A Study on the Effects of the Surrounding Faults on Water Loss in the Zoige Wetland,China

The Zoige wetland is the biggest alpine wetland in the world,and an important water resource of the Yellow River.Due to natural and human factors,the Zoige wetland has been seriously degraded.Existing studies on the Zoige wetland mainly focus on the macro features of the wetland,while the influence of the surrounding faults on the Zoige wetland degradation is rarely studied.This study uses terrain data to analyze the cover change and the water loss caused by the Wqie-Seji fault based on the distributed hydrological model.The simulated water loss demonstrates that the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index(NDVI) is the most important factor for inducing water loss.The fault is also a factor that cannot be neglected,which has caused 33% of the wetland water loss.Therefore,it is of importance to study the influence of the fault on the wetland degradation.

Spatiotemporal features of soil and water loss in Three Gorges Reservoir Area of Chongqing

Soil and water loss has been the most serious eco-environmental problem in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area of Chongqing.In this paper the authors studied the spatiotemporal features of soil and water loss from 1999 to 2004 based on RS and GIS techniques.The results showed that:(1) The soil and water loss area decreased from 1999 to 2004.(2) Soil and water loss mainly exists in purple soil,yellow soil,limestone soil,paddy soil and yellow brown soil distributed areas.(3) The dry slope land and sparse woodland that are intensively influenced by human activities experienced most serious soil and water loss.(4) Soil and water loss in the study area indicated an obvious vertical differentiation characteristic.(5) There is a significant correlation between soil and water loss and slope.(6) There is no obvious correlation between soil and water loss and aspect.(7) Soil and water loss mainly exists in the values of R between 300 and 340 distribution area.The very-high soil and water loss has obvious correlation with R.

QTL analysis reveals reduction of fruit water loss by NAC042 through regulation of cuticular wax synthesis in citrus fruit

Postharvest water loss is a critical factor that determines the quality and shelf life of fresh fruit.Cuticular wax constitutes a key barrier to reduce fruit water loss.Our previous study has shown that HJ(Citrus reticulata)has a significantly higher postharvest water loss rate than ZK(Poncirus trifoliata).Here,we investigated the fruit water loss rate of the HJ×ZK F1pseudo-testcross population in 2016 and 2019.QTL mapping for fruit water loss rate was performed by high-density genetic map and bulk segregant analysis,and QTL9 was identified to be associated with fruit water loss.The expression of NAC042 from QTL9 in ZK was 170-fold that in HJ.Heterologous expression in Arabidopsis showed that NAC042could reduce the water loss of leaves by increasing the cuticular wax content(especially alkanes).Further expression analysis revealed that NAC042 could enhance the expression of many wax-related genes in Arabidopsis leaves,including AtKCS1,AtKCS2,AtKCS9,AtKCS20,At CER1 and At CER3.Therefore,NAC042 might be involved in fruit cuticular wax synthesis to reduce fruit water loss.The findings provide new insights into the regulation of cuticular wax and fruit water loss as well as valuable information for breeding of citrus with better storability.

Effects of Specimen Shape and Size on Water Loss and Drying Shrinkage of Cement-based Materials

The effects of specimen size and shape on development of water loss and shrinkage of mortar and concrete respectively were investigated. The experimental results showed that the effects of specimen size and shape on water loss ratio were consistent with those on drying shrinkage strain. It is also indicated that drying shrinkage strain has obvious linear correlation with water loss ratios independent of specimen size and shape. The effects of specimen size and shape on the water loss ratio were embodied in established model of averaged relative humidity improved by considering effects of sequential hydration and calculated by finite difference method. Furthermore, the effects of specimen size and shape on drying shrinkage strain of concrete were experimentally deduced and applied to modify criterion EB-FIP1990. The comparison between experimental and calculated results shows that the modified EB-FIP1990 can be adopted to predict drying shrinkage strain of concrete with reasonable accuracy.

Influence of Superplasticizer Type and Dosage on Early-age Drying Shrinkage of Cement Paste with Consideration of Pore Size Distribution and Water Loss

We introduced a parameter r_s(the radius of the pores where the meniscus forms),which is composed of two factors,i e,water loss and cumulative pore size distribution(PSD),to provide a better explanation of the influence of superplasticizers(SPs)on early-age drying shrinkage.In our experiments,it is found that the addition of three types of SPs leads to a significant increase in the early-age drying shrinkage of cement paste,and drying shrinkage increases with the dosage of SPs.Based on the results above,we further studied the mechanism of the effects of SPs on the early-age drying shrinkage of cement paste by PSD and water loss,which are two components of r_s.The experimental results indicate that r_s can be a better index for the early-age drying shrinkage of cement-based materials with SPs than a single factor.In addition,the effects of SPs on other factors such as hydration degree and elastic modulus were also investigated and discussed.

