ISOTOPES IN

EVAPOTRANSPIRATION
STUDY

By
Swetha V S
ISOTOPES:
• Isotopes are substances with same atomic number but different mass number.
• This means that the number of protons/electrons are same in atoms but not the
number of neutrons.
• Examples: 13C, 14C (abundant one is 12C – 6 protons, 6 neutrons)

7n 8n
Other examples: 3H, 2H (abundant 1H),
17
O, 18O (abundant 16O)
 TYPES OF ISOTOPES

Based on stability

Stable isotopes Radioactive isotopes

Those that do not undergo They undergo spontaneous

Radioactive decay. time-dependent decay to
Examples: 2H, 15N form new elements or
isotopes.
Examples: 14C, 3H
 TYPES OF ISOTOPES

Based on source

Natural isotopes Artificial isotopes

Either stable isotopes or radioactive They are artificially made in

isotopes that have a sufficiently long half- the laboratory. (Generally
life to allow them to exist in substantial radioactive)
concentrations in the Earth Examples: 95Tc
Examples: 238U
ISOTOPE FRACTIONATION

• Enrichment of one isotope relative to another in a physical or chemical process.

• Isotope fractionation during phase change is an example of a physical pathway.
• Chemical mode generally involves equilibrium of two species of same element
with different isotopic enrichment(Example: H3BO3 and B(OH)4-).
Evapotranspiration
• Definition: Loss of water from the soil both by
evaporation from the soil surface and by
transpiration from the leaves of the plants
growing on it.

• Stable isotopes can be used in the partitioning of

evapotranspiration into soil evaporation and plant
transpiration.

• The principle is ET changes both the water

content and isotope distribution within a soil
profile.
Significance of evapotranspiration
• Quantitative estimation of transpiration to total evapotranspiration plays a crucial
role in water resource management and monitoring crop productivity.
• For example, determination of amount of water consumed in plant activities can
help in adopting appropriate measures to control evaporative loss in agricultural
land.
• Evapotranspiration studies can also be used in studying variational patterns in
monsoon seasons.
• ET partitioning using stable isotope method involves the principle of isotopic
mass balance.
• ET = E + T
• δETET = δEE + δTT (T/ET is the target)
• This is generally called the isotopic two-source model.
• One must have the value of δET, δE, δT to use this model
to evaluate T/ET.
 δET
Keeling plot approach
• CV = Cbg + CET
• CVδV = Cbgδbg + CETδET
• Cbg/Cv = χbg/χv
• δV = χbg(δbg − δET)(1/χV) + δET
• Intercept of δV vs (1/χV)
gives δET
δE δT
Craig-Gordon model Isotopic steady state- δT = δX
i.e., assuming isotope
composition of transpired
where water is same as the isotopic
• αeq (> 1) -equilibrium composition of source water.
fractionation factor calculated
as a function of water surface
temperature
• δL- isotopic composition of soil
water at the evaporating
surface
• εeq = (1 − 1/αeq) × 103 (‰)
• εk - kinetic fractionation,
• h - atmospheric relative
humidity in reference to the
surface water temperature.
Factors under consideration:
• Temperature:
As temperature increases, rate of evapotranspiration increases.

35.0
Average Temperature (oC)

30.0

25.0

20.0

15.0

10.0

5.0

0.0
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Average Temperature of October 2022

• Relative humidity:
Rate of evapotranspiration is inversely proportional to the relative humidity.

100

90
Average relative humidity ( %)

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Date

Average Relative Humidity of October 2022