J. agric. Engng Res.

(2001) 80 (3) 301}305

doi:10.1006/jaer.2001.0739, available online at http://www.idealibrary.com on
SW*Soil and Water
Wetting Patterns under Trickle Source in Arid Soils with Surface Crust
M. I. Al-Qinna; A. M. Abu-Awwad
Department of Agricultural Resources and Environment, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan; e-mail of corresponding
author: abuawwad@agr.ju.edu.jo
(Received 10 November 2000; accepted in revised form 26 April 2001; published online 15 June 2001)
The e!ect of water application rate from a trickle source on the wetting pattern was studied during 1995/96 in
soils liable to surface crust formation at the University of Jordan Research Station near Al-Muwaqqar village.
Four application rates were tested (6)2, 14)4, 24)4 and 28)4 mmh). Twenty-"ve litres of water was applied
through a controlled Palm-type emitter using eosin red indicator for locating the boundaries of water front
advance. The wetted volume that resulted formed a &V'-shaped cross-section. Increasing the application rate
enhanced the horizontal water movement markedly due to the soil surface crust e!ect, thus reducing the
in"ltration rate. The horizontal water advance increased while the vertical water advance was reduced markedly
by increasing the application rate. The horizontal width and the vertical depth of the wetting front advance
exposed an exponential function with application rate. Two equations were developed for the vertical and
horizontal wetting fronts versus the application rates which could be used in irrigation designs.
2001 Silsoe Research Institute
1. Introduction
Trickle irrigation is the most e$cient method of irriga-
tion and the system usually makes use of limited water
supply in order to apply precise amounts of water to the
root zone. A trickle irrigation system is designed to
deliver frequent light applications of water to wet only
portions of the soil surface. The advance of wetting front
in a soil under an irrigation source is related to soil type,
initial moisture content, and water application rate
(Hachum et al., 1976; Hawatmeh & Battikhi 1983; Gold-
berg & Shmueli, 1970; Goldberg et al., 1971).
Brandt et al. (1971) developed a theoretical model to
investigate the multi-dimensional transient in"ltration
from a trickle source. Results of their developed model
indicated that an increase in the trickle discharge resulted
in an increase in the horizontal wetted area and a de-
crease in the depth of the wetted soil, with a typical
bulb-shaped cross-section. The percentage of wetted area
as compared to the whole-irrigated area depends on
emitter discharge, spacing and soil type (Keller & Kar-
meli, 1974). Goldberg and Shmueli (1970) indicated that
the rate of horizontal water movement in the soil and the
"nal width of the wetted zone along the trickle irrigation
line are functions of amount, rate of water application
and soil type. Goldberg et al. (1971) reported that it is
possible to somewhat increase the lateral spread of the
wetting front by increasing the emitter discharge rate or
the amount of water applied. Hawatmeh and Battikhi
(1983) studied the wetting fronts under a trickle source in
two uncrusted soils of the Jordan Valley. They developed
equations for the horizontal >
F
and vertical >
T
advance of
the wetting front as a function of time t since wetting
starts on sandy loam soil using an application rate of
8)4l/h and initial soil moisture between 5)5% and 8%.
>
F
"2)12#11)14 t` (1)
>
T
"5)71 t`#4)9 t (2)
Soil surface sealing is a common feature of most soils of
arid and semi-arid regions. Soil crusts have prominent
e!ects on a number of soil phenomena, such as reducing
in"ltration and increasing runo! (Lemos & Lutz, 1957).
The compact skin seal of 0)1 mm thickness reduced the
permeability of the underlying layer by about 10 times
(McIntyre, 1958). The reduction in the in"ltration rate
will adversely a!ect water irrigation e$ciency. The re-
duction in irrigation e$ciency is due to runo! in slope
0021-8634/01/110301#05 $35.00/0 301 2001 Silsoe Research Institute
Table 1
Physical soil properties for the experimented site
Horizon Depth, Clay, Silt, Sand, Textural class SG FC, PWP, MWD, mm
cm % % % % %
A1 0}15 30)0 66)7 3)3 Silty loam 1)18 26 15 0)35
BA 15}30 33)3 62)6 4)1 Silty clay loam 1)38 28 17 *
Bw 30}45 41)0 53)8 5)2 Silty clay 1)37 29 18 *
2BK 45}60 42)2 50)8 7)0 Silty clay 1)34 28 17 *
Note: SG, speci"c gravity; MWD, aggregate stability mean weight diameter; FC, volumetric soil moisture at "eld capacity; PWP,
volumetric soil moisture at permanent wilting point.
soils and evaporation in #at soils. This means loss of
water as surface runo! and consequent soil erosion
(Bradford et al., 1987 Hoogmoed & Stroosnijder, 1984;
Remley & Bradford, 1989).
