Factor Fp Research Articles

Strategies for Sustainable Water Management

Groundwater in the Rania basin, Iraqi Kurdistan region, has been under intensive exploitation in the last two decades, where quantity and quality are both affected. Hence, any attempt to protect the aquifers has become an urgent need. Saruchawa, Qulai Rania, and Qulai Kanimaran are the three large springs, among dozens of others in the area, that are heavily relied on as the sole or main source of water supply. Hydrochemical analysis, the first and most practical step to evaluating the water quality, was carried out through 60 water samples collected from 13 springs and 17 wells in both dry and wet seasons (October 2018 and May 2019). Laboratory results show a high calcium bicarbonate concentration with weak acids’ dominance. Protection zones are delineated for these springs using aquifer susceptibility to contamination and analysis of the recession part of the spring curves. The equivalent relationship between the protection factor (Fp) produced by the Epikarst, protective cover, infiltration condition, and Karst network development mapping method and the groundwater protection zone (S) is considered. Qulai Rania and Kanimaran Springs are mapped to be in S2 (a highly vulnerable area), whereas Saruchawa Spring is located in S1 (very highly vulnerable). Based on the second method results (recession curve analyses), all three selected springs fall under the (D-type) vulnerability category. As a result, the immediate protection zone was going to be surrounded by the inner protection zone, and both are enclosed within the outer protection zone, which covers the remainder of the catchment area.

Simultaneously improve the Purcell factor and internal quantum efficiency of light-emitting diodes via surface plasmon by metal conic structure

Recent advances in the development of surface plasmons (SPs) enhanced LED have provided a great opportunity to enhance either the internal quantum efficiency (IQE) or the spontaneous emission rate (SE) by employing specific metal structures. However, it is still challenging to simultaneously achieve high IQE and Purcell factor (Fp), which demonstrates the SE enhancement, without sacrificing the electrical performance of LEDs. Herein, we designed and investigated a conic metal structure applied to LEDs by comprehensively considering the electrical, optical, and data transmission performance of devices. Conic structures with various heights were implemented to investigate the variation trends of IQE and Fp with the structure design, accompanied by the planar structures as references. A more than five times increase in IQE and almost five times increase in Fp were demonstrated experimentally even with a coupling distance of 100 nm, by employing this conic structure. The theoretical analysis was verified by the experimental results and revealed the mechanism of high Fp and IQE toward high SP–photon coupling efficiency and initial IQE. This study provides a universal strategy to enhance the performance of luminous efficiency and modulation speed of LEDs without sacrificing electrical properties, making them viable for the integration of lighting, display, and communication.

Multiobjective Inverse Design of Solid-State Quantum Emitter Single-Photon Sources

Single solid-state quantum emitters offer considerable potential for the implementation of sources of single indistinguishable photons, which are central to many photonic quantum information systems. Nanophotonic geometry optimization with multiple performance metrics is imperative to convert a bare quantum emitter into a single-photon source that approaches the necessary levels of purity, indistinguishability, and brightness for quantum photonics. We present an inverse design methodology that simultaneously targets two important figures-of-merit for high-performance quantum light sources: the Purcell radiative rate enhancement and the coupling efficiency into a desired light collection channel. We explicitly address geometry-dependent power emission, a critical but often overlooked aspect of gradient-based optimization of quantum emitter single-photon sources. We illustrate the efficacy of our method through the design of a single-photon source based on a quantum emitter in a GaAs nanophotonic structure that provides a Purcell factor Fp = 21 with a 94% waveguide coupling efficiency, while respecting a geometric constraint to minimize emitter decoherence caused by etched sidewalls. Our results indicate that multiobjective inverse design can yield competitive performance with more favorable trade-offs than conventional approaches based on a pre-established waveguide or cavity geometries.

Human body radiation area factors for diverse adult population.

Radiation accounts for a significant fraction of the human body and environment heat exchange and strongly impacts thermal comfort and safety. The direct radiative exchange between an individual and a source or sink can be quantified using the effective (feff) and projected radiation area factors (fp). However, these factors have not been quantified for half of the population of the USA with an above-average body mass index (BMI). Here, we address this gap by developing thirty male and thirty female computational manikin models that cover the 1 to 99 percentile variation in height and BMI of adults in the USA. The radiative simulations reveal that the feff and the fp angular distributions are nearly independent of gender, height, and BMI. Appreciable relative differences from the average models only emerge for manikins with BMI above 80th percentile. However, these differences only occur at low zenith angles and, in absolute terms, are small as compared to variations induced by, for example, the zenith angle increase. We also use the manikin set to evaluate whether the body shape impacts the quality of human representation with several levels of geometrical simplification. We find that the "box/peg" body representation, which is based on the hemispherical fp average, is independent of the body shape. In turn, the fp distributions averaged over the azimuth angle range, representing the rotationally symmetric humans, are only impacted to the same degree as for the anatomical manikins. We also show that the anatomical manikins can be closely approximated by the multi-cylinder and sphere representation, at least from a radiation perspective. The developed anatomical manikin set is freely available and can be used to compute how body shape impacts a variety of external heat transport processes.

