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Rinsing of Saline Water from Road Salt in a Sandy Soil by Infiltrating Rainfall: Experiments, Simulations, and Implications

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Abstract

Saline melt water from road salt applications that has percolated into a fine sandy soil in winter is rinsed out of the soil by infiltrating rainwater in the following warmer seasons. This sequence of saturated and unsaturated flow processes associated with saline water transport in a fine sandy soil was studied by simulation and exploratory laboratory experiments. Experiments in soil columns of 300-μm sand revealed that two rinses of pure water, each of one pore volume, were sufficient to reduce the salt concentration by 99% of its original value in the soil column. Simulated time variations of salt concentration in the effluent from the column agreed with experimental results. Based on simulated and experimental results, a sandy soil must become saturated to experience pore water flow in order to efficiently rinse saline snowmelt water. Depending on the saturated hydraulic conductivity and the soil depth, days, weeks, or months of freshwater infiltration in summer are needed to rinse saline melt water from an unsaturated sandy soil after road salt applications in winter. This explains findings of significant salt concentrations in surface and shallow groundwater during summer months, long after road salt application and infiltration has ceased.

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Abbreviations

C :

Concentration of salt (g cm−3)

C c :

Specific moisture capacity (cm−1)

D m :

Molecular diffusion coefficient of salt (cm2 s−1)

d s :

Grain diameter (cm)

D zz :

Dispersion coefficient (cm2 s−1)

g :

Gravitational acceleration (9.8 m s−2)

K e :

Effective hydraulic conductivity (cm s−1)

K s :

Hydraulic conductivity at saturation (cm s−1)

l :

The constant (=0.5)

L :

Soil depth (cm)

m :

The constant

n :

The constant (=2.68)

p :

Pressure (N m−2)

S e :

Effective water saturation

S s :

Specific storage coefficient (cm−1)

t :

Time (hour)

t + :

Normalized time

t dry :

Time required for effective hydraulic conductivity to reduce to less than 10% of the value at saturation (hours)

t s :

Time required to become saturated (hours)

t r :

Time required to reduce the total amount of salt in the soil to less than 1% of its initial value from a soil initially at saturation (hours)

t total :

Time required to remove salt from a soil initially at field capacity (hours)

u :

Velocity of pore water flow (cm s−1)

z :

Vertical coordinate (cm)

α :

The constant (=0.145)

β :

The constant (β = 0 for saturated soil and β = 1 for unsaturated soil)

θ :

Water content

θ r :

Residual water content

θ s :

Water content at saturation

ρ :

Fluid (water) density (g cm−3)

Ψ :

Pressure head (suction) (cm)

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (No. 25420532). The lead author is grateful to this organization for the support. The experiments were supported by the NSF-funded Research Experience of Undergraduates, award NSF EAR-1461006, to the University of Minnesota. An anonymous reviewer made valuable suggestions for additions to the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Oita National College of Technology, 1666 Maki, Oita, 870-0152, Japan

    Makoto Higashino

  2. St. Anthony Falls Laboratory, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55414, USA

    Andrew J. Erickson & Heinz G. Stefan

  3. Department of Geology, University of Puerto Rico, Marina St., Mayaguez, PR, 00681, Puerto Rico

    Francesca L. Toledo-Cossu

  4. Department of Hydrology, Salish Kootenai College, Polson, MT, USA

    Scott W. Beauvais

  5. Department of Civil, Environmental and Geo- Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA

    Heinz G. Stefan

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  1. Makoto Higashino
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  2. Andrew J. Erickson
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  3. Francesca L. Toledo-Cossu
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  4. Scott W. Beauvais
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  5. Heinz G. Stefan
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Correspondence to Makoto Higashino.

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Higashino, M., Erickson, A.J., Toledo-Cossu, F.L. et al. Rinsing of Saline Water from Road Salt in a Sandy Soil by Infiltrating Rainfall: Experiments, Simulations, and Implications. Water Air Soil Pollut 228, 80 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-017-3256-1

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