showing 17 related works from this author
On Infiltration and Infiltration Characteristic Times
2022
In his seminal paper on the solution of the infiltration equation, Philip (1969), https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-1-4831-9936-8.50010-6 proposed a gravity time, tgrav, to estimate practical convergence time and the time domain validity of his infinite time series expansion, TSE, for describing the transient state. The parameter tgrav refers to a point in time where infiltration is dominated equally by capillarity and gravity as derived from the first two (dominant) terms of the TSE. Evidence suggests that applicability of the truncated two-term equation of Philip has a time limit requiring higher-order TSE terms to better describe the infiltration process for times exceeding that limit. Since …
Impacts of thinning of a Mediterranean oak forest on soil properties influencing water infiltration
2017
[EN] In Mediterranean ecosystems, special attention needs to be paid to forest¿water relationships due to water scarcity. In this context, Adaptive Forest Management (AFM) has the objective to establish how forest resources have to be managed with regards to the efficient use of water, which needs maintaining healthy soil properties even after disturbance. The main objective of this investigation was to understand the effect of one of the AFM methods, namely forest thinning, on soil hydraulic properties. At this aim, soil hydraulic characterization was performed on two contiguous Mediterranean oak forest plots, one of them thinned to reduce the forest density from 861 to 414 tree per ha. Th…
Laboratory testing of Beerkan infiltration experiments for assessing the role of soil sealing on water infiltration
2018
Abstract Soil surface sealing is a major cause of decreased infiltration rates and increased surface runoff and erosion during a rainstorm. The objective of this paper is to quantify the effect of surface sealing on infiltration for 3 layered soils with different textures for the upper layer and investigate the capability of BEST procedure to catch the formation of the seal and related consequences on water infiltration. Rainfall experiments were carried out to induce the formation of the seal. Meanwhile, Beerkan infiltration runs were carried out pouring water at different distances from the soil surface (BEST-H versus BEST-L runs, with a High and Low water pouring heights, respectively) f…
Estimating the macroscopic capillary length from Beerkan infiltration experiments and its impact on saturated soil hydraulic conductivity predictions
2020
International audience; The macroscopic capillary length, λc, is a fundamental soil parameter expressing the relative importance of the capillary over gravity forces during water movement in unsaturated soil. In this investigation, we propose a simple field method for estimating λc using only a single-ring infiltration experiment of the Beerkan type and measurements of initial and saturated soil water contents. We assumed that the intercept of the linear regression fitted to the steady-state portion of the experimental infiltration curve could be used as a reliable predictor of λc. This hypothesis was validated by assessing the proposed calculation approach using both analytical and field d…
An open-source instrumentation package for intensive soil hydraulic characterization
2020
International audience; We present a new open-source and modular instrumentation package composed of up to ten automatic in- filtrometers connected to data acquisition systems for automatic recording of multiple infiltration experiments. The infiltrometers are equipped with differential transducers to monitor water level changes in a Mariotte re- servoir, and, in turn, to quantify water infiltration rates. The data acquisition systems consist of low-cost components and operate on the open-source microcontroller platform Arduino. The devices were tested both in the laboratory and on different urban and agricultural soils in France and India. More specifically, we tested three procedures to t…
Saturated Soil Hydraulic Conductivity
2016
This chapter deals primarily with field measurement of saturated soil hydraulic conductivity, K fs . Well or borehole permeameter techniques, specifically developed for subsurface soil measurements above the water table, are initially illustrated. Particular attention is paid to establishment of steady flow under constant head in an uncased borehole, widely developed both theoretically and experimentally in the last 30 years. Situations involving cased boreholes, transient flow, or falling head processes are then described. These variants have received a renewed interest in the last few years. New data analysis procedures have been proposed and this circumstance allows us to obtain subsurfa…
Appendix – Additional Measurements
2016
This appendix deals with the determination of different soil physical and hydraulic characteristics used in the analysis and/or interpretation of the infiltration experiments. The core method and the excavation method for measurement of soil bulk density are initially presented. Determination of soil water content by the thermo-gravimetric and the Time Domain Reflectometry methods is then illustrated. Subsequently, field measurement of soil water matric potential by tensiometers is discussed. Laboratory determination of the soil water retention curve by tensiometric and pressiometric techniques is also described. Finally, different methods to test water stability of soil aggregates are illu…
Infiltration Measurements for Soil Hydraulic Characterization
2016
This book summarises the main results of many contributions from researchers worldwide who have used the water infiltration process to characterize soil in the field. Determining soil hydrodynamic properties is essential to interpret and simulate the hydrological processes of economic and environmental interest. This book can be used as a guide to soil hydraulic characterization and in addition it gives a complete description of the treated techniques, including an outline of the most significant research results, with the main points that still needing development and improvement.
