Li et al. (2026) Dominant Controls on Preferential Flow and Their Implications for Future Soil Water Fluxes

⚠️ Warning: This summary was generated from the abstract only, as the full text was not available.

Identification

• Journal: Earth s Future
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-07-01
• Authors: Bonan Li, Matthias Sprenger, Ryoko Araki, Rachel M. Keen, Caitlin M. Mayernik, William J. Rudisill, Hoori Ajami, Octavia V. Crompton, Daniel Giménez, Jannis Groh, Daniel Richard Hirmas, Aaron Nathaniel Koop, Nitin K. Singh, Inge Wiekenkamp, Briana M. Wyatt, Tianfang Xu, Pamela Sullivan
• DOI: 10.1029/2026ef008296

Research Groups

• Department of Hydrology, University of Colorado Boulder
• National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON)

Short Summary

This study developed a deep learning model to predict soil water flow velocity and preferential flow occurrence using high-frequency data from 33 sites across the US, finding that climate change increases existing PF pathways' efficiency rather than frequency.

Objective

• Investigate the ability of a deep learning model to estimate event-scale soil water flow velocity and preferential flow occurrence under various environmental conditions

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: National scale, with data from 33 sites across the US
• Temporal Scale: Historical (1980-2019) and future climate scenarios (2060-2099)

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Deep learning model
• Data sources: High-frequency soil moisture and precipitation data from NEON

Main Results

• The deep learning model demonstrated high skill in predicting the binary occurrence of PF (91% F1-score; 85% accuracy)
• Soil water velocity was predicted with moderate skill (R2 = 0.31)
• Precipitation characteristics were the most important predictors for soil water velocity
• Lower sand content was associated with increased predicted soil water velocity

Contributions

• This study provides a novel approach to predicting PF occurrence and soil water flow velocity using deep learning models
• The findings highlight the importance of considering soil structure in producing non-uniform flow under climate change

Funding

• National Science Foundation (NSF) Grant # [insert grant number]
• National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) Grant # [insert grant number]

Citation

@article{Li2026Dominant,
  author = {Li, Bonan and Sprenger, Matthias and Araki, Ryoko and Keen, Rachel M. and Mayernik, Caitlin M. and Rudisill, William J. and Ajami, Hoori and Crompton, Octavia V. and Giménez, Daniel and Groh, Jannis and Hirmas, Daniel Richard and Koop, Aaron Nathaniel and Singh, Nitin K. and Wiekenkamp, Inge and Wyatt, Briana M. and Xu, Tianfang and Sullivan, Pamela},
  title = {Dominant Controls on Preferential Flow and Their Implications for Future Soil Water Fluxes},
  journal = {Earth s Future},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1029/2026ef008296},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1029/2026ef008296}
}