Estimating Soil Hydraulic Parameters By Using Green and Ampt Infiltration Equation
Publication: Journal of Hydrologic Engineering
Volume 16, Issue 10
Abstract
Infiltration is the process of water movement from the ground surface into the soil and is an important process in the hydrological cycle. In this study, a mathematical equation of the upward-advancing wet front is derived from the Green and Ampt infiltration model, and a new method is proposed to estimate the values of soil hydraulic parameters such as unsaturated hydraulic conductivity () and the capillary pressure head (). In the proposed method, these parameters are estimated from the advancing wet front data or infiltration test data under constant head. Experiments in which water flow is entered into the unsaturated soil column from beneath under constant head and the advancing wet front is recorded with the time are conducted on the five uniform sandy soils for different values of the saturation ratio (Sr). Results indicated that hydraulic parameters of unsaturated soils are not constant values. With increasing soil water content, is decreased from at to at . But the value of is first decreased and then increased until reaching zero at .
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Acknowledgments
The writers deeply thank Mrs. Tahereh Samadian for her assistance in conducting all the experimental tests.
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© 2011 American Society of Civil Engineers.
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Received: May 1, 2010
Accepted: Jan 12, 2011
Published online: Jan 15, 2011
Published in print: Oct 1, 2011
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