Improving Multiday Solar Wind Speed Forecasts

AbstractWe analyze the residual errors for the Wang‐Sheeley‐Arge (WSA) solar wind speed forecasts as a function of the photospheric magnetic field expansion factor (fp) and the minimum separation angle (d) in the photosphere between the footpoints of open field lines and the nearest coronal hole boundary. We find the map of residual speed errors are systematic when examined as a function of fp and d. We use these residual error maps to apply corrections to the model speeds. We test this correction approach using 3‐day lead time speed forecasts for an entire year of observations and model results. Our methods can readily be applied to develop corrections for the remaining WSA forecast lead times which range from 1 to 7 days in 1‐day increments. Since the solar wind density, temperature, and the interplanetary magnetic field strength all correlate well with the solar wind speed, the improved accuracy of solar wind speed forecasts enables the production of multiday forecasts of the solar wind density, temperature, pressure, and interplanetary field strength, and geophysical indices. These additional parameters would expand the usefulness of Air Force Data Assimilative Photospheric Flux Transport‐WSA forecasts for space weather clients.

Palaeoclimate Reconstruction of the Central Gangdise Mountains, Southern Tibetan Plateau, Based on Glacier Modelling

Palaeoglacier modelling is an important approach for reconstructing the palaeoclimate. The timing of glaciations in the central part of the Gangdise Mountains has been constrained previously, but the palaeoclimate remains unclear. In this paper, the palaeo-temperature and precipitation of the early marine isotope stage (MIS) 2, the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), and the early Holocene were reconstructed using coupled mass balance and ice flow models. The results show that a series of temperature changes (ΔT) and precipitation factors (Fp) resulted in optimum palaeoglacial extents. The modelled palaeoglaciers during the early MIS 2, the LGM, and the early Holocene cover areas of ~18.1 km2, ~17.4 km2, and ~16.3 km2, respectively, with ice volumes of ~2.18 km3, ~1.99 km3, and ~1.95 km3, respectively. Previous studies on ice cores, pollen samples, and lake sediments were referenced to narrow the range of palaeo-temperatures and precipitations. The reconstructed temperatures during the early MIS 2, LGM, and early Holocene were constrained to 2.4–2.9 °C, 2.15–3.05 °C, and 0.95–1.5 °C lower than today, respectively. Their precipitation levels were 60–80%, 50–80%, and 100–150% of the present-day level, respectively.

Momentum-heat-mass transfer analogy in gas-solid packed bed at elevated temperatures

The experimental values of the friction factor (fp) at ambient and elevated temperatures as well as of the heat transfer coefficient (hp) were used to establish the analogy between momentum and heat transfer in gas-solid packed beds of monosized spherical glass particles, as jH=fp/22 or jHε=fp/50. Also, the Chilton-Colburn type of momentum-mass transfer analogy was confirmed. These findings are valid for the range of the modified Reynolds number Re’p≈20-130. The experiments related to fp were performed by measuring the pressure drop across the packed bed of particles (0.58, 0.92, 1.04, 1.20, 1.94, 2.98, 3.91, and 4.91 mm diameters) heated to the desired temperature by hot air (temperatures from 20ºC to 350ºC). The range of gas superficial velocity was from 0.05 to 0.99 m/s, and the bed porosities were from 0.357 to 0.430. The experiments related to hp were performed by recording the temperatures of the cold aluminium test spheres (6, 12, and 20 mm in diameter) with embedded K-type (Ni/Al) thermocouples, immersed into the hot packed bed of particles (1.20, 1.94, and 2.98 mm diameters at temperatures from 100 to 300ºC) until the thermal equilibrium was reached. The superficial gas velocity and bed porosity varied from 0.30 to 0.79 m/s and from 0.392 to 0.406, respectively. A new correlation for the prediction of the heat transfer factor has been proposed in the form jHε=0.30(Re’p)-0.30. The analogies defined in this way leave the possibility of determining the value of the heat and mass transfer coefficients on the basis of the value of the friction factor, which is more common in the literature.

