The daily mean zero-flux plane during soil-controlled evaporation: A Green's function approach

Abstract

A solution is presented of the linearized Richards equation with inclusion of gravity and with appropriate boundary conditions describing the combined soil-controlled surface evaporation and the downward infiltration, following the application of a given amount of precipitation or irrigation. This solution is shown to agree with available field measurements, namely the evolution with time of the zero-flux plane depth and of the rate of soil-controlled evaporation from the bare soil surface. The problem is solved by means of the Green's function method; the result is general enough to be also applicable to flow problems in linear soils with boundary conditions substantially different from the ones considered herein.