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Journal of Arid Land
Journal of Arid Land  2025, Vol. 17 Issue (7): 912-932    DOI: 10.1007/s40333-025-0103-x     CSTR: 32276.14.JAL.0250103x
Research article     
Experimental and model research on the evaporation of loess-like sulfate saline soil considering the influence of initial salt content
ZHANG Yabin1, CHOU Yaling2,*(), ZHAO Dong3, WANG Lijie1, ZHANG Peng1
1College of Civil Engineering, Lanzhou University of Technology, Lanzhou 730050, China
2Key Laboratory of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation in Civil Engineering of Gansu Province, Lanzhou University of Technology, Lanzhou 730050, China
3China Energy Construction Group Gansu Electric Power Design Institute Co., Ltd., Lanzhou 730050, China
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Abstract  

Intense evaporation in areas with loess-like sulfate saline soils has resulted in significant ecological challenges that include water shortages and soil salinization. Investigating evaporation rate in loess-like sulfate saline soils under varying salt contents carries crucial implications for understanding regional water loss processes, predicting soil salinization advancement, and formulating effective ecological management strategies. Therefore, this study sampled the loess-like sulfate saline soil that is widely distributed in western China as experimental materials and investigated the impact of different initial salt contents (0.00%, 0.50%, 1.50%, 3.00%, and 5.00%) on the evaporation rate, water content, and temperature of soil. The results showed that the evaporation rate decreased with increasing initial salt content. After a salt accumulation layer formed on the soil surface, the water content of the surface soil fluctuated. An increase in the initial salt content resulted in a corresponding increase in the surface temperature. Considering the evaporation characteristics of loess-like sulfate saline soil and the impact of an anomalous increase in surface soil water content on soil surface resistance, this study proposed a modified evaporation model on the basis of Fujimaki's evaporation model of saline soil by introducing a correction coefficient β to modify the soil surface resistance. A comparison of the calculated evaporation rates before and after the modification with the measured evaporation rates revealed a significant improvement in the calculation accuracy of the modified model, indicating that the modified model is capable of more accurately simulating the evaporation rate of sulfate saline soil with different initial salt contents. This paper proposes an effective method for calculating the evaporation rate of loess-like sulfate saline soils, providing a theoretical basis for evaporation research in saline soil.

Key words： loess-like sulfate saline soil      evaporation rate      salt accumulation layer      salt crystallization      evaporation model      soil surface resistance      air resistance     
Received: 06 January 2025      Published: 31 July 2025
Corresponding Authors: *CHOU Yaling (E-mail: chouyaling@lzb.ac.cn)
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ZHANG Yabin
CHOU Yaling
ZHAO Dong
WANG Lijie
ZHANG Peng
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ZHANG Yabin, CHOU Yaling, ZHAO Dong, WANG Lijie, ZHANG Peng. Experimental and model research on the evaporation of loess-like sulfate saline soil considering the influence of initial salt content. Journal of Arid Land, 2025, 17(7): 912-932.

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http://jal.xjegi.com/10.1007/s40333-025-0103-x     OR     http://jal.xjegi.com/Y2025/V17/I7/912

Liquid limit (%) Plastic limit (%) Plastic index Specific gravity of soil particles
29.40 16.20 13.20 2.71
Table 1 Basic physical parameters of loess
>1.000 mm (%) 1.000-0.500 mm (%) 0.500-0.250 mm (%) 0.250-0.075 mm (%) <0.075 mm (%)
3.06 6.72 8.56 72.53 9.13
Table 2 Particle size of loess
Cl- SO42- HCO3- CO32- OH- Ca2+ Mg2+ Na++K+ NH4+ Total soluble salt
(mg/kg) (mg/kg) (%)
264 617 722 63 0 159 84 481 2 2079 0.21
Table 3 Ion content of soil
Fig. 1 Apparatus of the evaporation experiment. (a), soil column; (b), multichannel recorder; (c), temperature probe; (d), schematic of the placement of temperature probes.
Soil column serial number Initial salt content (%) Sampling date (d)
A1 0.00 1st, 7th, 20th, and 35th
A2* 0.00 3rd, 10th, 25th, and 40th
A3 0.00 5th, 15th, and 30th
B1 0.50 1st, 7th, 20th, and 35th
B2* 0.50 3rd, 10th, 25th, and 40th
B3 0.50 5th, 15th, and 30th
C1 1.50 1st, 7th, 20th, and 35th
C2* 1.50 3rd, 10th, 25th, and 40th
C3 1.50 5th, 15th, and 30th
D1 3.00 1st, 7th, 20th, and 35th
D2* 3.00 3rd, 10th, 25th, and 40th
D3 3.00 5th, 15th, and 30th
E1 5.00 1st, 7th, 20th, and 35th
E2* 5.00 3rd, 10th, 25th, and 40th
E3 5.00 5th, 15th, and 30th
Table 4 Sampling date design of parallel soil columns
Fig. 2 Change in the evaporation rate of the soil columns with different initial salt contents over time. E20 represents the potential evaporation rate of atmosphere.
Initial salt content (%) Beginning of evaporation (%) End of evaporation (%)
0.50 15.30 33.30
1.50 29.60 40.50
3.00 42.90 69.00
5.00 52.90 73.80
Table 5 Decrease degree of the evaporation rate of the soil columns with different initial salt contents compared with that of the 0.00% salt content column
Fig. 3 Changes in air temperature and humidity over time
Fig. 4 Variation in water content on the surface of the soil columns with different initial salt contents over time
Fig. 5 Salt accumulation on the surface of the soil columns with initial salt contents of 0.50% (a1-a3), 1.50% (b1-b3), 3.00% (c1-c3), and 5.00% (d1-d3) on the 2nd, 3rd, and 5th d of the evaporation experiment
Fig. 6 Thickness of salt accumulation on the soil column surface
Fig. 7 Variation in the surface temperature of the soil columns with different initial salt contents
Fig. 8 Variation in the soil temperature at different depths with initial salt content of 0.50% (a) and 5.00% (b)
Fig. 9 Schematic of evaporation resistance model. The red arrow represents air resistance (ra), blue arrow represents soil surface resistance (rs), and green arrow represents salt shell resistance (rsalt). The downward arrow indicates the impedance to upward water migration.
Initial salt content (%) Interpolation formula
0.50 β=0.40000+0.12hts
1.50 β=0.81429+0.03714hts
3.00 β=0.83636+0.03273hts
5.00 β=0.83333+0.03333hts
Table 6 Correction coefficient β
Fig. 10 Relationship between the correction coefficient β of soils and the thickness of the salt accumulation layer under different initial salt contents
Fig. 11 Comparison of the calculated and measured evaporation rates with different initial salt contents. (a), initial salt content of 0.50%; (b), initial salt content of 1.50%; (c), initial salt content of 3.00%; (d), initial salt content of 5.00%.
Fig. 12 Correlation analysis between the calculated values and the measured values of evaporation rate with different initial salt contents. (a), initial salt content of 0.50%; (b), initial salt content of 1.50%; (c), initial salt content of 3.00%; (d), initial salt content of 5.00%. The blue diagonal line represents the ideal reference line indicating perfect agreement between calculated and measured values.
Fig. 13 Schematic of the modification principle for the evaporation model. The red arrow represents air resistance (ra), green arrow represents salt shell resistance (rsalt), and hollow arrow represents the logical sequence of model refinement principles. The distance between blue arrows represents pore size, and the downward arrow indicates the impedance to upward water migration. β, correction coefficient.
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