The objective of this research was to study the e!ect of
surface crust on water front patterns under various rates
of water application from a trickle source.
2. Materials and methods
A "eld experiment was carried out during 1995/96 in
the University of Jordan Research Station located about
45 km Southeast of Amman, near Al-Muwaqqar village.
Generally, the area of that site is characterised by weak
vegetation cover, soil surface of high silt content, strong
structural surface crust with an average of 2 mm thick-
ness and weak soil surface aggregate stability. The soil
classi"cation of this area is "ne silty, mixed, thermic,
typic paleorthid with a slope of less than 1%. Some
physical and chemical properties of the soil are given in
Tables 1 and 2. The volumetric soil moisture at "eld
capacity (FC) and permanent wilting point (PWP) was
measured at 33 and 1500 kPa, respectively, using a ce-
ramic plate pressure apparatus (Peters, 1965). The correc-
ted measured basic in"ltration rate using single- and
double-ring in"ltrometers was 3)2 mmh (Al-Qinna
& Abu-Awwad, 1998).
The common trickle irrigation system used by the
Jordanian farmers consists of laterals 2 m apart with
emitters of 4}8 l h discharge spaced 0)5 m apart for
vegetable crops. Each emitter is assumed to water an area
of 1)0 m` (0)5 m by 2 m). A controlled Palm type of
emitter was used as a trickle point source with four
di!erent application rates; 6)2, 14)4, 24)4 and
28)4 mmh l h). The emitter consists of a small screw
"tted into an outer case. Water enters through an ori"ce
and travels the length of the sprial path, which reduces
the pressure and discharges out (0}100 l h) as a trickle
at a constant rate. A constant depth of irrigation water
25 mm (25 litre per emitter) was applied for each applica-
tion rate treatment. Each treatment was replicated
3 times. The initial soil moisture at which the wetting
front advance and in"ltration rate measurements were
carried out when the surface layer was air dried (volumet-
ric soil water content about 10%). The source of water
was tap water stored in tanks at the experiment site. The
average pH, electrical conductivity (EC) and sodium ad-
sorption ratio (SAR) values for tap water used in the
experiment were 7)5, 0)8 dS m and 8)23, respectively.
Soil water wetting patterns for di!erent application
rates from an emission point were examined in the "eld
using eosin red indicator. Eosin red was mixed with
irrigation water applied in a 25 l container. A trench was
dug at the end of the experiment run when water was
turned o!. The vertical and horizontal distance of the
wetting front was measured at 0, 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 15, 20, 25,
30, 40, 50, 60,
2
, and 150 cm from the point source.
A regression analysis technique has been used to study
the relationship between the movement of the wetting
front advance and the application rates.
3. Results and discussion
The mean wetting patterns as in#uenced by the di!er-
ent water application rates are presented in Fig. 1. The
horizontal width of wetting was higher than the vertical
wetting depth in the highest application rate treatments.
Increasing the application rate increased the rate of hori-
zontal water advance, while the vertical water advance
was markedly reduced as the application rate increases.
This could be attributed to:
(1) the presence of soil surfaces crust, which reduced
water in"ltration and enhanced the horizontal water
movement; and
(2) the increased saturated zone at the soil surface due to
an increased application rate.
Goldberg et al., (1971) reported that by increasing the
emitter discharge rate it is somewhat possible to increase
the lateral spread of the wetting front.
M. I. AL-QINNA; A. M. ABU-AWWAD 302
Table 2
Chemical soil properties for the experimented site
Horizon Depth, CO
3
, ECe, pH OM, Cations, me 100 g
!1
Iron oxide,
cm % dS/m % %
Na K Ca Mg
A1 0}15 22)3 1)50 8)32 1)00 0)7 2)01 10)5 3)2 2)25
BA 15}30 23)0 1)50 8)30 0)17 0)5 1)60 10)3 3)3 2)32
Bw 30}45 27)0 1)65 8)55 0)05 0)8 0)96 10)2 3)3 2)32
2BK 45}60 28)7 1)60 8)09 0)09 2)9 0)32 09)2 3)1 1)57
Note: CO
`
, carbonate; OM, organic matter; ECe, electrical conductivity of paste extract.
