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ARS Home » Plains Area » El Reno, Oklahoma » Oklahoma and Central Plains Agricultural Research Center » Livestock, Forage and Pasture Management Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #376297
Research Project: Integrated Agroecosystem Research to Enhance Forage and Food Production in the Southern Great Plains

Location: Livestock, Forage and Pasture Management Research Unit

Title: Evaluation of water use efficiency algorithms for flux variance similarity-based evapotranspiration partitioning in C3 and C4 grain groups

Author
item Wagle, Pradeep
item Skaggs, Todd
item Gowda, Prasanna
item Northup, Brian
item Neel, James
item Anderson, Raymond - Ray

Submitted to: American Geophysical Union
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/1/2020
Publication Date: 12/15/2020
Citation: Wagle, P., Skaggs, T.H., Gowda, P.H., Northup, B.K., Neel, J.P., Anderson, R.G. 2020. Evaluation of water use efficiency algorithms for flux variance similarity-based evapotranspiration partitioning in C3 and C4 grain groups. American Geophysical Union. https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm20/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/667569.

Interpretive Summary: Abstract only

Technical Abstract: Flux Variance Similarity (FVS)-based evapotranspiration (ET) partitioning method is gaining popularity due to its significant advantages of logistical and spatial representativeness over other ET partitioning methods. The FVS partitioning requires estimating leaf-level water use efficiency (WUE) if WUE measurements are not available. The WUE can be estimated from eddy covariance (EC) data for carbon dioxide and water vapor, plus (usually) a parameterized model for the intercellular carbon dioxide concentration (ci). Despite the high sensitivity of FVS partitioning to WUE estimations, relatively little work has been done comparing ci models and WUE algorithms. We tested four ci parameterizations (Constant ppm, Constant ratio, Linear, and Square root) and one optimized WUE approach. All models were evaluated using high frequency EC data during peak growth for three rainfed C3 grain crops (wheat - Triticum aestivum L., canola - Brassica napus L., and soybean - Glycine max L.) and two irrigated C4 grain crops (maize - Zea mays L. and grain sorghum - Sorghum bicolor L. Moench). Although Linear and Sqrt models produced more results for soybean, Constant ppm and Constant ratio models consistently resulted in large numbers of successful half-hour partitioned fluxes for all other crops. Differences in number of successful partitioned outputs occurred mainly due to incompatible WUE estimates. Large ranges in ratios of transpiration to ET (i.e., 0.06 in soybean, 0.10-0.12 in wheat, canola, and maize, and 0.22 in grain sorghum) were observed among the models. This study offers insights into performances of different WUE models for the FVS partitioning of ET in different grain crops.