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Isotope‐based F luvial O rganic C arbon ( ISOFLOC ) M odel: Model formulation, sensitivity, and evaluation
Author(s) -
Ford William I.,
Fox James F.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1002/2015wr016999
Subject(s) - carbon fibers , biogeochemical cycle , environmental science , isotopes of carbon , carbon cycle , total organic carbon , particulates , dissolved organic carbon , total inorganic carbon , biogeochemistry , environmental chemistry , flux (metallurgy) , chemistry , hydrology (agriculture) , geology , ecosystem , ecology , carbon dioxide , materials science , biology , geotechnical engineering , organic chemistry , composite number , composite material
Watershed‐scale carbon budgets remain poorly understood, in part due to inadequate simulation tools to assess in‐stream carbon fate and transport. A new numerical model termed ISO tope‐based FL uvial O rganic C arbon ( ISOFLOC ) is formulated to simulate the fluvial organic carbon budget in watersheds where hydrologic, sediment transport, and biogeochemical processes are coupled to control benthic and transported carbon composition and flux. One ISOFLOC innovation is the formulation of new stable carbon isotope model subroutines that include isotope fractionation processes in order to estimate carbon isotope source, fate, and transport. A second innovation is the coupling of transfers between carbon pools, including algal particulate organic carbon, fine particulate and dissolved organic carbon, and particulate and dissolved inorganic carbon, to simulate the carbon cycle in a comprehensive manner beyond that of existing watershed water quality models. ISOFLOC was tested and verified in a low‐gradient, agriculturally impacted stream. Results of a global sensitivity analysis suggested the isotope response variable had unique sensitivity to the coupled interaction between fluvial shear resistance of algal biomass and the concentration of dissolved inorganic carbon. Model calibration and validation suggested good agreement at event, seasonal, and annual timescales. Multiobjective uncertainty analysis suggested inclusion of the carbon stable isotope routine reduced uncertainty by 80% for algal particulate organic carbon flux estimates.