Fig. 1. Wetting pattern proxles for the four diwerent application rates (with equal volumes 25 l each of water applied):
, 28)4 mmh
1
; , 24)4 mmh
1
; , 14)4mmh
1
; , 6)2 mmh
1
In uncrusted soils, the area wetted at each emiss-
ion point is usually quite small at the soil surface and
expands somewhat with depth to form a bulb-shaped
cross-section. As examined in crusted areas, however, the
resultant area wetted at the soil surface was wide and
reduced with depth to form a &V'-shaped cross-section
(Fig. 1). The &V' shape becomes very sharp at the higher
application rates treatments and reduces to a &U' shape at
the lowest application rate. Soils su!ering from surface
crust in arid and semi-arid areas have the highest water-
loss potential due to evaporation from the large surface
wetted surface area and runo! (Al-Qinna & Abu-Awwad,
1998; Abu-Awwad, 1998). The selection of the appropri-
ate emitter spacing, amount of irrigation water and ap-
plication rate (emitter discharge) to be used on arid soils
su!ering from surface crust are thus of great importance.
In arid and semi-arid regions, in soils su!ering from
surface crust formation, emitter discharge should be as
low as possible to enhance vertical water penetration and
to reduce wetting soil surface, thereby minimizing water
loss by evaporation and increasing soil water storage in
the crop root zone. Increasing emitter spacing should
accompany increasing application rate (emitter dis-
charge) and vice versa.
Regression analysis between the wetting front width to
depth ratio and the application rate to basic in"ltration
rate ratio showed that the two were related by an ex-
ponential function with a value for the coe$cient of
determination r` of 0)99 (Fig. 2):
=/D"1)5(R/I)""` (3)
where: = and D are the horizontal (width) and the
vertical (depth) advance of the wetting front, respectively,
303 WETTI NG PATTERNS UNDER TRI CKLE SOURCE
Fig. 2. Relation between the wetting front advance, width to depth
ratio and application rate to basic inxltration rate ratio: , mea-
sured values; , Eqn (3)
Fig. 3. Regression analysis of the horizontal wetting front width
versus the application rate: , measured values; , Eqn (4)
Fig. 4. Regression analysis of the vertical wetting front depth
versus the application rate: , measured values; , Eqn (5)
in cm; and R and I are the application rate and the basic
in"ltration rate, respectively, in mmh.
For a trickle irrigation design, a regression analysis
was adopted for both the horizontal (>
F
) and vertical (>
T
)
advance of the wetting front versus the application rate
(Figs 3 and 4). These two equations are
>
F
"3)5781 R`"" (4)
with a value for the coe$cient of determination r` of 0)99,
and
>
T
"27)07 R"``` (5)
a value for the coe$cient of determination r` of 0)72
Equations (4) and (5) might help more in understanding
water movement through the soil surface su!ering from
surface crust formation and to get a proper optimization
of wetting geometry, thereby determining the optimal
water application rate that should be used on these
crusted soils to irrigate a de"ned crop or tree. It is
interesting to note that an increase in the application rate
increases the horizontal advance by increasing the
increments [Eqn (4)], while it increases the vertical ad-
vance of the wetting front by decreasing the increments
[Eqn (5)]. With constant irrigation depth, increasing the
application rate from 6)2 to 14)4 mmh (by 8)2 mmh)
increased the horizontal advance from about 28}73 cm
by 45 cm) but reduced the vertical advance of the wetting
front from about 13)7}10 cm (by 3)7 cm), owing only to
the negative e!ect of the soil surface crust. Thus, decreas-
ing the application rate will signi"cantly a!ect the hori-
zontal advance but not the vertical advance of the
wetting front.
In general, for the same soil type and application rate
(emitter discharge) emitter spacing in soils susceptible to
surface crust should be wider than the emitter spacing for
uncrusted soils.
4. Conclusions
The in#uence of emitter discharge on the wetting pattern
and distribution in arid and semi-arid soil su!ering from
surface crust formation has been studied. Four applica-
tion rates were tested with a constant volume of water
applied through a controlled Palm-type emitter using
eosin red indicator for the delineation of the wetting front
advance. The shape of wetting patterns on crusted soil
varied considerably from that of a typical bulb shaped to
that of a &V'-shaped cross-section depending upon the
application rate. A regression analysis indicated that
increasing the application rate increases horizontal
advance by increasing the increments but reduces the
vertical advance of the wetting front by decreasing
the increments owing to the negative e!ect of the soil
surface crust. Thus, decreasing the application rate will
signi"cantly a!ect the horizontal advance but not the
vertical advance of the wetting front. With the same soil
M. I. AL-QINNA; A. M. ABU-AWWAD 304
type and emitter discharge, emitter spacing in soils sus-
ceptible to surface crust should be wider than the emitter
spacing for uncrusted soils.
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305 WETTI NG PATTERNS UNDER TRI CKLE SOURCE