Soil and water loss in the Lancang River-Mekong River watershed (in Yunnan section, China) and its control measures

According to a lot of hydrological and environmental monitoring data, the condition of soil and water loss in the Lancang River Mekong River watershed (in Yunnan section, China) is described. The occurrence and development of soil and water loss is analyzed. The conclusion is that: (1) generally, the situation of soil and water loss in the Lancang River Mekong River watershed (in Yunnan section, China) is light, however, soil and water loss in some regions is serious, especially in the middle reach area of the river; (2) soil and water loss in the Lancang River Mekong River (in Yunnan section, China) watershed presents developing tendency and it is mainly caused by human beings. In accordance with these results, the control measures for soil and water loss are discussed.

IMPACTS OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF LAND USE ON PROCESSES OF SOIL AND WATER LOSS OVER PURPLE SOIL SLOPELAND

Based on natural precipitation observations, impacts of different types of land use on processes of soil and water loss over purple soil related slopeland were studied by simulated rainfall experiments. Measurement data revealed that rainstorms and slope length are the essential factors accountable for soil and water loss on purple soil slopeland for intense rill erosion can be caused on 10 meter long purple soil slopes by high intensity rainfall. Under circumanstances of rainstorms, annual hedge plants grown on slopeland of 25 degrees can cause a reduction of runoff by 22 43 percent and that of erosion induced sand content by 94 98 percent. Stone bund horizontal terraces can lead to a runoff reduction by 62 67 percent in comparison with steep slopelands and that of erosion induced sediment by 97.8 99 percent. Soil and water loss can be substantially decreased on steep slopes by hedge plants with a cost of only 10 20 percent that of the stone bund horizontal terraces. Hence it is an effective way to control soil and water loss in terms of slopeland amelioration and utilization in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area.

Water Losses in Arid and Semi-Arid Zone:Evaporation, Evapotranspiration and Seepage

The primary purpose of this study was to assess water losses by evapotranspiration, evaporation and seepage in arid zone.Normally, evaporation and seepage are the main causes of water losses.For modeling water losses,a combination of Genetic Programming(GP),Penman-Monteith(PM) and Penman combination model for measurement of evapotranspiration,evaporation and seepage has been developed.The results were found to be varying depending on how the evaporation and seepage phenomena are modeled.These results show that that there is an improvement in reducing evapotranspiration,evaporation and seepage losses in arid and semi-arid region.

Metabolic rate and evaporative water loss in the silky starling （Sturnus sericeus）

To better understand the physiological characteristics of the silky starling（Sturnus sericeus）, its body temperature（Tb）, basal metabolic rate（BMR）, evaporative water loss（EWL） and thermal conductance（C） elicited by different ambient temperatures（Ta）（5-30 ℃） were determined in the present study. Our results showed that they have a high Tb（41.6±0.1 ℃）, a wide thermal neutral zone（TNZ）（20-27.5 ℃） and a relatively low BMR within the TNZ（3.37±0.17 mL O2/g·h）. The EWL was nearly stable below the TNZ（0.91±0.07 mg H2O/g·h） but increased remarkably within and above the TNZ. The C was constant below the TNZ, with a minimum value of 0.14±0.01 mL O2/g·h·℃. These findings indicate that the BMR, Tb and EWL of the silky starling were all affected by Ta, especially when Ta was below 20℃ and the EWL plays an important role in thermal regulation.

Water Supply Network Losses in Jordan

Water supply network losses are an international problem especially in countries suffering from water scarcity like Jordan. Jordan is one of the poorest countries in its water resources and it is estimated to be below the water poverty line. Jordan is located in the Middle East and has a surface area of approximately 90,000 km2. Its population is around 6.3 million and it is estimated that the population will be 7.8 million in 2022. The gap between water supply and demand is widening due to development and a relatively high population growth rate. In addition, global climate change is expected to intensify the water shortage problem in Jordan. Thirteen years of complete records obtained from the Ministry of Water and Irrigation were analyzed. According to these records, water losses in Jordan reach about 50%. In view of the evaluation of the data and the case study conducted in this research, it is believed that Jordan can overcome the water shortage problem by adopting a water demand management strategy. In this context, efforts should be focused on reducing water losses. If this is achieved, it will save huge quantities of water and revenue.

Water loss in Mafraq Governorate, Jordan

Jordan is located in theMiddle Eastand covers an area of89,342 km2. The total population ofJordanis 6,508,271.Jordanis rapidly facing a severe water supply crisis due to greater demands on a finite quantity of available water. If current trends continue, it has been estimated that the country will experience a chronic water shortage by 2020. Despite these shortages, water loss in the distribution network is relatively high where it reaches 46%. Mafraq Governorate has the maximum water loss. Continuous records and data for the period 1999-2004 for Mafraq water authority were investigated for the water supply and lose. Water losses were evaluated, and suggestions were given to minimize the loss.

