Salt Drainage Efficiency and Anti-Clogging Effects of Subsurface Pipes Wrapped with Geotextiles
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThis study comprehensively examines the efficacy of different geotextile configurations in improving salt discharge efficiency and preventing clogging in subsurface drainage pipes. The findings underscore the significance of employing double-layer geotextiles, which demonstrated superior performance in salt removal rate and drainage efficiency compared to single-layer and triple-layer configurations. However, long-term monitoring of the effectiveness of the double-layer geotextile configuration in mitigating clogging and promoting efficient salt drainage should be conducted. Likewise, the cost-effectiveness and feasibility of the system should be considered. The other specific comments are outlined below:
Introduction
- Add comprehensive discussion on the specific challenges and limitations encountered in practical field applications of subsurface drainage systems.
- Please enumerate the selection criteria or optimization strategies for choosing appropriate geotextile specifications to improve drainage performance.
Results and Discussion
- Add long-term effects, effectiveness in real-world conditions, and possible environmental impacts (e.g., effects on groundwater quality, surrounding ecosystems, and potential leaching of pollutants, etc.) of the study.
- Discuss potential strategies for mitigating water loss and optimizing leaching protocols to achieve desired desalination outcomes, especially in arid environments with high evaporation rates.
- Elicit discussion on the interplay between geotextile properties, soil particle dynamics, drainage rates, etc.
Comments on the Quality of English LanguageMinor editing of English language required
Author Response
Question 1: Introduction: Add comprehensive discussion on the specific challenges and limitations encountered in practical field applications of subsurface drainage systems.
Response: Thanks the reviewer’s useful comments to improve our manuscript, we have added the current problems which was faced by the subsurface pipe drainage system in the second paragraph of the introduction. For details see “In the process of long-term application of subsurface pipe drainage, mechanical Mechanical clogging caused by soil particles, chemical clogging caused by oxidative precipitation of ionsby ions being oxidized and precipitated, and biological clogging caused by microbial microorganism activities during the long-term operation of subsurface pipe drainage will cause blockage of subsurface pipes, which is a non-negligible problemproblem that cannot be ignored, and that has become been one of the main factors restricting the long-term salt discharge of subsurface pipes, and is also a problem that needs to be solved in for the promotion of subsurface pipe salt discharge technology”.
Question 2: Introduction: Please enumerate the selection criteria or optimization strategies for choosing appropriate geotextile specifications to improve drainage performance.
Response: We have added the selection principles and requirements of the geotextile specifications of the subsurface pipe in section of the introduction. For details see: “The geotextile wrapped outside the subsurface pipes need to satisfy three principles of good filtration, strong permeability and not easy to be blocked, t. The main considerations include: O90/d90 value (O90 is the pore diameter of filter materials, of which 90% is are smalleer than this value. d90 is the size of soil particle, of which 90% are is smaller than this value, and should satisfy O90/ d90≥1.0), suitaable permeability coefficient, and thickness of geotextile [19]”.
Question 3: Results and Discussion: Add long-term effects, effectiveness in real-world conditions, and possible environmental impacts (e.g., effects on groundwater quality, surrounding ecosystems, and potential leaching of pollutants, etc.) of the study.
Response: In the sixth paragraph of the discussion section, we supplemented the impact of long-term application of subsurface pipe on groundwater and nutrients, and the contents added in the discussion are as follows “The long-term application operation of the subsurface pipe drainage in the field has obvious effects on controlling the groundwater level, reducing the salinity of groundwater, preventing the occurrence of soil secondary salinization, and improving the surface ecological environment. Small subsurface pipe spacing can weaken the spatial heterogeneity of soil salinity and increase the dissolved oxygen content of soil in water of soil, but there isit can also leaching lead to the loss of soil nutrients, especially nitrogen. Nitrogen loss in farmland is mainly total nitrogen, and the loss of ammonium nitrogen is small [30]”.
Question 4: Results and Discussion: Discuss potential strategies for mitigating water loss and optimizing leaching protocols to achieve desired desalination outcomes, especially in arid environments with high evaporation rates.
Response: In the last part of the discussion, we added and improved the coping strategies and suggestions for the problem that low precipitation and evaporation greatly affect the salt discharge effect of subsurface pipes in arid areas. For details see: “In order to deal with the problem that soil salt is easy to migrate upward in arid areas, it is particularly important to increase the surface coverage. Dense planting crops or surface mulching film can help reduce surface evaporation [31]. With the advancement of high-standard farmland construction projects, drip irrigation combined with subsurface pipe drainage system has been widely applied, and subsurface pipe has played an important role in controlling groundwater level. However, the amount of drip irrigation washing water is limited, especially in arid areas where precipitation is scarce and evaporation is large. Appropriately increasing the vertical porous flow pipe filling straw or sand could help promote the salt drainage effect of subsurface pipe [32]”.
