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Isotopic evolution of snowmelt 2. Verification and parameterization of a one‐dimensional model using laboratory experiments
Author(s) -
Taylor Susan,
Feng Xiahong,
Renshaw Carl E.,
Kirchner James W.
Publication year - 2002
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 - 10.1029/2001wr000815
Subject(s) - snow , snowpack , snowmelt , meltwater , percolation (cognitive psychology) , range (aeronautics) , atmospheric sciences , geology , environmental science , soil science , mineralogy , hydrology (agriculture) , materials science , geomorphology , geotechnical engineering , neuroscience , composite material , biology
Three controlled cold room experiments were conducted to verify and parameterize a one‐dimensional (1‐D) model that simulates the isotopic composition of meltwater exiting the base of a snowpack. In the model, snow melts at the surface at a constant rate, and water percolates down the column while exchanging isotopically with ice. The effective rate of isotopic exchange and hence the isotopic composition of the melt at a given time is determined by the exchange rate constant k r , the height of the original snowpack, the percolation velocity u*, and the liquid to ice ratio in the exchange system. The experiments were designed to have different effective rates of exchange by varying the height of the snow column and the melt rate. Fitting the model to each of the experiments yielded k r values that fall in a narrow range, 0.14 to 0.17 hr −1 , confirming that k r is an intrinsic rate constant for isotopic exchange. Knowing this value is important for developing future models, in which more complicated hydrological conditions are considered.