A policy and technical measures for controlling soil and water loss in the Loess Plateau of China

Loess Plateau is the most serious region of soil and water loss in China and the world. The sediment carried into the Yellow River amounts to 1.6 billion tons every year. This paper reviews the factors and reasons for erosion in this area, and puts forward a comprehensive controlling policy on the basis of the principles of ecology and practise of Chinese scientists for 40 years. In conformity with the policy, a number of technical measures for controlling soil and water loss are suggested.

Topographic differentiation simulation of crop yield and soil and water loss on the Loess Plateau

De-farming slope farmland has been an effective measure in recent years for the improvement of the eco-environment and the mitigation of soil and water loss on the Loess Plateau. This paper, taking the Yangou Basin as a case study and using day-by-day mete- orological data of Yah＇an station in 2005, simulated and analyzed the quantitative relation between crop yield, soil and water loss and topographic condition with the aid of WIN-YIELD software. Results show that： 1） topographic gradient has important influence on crop yield. The bigger gradient is, the lower the crop yield. Yields of sorghum and corn decrease by 15.44% and 14.32% respectively at 25° in comparison to the case of 0°. In addition, yields of soya, bean and potato decrease slightly by 5.26%, 4.67% and 3.84%, respectively. The influences of topographic height and slope aspect on crop yield are slight. 2） Under the same topographic condition, different crops＇ runoff and soil loss show obvious disparity. Topographic gradient has important influence on soil and water loss. In general, the changing trend is that the soil and water loss aggregates with the increase of gradient, and the maximal amount occurs around 20°. The influence of topographic height is slight. Topographic aspect has a certain effect, and the fundamental characteristic is that values are higher at the aspect of south than north. 3） Topographic gradients of 5° and 15° are two important thresholds. The characteristic about soil and water loss with the variation of topographic gradients show that： the slope farmland with gradient less than 5° could remain unchanged, and the slope farmland more than 15° should be de-farmed as early as possible.

Mulching mode and planting density affect canopy interception loss of rainfall and water use efficiency of dryland maize on the Loess Plateau of China

High and efficient use of limited rainwater resources is of crucial importance for the crop production in arid and semi-arid areas. To investigate the effects of different soil and crop management practices（i.e., mulching mode treatments： flat cultivation with non-mulching, flat cultivation with straw mulching, plastic-covered ridge with bare furrow and plastic-covered ridge with straw-covered furrow; and planting density treatments： low planting density of 45,000 plants/hm^2, medium planting density of 67,500 plants/hm^2 and high planting density of 90,000 plants/hm^2） on rainfall partitioning by dryland maize canopy, especially the resulted net rainfall input beneath the maize canopy, we measured the gross rainfall, throughfall and stemflow at different growth stages of dryland maize in 2015 and 2016 on the Loess Plateau of China. The canopy interception loss was estimated by the water balance method. Soil water storage, leaf area index, grain yield（as well as it components） and water use efficiency of dryland maize were measured or calculated. Results showed that the cumulative throughfall, cumulative stemflow and cumulative canopy interception loss during the whole growing season accounted for 42.3%–77.5%, 15.1%–36.3% and 7.4%–21.4% of the total gross rainfall under different treatments, respectively. Soil mulching could promote the growth and development of dryland maize and enhance the capability of stemflow production and canopy interception loss, thereby increasing the relative stemflow and relative canopy interception loss and reducing the relative throughfall. The relative stemflow and relative canopy interception loss generally increased with increasing planting density, while the relative throughfall decreased with increasing planting density. During the two experimental years, mulching mode had no significant influence on net rainfall due to the compensation between throughfall and stemflow, whereas planting density significantly affected net rainfall. The highest grain yield and water use efficiency of dryland maize were obtained under the combination of medium planting density of 67,500 plants/hm^2 and mulching mode of plastic-covered ridge with straw-covered furrow. Soil mulching can reduce soil evaporation and retain more soil water for dryland maize without reducing the net rainfall input beneath the maize canopy, which may alleviate the contradiction between high soil water consumption and insufficient rainfall input of the soil. In conclusion, the application of medium planting density（67,500 plants/hm^2） under plastic-covered ridge with bare furrow is recommended for increasing dryland maize production on the Loess Plateau of China.

Impact of slash disposal on soil and water loss and the growth of planted seedlings

The three methods of slash disposal in this experiment were no treatment, strip piling and burning. The results obtained from this study showed that the soil erosion, water and nutrient loss were higher in the logged areas by burning than in the logged areas by no treatment and strip piling. The soil and water loss was not serious when the slope degree of the logged area was less than 16o. The survival rate of planted seedlings was higher and the growth was better in the logged areas followed by burning than in the logged areas by no treatment and strip piling. Burning should not be used when the slope was more than 23o.