Nanoscale Photoluminescence Manipulation in Monolithic Porous Silicon Oxide Microcavity Coated with Fluorescent Polyelectrolytes Via Electrostatic Nanoassembling

Porous silicon (PSi) is a promising material for future integrated nanophotonics when coupled with guest emitters [1,2], still facing challenges in terms of homogenous distribution and nanometric thickness of the emitter coating within the silicon nanostructure. Herein, it is shown that the nanopore surface of a porous silicon oxide (PSiO2) microcavity (MC) can be conformally coated with a uniform nm-thick layer of a cationic light-emitting polyelectrolyte, e.g., poly(allylamine hydrochloride) labeled with Rhodamine B (PAH-RhoB), leveraging the self-tuned electrostatic interaction of the positively-charged PAH-RhoB polymer and negatively-charged PSiO2 surface. It is found that the emission of PAH-RhoB in the PSiO2 MC is enhanced (≈2.5×) and narrowed (≈30×) at the resonant wavelength, compared with that of PAH-RhoB in a non-resonant PSiO2 reference structure [3]. The time-resolved photoluminescence analysis highlights a shortening (≈20%) of the PAH-RhoB emission lifetime in the PSiO2 MC at the resonance versus off-resonance wavelengths, and with respect to the reference structure, thereby proving a significant variation of the radiative decay rate. Remarkably, an experimental Purcell factor Fp = 2.82 is achieved. This is further confirmed by the enhance- ment of the photoluminescence quantum yield of the PAH-RhoB in the PSiO2 MC with respect to the reference structure.By building on these results, we envisage many emerging photonic applications of the electrostatic nanoassembly coating technology for introduction of foreign emitters into PSi-based photonic nano-/mesostructures, though not lim- ited to, including ultrasensitive fluorescence-enhanced optical nanosensors, nanolasers, exciton-polaritonic devices, spintronic devices, and quantum optical devices.

Engineering Chiral Light-Matter Interactions in a Waveguide-Coupled Nanocavity.

Spin-dependent, directional light–matter interactions form the basis of chiral quantum networks. In the solid state, quantum emitters commonly possess circularly polarized optical transitions with spin-dependent handedness. We demonstrate numerically that spin-dependent chiral coupling can be realized by embedding such an emitter in a waveguide-coupled nanocavity, which supports two near-degenerate, orthogonally polarized cavity modes. The chiral behavior arises due to direction-dependent interference between the cavity modes upon coupling to two single-mode output waveguides. Notably, an experimentally realistic cavity design simultaneously supports near-unity chiral contrast, efficient (>95%) cavity-waveguide coupling and enhanced light–matter interaction strength (Purcell factor FP > 70). In combination, these parameters enable the development of highly coherent spin–photon interfaces ready for integration into nanophotonic circuits.

Ultralow-threshold six-photon-excited upconversion lasing in a plasmonic microcavity.

Nonlinear multiphoton absorption (MPA) upconversion lasers have critical applications in fluorescence imaging probes and biological photonics. Here, we report the realization of ultralow-threshold six-photon-excited upconversion lasing through cavity quantum electrodynamics effects in a plasmonic microcavity. The value of the Purcell factor (Fp) in hybrid whisper-gallery mode (WGM) is enhanced five-fold relative to a bare microwire (MW), which enhances the nonlinear light-matter interactions dramatically. Compared with a MW, the threshold of six-photon upconversion WGM lasing is reduced by one order magnitude due to plasmonic enhancement effects. In addition, the temperature and polarization characteristics of upconversion lasing via a plasmonic-WGM approach show a distinct evolution, different from a bare MW. This work paves the way for extreme nonlinear optics, taking advantage of the processability and high Purcell factor of plasmonic microcavities.

Plasmonic nanobar-on-mirror antenna with giant local chirality: a new platform for ultrafast chiral single-photon emission.

