Source areas and mixing of runoff components at the hillslope scale—a multi-technical approach

Uhlenbrook, Stefan; Didszun, Jens; Wenninger, Jochen

doi:10.1623/hysj.53.4.741

Cited by 43 publications

(47 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…There was little evidence of non-conservative behaviour of the geochemical tracers (Uhlenbrook et al, 2002;Asano et al, 2003) in the first ∼5-6 h after the beginning of the event as the event/pre-event estimates of both EC and SiO 2 give generally similar results, although it is frequently assumed that they have different timescales of non-conservative behaviour (e.g. Laudon and Slaymaker, 1997;Uhlenbrook et al, 2002;Asano et al, 2003;Pellerin, 2007), which would imply consistently different event/pre-event contribution estimates.…”

Section: Mataini Catchment (03 Km 2 )mentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Uhlenbrook et al, 2002), was previously shown to behave nonconservatively. However, the timescales at which the tracer compositions, i.e.…”

Section: End-membersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…ion concentrations, of "new" soil-and recharge water converge toward the one in pre-existing soilor groundwater is, for many tracers, subject to conflicting results and an ongoing debate (e.g. Laudon and Slaymaker, 1997;Uhlenbrook et al, 2002;Asano et al, 2003;Pellerin et al, 2007). Thus, the geochemical composition, with its clear spatial pattern in the study area, was in the following rather used to separate the runoff contributions from different source areas, i.e.…”

Section: End-membersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Much experimental work on understanding hydrological processes has been done in temperate, humid climates using either single or multi-method approaches (e.g. Uchida et al, 2005;Blume et al, 2008;Uhlenbrook et al, 2002Uhlenbrook et al, , 2008. However, experimental hydrology and processrelevant studies in the predominantly data scarce semi-arid regions of SSA or Central Asia are, due to mostly logistical and financial constraints, less widespread (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Christophersen et al, 1990;Uhlenbrook et al, 2002;Dunn et al, 2006;Laudon et al, 2007;Hrachowitz et al, 2009), analysis of catchment transit time distributions (e.g. McGuire et al, 2005;Hrachowitz et al, 2010a;Lyon et al, 2010) as well as interpretations of the spatio-temporal evolution of tracer concentrations in soils and streams (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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On the value of combined event runoff and tracer analysis to improve understanding of catchment functioning in a data-scarce semi-arid area

Hrachowitz

Bohte

Mul

et al. 2011

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. Hydrological processes in small catchments are not quite understood yet, which is true in particular for catchments in data scarce, semi-arid regions. This is in contrast with the need for a better understanding of water fluxes and the interactions between surface-and groundwater in order to facilitate sustainable water resources management in such environments, where both floods and droughts can result in severe crop loss. In this study, event runoff coefficient analysis and limited tracer data of four small, nested sub-catchments (0.4-25.3 km 2 ) in a data scarce, semi-arid region of Tanzania helped to characterize the distinct response of the study catchments and to gain insights into the dominant runoff processes. The estimated event runoff coefficients were very low and did not exceed 0.09. They were found to be significantly related to the 5-day antecedent precipitation totals as well as to base flow, indicating a close relation to changes in soil moisture and thus potential switches in runoff generation processes. The time scales of the "direct flow" reservoirs, used to compute the event runoff coefficients, were up to one order of magnitude reduced for extreme events, compared to "average" events, suggesting the activation of at least a third flow component, besides base-and direct flow, assumed to be infiltration overland flow. Analysis of multiple tracers highlighted the importance of pre-event water to total runoff, even during intense and Correspondence to: M. Hrachowitz (m.hrachowitz@tudelft.nl) high yield precipitation events. It further illustrated the distinct nature of the catchments, in particular with respect to the available water storage, which was suggested by different degrees of tracer damping in the individual streams. The use of multiple tracers subsequently allowed estimating uncertainties in hydrograph separations arising from the use of different tracers. The results highlight the presence of considerable uncertainties, emphasizing the need for multiple tracers in order to avoid misleading results. This study shows the value of hydrological data collection over one whole wet season using multi-tracers to improve the understanding of hydrological functioning and thus for water resources management in data scarce, semi-arid environments.

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Section: Mataini Catchment (03 Km 2 )mentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Uhlenbrook et al, 2002), was previously shown to behave nonconservatively. However, the timescales at which the tracer compositions, i.e.…”

Section: End-membersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: End-membersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

On the value of combined event runoff and tracer analysis to improve understanding of catchment functioning in a data-scarce semi-arid area

Hrachowitz

Bohte

Mul

et al. 2011

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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show abstract

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2009

Tracers in Hydrology

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Towards more systematic perceptual model development: a case study using 3 Luxembourgish catchments

Wrede

Fenicia

Martínez‐Carreras³

et al. 2014

Hydrological Processes

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103

186

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Abstract:The synthesis of experimental understanding of catchment behaviour and its translation into qualitative perceptual models is an important objective of hydrological sciences. We explore this challenge by examining the cumulative understanding of the hydrology of three experimental catchments and how it evolves through the application of different investigation techniques. The case study considers the Huewelerbach, Weierbach and Wollefsbach headwater catchments of the Attert basin in Luxembourg. Subsurface investigations including bore holes and pits, analysis of soil samples and Electrical Resistivity Tomography measurements are presented and discussed. Streamflow and tracer data are used to gain further insights into the streamflow dynamics of the catchments, using end-member mixing analysis and hydrograph separation based on dissolved silica and electrical conductivity. We show that the streamflow generating processes in all three catchments are controlled primarily by the subsolum and underlying bedrock. In the Huewelerbach, the permeable sandstone formation supports a stable groundwater component with little seasonality, which reaches the stream through a series of sources at the contact zone with the impermeable marls formation. In the Weierbach, the schist formation is relatively impermeable and supports a 'fill and spill'-type of flow mechanism; during wet conditions, it produces a delayed response dominated by pre-event water. In the Wollefsbach, the impermeable marls formation is responsible for a saturation-excess runoff generating process, producing a fast and highly seasonal response dominated by event water. The distinct streamflow generating processes of the three catchments are represented qualitatively using perceptual models. The perceptual models are in turn translated into quantitative conceptual models, which simulate the hydrological processes using networks of connected reservoirs and transfer functions. More generally, the paper illustrates the evolution of perceptual models based on experimental fieldwork data, the translation of perceptual models into conceptual models and the value of different types of data for processes understanding and model representation.

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Source areas and mixing of runoff components at the hillslope scale—a multi-technical approach

Cited by 43 publications

References 22 publications

On the value of combined event runoff and tracer analysis to improve understanding of catchment functioning in a data-scarce semi-arid area

On the value of combined event runoff and tracer analysis to improve understanding of catchment functioning in a data-scarce semi-arid area

References

Towards more systematic perceptual model development: a case study using 3 Luxembourgish catchments

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