Testing a new automated single ring infiltrometer for Beerkan infiltration experiments
2015
International audience; The Beerkan method along with BEST algorithms is an alternative technique to conventional laboratory or field measurements for rapid and low-cost estimation of soil hydraulic properties. The Beerkan method is simple to conduct but requires an operator to repeatedly pour known volumes of water through a ring positioned at the soil surface. A cheap infiltrometer equipped with a data acquisition system was recently designed to automate Beerkan infiltration experiments. In this paper, the current prototype of the automated infiltrometer was tested to validate its applicability to the Beerkan infiltration experiment under several experimental circumstances. In addition, t…
Thematic Issue on Soil Water Infiltration
2017
Interpretive Summary: When water is applied to the land surface through irrigation or rainfall, it infiltrates into the soil surface and percolates deeper through the soil profile under the influence of gravity and capillary forces. Soil infiltration is one of the most complex processes within the terrestrial hydrologic cycle, yet the process is only partially understood. Infiltration is affected by the physical, chemical and biological properties of the soil, vegetation cover, rainfall, irrigation properties, and management practices. Measurement of infiltration rate is essential in studies concerning water budget, hydrology, runoff, erosion, irrigation, drainage and water conservation. Ho…
Comparing Beerkan infiltration tests with rainfall simulation experiments for hydraulic characterization of a sandy-loam soil
2017
[EN] Saturated soil hydraulic conductivity, K-s, data collected by ponding infiltrometer methods and usual experimental procedures could be unusable for interpreting field hydrological processes and particularly rainfall infiltration. The K-s values determined by an infiltrometer experiment carried out by applying water at a relatively large distance from the soil surface could however be more appropriate to explain surface runoff generation phenomena during intense rainfall events. In this study, a link between rainfall simulation and ponding infiltrometer experiments was established for a sandy-loam soil. The height of water pouring for the infiltrometer run was chosen, establishing a sim…
Soils with Specific Features
2016
This chapter deals with some specific features of soil that are relevant for interpretation of infiltration experiments. Infiltration in water repellent soils is first examined. After summarizing the causes of hydrophobicity, phenomena associated to infiltration in water repellent soil, including reduced infiltration rates and irregular wetting front advance, are illustrated. The Water Drop Penetration Time (WDPT), the Molarity of an Ethanol Droplet (MED) and the Repellency tests for quantitative assessment of soil water repellency are presented. Particular attention is given to estimation of subcritical soil water repellency by means of soil sorptivity measurements conducted with infiltrat…
An Introduction to Soil and Water Infiltration
2016
This chapter provides a short presentation of general characteristics of the soil. Basic concepts concerning soil water content and potential and flow of water in the porous medium are then reported since these concepts are diffusely used throughout this book. The infiltration process is finally illustrated considering different modeling approaches. In particular, development of analytical infiltration models is described with reference to one-dimensional gravity-free water absorption, one-dimensional gravity driven infiltration, one-dimensional gravity and capillary driven infiltration and, finally, three-dimensional gravity and capillary driven infiltration.
Parameterization of a comprehensive explicit model for single-ring infiltration
2021
International audience; Comprehensive infiltration models can simultaneously describe transient and steady-state infiltration behaviors, and therefore can be applied to a range of experimental conditions. However, satisfactory model accuracy re- quires proper parameterization, including estimating the transition time from transient to steady-state flow conditions (τcrit). This study focused on improving the estimation of two parameters – τcrit and a second constant called a – used in a comprehensive, explicit, two-term model for single ring infiltration (hereafter referred to as the SA model). Different studies have recommended that a should be as low as 0.45 to as high as 0.91. Furthermore…
Beerkan Estimation of Soil Transfer parameters (BEST) across soils and scales
2019
Abstract Theories and models used in soil hydrological sciences rely on the knowledge of the spatially and temporally variable soil hydraulic properties, i.e. the water retention and hydraulic conductivity curves. Obtaining reliable experimental information on these curves for an area of interest is not easy and it still remains a challenge for soil scientists. In 2006, a simple and physically based methodology was proposed to completely characterize the soil using a single ring infiltration experiment in the field and determination of soil particle size distribution, initial and final soil water content and dry soil bulk density. This methodology, named BEST – Beerkan Estimation of Soil Tr…
Unsaturated Soil Hydraulic Properties
2016
In the first part of this chapter, the tension infiltrometer (TI) technique is illustrated. After having described apparatus and instruments as well as the operative procedures in the field, the solutions based on the Wooding’s equation for steady-state flow are presented. Specific focus is given to the multi-potential approaches that allow determination of unsaturated soil hydraulic conductivity, K 0, corresponding to a sequence of pressure head values, h 0, imposed on the soil surface. The analytical model proposed by Haverkamp et al. (1994) to describe three-dimensional transient infiltration from a circular source is introduced and a single-test approach is presented that allows estimat…
BEST-2K Method for Characterizing Dual-Permeability Unsaturated Soils with Ponded and Tension Infiltrometers
2019
This study presents a new method (BEST-2K) that extends the existing BEST methods for use in characterizing the water retention and hydraulic conductivity functions of matrix and fast-flow regions in dual-permeability soils. BEST-2K requires input information from two water infiltration experiments that are performed under ponded (Beerkan) and unsaturated (tension infiltrometer) conditions at the surface. Other required inputs include water content measurements and the traditional BEST inputs (particle size distribution and bulk density). In this study, first, a flowchart of the BEST-2K method was developed and illustrated with analytically generated data for a synthetic dual-permeability s…