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Title: Pore-scale water dynamics during drying and the impacts of structure and surface wettability

Journal Article · · Water Resources Research
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/2016WR019862· OSTI ID:1474400
ORCiD logo [1];  [2];  [3];  [3];  [2];  [2];  [4];  [3]; ORCiD logo [5]
  1. Univ. of Connecticut, Storrs, CT (United States). Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  2. Benedict College, Columbia SC (United States). Dept. of Physics and Engineering
  3. Univ. of Connecticut, Storrs, CT (United States). Dept. of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
  4. Univ. of Connecticut, Storrs, CT (United States). Dept. of Molecular and Cell Biology
  5. Univ. of Connecticut, Storrs, CT (United States). Dept. of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering

Plants and microbes secrete mucilage into soil during dry conditions, which can alter soil structure and increase contact angle. Structured soils exhibit a broad pore size distribution with many small and many large pores, and strong capillary forces in narrow pores can retain moisture in soil aggregates. Meanwhile, contact angle determines the water repellency of soils, which can result in suppressed evaporation rates. Although they are often studied independently, both structure and contact angle influence water movement, distribution, and retention in soils. Here, drying experiments were conducted using soil micromodels patterned to emulate different aggregation states of a sandy loam soil. Micromodels were treated to exhibit contact angles representative of those in bulk soil (8.4 ° ± 1.9 °) and the rhizosphere (65 ° ± 9.2 °). Drying was simulated using a lattice Boltzmann single component, multi-phase model. In our experiments, micromodels with higher contact angle surfaces took four times longer to completely dry versus micromodels with lower contact angle surfaces. Microstructure influenced drying rate as a function of saturation and controlled the spatial distribution of moisture within micromodels. Lattice Boltzmann simulations accurately predicted pore scale moisture retention patterns within micromodels with different structures and contact angles.

Research Organization:
Univ. of Connecticut, Storrs, CT (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0014522; 2012-67020-19380
OSTI ID:
1474400
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1375527; OSTI ID: 1595556
Report Number(s):
DOE-UCONN-14522-3
Journal Information:
Water Resources Research, Vol. 53, Issue 7; ISSN 0043-1397
Publisher:
American Geophysical Union (AGU)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 15 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (1)