Study of the Effects of Waves on Evaporation from Free Water Surfaces. A Water Resources Technical Publication

摘要

The evaporation rate from a water surface is shown to be greatly affected by surface waves in laboratory and field tests. Laboratory experiments were made using a large wave tank-wind tunnel apparatus in which both wind speed and wave parameters could be controlled. The apparatus simulates wave conditions on large bodies of water with fetches up to a mile or more. Tank experiments indicate certain combinations of wind speed and well-developed waves produce an evaporation rate lower than the rate under similar wind conditions with no waves present. Wave and evaporation measurements at Lake Hefner, Oklahoma, were very similar to the laboratory measurements.