Research Hotspots and Trends in Soil Infiltration at the Watershed Scale Using the SWAT Model: A Bibliometric Analysis
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Methodology
2.1. Data Acquisition
2.2. Bibliometric Analysis and Visualization
3. Results and Discussion
3.1. Analysis of Publishing Trend
3.2. Analysis of the Authors of the Articles
3.3. Analysis of Country and Institution
3.4. Analysis of Journal Co-Citation
3.5. Landmark Literature
Reference | Main Content | Type | Citations |
---|---|---|---|
Mango et al. (2011) [38] | The research advocated placing greater emphasis on advancing land management measures to boost soil infiltration and groundwater recharge, thereby strengthening adaptation to pervasive climate change. | Article | 299 |
Easton et al. (2008) [39] | The paper redefined the curve number (CN) and available soil water content within the conventional SWAT framework, leading to the development of the SWAT-VSA model. This updated version enhances the accuracy of shallow groundwater depth predictions and the delineation of runoff source areas. These improvements are of considerable value for assessing and informing watershed management strategies. | Article | 219 |
J. G. Arnold et al. (2010) [40] | This research refined the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) to more precisely capture the intricate factors influencing infiltration, runoff production, and the interactions between surface water and groundwater flow. | Article | 146 |
King et al. (1999) [37] | The paper integrated the GAML excess rainfall approach and a sub-daily routing method into the SWAT framework to address the requirements for modeling alternative excess rainfall scenarios in agriculture-oriented watershed studies. | Article | 137 |
Jeong et al. (2010) [41] | The paper presented the creation and evaluation of a sub-hourly rainfall-runoff module within the SWAT model. Statistical analyses demonstrate that this sub-hourly adaptation shows strong potential for hydrological and nonpoint source pollution assessments, though additional refinement remains necessary to advance its water quality simulation capabilities. | Article | 126 |
Ayele et al. (2017) [44] | The paper calibrated and validated the SWAT model to investigate watershed management prioritization in Ethiopia’s Upper Blue Nile River Basin. The findings revealed that cropland influences surface infiltration rates and runoff dynamics, while also modifying interactions between the shallow water table and saturated excess runoff, thereby shaping patterns of water and sediment transport. | Article | 108 |
Luo et al. (2012) [42] | Building on the single-reservoir baseflow method within the SWAT model, the paper introduced an additional slow-response reservoir and applied this enhanced approach to the Manas River Basin in the Tianshan Mountains of Northwest China. | Article | 101 |
Garg et al. (2012) [45] | The paper employed the ArcSWAT model (a hydrological tool for simulating agricultural water interventions) to assess the impacts of diverse soil and water management strategies versus non-intervention conditions in India’s Kothapally watershed. It indicated that intervention measures enhance soil infiltration and water retention capacity, resulting in positive impacts on hydrology. | Article | 94 |
White et al. (2011) [43] | The paper emphasized that in Ethiopia’s Blue Nile headwaters, streamflow simulated with the newly developed physically based water balance SWAT (SWAT-WB) outperformed the traditional curve number-based SWAT (SWAT-CN), delivering a more accurate representation of the watershed’s water balance than the CN approach. | Article | 93 |
Han et al. (2012) [46] | The paper combined the SWAT model with the Ensemble Kalman Filter (EnKF) and a semi-distributed hydrological model at the watershed scale to examine the influence of assimilating surface soil hydrological data on hydrological processes. The study indicated that remotely sensed surface soil moisture observations hold considerable promise for application in watershed-scale water resource management. | Article | 91 |
3.6. Research Contents
3.6.1. Keyword Co-Occurrence Analysis
3.6.2. Keywords with the Strongest Citation Bursts
4. Conclusions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