A systematic approach for estimating water losses in irrigation canals

In order to determine water losses in irrigation canals,a systematic approach was developed,consisting of two main components:a seepage simulation model and a hydraulic simulation model.The SEEP/W module of the Geo-Studio software was used to simulate the seepage rate,and the Hydrologic Engineering Center-River Analysis System(HEC-RAS)hydrodynamic model was used for hydraulic simulation.Different operation scenarios were designed to investigate all possible situations in daily operation of water distribution and delivery systems.The seepage simulation results show that the seepage losses were higher at the bottom and corners of the canal,because the hydraulic gradient was affected by the hydraulic load.The hydraulic simulation results show that due to physical and management infrastructure(using non-automated and operator-based regulation structures),operational losses accounted for a significant volume of losses compared to seepage losses.In most operation scenarios,the maximum seepage loss was 10%,and the remaining 90%was related to operational losses.It is concluded that any factor(decrease or increase of inflow to the canal)that causes an increase or decrease of operational losses is ultimately a determining factor in reducing or increasing total losses.Therefore,management approaches should be adopted to improve performance of the system and reduce losses,especially operational losses,by improving the operation methods of water level regulation and off-take structures.

Improvement of Water Use Efficiency in Winter Wheat byBreeding Lines with Low Rate of Water Loss of Excised-Leaves

A study was conducted with the objective of improvement of water use efficiency (WUE) and yield of winter wheat for Lowland Dryland Farming systems through a breeding approach. Various genotypes were screened in 1988 for rate of water loss of excised leaves (RWL) , followed by inter-crossing of diverse parents in 1993. Analysis of the relationship between RWL and yield components and plant traits demonstrated significant differences in RWL among genotypes. Under most circumstances, RWL was correlated negatively with yield and grain weight, and positively with plant height. The results demonstrated a basis for simultaneous selection for high yield and low RWL. It was found that genotypic rank varied with the duration of water loss. Correlation between RWL and yield was reduced by extended water loss duration. Analysis of the genetic variation and segregation of RWL of progenies and the effect of simultaneous screening for RWL and agronomic traits showed that good lines with improved yield and water use performance could be obtained.

A Model for RF Loss through Vegetation with Varying Water Content

Assessing plant water status is important for monitoring plant physiology. Radio signals are attenuated when passing through vegetation. Both analytical and empirical models developed for radio frequency (RF) loss through vegetation have been dependent on experimental measurements and those measurements have been completed in specific situations. However, for models to be more broadly applicable across a broad range of vegetation types and constructs, basic electrical properties of the vegetation need to be characterised. Radio waves are affected especially by water and the relationship between water content in vegetation expressed as effective water path (EWP) in mm and measured RF loss (dB) at 2.4 GHz was investigated in this work. The EWP of eucalyptus leaves of varying amounts of leaf moisture (0% - 41.5%) ranged from 0 - 14 mm, respectively. When the model was compared with the actual RF loss there was a systematic offset equivalent to a residual leaf moisture content of 6.5% that was unaccounted for in the leaf moisture content determination (oven drying). This was attributed to bound water. When the model was adjusted for this amount of additional leaf water, the average RMSE in predicted RF loss was ±2.2 dB and was found to explain 89% of the variance in measured RF loss.

Study on Soil and Water Loss Characteristic of the Railway Construction in Mountain Area

The factor of human project activity is often the immediate cause resulting in soil and water loss. The Baoji-Lanzhou second railway in construction is an example. The soil and water loss law caused by earth and stone mountain railway engineering construction in the northwestern China is studied systematically and that caused possibly by the road bed project, the road moat project, the field project, the tunnel project and the service road project in construction is probed. At the same time, the type, t...

Estimation of evaporation losses based on stable isotopes of stream water in a mountain watershed

Water stable isotopes(δ^(2) H andδ^(18)O)can record surface water evaporation,which is an important hydrological process for understanding watershed structure and function evolution.However,the isotopic estimation of water evaporation losses in the mountain watersheds remains poorly explored,which hinders understanding spatial variations of hydrological processes and their relationships with the temperature and vegetation.Here we investigatedδ^(2) H,δ^(18)O,and d-excess values of stream water along an altitude gradient of 2130 to 3380 m in Guan’egou mountain watershed at the east edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in China.The meanδ^(2) H(-69.6‰±2.6‰),δ^(18)O(-10.7‰±0.3‰),and dexcess values(16.0‰±1.4‰)of stream water indicate the inland moisture as the major source of precipitation in study area.Water stable isotopes increase linearly with decreasing altitudes,based on which we estimated the fractions of water evaporation losses along with the altitude and their variations in different vegetations.This study provides an isotopic evaluation method of water evaporation status in mountain watersheds,the results are useful for further understanding the relationship between hydrological processes and ecosystem function under the changing climate surrounding the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.