Abstract
Parameter estimation is a significant aspect of modeling flow through porous media. To avoid any nonuniqueness issues in parameters estimation, it is important to have a deep understanding of the information content and reliability of the available data. In this study, sensitivity and estimability analyses were conducted to compare the outcomes of two successive irrigation events. Water flow through soil was simulated using HYDRUS-2D for two successive irrigation periods. Sensitivity coefficients were evaluated to quantify the sensitivity of pressure head, water content, and cumulative fluxes to five crucial soil hydraulic parameters (namely, , , , , and ). The estimability analysis is further extended to determine the correlation among these parameters. Results show that sensitivity of pressure head, water content, and cumulative fluxes to the parameters is higher after the first irrigation event in comparison to the second one. The parameters were also found to be more estimable during the first irrigation event. The pressure head was proved to contain the best information content, followed by water content data. It was also inferred that cumulative fluxes data are not suitable to estimate parameters individually. Out of the five parameters, was found to be the most sensitive and estimable parameter, while comes out to be the least sensitive and estimable parameter. This study helps in estimating the information content of the available data and identifying the most estimable parameters with the least correlation.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request: Pressure head, water content, and ion concentration data obtained through experiments and numerical modeling.
Acknowledgments
The authors are grateful to the editor of the Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering and the two anonymous reviewers whose constructive reviews and suggestions have immensely enhanced the clarity of the manuscript. The authors also appreciate the support received from the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, India.
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Published In
Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 148 • Issue 7 • July 2022
Copyright
© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 13, 2021
Accepted: Mar 15, 2022
Published online: May 2, 2022
Published in print: Jul 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Oct 2, 2022
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