- Ilstedt, U.; Malmer, A.; Verbeeten, E.; Murdiyarso, D. The effect of afforestation on water infiltration in the tropics: A systematic review and meta-analysis. For. Ecol. Manag. Plant. For. Water 2007, 251, 45–51. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Zhao, Y.; Wu, P.; Zhao, S.; Feng, H. Variation of soil infiltrability across a 79-year chronosequence of naturally restored grassland on the Loess Plateau, China. J. Hydrol. 2013, 504, 94–103. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Sun, D.; Yang, H.; Guan, D.; Yang, M.; Wu, J.; Yuan, F.; Jin, C.; Wang, A.; Zhang, Y. The effects of land use change on soil infiltration capacity in China: A meta-analysis. Sci. Total Environ. 2018, 626, 1394–1401. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Lammers, R.W.; Miller, L.; Bledsoe, B.P. Effects of Design and Climate on Bioretention Effectiveness for Watershed-Scale Hydrologic Benefits. J. Sustain. Water Built Environ. 2022, 8, 04022011. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Walsh, C.J.; Roy, A.H.; Feminella, J.W.; Cottingham, P.D.; Groffman, P.M.; Morgan, R.P. The urban stream syndrome: Current knowledge and the search for a cure. J. N. Am. Benthol. Soc. 2005, 24, 706–723. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Vieux, B.E. Infiltration. In Distributed Hydrologic Modeling Using GIS; Vieux, B.E., Ed.; Springer: Dordrecht, The Netherlands, 2016; pp. 83–99. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Vafakhah, M.; Karamizad, F.; Sadeghi, S.H.R.; Noor, H. Spatial variations of runoff generation at watershed scale. Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2019, 16, 3745–3760. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Riza, S.; Sekine, M.; Kanno, A.; Yamamoto, K.; Imai, T.; Higuchi, T. Modeling soil landscapes and soil textures using hyperscale terrain attributes. Geoderma 2021, 402, 115177. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Sarangi, A.; Madramootoo, C.A.; Enright, P. Comparison of Spatial Variability Techniques for Runoff Estimation from a Canadian Watershed. Biosyst. Eng. 2006, 95, 295–308. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Desta, H.; Lemma, B. SWAT based hydrological assessment and characterization of Lake Ziway sub-watersheds, Ethiopia. J. Hydrol. Reg. Stud. 2017, 13, 122–137. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Bosch, D.; Arnold, J.; Volk, M.; Allen, P. Simulation of a Low-Gradient Coastal Plain Watershed Using the SWAT Landscape Model. Trans. Am. Soc. Agric. Biol. Eng. 2010, 53, 1445–1456. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Langhans, C.; Govers, G.; Diels, J.; Stone, J.J.; Nearing, M.A. Modeling scale-dependent runoff generation in a small semi-arid watershed accounting for rainfall intensity and water depth. Adv. Water Resour. 2014, 69, 65–78. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Farajalla, N.S.; Vieux, B.E. Capturing the essential spatial variability in distributed hydrological modelling: Infiltration parameters. Hydrol. Process. 1995, 9, 55–68. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Downer, C.W.; Ogden, F.L. Appropriate vertical discretization of Richards’ equation for two-dimensional watershed-scale modelling. Hydrol. Process. 2004, 18, 1–22. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Starks, P.J.; Ross, J.D.; Heathman, G.C. Modeling the Spatial and Temporal Distribution of Soil Moisture at Watershed Scales Using Remote Sensing and GIS. In Proceedings of the Spatial Methods for Solution of Environmental and Hydrologic Problems—Science, Policy, and Standardization, Reno, Nevada, 25 January 2001; ASTM International: West Conshohocken, PA, USA, 2001; pp. 58–74. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Das, S.; Deb, P.; Bora, P.K.; Katre, P. Comparison of RUSLE and MMF Soil Loss Models and Evaluation of Catchment Scale Best Management Practices for a Mountainous Watershed in India. Sustainability 2021, 13, 232. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Aloui, S.; Mazzoni, A.; Elomri, A.; Aouissi, J.; Boufekane, A.; Zghibi, A. A review of Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) studies of Mediterranean catchments: Applications, feasibility, and future directions. J. Environ. Manag. 2023, 326, 116799. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Tan, M.L.; Gassman, P.W.; Yang, X.; Haywood, J. A review of SWAT applications, performance and future needs for simulation of hydro-climatic extremes. Adv. Water Resour. 2020, 143, 103662. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Arnold, J.G.; Srinivasan, R.; Muttiah, R.S.; Williams, J.R. Large Area Hydrologic Modeling and Assessment Part I: Model Development1. J. Am. Water Resour. Assoc. 1998, 34, 73–89. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Hoang, L.; Schneiderman, E.M.; Moore, K.E.B.; Mukundan, R.; Owens, E.M.; Steenhuis, T.S. Predicting saturation-excess runoff distribution with a lumped hillslope model: SWAT-HS. Hydrol. Process. 2017, 31, 2226–2243. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Engel, B.A.; Srinivasan, R.; Arnold, J.; Rewerts, C.; Brown, S.J. Nonpoint-Source (NPS) Pollution Modeling Using Models Integrated with Geographic Information-Systems (GIS). Water Sci. Technol. 1993, 28, 685–690. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Bieger, K.; Arnold, J.G.; Rathjens, H.; White, M.J.; Bosch, D.D.; Allen, P.M.; Volk, M.; Srinivasan, R. Introduction to SWAT+, A Completely Restructured Version of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool. J. Am. Water Resour. Assoc. 2017, 53, 115–130. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Yen, H.; Park, S.; Arnold, J.G.; Srinivasan, R.; Chawanda, C.J.; Wang, R.; Feng, Q.; Wu, J.; Miao, C.; Bieger, K.; et al. IPEAT+: A Built-In Optimization and Automatic Calibration Tool of SWAT+. Water 2019, 11, 1681. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Rocha, E.O.; Calijuri, M.L.; Santiago, A.F.; de Assis, L.C.; Alves, L.G.S. The Contribution of Conservation Practices in Reducing Runoff, Soil Loss, and Transport of Nutrients at the Watershed Level. Water Resour. Manag. 2012, 26, 3831–3852. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Qi, J.; Lee, S.; Zhang, X.; Yang, Q.; McCarty, G.W.; Moglen, G.E. Effects of surface runoff and infiltration partition methods on hydrological modeling: A comparison of four schemes in two watersheds in the Northeastern US. J. Hydrol. 2020, 581, 124415. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Gassman, P.W.; Reyes, M.R.; Green, C.H.; Arnold, J.G. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool: Historical Development, Applications, and Future Research Directions. Trans. Am. Soc. Agric. Biol. Eng. 2007, 50, 1211–1250. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Gassman, P.W.; Sadeghi, A.M.; Srinivasan, R. Applications of the SWAT Model Special Section: Overview and Insights. J. Environ. Qual. 2014, 43, 1–8. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Francesconi, W.; Srinivasan, R.; Pérez-Miñana, E.; Willcock, S.P.; Quintero, M. Using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) to model ecosystem services: A systematic review. J. Hydrol. 2016, 535, 625–636. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Wen, C.; Zhen, Z.; Zhang, L.; Yan, C. A bibliometric analysis of river health based on publications in the last three decades. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. 2023, 30, 15400–15413. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Chen, C. Science Mapping: A Systematic Review of the Literature. J. Data Inf. Sci. 2017, 2, 1–40. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Chen, C.; Song, M. Visualizing a field of research: A methodology of systematic scientometric reviews. PLoS ONE 2019, 14, e0223994. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Chen, C.; Ibekwe-SanJuan, F.; Hou, J. The structure and dynamics of cocitation clusters: A multiple-perspective cocitation analysis. J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci. Technol. 2010, 61, 1386–1409. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Jiang, Y.; Hou, L.; Shi, T.; Gui, Q. A Review of Urban Planning Research for Climate Change. Sustainability 2017, 9, 2224. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Zhao, J.; Zhang, N. Environmental regulation and labor market: A bibliometric analysis. Environ. Dev. Sustain. 2023, 25, 6095–6116. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Leal Filho, W.; Dedeoglu, C.; Dinis, M.A.P.; Salvia, A.L.; Barbir, J.; Voronova, V.; Abubakar, I.R.; Iital, A.; Pachel, K.; Huthoff, F.; et al. Riverine Plastic Pollution in Asia: Results from a Bibliometric Assessment. Land 2022, 11, 1117. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Wang, M.; Jiang, Z.; Ikram, R.M.A.; Sun, C.; Zhang, M.; Li, J. Global Paradigm Shifts in Urban Stormwater Management Optimization: A Bibliometric Analysis. Water 2023, 15, 4122. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- King, K.; Arnold, J.; Bingner, R. Comparison of Green-Ampt and Curve Number Methods on Goodwin Creek Watershed Using SWAT. Trans. ASAE 1999, 42, 919–926. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Mango, L.M.; Melesse, A.M.; McClain, M.E.; Gann, D.; Setegn, S.G. Land use and climate change impacts on the hydrology of the upper Mara River Basin, Kenya: Results of a modeling study to support better resource management. Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 2011, 15, 2245–2258. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Easton, Z.M.; Fuka, D.R.; Walter, M.T.; Cowan, D.M.; Schneiderman, E.M.; Steenhuis, T.S. Re-conceptualizing the soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) model to predict runoff from variable source areas. J. Hydrol. 2008, 348, 279–291. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Arnold, J.G.; Allen, P.M.; Volk, M.; Williams, J.R.; Bosch, D.D. Assessment of Different Representations of Spatial Variability on SWAT Model Performance. Trans. ASABE 2010, 53, 1433–1443. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Jeong, J.; Kannan, N.; Arnold, J.; Glick, R.; Gosselink, L.; Srinivasan, R. Development and Integration of Sub-hourly Rainfall–Runoff Modeling Capability Within a Watershed Model. Water Resour. Manag. 2010, 24, 4505–4527. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Luo, Y.; Arnold, J.; Allen, P.; Chen, X. Baseflow simulation using SWAT model in an inland river basin in Tianshan Mountains, Northwest China. Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 2012, 16, 1259–1267. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- White, E.D.; Easton, Z.M.; Fuka, D.R.; Collick, A.S.; Adgo, E.; McCartney, M.; Awulachew, S.B.; Selassie, Y.G.; Steenhuis, T.S. Development and application of a physically based landscape water balance in the SWAT model. Hydrol. Process. 2011, 25, 915–925. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Ayele, G.T.; Teshale, E.Z.; Yu, B.; Rutherfurd, I.D.; Jeong, J. Streamflow and Sediment Yield Prediction for Watershed Prioritization in the Upper Blue Nile River Basin, Ethiopia. Water 2017, 9, 782. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Garg, K.K.; Karlberg, L.; Barron, J.; Wani, S.P.; Rockstrom, J. Assessing impacts of agricultural water interventions in the Kothapally watershed, Southern India. Hydrol. Process. 2012, 26, 387–404. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Han, E.; Merwade, V.; Heathman, G.C. Implementation of surface soil moisture data assimilation with watershed scale distributed hydrological model. J. Hydrol. 2012, 416–417, 98–117. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Huang, X.; Wang, K.-R.; Zou, Y.; Cao, X.-C. Development of global soil erosion research at the watershed scale: A bibliometric analysis of the past decade. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. 2021, 28, 12232–12244. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Su, H.-N.; Lee, P.-C. Mapping knowledge structure by keyword co-occurrence: A first look at journal papers in Technology Foresight. Scientometrics 2010, 85, 65–79. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Wang, X.; Shang, S.; Yang, W.; Melesse, A.M. Simulation of an Agricultural Watershed Using an Improved Curve Number Method in SWAT. Trans. ASABE 2008, 51, 1323–1339. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Migliaccio, K.; Srivastava, P. Hydrologic Components of Watershed-Scale Models. Trans. ASABE 2007, 50, 1695–1703. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Ma, X.; Xu, J.; van Noordwijk, M. Sensitivity of streamflow from a Himalayan catchment to plausible changes in land cover and climate. Hydrol. Process. 2010, 24, 1379–1390. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- World Meteorological Organization (WMO). WMO Statement on the State of the Global Climate in 2019 [WWW Document]. 2020. Available online: https://library.wmo.int/records/item/56228-wmo-statement-on-the-state-of-the-global-climate-in-2019 (accessed on 20 May 2024).