Providing an additional degree of freedom for binary information encoding and nonreciprocal information transmission, chiral single photons have become a new research frontier in quantum optics. Without using complex external conditions (e.g., magnetic field, low temperature), coupling emitters to chiral optical antennas has become a promising strategy to efficiently convert single photons from linear to circular polarization states. For ideal chiral single-photon sources, essential properties such as giant Purcell factor, large degree of circular polarization (DCP), and high collection efficiency are highly demanded. Herein, to meet these combined requirements, we propose an emitter-coupled nanobar-on-mirror antenna platform with significant local chirality acquired from the broken symmetry, as well as the giant Purcell factor owing to its ultrasmall mode volume. An emitter embedded at the corner in the gap exhibits above 3 orders of magnitude enhancement of the chiral spontaneous emission with more than 80% collection efficiency, along with up to 70% DCP. Compatible with a myriad of nanoscale quantum emitters (e.g. transition metal dichalcogenides, color centers, quantum dots, etc.), this platform, not only manifests the potential for realizing ultrafast chiral single-photon generator towards GHz and THz operation speed but also provides versatile testbeds for investigating chiral light-matter interaction at the single-quantum level.

Effect of direct solar projected area factor on outdoor thermal comfort evaluation: A case study in Shanghai, China

The outdoor mean radiant temperature (Tmrt) is largely influenced by the direct solar radiation incident on the human body, mainly affected by the projected area factor (fp). The fp has been calculated by different methods and compared by some studies. However, how the fp quantitatively affects outdoor thermal comfort has rarely been studied. Therefore, this study established sitting, standing, and walking human models to calculate the fp in different solar positions through Monte Carlo ray-tracing technology. A case study has been taken in Shanghai to analyze the effect of the fp on outdoor thermal comfort. The Fanger, Jendritzky, and Underwood models' applicability in Shanghai was compared. The fp of sitting, standing, and walking postures have been obtained, respectively. The results show that more than 0.05 fp difference may cause half of the thermal grade deviation for outdoor thermal comfort evaluation. The fp is more sensitive to solar altitude (β) in three postures than solar azimuth (α). The fp difference from different postures can cause more than half of thermal grade deviation. Fanger's model for sitting posture may cause one thermal grade deviation; Jendritzky's model has acceptable performance for three postures; Underwood's model for sitting and walking postures may result in nearly one thermal grade deviation.

Nanoscale Photoluminescence Manipulation in Monolithic Porous Silicon Oxide Microcavity Coated with Rhodamine‐Labeled Polyelectrolyte via Electrostatic Nanoassembling

AbstractPorous silicon (PSi) is a promising material for future integrated nanophotonics when coupled with guest emitters, still facing challenges in terms of homogenous distribution and nanometric thickness of the emitter coating within the silicon nanostructure. Herein, it is shown that the nanopore surface of a porous silicon oxide (PSiO2) microcavity (MC) can be conformally coated with a uniform nm‐thick layer of a cationic light‐emitting polyelectrolyte, e.g., poly(allylamine hydrochloride) labeled with Rhodamine B (PAH‐RhoB), leveraging the self‐tuned electrostatic interaction of the positively‐charged PAH‐RhoB polymer and negatively‐charged PSiO2 surface. It is found that the emission of PAH‐RhoB in the PSiO2 MC is enhanced (≈2.5×) and narrowed (≈30×) at the resonant wavelength, compared with that of PAH‐RhoB in a non‐resonant PSiO2 reference structure. The time‐resolved photoluminescence analysis highlights a shortening (≈20%) of the PAH‐RhoB emission lifetime in the PSiO2 MC at the resonance versus off‐resonance wavelengths, and with respect to the reference structure, thereby proving a significant variation of the radiative decay rate. Remarkably, an experimental Purcell factor Fp = 2.82 is achieved. This is further confirmed by the enhancement of the photoluminescence quantum yield of the PAH‐RhoB in the PSiO2 MC with respect to the reference structure. Application of the electrostatic nanoassembling approach to other emitting dyes, nanomaterials, and nanophotonic systems is envisaged.

How Do the Purcell Factor, the Q‐Factor, and the Beta Factor Affect the Laser Threshold?

AbstractAs lasers get more and more miniaturized and their dimensions become comparable to the wavelength, two interconnected phenomena take place: the fraction of spontaneous radiation going into a specific laser mode (β‐factor) increases and can ultimately reach unity, while the radiative lifetime gets shortened by the Purcell factor Fp. Often it is assumed that an increase of these two factors, along with the quality factor (Q‐factor), almost invariably causes reduction of the lasing threshold. This assumption is tested on various photonic and plasmonic lasers, demonstrating that, while there is obvious correlation between the aforementioned factors and the laser threshold, the dependence is far from being straightforward and omnipresent. Depending on specific laser material and geometry, the threshold can decrease, increase, or stay unchanged when β‐factor, Q‐factor, and Fp increase. For the most part, the reduction of threshold is achieved simply by reducing the laser volume and this volume reduction can concurrently cause the increase in β‐factor and/or Purcell factor, but it would be imprudent to say that the increase in either of these factors is the cause of the threshold reduction.

