Zhang et al. (2025) Coupled surface water-groundwater-crop model considering the impact of irrigation using different calibration targets

Identification

• Journal: Journal of Hydrology
• Year: 2025
• Date: 2025-11-07
• Authors: Yuliang Zhang, Jiejie Zhang, Vijay P. Singh, Yuliang Zhou, Yi Cui, Qingxia Lin, Juliang Jin, Shaowei Ning, Zhiyong Wu, Rongxing Zhou, Jieru Yan, Shiqin Xu
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.134556

Research Groups

• School of Civil Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, China
• College of Hydrology and Water Resources, Hohai University, Nanjing, China
• Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering & Zachry Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
• National Water & Energy Center, UAE University, Al Ain, UAE
• College of Hydraulic and Environmental Engineering, Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
• Hydrology, Agriculture and Land Observation (HALO) Laboratory, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia

Short Summary

This study developed a coupled VIC-EPIC-HYDRUS (VEH) model to improve the simulation accuracy of hydrological processes on agricultural land, considering irrigation impacts, and demonstrated its superior performance through multi-objective parameter optimization and validation.

Objective

• To develop a coupled surface water-groundwater-crop model (VIC-EPIC-HYDRUS) that accurately simulates hydrological processes on agricultural land, including the impact of irrigation, by integrating a groundwater module (HYDRUS) and a scheme for irrigation effects into the VIC-EPIC framework.
• To validate the simulation accuracy of the developed VEH model and compare its performance against existing models (VIC-HYDRUS, VIC-EPIC, SWAT) using different calibration targets, specifically focusing on groundwater depth, soil moisture, and crop evapotranspiration.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Qingkou River Basin, northern Jiangsu, China.
• Temporal Scale: Not explicitly stated in the provided text.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC), Environmental Policy Integrated Climate (EPIC), HYDRUS. The developed model is VIC-EPIC-HYDRUS (VEH). Comparisons were made with VIC-HYDRUS, VIC-EPIC, and Soil & Water Assessment Tool (SWAT).
• Data sources: Remote sensing evapotranspiration data, ground-observed soil moisture data.

Main Results

• The coupled VIC-EPIC-HYDRUS (VEH) model achieved superior performance, exhibiting 17.1%, 4.1%, and 14.5% lower total errors compared to VIC-HYDRUS, VIC-EPIC, and SWAT models, respectively.
• The EPIC module contributed most significantly to the overall model improvement.
• The HYDRUS module specifically enhanced soil moisture simulation accuracy by 20.4%.
• Incorporating ground-observed soil moisture data as a calibration target reduced the total error by 29.0%, highlighting its importance for model calibration.
• Incorporating remote sensing evapotranspiration data slightly decreased evapotranspiration error.

Contributions

• Development of a novel, comprehensive coupled surface water-groundwater-crop model (VIC-EPIC-HYDRUS) that explicitly considers the impact of irrigation on agricultural hydrological processes.
• Demonstration of significant improvements in hydrological simulation accuracy, particularly for soil moisture, by integrating detailed crop growth (EPIC) and groundwater flow (HYDRUS) modules into a hydrological model.
• Quantification of the individual contributions of integrated modules (EPIC and HYDRUS) to overall model performance and specific hydrological element simulation accuracy.
• Emphasizing the critical role of high-quality ground-observed soil moisture data in multi-objective parameter optimization for substantially reducing total simulation error.

Funding

Not mentioned in the provided text.

Citation

@article{Zhang2025Coupled,
  author = {Zhang, Yuliang and Zhang, Jiejie and Singh, Vijay P. and Zhou, Yuliang and Cui, Yi and Lin, Qingxia and Jin, Juliang and Ning, Shaowei and Wu, Zhiyong and Zhou, Rongxing and Yan, Jieru and Xu, Shiqin},
  title = {Coupled surface water-groundwater-crop model considering the impact of irrigation using different calibration targets},
  journal = {Journal of Hydrology},
  year = {2025},
  doi = {10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.134556},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.134556}
}

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