Question 5: Results and Discussion: Elicit discussion on the interplay between geotextile properties, soil particle dynamics, drainage rates, etc.
Response: In the third and fifth paragraphs of the discussion section, we added the influence of filter material geotextiles on soil particles and drainage rate, and the contents added in the discussion were as follows “Reasonable filter materials could promote the soil above the pipe to form bridge, filter cake, and natural soil areas from bottom to top, forming a good filter structure”. “In the early stage of single-layer geotextile scenario, the leaching water flow was faster, which was due to the large pores of single-layer geotextile and high drainage rate in the early stage. Over time, a large amount of water carried sediment into the filter material, and soil particles could easily stay in geotextile fiber structure and block it, reducing drainage and salt discharge rates in the later stage”.
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe article is generally well-written. The research conducted by the authors is interesting and valuable and expands the existing state of knowledge. However, I have few minor comments that need to be consider:
-Authors should add sufficient information about the results in the abstract section. Now is missing.
- The literature information given in the introduction is sufficient.
- The material and method section is written clearly enough. However, there is confusion regarding the formulas. Although it is the same expression regarding the drainage rate, the representation is available. This confusion between v and Rw should be eliminated. Again, there is the same confusion in lines 286 and 288. It should be corrected.
- The discussion part is written adequately and well. The findings are included and explained in the results section.
- Please check the entire article content carefully. There are some minor errors and mispronunciations in the text.
- The article can be accepted after minor corrections.
Comments on the Quality of English LanguageMinor editing of English language required
Author Response
Question 1: Authors should add sufficient information about the results in the abstract section. Now is missing.
Response: Thank the reviewers’ useful comments on our manuscript. We added some experimental results in the abstract, and the supplementary and modified parts were highlighted in blue font.
Question 2: The literature information given in the introduction is sufficient.
Response: We have carefully revised and improved the introduction, and the modified parts were highlighted in blue font.
Question 3: The material and method section is written clearly enough. However, there is confusion regarding the formulas. Although it is the same expression regarding the drainage rate, the representation is available. This confusion between v and Rw should be eliminated. Again, there is the same confusion in lines 286 and 288. It should be corrected.
Response: We have distinguished the concepts of drainage rate (v) and drainage efficiency(Rw) in this paper, the text is revised in whole manuscript, and the revised parts were highlighted in blue font.
Question 4: The discussion part is written adequately and well. The findings are included and explained in the results section.
Response: We have supplemented and improved in the discussion part, and the modified part was highlighted in blue font.
Question 5: Please check the entire article content carefully. There are some minor errors and mispronunciations in the text.
Response: We have carefully revised and improved the manuscript, and the errors and mispronunciations of this manuscript were corrected and displayed in blue font.
Question 6: The article can be accepted after minor corrections.
Response: Thanks for the reviewer’s useful comments, we have carefully check the manuscritp and hope to meet the requirements of this journal.
Reviewer 3 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authors1. The technical parameters of geotextile canvases are not presented in sufficient detail in the article. The authors should present the initial images of the microstructure of all layers of geotextile, describe the textile structure and its parameters.
2. It is necessary to present the physical and technical parameters of geotextile (fiber composition, density, thickness, additional chemical treatments, moisture conductivity / hygroscopicity).
3. The results of experimental studies should be presented in accordance with the physical and technical characteristics of the geotextile.
4. Conclusions about the effect of geotextiles on the salt content in the soil should be described using mathematical dependencies of the salt content on the physical and technical parameters of geotextiles, and not only on the number of layers (1,2,3), since the structure and properties of the textile itself primarily affect the result under study.
Author Response
Question 1: The technical parameters of geotextile canvases are not presented in sufficient detail in the article. Wes should present the initial images of the microstructure of all layers of geotextile, describe the textile structure and its parameters.
Response: Thank the reviewers’ useful comments on our manuscript. We added the initial image of geotextile in 2.3. Experiment Design and Process (Figure 2). The structure and parameters of geotextile were supplemented in the first paragraph. All the modified parts were shown in blue font.
Question 2: It is necessary to present the physical and technical parameters of geotextile (fiber composition, density, thickness, additional chemical treatments, moisture conductivity / hygroscopicity).
Response: We supplemented the physical and technical parameters of geotextiles in the first paragraph of 2.3. Experiment Design and Process, and the modified parts were shown in blue font.
Question 3: The results of experimental studies should be presented in accordance with the physical and technical characteristics of the geotextile.
Response: We have made the modifications and supplements in 3. Results and 4. Discussion. The modified parts are shown in blue font.
Question 4: Conclusions about the effect of geotextiles on the salt content in the soil should be described using mathematical dependencies of the salt content on the physical and technical parameters of geotextiles, and not only on the number of layers (1,2,3), since the structure and properties of the textile itself primarily affect the result under study.
Response: We have revised and added in 5. Conclusions. All the modified parts are shown in blue font.
Round 2
Reviewer 3 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsThe article can be published.
