Revealing multi-path runoff erosion process driven by rock-surface flow scouring on rocky desertification slopes

IF 5.7 1区农林科学 Q1 GEOSCIENCES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY

Catena Pub Date : 2025-09-20 DOI:10.1016/j.catena.2025.109466

Zihong Wei , Xudong Peng , Wei Yang , Zhuyu Zhang , Quanhou Dai , Ziqian Shi

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Rock surface flow (RSF) is a form of runoff resulting from the secondary redistribution of natural precipitation across exposed bedrock outcrops in karst regions. The RSF can scour the limited soils around the exposed bedrock outcrops from the surface and subsurface. However, it is still unclear what changes will occur in the multi-path runoff erosion process of complex rock–soil structures under the scouring of RSF. To address this problem, this study invented a simulated rock–soil structure device where the RSF enters the soil at an angle to scour the soils at the surface and rock–soil interface (RSI), simulating the scouring erosion driven by the RSF. Hence, a series of RSF scouring experiments on undisturbed soil at the RSI, collected from around outcrops in a representative rocky desertification control plot in a typical karst area of China, were conducted. Results demonstrate that the RSF primarily transforms into RSI flow and underground pore (UG) flow, with the flow volume ranked as UG > RSI > surface. This runoff transformation facilitates substantial subsurface soil loss, with RSI and UG flows contributing 44.4 % and 44.1 % of the total soil loss, respectively. The RSI and UG flows are the primary mechanisms driving subsurface soil leakage, with the RSI acting as a key conduit for stable soil loss. Sediment yield from the RSI showed a significant positive linear correlation with runoff yield (p < 0.05). The RSF flow volume (RSFfv) was significantly (p < 0.05) positively correlated with sediment yield across surface, RSI, and UG pathways, while the inclination of the rock surface (IRS) showed a non-significant positive trend. These findings provide novel insights into soil erosion processes on rocky desertification slopes with extensive outcrops. Incorporating RSF-induced erosion into predictive soil erosion models will improve their accuracy and reliability in karst rocky desertification (KRD) areas.

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揭示石漠化坡面岩面流冲刷驱动的多路径径流侵蚀过程

岩石地表流（RSF）是喀斯特地区裸露的基岩露头上自然降水的二次再分配所产生的径流形式。RSF可以从地表和地下冲刷裸露基岩露头周围的有限土壤。然而，复杂岩土结构的多径径流侵蚀过程在RSF冲刷下会发生怎样的变化，目前还不清楚。为了解决这一问题，本研究发明了一种模拟岩土结构装置，该装置将RSF以一定角度进入土壤，对地表和岩土界面（RSI）处的土壤进行冲刷，模拟RSF驱动的冲刷侵蚀。为此，选取中国典型喀斯特地区代表性石漠化治理地块露头周围的RSI未扰动土壤进行了一系列RSF冲刷试验。结果表明：RSF主要转化为RSI流和地下孔隙（UG）流，流量为UG >； RSI >；面；这种径流转化促进了大量的地下土壤流失，RSI和UG流分别占土壤总流失量的44.4%和44.1%。RSI流和UG流是驱动地下土壤渗漏的主要机制，其中RSI流是稳定土壤流失的关键渠道。RSI产沙量与径流量呈显著的线性正相关（p < 0.05）。RSF流量（RSFfv）与地表产沙量、RSI和UG路径呈显著正相关（p < 0.05），而岩石表面倾斜度（IRS）呈不显著正相关。这些发现为研究大面积露头的石漠化斜坡上的土壤侵蚀过程提供了新的见解。在喀斯特石漠化地区将rf侵蚀纳入土壤侵蚀预测模型将提高预测模型的准确性和可靠性。

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来源期刊

Catena 环境科学-地球科学综合

CiteScore

10.50

自引率

9.70%

发文量

816

审稿时长

54 days

期刊介绍： Catena publishes papers describing original field and laboratory investigations and reviews on geoecology and landscape evolution with emphasis on interdisciplinary aspects of soil science, hydrology and geomorphology. It aims to disseminate new knowledge and foster better understanding of the physical environment, of evolutionary sequences that have resulted in past and current landscapes, and of the natural processes that are likely to determine the fate of our terrestrial environment. Papers within any one of the above topics are welcome provided they are of sufficiently wide interest and relevance.