Sand box experiments to evaluate the influence of subsurface temperature probe design on temperature based water flux calculation

Abstract

Abstract. Quantification of subsurface water fluxes based on the one dimensional solution to the heat transport equation depends on the accuracy of measured subsurface temperatures. The influence of temperature probe setup on the accuracy of vertical water flux calculation was systematically evaluated in this experimental study. Four temperature probe setups were installed into a sand box experiment to measure temporal highly resolved vertical temperature profiles under controlled water fluxes in the range of ±1.3 m d−1. Pass band filtering provided amplitude differences and phase shifts of the diurnal temperature signal varying with depth depending on water flux. Amplitude ratios of setups directly installed into the saturated sediment significantly varied with sand box hydraulic gradients. Amplitude ratios provided an accurate basis for the analytical calculation of water flow velocities, which matched measured flow velocities. Calculated flow velocities were sensitive to thermal properties of saturated sediment and to temperature sensor spacing, but insensitive to thermal dispersivity equal to solute dispersivity. Amplitude ratios of temperature probe setups indirectly installed into piezometer pipes were influenced by thermal exchange processes within the pipes and significantly varied with water flux direction only. Temperature time lags of small sensor distances of all setups were found to be insensitive to vertical water flux.