z

Returning water to the atmosphere

z

Evaporation,
Transpiration &
Evapotranspiration
 Evaporation
z (E)

- A process by which water is change from the liquid or solid state into the
gaseous state through the transfer of heat energy.

- It occurs when some water molecules attain sufficient kinetic energy to

break through the water surface and escape into the atmosphere (600 cal
needed to evaporate 1 gram of water).

- Depends on the supply of heat energy and the vapor pressure gradient
(which, in turn, depends on water and air temperatures, wind, atmospheric
pressure, solar radiation, etc.).
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Essential requirements in the process are:

 The source of energy to vaporize the liquid water (solar or wind)

 The presence of gradient of concentration between the evaporating

surface and the surrounding air.
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Evaporation is defined as a function of the differences in the vapour
pressure of the water and the vapour pressure in the air.

E = (es – ed) f(u)

E = evaporation
es = saturation vapour pressure at the temperature of evaporating surface
ed = saturation vapour pressure at the dew point temperature of the atmosphere
f(u) = a function of the wind velocity
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Factors Affecting Evaporation:

 Meteorological Factors

 The Nature of the Evaporating Surface

 Meteorological
z Factors
o Solar Radiation:
• Evaporation is a process of energy exchange.
• Solar radiation supply the energy necessary for the liquid water
molecules to evaporate.

o Relative Humidity:
• As the humidity of air increases its ability to absorb more water vapor
decreases, and the rate of evaporation becomes slower.

o The temperature of air:

• Temperature increase saturation vapor pressure (increases saturation
deficit)
• High temperature implies that there is energy available for evaporation.
 z

o Wind:
• As the liquid water vaporizes from a water body, the air adjacent to this
body will be saturated.
• For the continuation of evaporation, this saturated air should be
removed. This is possible by wind.

o Atmospheric Pressure:
• An increase in atmospheric pressure prevents the movement of
molecules out of water.
 The Nature
z of the Evaporating Surface
o Temperature of liquid water:
• High liquid water temperature means high molecular motion in the water
and the number of molecules leaving the water body will be high.

o Salinity:
• Adversely affects evaporation. 1% increase in salt concentration  1%
decrease in evaporation.

o Aerodynamic characteristics of the surface:

• Roughness, texture or size of the surface.

o Reflection coefficient (albedo) of the surface:

• High albedo  Low evaporation from the surface.
Methodszof Estimating Evaporation

 Energy Budget Methods

 Water Budget Methods

 Combination of Energy and Mass transfer (Penman equation)

 Pan Evaporating Data

All these methods were developed to estimate evaporation from free water
surfaces (or completely saturated soil).
 Energy Budget Method
z

𝒈 −𝒄𝒂𝒍
Es [ ] = (Ea + Rt) – (Rr + Ee + Hn + R1)
𝒄𝒎𝟐=𝒅𝒂𝒚

Ea
Amount zof Evaporation (E)

𝑚𝑚 𝐸𝑒
E [ ] = 10
𝑑𝑎𝑦 𝐻𝑣

𝑔 −𝑐𝑎𝑙
Hv [ ] = 596 – 0.52T (latent heat of evaporation)
𝑐𝑚3

T[°C] – temperature of the water surface

 z
Characteristics of Energy Budget Method:

 Most accurate method (evaporation is a function of energy state of water system)

 Difficult to evaluate all terms

 Energy balance equation has to be simplified

 Empirical formulas are used (although radiation measurements are preferable)

  Water Budget Method
z

Continuity Equation:
 Penman (Combination) Method
z

Using energy budget and mass transport method, Penman (1956) proposed a
new equation which gives a good estimation of evaporation from lakes for daily to
monthly periods.
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The values of Qn and Ea are determined The definition of the terms are as follows:
from the following equations:
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Penman (Combination) Method requires:

 Mean air temperature

 Relative Humidity

 Wind Velocity

 Duration of sunshine
 Pan Evaporating Data
z

Direct measurement of evaporation is possible using evaporation pan.

The most widely use pan is the standard U.S. Weather Bureau Class A pan.

Daily measurements: height of water & volume of water / day,

Anemometer to measure the wind and Precipitation gauge nearby the pan.
 z

 Due to the heating of water by the walls of

the pan, pan measurement should be

corrected by a coefficient.

 The pan coefficient may change from time to

time or from one locating to another.

 Transpiration
z (T)

- It is the process by which water vapour leaves the

living plant body and enters the atmosphere.

- It involves continuous flow of water from soil in to

plant and out through stomata (leaves) to the
atmosphere.
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Factors Affecting Evaporation:

o Climate
• Light intensity
• Atmospheric vapour pressure
• Temperature
• Wind
o Soil
• Availability of water
o Plant Factors
• Extent and efficiency of root system
• Leaf area
• Leaf arrangement & structure
• Stomatal behavior
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Measurement of Transpiration

A patometer sometimes known as transpirometer is a device used for

measuring the rate of transpiration.
 Evapotranspiration
z (ET)
- It is the quantity of water transpired by the
plants during their growth or retained in plant
tissue, plus the moisture evaporated from the
surface of the soil and the vegetation.

- It accounts for the movement of water to the

air from sources such as the soil, canopy
interception, and water bodies.
Evapotranspiration
z Type

 Potential Evapotranspiration (PET)

- It is the theoretical amount of moisture that could be lost from the

surface to the atmosphere if it were available.

- The amount of moisture which, if available, would be removed from a

given land area by evapotranspiration. Expressed in units of water depth.
 Effective
z Evapotranspiration (EET)

- It is the actual amount of water lost due to evapotranspiration from the

soil along with actively growing plant or crop.

- It depends upon plant and soil characteristics, and upon the amount of
available water in the soil.
 z of Evapotranspiration
Estimation

1. Lysimeter experiment
2. Field experiment plots
3. Soil moisture depletion studies
4. Water balance or budget method
5. Eddy covariance
6. Using US-open pan evaporimeter
7. Energy balance