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Acta Prataculturae Sinica ›› 2024, Vol. 33 ›› Issue (3): 24-33.DOI: 10.11686/cyxb2023137

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Hydrological effects of highway vegetation slope model under artificial rain conditions

Ya-ru ZHAO1,2(), Yun-xiang CAO1, Cheng-can YANG1,2, Feng-hou SHI1(), Hong-xiang FU3, Lei CHU1   

  1. 1.College of Forestry,Southern Modern Forestry Collaborative Innovation Center,Nanjing Forestry University,Nanjing 210037,China
    2.Jiangsu Yuanshun Environmental Protection Technology Co. ,Ltd. ,Nanjing 210000,China
    3.Huashe Design Group Co. ,Ltd. ,Nanjing 210014,China
  • Received:2023-04-26 Revised:2023-06-05 Online:2024-03-20 Published:2023-12-27
  • Contact: Feng-hou SHI

Abstract:

Ecological methods are often used in highway slope protection, in particular, the best effect is achieved through vegetation cover. In order to define the optimal slope protection parameters, this study explored the hydrological effects on runoff when different mulch, rainfall intensity, and slope vegetation protection parameters, were tested in a model system utilizing artificial rain. It was found that when the rainfall intensity was 120 mm·h-1, the runoff of slopes covered with coconut grass blanket, straw fiber blanket and straw curtain was reduced by 23.25%, 15.66% and 17.94%, respectively, compared with that of a bare soil slope, while the water infiltration of the lope increased by 65.19%, 48.10% and 27.89%, respectively. In addition, obvious differences were found in the protective effects of vegetation established for different vegetation growth periods. A model slope with vegetation established 4 months had the smallest runoff, the largest water infiltration, and the strongest resistance to rainwater erosion. At a rainfall intensity of 60 mm·h-1, no runoff was detected from the model slope due to the vegetation protection effect, compared to bare soil. With successive increases in artificial rainfall intensity, the start time of runoff and water exfiltration in bare soil slope and vegetated slopes incrementally advanced, and the runoff and sediment showed a corresponding increasing trend. In general, a silty subgrade slope mixed sowing with Cynodon dactylon (sowing rate: 12 g·m-2), Amorpha fruticosa (sowing rate: 14 g·m-2), Lespedeza bicolor (sowing rate: 10 g·m-2), and covered with coconut grass blanket (specification: 300 g·m-2), under normal management and maintenance conditions, after 3 months of plant growth, exhibited a significantly enhanced ability to resist rainwater erosion. At a rainfall intensity not exceeding 120 mm·h-1, the combination of vegetation and covering shows extraordinary protective effects. The combination of plants and mulch reduces the impact of rainwater on the slope, and reduces the runoff. In addition, the plant root system facilitates the infiltration of rainwater into the slope, and aids water and soil conservation as well.

Key words: artificial rain, slope model, slope runoff, seepage amount of slope, protective effect