Spatial variability of saturated hydraulic conductivity at the hillslope scale: Understanding the role of land management and erosional effect

Geoderma ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 243-244 ◽  
pp. 58-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Athanasios (Thanos) N. Papanicolaou ◽  
Mohamed Elhakeem ◽  
Christopher G. Wilson ◽  
C. Lee Burras ◽  
Larry T. West ◽  
...  
1990 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johnny Fredericia

The background for the present knowledge about hydraulic conductivity of clayey till in Denmark is summarized. The data show a difference of 1-2 orders of magnitude in the vertical hydraulic conductivity between values from laboratory measurements and field measurements. This difference is discussed and based on new data, field observations and comparison with North American studies, it is concluded to be primarily due to fractures in the till.


2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 786-794
Author(s):  
GERLANGE SOARES DA SILVA ◽  
JUCICLÉIA SOARES DA SILVA ◽  
FRANCISCO ADRIANO DE CARVALHO PEREIRA ◽  
RODRIGO ALMEIDA SANTANA ◽  
RAFAEL SILVA FIRMO ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Irrigated cocoa cultivation opened the way for production in Coastal Tablelands soils. However, in this region, the cohesive layer formed near the surface can be a limiting factor for production. The knowledge of physical soil water attributes enables the efficient irrigation management of cohesive soils. This study characterized and modeled the spatial variability of saturated hydraulic conductivity (K0) in a Distrocoeso Oxisoil of the Recôncavo Baiano Coastal Tablelands. The soil sampling was performed as undeformed structures from 50 spaced points in an 8.0 to 8.0 m area, at three different depths in the experimental area of the Federal University of Bahia Recôncavo in the Cruz das Almas-BA cultivated with cocoa (‘CCN 51’). In the laboratory, K0 was determined by permeameter method constant load, and the pore size distribution was determined using the voltage table and the soil density (Ds). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and geostatistics. On average, the K0 values were 40.41, 26.49, and 37.82 mm-1 h-1 at the depths from 0.0-0.15 m, 0.15-0.30, and 0.30-0.45 m. The Gaussian model was the best fit to the K0 data set. For soil class, the K0 showed a strong spatial dependence due to their relationship with the physical properties of the soil, its use, and handling. Since an important attribute for the delimitation of homogeneous areas for specific site management purposes as well be considered.


2017 ◽  
Vol 21 (7) ◽  
pp. 3749-3775 ◽  
Author(s):  
Conrad Jackisch ◽  
Lisa Angermann ◽  
Niklas Allroggen ◽  
Matthias Sprenger ◽  
Theresa Blume ◽  
...  

Abstract. The study deals with the identification and characterization of rapid subsurface flow structures through pedo- and geo-physical measurements and irrigation experiments at the point, plot and hillslope scale. Our investigation of flow-relevant structures and hydrological responses refers to the general interplay of form and function, respectively. To obtain a holistic picture of the subsurface, a large set of different laboratory, exploratory and experimental methods was used at the different scales. For exploration these methods included drilled soil core profiles, in situ measurements of infiltration capacity and saturated hydraulic conductivity, and laboratory analyses of soil water retention and saturated hydraulic conductivity. The irrigation experiments at the plot scale were monitored through a combination of dye tracer, salt tracer, soil moisture dynamics, and 3-D time-lapse ground penetrating radar (GPR) methods. At the hillslope scale the subsurface was explored by a 3-D GPR survey. A natural storm event and an irrigation experiment were monitored by a dense network of soil moisture observations and a cascade of 2-D time-lapse GPR trenches. We show that the shift between activated and non-activated state of the flow paths is needed to distinguish structures from overall heterogeneity. Pedo-physical analyses of point-scale samples are the basis for sub-scale structure inference. At the plot and hillslope scale 3-D and 2-D time-lapse GPR applications are successfully employed as non-invasive means to image subsurface response patterns and to identify flow-relevant paths. Tracer recovery and soil water responses from irrigation experiments deliver a consistent estimate of response velocities. The combined observation of form and function under active conditions provides the means to localize and characterize the structures (this study) and the hydrological processes (companion study Angermann et al., 2017, this issue).


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