Evaporation, Seepage and Water Quality Management in Storage Dams: A Review of Research Methods

Title
Evaporation, Seepage and Water Quality Management in Storage Dams: A Review of Research Methods
Publication Date
2007
Author(s)
Craig, Ian
Aravinthan, Vasantha
Foley, Joe
Hancock, Nigel
Lamb, David
Morrison, Pippa
Misra, Rabi
Mossad, Ruth
Pittaway, Pam
Prime, Emma
Rees, Steve
Schmidt, Erik
Baillie, Craig
Solomon, David
Symes, Troy
Turnbull, David
Beswick, Alan
Barnes, Geoff
Bradbury, Ronald
Connell, Luke
Coop, Paul Andrew
Fellows, Christopher
( author )
OrcID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8976-8651
Email: cfellows@une.edu.au
UNE Id une-id:cfellows
Fitzmaurice, Li
Type of document
Journal Article
Language
en
Entity Type
Publication
Publisher
Australian Institute of Environmental Health
Place of publication
Australia
UNE publication id
une:8180
Abstract
One of the most significant sources of water wastage in Australia is loss from small storage dams, either by seepage or evaporation. Over much of Australia, evaporative demand routinely exceeds precipitation. This paper outlines first, methodologies and measurement techniques to quantify the rate of evaporative loss from fresh water storages. These encompass high-accuracy water balance monitoring; determination of the validity of alternative estimation equations, in particular the FAO56 Penman Monteith ETo methodology; and the commencement of CFD modeling to determine a 'dam factor' in relation to practical atmospheric measurement techniques. Second, because the application of chemical monolayers is the only feasible alternative to the high cost of physically covering the storages to retard evaporation, the use of cetyl alcohol-based monolayers is reviewed, and preliminary research on their degradation by photolytic action, by wind break-up and by microbial degradation reported. Similarly, preliminary research on monolayer visualisation techniques for field application is reported; and potential enhancement of monolayers by other chemicals and attendant water quality issues are considered.
Link
Citation
Environmental Health, 7(3), p. 84-97
ISSN
1832-3367
1444-5212
Start page
84
End page
97

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