Qisheng Han, Abdoul Kader Mounkaila Hamani, Yang Gao and Jingsheng Sun
Agriculture 2022, 12(11), 1769; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12111769 - 25 Oct 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1787
Abstract
Crop models are valuable tools for exploring the responses of crops to changes in environmental factors, and have been widely used to analyze the response of crops to varying soil water content and salinity levels in extreme drought and high salinity conditions. To [...] Read more.
Crop models are valuable tools for exploring the responses of crops to changes in environmental factors, and have been widely used to analyze the response of crops to varying soil water content and salinity levels in extreme drought and high salinity conditions. To obtain suitable water-salt thresholds and the total irrigation amount for cotton in the arid oasis of southern Xinjiang, the AquaCrop model was calibrated and validated using measured data from 2020 and 2021 (total irrigation amount: 255–480 mm; initial soil salinity levels: 0.2–0.6%). With the same initial soil water content, when the initial soil salinity < 7 dS/m, cotton yield did not significantly change under different levels of total irrigation amount, while when the initial soil salinity was 10 dS/m, there was a significant difference in cotton yield with a total irrigation amount > 300 mm. The total irrigation amount of 375 mm is the threshold for cotton at the low-salinity treatment, while it increases to 450 mm at the high-salinity treatment. Based on cotton performance with the AquaCrop model, the threshold values of soil salinity were 7, 9.3, 8.2 and 9.3 dS/m (ECe) during the cotton stage of seedling, squaring, flower-boll and maturity, respectively. The total irrigation amount of 450 to 500 mm could achieve a win-win scenario for both cotton yield and water use efficiency under sandy loam soil. In summary, this study can serve as a reference for regulating water and salt in arid saline-alkali regions. Full article
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26 pages, 5315 KiB  
Article
Pear Tree Growth Simulation and Soil Moisture Assessment Considering Pruning
by Chengkun Wang, Nannan Zhang, Mingzhe Li, Li Li and Tiecheng Bai
Agriculture 2022, 12(10), 1653; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12101653 - 09 Oct 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1737
Abstract
Few studies deal with the application of crop growth models to fruit trees. This research focuses on simulating the growth process, yield and soil moisture assessment of pear trees, considering pruning with a modified WOrld FOod Studies (WOFOST) model. Field trials (eight pruning [...] Read more.
Few studies deal with the application of crop growth models to fruit trees. This research focuses on simulating the growth process, yield and soil moisture assessment of pear trees, considering pruning with a modified WOrld FOod Studies (WOFOST) model. Field trials (eight pruning treatments) were conducted in pear orchards in Alaer and Awat in Xinjiang, China and data were measured to calibrate and evaluate the modified model. In two pear orchards, the simulated total dry weight of storage organs (TWSO) and leaf area index (LAI) were in good agreement with the field measurements of each pruning intensity treatment, indicating that the R2 values of TWSO ranged from 0.899 to 0.976, and the R2 values of LAI ranged from 0.849 to 0.924. The modified model also showed high accuracy, with a normalized root mean square error (NRMSE) ranging from 12.19% to 26.11% for TWSO, and the NRMSE values for LAI were less than 10%. The modified model also had a good simulation performance for the soil moisture (SM) under all eight pruning intensity treatments, showing good agreement (0.703 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.878) and low error (NRMSE ≤ 7.47%). The measured and simulated results of different pruning intensities showed that the highest yield of pear trees was achieved when the pruning intensity was about 20%, and the yield increased and then decreased with the increase in pruning intensity. In conclusion, the modified WOFOST model can better describe the effects of summer pruning on pear tree growth, yield and soil moisture than the unmodified model, providing a promising quantitative analysis method for the numerical simulation and soil moisture assessment of fruit tree growth. Full article
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15 pages, 3115 KiB  
Article
Analysis of Soil Moisture, Temperature, and Salinity in Cotton Field under Non-Mulched Drip Irrigation in South Xinjiang
by Hongbo Wang, Hui Cao, Fuchang Jiang, Xingpeng Wang and Yang Gao
Agriculture 2022, 12(10), 1589; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12101589 - 01 Oct 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1452
Abstract
The mulch film residues in cotton fields in south Xinjiang have caused serious harm to the soil environment and ecological security in the oasis areas. Non-mulched planting provides an alternative approach to this problem. In this experiment, irrigation was provided on the basis [...] Read more.