Modeling Bidirectional Polarization Distribution Function of Land Surfaces Using Machine Learning Techniques

Accurate estimation of polarized reflectance (Rp) of land surfaces is critical for remote sensing of aerosol optical properties. In the last two decades, many data-driven bidirectional polarization distribution function (BPDF) models have been proposed for accurate estimation of Rp, among which the generalized regression neural network (GRNN) based BPDF model has been reported to perform the best. GRNN is just a simple machine learning (ML) technique that can solve non-linear problems. Many ML techniques were reported to work well in solving non-linear problems and consequently may provide better performance in BPDF modeling. However, incorporating various ML techniques with BPDF modeling and comparing their performances have never been well documented. In this study, three widely used ML algorithms—i.e., support vector regression (SVR), K-nearest-neighbor (KNN), and random forest (RF)—were applied for BPDF modeling. Using measurements collected by the Polarization and Directionality of the Earth’s Reflectance onboard PARASOL satellite (POLDER/PARASOL), non-linear relationships between Rp and the input variables, i.e., Fresnel factor (Fp), scattering angle (SA), reflectance at 670 nm (R670) and 865 nm (R865), were built using these ML algorithms. Results showed that taking Fp, SA, R670, and R865 as input variables, the performance of the four ML-based BPDF models was quite similar. The KNN-based BPDF model provided slightly better results, and improved the accuracy of the semi-empirical BPDF models by 9.55% in terms of the overall root mean square error (RMSE). Experiments of different configuration of input variables suggested that using multi-band reflectance as input variables provided better results than using vegetation indices. The RF-based BPDF model using all reflectances at six bands as input variables produced the best results, improving the overall accuracy by 6.62% compared with the GRNN-based BPDF model. Among all the input variables, reflectance at absorbing spectral bands—e.g., 490 nm and 670 nm—played more significant roles in RF-based BPDF modeling due to the domination of polarized partition in total reflectance. Fresnel factor and scattering angle were also important for BPDF modeling. This study confirmed the feasibility of applying ML techniques to more accurate BPDF modeling, and the RF-based BPDF model proposed in this study can be used to increase the accuracy of remote sensing of the complete aerosol properties.

Design and optimization of perovskite plasmonic nano-laser for operation at room temperature

This work presents the design and optimization of a cascade nano-laser using CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite. Due to increasing threshold gain with decreasing device size and high Auger losses, the use of perovskite as the active medium in the cascade nano-laser was proposed, as the material possesses a high emission rate in the visible wavelength region, with relative ease of device fabrication. By optimizing the thickness of the perovskite, its width, and the thickness of the silica used, photonic and plasmonic modes were created, which were further considered to permit the generation of lasing, using their respective Purcell factors. The pump wavelength considered was 400 nm, with the laser emission then at 537 nm. For suitability of plasmonic lasing, a Purcell factor FP of 1.22 is reported here, with no possibility for photonic lasing due to its FP value being less than 1 in this design. However, mode-crossing effects were observed in the plasmonic mode at λ = 400 nm for two designs: at a silica thickness of 27.5 nm with perovskite thickness and width of 100 and 300 nm, respectively, and at a silica thickness of 30 nm with perovskite thickness and width of 95 and 300 nm, respectively. These mode-crossing effects can be further analyzed to use these devices in the design of potential new sensor systems, mainly for gas and chemical sensing, exploiting the refractive index sensing capability as a means to determine the concentration of the gases, or other chemicals, under study.

Assessment of Heavy Metal Pollution of the Peter the Great Bay (North-West Pacific Region) Using Brown Algae

According to the content of heavy metals Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd and Ni in brown algae Sargassum miyabei from the Peter the Great Bay of the Sea of Japan, geochemical factors were calculated. The algae geochemical anomaly index (IGA) characterizes the degree of excess of the background concentrations of metals. The heavy metal pollution factor (Fp) is used to estimate the degree of pollution of the marine environment with heavy metals. The Peter the Great Bay has a low level of heavy metal pollution, but some parts of second-order bays, such as Amurskii Bay, Ussuriiskii Bay and Vostok Bay, have a moderate degree of pollution. The high pollution level was registed on the western coast of the Ussuriiskii Bay near the Vladivostok city landfill. Thirty percent of sampling stations were noted to have higher threshold levels of metals in the algae. These areas need to be monitored to assess their environmental status and measures should be applied to reduce the impact on the environment.