- World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP). The United Nations World Water Development Report 2023: Partnerships and Cooperation for Water. UNESCO. [WWW Document]. 2023. Available online: https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000384655 (accessed on 20 May 2024).
- Tsvetkova, O.; Randhir, T.O. Spatial and temporal uncertainty in climatic impacts on watershed systems. Sci. Total Environ. 2019, 687, 618–633. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Jin, X.; Jin, Y.; Mao, X. Land Use/Cover Change Effects on River Basin Hydrological Processes Based on a Modified Soil and Water Assessment Tool: A Case Study of the Heihe River Basin in Northwest China’s Arid Region. Sustainability 2019, 11, 1072. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Ross, E.R.; Randhir, T.O. Effects of climate and land use changes on water quantity and quality of coastal watersheds of Narragansett Bay. Sci. Total Environ. 2022, 807, 151082. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Khorn, N.; Ismail, M.H.; Nurhidayu, S.; Kamarudin, N.; Sulaiman, M.S. Land use/land cover changes and its impact on runoff using SWAT model in the upper Prek Thnot watershed in Cambodia. Environ. Earth Sci. 2022, 81, 466. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Country Ranking | Institution Ranking | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Country | Publications | Prominent Research Watersheds | Institution | Publications | ||
1 | USA | 72 | Upper Mississippi | 1 | United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), USA | 14 |
2 | China | 35 | Yellow River | 2 | Chinese Academy of Sciences, China | 13 |
3 | Ethiopia | 12 | Blue Nile River | 3 | Cornell University, USA | 9 |
4 | Canada | 10 | Assiniboine River | 4 | Beijing Normal University, China | 7 |
5 | Germany | 10 | Rhine River | 5 | Agricultural Research Service (ARS), USA | 6 |
5 | Purdue University, USA | 6 | ||||
5 | Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia | 6 |
Sorted by Keyword Count | Sorted by Keyword Centrality | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Keywords | Count | Centrality | Keywords | Count | Centrality | ||
1 | SWAT model | 36 | 0.11 | 1 | catchment | 20 | 0.29 |
2 | runoff | 33 | 0.06 | 2 | calibration | 24 | 0.27 |
3 | soil | 32 | 0.11 | 3 | climate change | 23 | 0.23 |
4 | river basin | 30 | 0.16 | 4 | model | 25 | 0.19 |
5 | model | 25 | 0.19 | 5 | river basin | 30 | 0.16 |
6 | calibration | 24 | 0.27 | 6 | flow | 14 | 0.13 |
7 | climate change | 23 | 0.23 | 7 | SWAT model | 36 | 0.11 |
8 | catchment | 20 | 0.29 | 8 | soil | 32 | 0.11 |
9 | SWAT | 19 | 0.08 | 8 | land use | 10 | 0.11 |
10 | infiltration | 17 | 0.07 | 10 | assessment tool | 12 | 0.09 |
Disclaimer/Publisher’s Note: The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content. |
© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Share and Cite
Ouyang, Y.; Ullah, S.M.A.; Takatori, C. Research Hotspots and Trends in Soil Infiltration at the Watershed Scale Using the SWAT Model: A Bibliometric Analysis. Water 2025, 17, 2119. https://doi.org/10.3390/w17142119
Ouyang Y, Ullah SMA, Takatori C. Research Hotspots and Trends in Soil Infiltration at the Watershed Scale Using the SWAT Model: A Bibliometric Analysis. Water. 2025; 17(14):2119. https://doi.org/10.3390/w17142119
Chicago/Turabian StyleOuyang, Yuxin, S. M. Asik Ullah, and Chika Takatori. 2025. "Research Hotspots and Trends in Soil Infiltration at the Watershed Scale Using the SWAT Model: A Bibliometric Analysis" Water 17, no. 14: 2119. https://doi.org/10.3390/w17142119
APA StyleOuyang, Y., Ullah, S. M. A., & Takatori, C. (2025). Research Hotspots and Trends in Soil Infiltration at the Watershed Scale Using the SWAT Model: A Bibliometric Analysis. Water, 17(14), 2119. https://doi.org/10.3390/w17142119