The mulch film residues in cotton fields in south Xinjiang have caused serious harm to the soil environment and ecological security in the oasis areas. Non-mulched planting provides an alternative approach to this problem. In this experiment, irrigation was provided on the basis of the reference crop evapotranspiration (ET0). Two layouts of drip tapes (1T4R—one tape for four rows; 2T4R—two tapes for four rows) were applied to the non-mulched, drip-irrigated cotton fields in south Xinjiang, and their impacts on soil water–heat–salt dynamic changes and the water consumption and yield of cotton were compared and analyzed. The experiment shows that the 2T4R layout provided an excellent soil water–salt environment for cotton growth and yield formation. Soil temperature decreased by 0.8 °C and drip irrigation belt input increased by CNY1200·hm−2. However, a higher profit derived from the 2T4R layout could compensate for the increased expenditure. The results show that cotton cultivation using non-mulched drip irrigation instead of mulched drip irrigation can potentially alleviate soil environmental and ecological security problems caused by plastic mulch residues in oasis areas. Although cotton yield was reduced by about 15%, water and nitrogen strategies and other field management could be adjusted to compensate for the disadvantages. Full article
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20 pages, 6813 KiB  
Article
Simulating Growth and Evaluating the Regional Adaptability of Cotton Fields with Non-Film Mulching in Xinjiang
by Desheng Wang, Chengkun Wang, Lichao Xu, Tiecheng Bai and Guozheng Yang
Agriculture 2022, 12(7), 895; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12070895 - 21 Jun 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1612
Abstract
Planting with non-film mulching is the fundamental means to eliminate the pollution of residual film in cotton fields. However, this planting approach should have regional adaptability. Therefore, the calibrated WOFOST model and an early mature cultivar CRI619 (Gossypium hirsutum Linn) were [...] Read more.
Planting with non-film mulching is the fundamental means to eliminate the pollution of residual film in cotton fields. However, this planting approach should have regional adaptability. Therefore, the calibrated WOFOST model and an early mature cultivar CRI619 (Gossypium hirsutum Linn) were employed to simulate the cotton growth, and regions were then evaluated for planting in Xinjiang. A field experiment was conducted in 2019–2020 at the experimental irrigation station of Alar City, and the data were used to calibrate and validate the WOFOST model. The field validation results showed that the errors of the WOFOST simulation for emergence, flowering, and maturity were +1 day, +2 days, and +1 day, respectively, with good simulation accuracy of phenological development time. The simulated WLV, WST, WSO, and TAGP agreed well with measured values, with R2 = 0.96, 0.97, 0.99, and 0.99, respectively. The RMSE values of simulated versus measured WLV, WST, WSO, and TAGP were 175, 210, 199, and 251 kg ha−1, and showed high accuracy. The simulated soil moisture (SM) agreed with the measured value, with R2 = 0.87. The calibration model also showed high SM simulation accuracy, with RMSE = 0.022 (cm3 cm−3). Under all treatments, the simulated TAGP and yield agreed well with the measured results, with R2 of 0.76 and 0.70, respectively. RMSE of simulated TAGP and yield was 465 and 200 kg ha−1, and showed high accuracy. The percentage RMSE values (ratio of RMSE to the average measured value, NRMSE) of ETa and WUE were 9.8% and 11.7%, indicating extremely high precision (NRMSE < 10%) and high precision (10% < NRMSE ≤ 20%), respectively. The simulated results for phenology length at the regional scales showed that the effective accumulation temperature in counties such as Yingjisha and Luntai was not enough for the phenological maturity of the studied cotton cultivar. The southern area of Xinjiang had a generally higher yield than the northern area but required more irrigation. This research can provide a method for evaluating the adaptability of filmless cultivation techniques for cotton in different counties. Full article
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