Application of Modified SME-CN Method for Predicting Event Runoff and Peak Discharge from a Drained Forest Watershed on the North Carolina Atlantic Coastal Plain

HighlightsProposed new method to assess subsurface and surface runoff from drained forested watershed.Factor Fp in the graphical peak discharge method is less in forested wetland watershed than recommended by USDA.Modified graphical peak discharge method correctly approximated observed peak discharges.Abstract. The NRCS curve number (CN) method is a widely used event-based model for estimating runoff using readily available watershed parameters and rainfall data from upland agricultural catchments. However, there is limited literature on application of the CN method in drained forest systems. This study proposes an application of the modified Sahu-Mishra-Eldho (SME) CN method developed and tested in earlier studies. In this study, the SME method was further modified by redefining the maximum potential retention to assess subsurface drainage and surface runoff, which are parts of total outflow, separately for a pine forest watershed with a high water table soil drained by ditches spaced 100 m apart in coastal North Carolina. Assuming that the measured outflow from the drained watershed was dominated by subsurface drainage, computed event outflow using the modified SME-CN (MSME-CN) model showed good agreement with the observed outflow data (without extreme rainfall events) for the study watershed, yielding a Nash-Sutcliffe coefficient of 0.97, R2 = 0.97, and RMSE = 3.46 mm. Linking the direct runoff from the MSME model into the SCS graphical peak discharge method (GPDM) also improved event peak flow estimates compared to those from the GPDM using SCS-CN based outflow, with calculated RMSE of 11.93 and 31.35 L s-1 and modeling efficiency (EF) of 0.79 and -0.45, respectively. In addition, based on analysis, the wetland factor (Fp) of 0.72 recommended in the GPDM was found to be very large and unsuitable for the study watershed with its high retention capacity. The authors suggest multi-site-year validation of the MSME-CN model, which is sensitive to input parameters such as PET5, P, CN, and a, to gain more confidence in it and the associated GPDM. Keywords: Peak discharge, Pine forest, Poorly drained soil, Potential retention, Subsurface runoff, Surface runoff.

Assessment of storm direct runoff and peak flow rates using improved SCS-CN models for selected forested watersheds in the Southeastern United States

Study regionSoutheastern United States Study focusThe objective was to evaluate the ability of two modified SCS-CN models to predict direct runoff (DRO) and peak discharge rate (Qp) for selected storm events in three forested watersheds in the region - one low-gradient system in South Carolina, two high-gradient upland systems in North Carolina, and a mid-gradient upland system in Arkansas. New hydrological insights for the regionThe calculated peak discharge rate Qp values by all methods were unsatisfactory when using the default pond and swamp adjustment factor (Fp) value of 0.72 recommended in the SCS TR55 guideline, indicating that use of the default Fp value may result in erroneous Qp estimates for forest watersheds with high retention capacities. These findings, indicating the superiority of the modified Sahu-Mishra-Eldo (SME_m) method to the original SCS method in runoff calculations and substantially lower Fp values in the associated Qp method, are significant for hydrologists and engineers who frequently apply the methods in design of storm water management structures including road culverts on forested landscapes.

Delineation of spring protection zone and vulnerability mapping of selected springs in Sulaymaniyah area, Kurdistan, Iraq

Sarchinar, Bestansur, and Tabin springs are large springs in Sulaymaniyah Governorate, Iraqi Kurdistan Region, which are considered for use as public supply. To evaluate the hydrochemical properties and heavy metals content of the selected springs, 80 water samples were collected continuously beginning on 24th Oct. 2015 through 24th July 2016. The results show that the water is odorless, colorless, contains a low value of total dissolved salts, predominant ions are calcium and bicarbonate, and all the water samples are not polluted with Cd2+, Pb2+, Cu2+, Ni2+ ions. The vulnerability of the selected springs is assessed using EPIK (epikarst, protective cover, infiltration condition, and karst network development) method. Vulnerability maps are counted as starting a new step for a better determination of springs’ water protection areas especially in the karst environment as the maps are generated based on different attributes as specified by adopted methods. Delineating springs’ protection zones are proposed depending on vulnerability assessment and recession curve analysis. Based on the EPIK vulnerability map, protection zones for all selected springs are defined using the equivalent relationship between the groundwater protection areas S and the protection factor Fp. Therefore, three protection areas for selected springs are recognized and based on recession curve analysis; two vulnerability scenarios are defined with an assessment of the proper dimensions of the protection zones for selected springs. The delineated protection zones around the tapped springs consist of three zones (immediate, inner, and outer protection zones).