scholarly journals Wastewater Irrigation Impacts on Soil Hydraulic Conductivity: Coupled Field Sampling and Laboratory Determination of Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity

Author(s):  
Jack E. Watson ◽  
Tyson Robb ◽  
Danielle Andrews-Brown ◽  
Melissa Miller
Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 941 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matej Radinja ◽  
Ines Vidmar ◽  
Nataša Atanasova ◽  
Matjaž Mikoš ◽  
Mojca Šraj

Soil hydraulic conductivity has a direct influence on infiltration rate, which is of great importance for modelling and design of surface runoff and stormwater control measures. In this study, three measuring techniques for determination of soil hydraulic conductivity were compared in an urban catchment in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Double ring (DRI) and dual head infiltrometer (DHI) were applied to measure saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ks) and mini disk infiltrometer (MDI) was applied to measure unsaturated hydraulic conductivity (K), which was recalculated in Ks in order to compare the results. Results showed significant differences between investigated techniques, namely DHI showed 6.8 times higher values of Ks in comparison to DRI. On the other hand, Ks values obtained by MDI and DRI exhibited the lowest difference. MDI measurements in 12 locations of the small plot pointed to the spatial variability of K ranging between 73%–89% as well as to temporal variability within a single location of 27%–99%. Additionally, a reduction of K caused by the effect of drought-induced water repellency was observed. Moreover, results indicate that hydrological models could be enhanced using different scenarios by employing a range of K values based on soil conditions.


2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
pp. 289-299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michal Dohnal ◽  
Tomas Vogel ◽  
Jaromir Dusek ◽  
Jana Votrubova ◽  
Miroslav Tesar

AbstractPonded infiltration experiment is a simple test used for in-situ determination of soil hydraulic properties, particularly saturated hydraulic conductivity and sorptivity. It is known that infiltration process in natural soils is strongly affected by presence of macropores, soil layering, initial and experimental conditions etc. As a result, infiltration record encompasses a complex of mutually compensating effects that are difficult to separate from each other. Determination of sorptivity and saturated hydraulic conductivity from such infiltration data is complicated. In the present study we use numerical simulation to examine the impact of selected experimental conditions and soil profile properties on the ponded infiltration experiment results, specifically in terms of the hydraulic conductivity and sorptivity evaluation. The effect of following factors was considered: depth of ponding, ring insertion depth, initial soil water content, presence of preferential pathways, hydraulic conductivity anisotropy, soil layering, surface layer retention capacity and hydraulic conductivity, and presence of soil pipes or stones under the infiltration ring. Results were compared with a large database of infiltration curves measured at the experimental site Liz (Bohemian Forest, Czech Republic). Reasonably good agreement between simulated and observed infiltration curves was achieved by combining several of factors tested. Moreover, the ring insertion effect was recognized as one of the major causes of uncertainty in the determination of soil hydraulic parameters.


Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 2383
Author(s):  
Hatma Suryatmojo ◽  
Ken’ichirou Kosugi

In tropical Indonesia, rainforests are managed by an intensive forest management system (IFMS). The IFMS has promoted selective logging for timber harvesting and intensive line planting to enrich the standing stock. The implementation of the IFMS has reduced the forest canopy cover, disturbed the surface soil, changed the soil hydraulic properties, and increased direct runoff and soil erosion. Investigation of the IFMS impact on soil hydraulic properties and the generation of surface runoff using a saturated hydraulic conductivity model is needed. Soil hydraulic properties were investigated on 11 plots, including one virgin forest plot and 10 plots at different operational periods of the IFMS. A two-dimensional saturated soil water flow simulation was applied to generate surface runoff from different periods of the IFMS. The main parameters of canopy cover, net rainfall, and saturated hydraulic conductivity were used in the simulations. A simulation scenario of a surface runoff hydrograph in different forest operations was used to analyze the river buffer effectiveness. The results showed that fundamental IFMS activities associated with mechanized selective logging and intensive line planting have reduced the soil hydraulic conductivity within the near-surface profile. The recovery time for near-surface Ks on non-skidder tracks was between 10 and 15 years, whereas on the skidder tracks it was more than 20 years. Forest disturbances have altered the typical surface hydrological pathways, thereby creating the conditions for more surface runoff on disturbed surfaces than on undisturbed surfaces. Maintaining the buffer area is an effective means to reduce the peak discharge and surface runoff in the stream channel.


1998 ◽  
Vol 48 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 81-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Reichardt ◽  
O Portezan ◽  
P.L Libardi ◽  
O.O.S Bacchi ◽  
S.O Moraes ◽  
...  

Soil Research ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 44 (7) ◽  
pp. 719 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tony Wells ◽  
Stephen Fityus ◽  
David W. Smith ◽  
Hlwan Moe

A comprehensive knowledge of soil hydraulic conductivity is essential when modelling the distribution of soil moisture within soil profiles and across catchments. The high spatial variability of soil hydraulic conductivity, however, necessitates the taking of many in situ measurements, which are costly, time-consuming, and labour-intensive. This paper presents an improved method for indirectly determining the saturated hydraulic conductivity of granular materials via an in situ gas flow technique. The apparatus employed consists of a cylindrical tube which is embedded in the soil to a prescribed depth. Nitrogen at a range of pressures was supplied to the tube and allowed to escape by permeating through the soil. A 3-dimensional, axisymmetric, steady-state, finite element flow model was then used to determine the value of the soil intrinsic gas permeability which produces the best fit to the pressure–air flow data. Saturated hydraulic conductivities estimated from the application of the gas flow technique to 5 granular soils covering a wide range of permeabilities were in close agreement with values determined using a conventional permeameter. The results of this preliminary study demonstrate the potential of this approach to the indirect determination of saturated hydraulic conductivity based on measurement of gas flow rates in granular and structured soils.


1993 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 151-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Reichardt

It is theoretically shown that unit hydraulic potential gradients cannot occur in homogeneous soils undegoing internal drainage process even though this assumption has been used successfully by several authors of soil hydraulic conductivity methods.


2012 ◽  
Vol 518-523 ◽  
pp. 4735-4739
Author(s):  
Feng Tai Guo ◽  
Sha Wu ◽  
Dong Juan Cheng ◽  
Ya Min Liu

The method of measuring saturated soil hydraulic conductivity by using permeating bucket is easy and simple and the instrument is cheap. The water volume must be measuring for many times, meanwhile the water must be added on the top of permeating bucket to sustain the water layer thickness. Based on the principles of supplying water in the fixed water head by Marriott bottle, the method mentioned above is improved, which can reduce the experiment work and improve the experiment accuracy.


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