Rtriplexcwflux: an R Package for Carbon–water Coupling Model to Simulate Net Ecosystem Productivity and Evapotranspiration in Forests

Carbon and water cycles in forest ecosystems are tightly coupled, but global warming-induced soil and atmospheric droughts alter the coupling, thereby greatly increasing uncertainty in predicting carbon and water cycles. Therefore, a carbon–water coupled model (TRIPLEX-CW-Flux) was developed, and an R package (rTRIPLEXCWFlux) was created to facilitate model application. TRIPLEX-CW-Flux integrates vapor pressure deficit and soil moisture into a stomatal conductance submodule to estimate forest carbon and water fluxes. Prediction accuracy of TRIPLEX-CW-Flux and rTRIPLEXCWFlux application were evaluated in a Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) plantation. Simulated net ecosystem production (NEP) and evapotranspiration (ET) were in good agreement with flux observations (R2: 0.76 for NEP; 0.71 for ET). Thus, the TRIPLEX-CW-Flux model can be used to predict and quantify effects of global warming-induced droughts on forest carbon and water cycles. The open-access rTRIPLEXCWFlux package facilitates estimations of carbon sequestration and water consumption in forest ecosystems using the observed flux data.