Analytical solution of transient flow in a sloping soil layer with recharge

Abstract

An analytical solution of planar flow in a sloping soil layer described by the linearized extended Boussinesq equation is presented. The solution consists of the sum of steady-state and transient-series solutions, the latter in a separation-of-variables form, and can satisfy an arbitrary initial condition via collocation; this feature reduces the number of series terms, making the solution efficient. Key parameter is the dimensionless linearization depth η o (R), R being the dimensionless recharge. The variable η o (R), not the slope, characterizes the flow as kinematic or diffusive, and R ≈ 0.2 demarcates the two regimes. The transient series converges rapidly for large η o (large R, near-diffusive flow) and slowly as η o → 0 (kinematic flow). The quasi-steady (QS) state method of Verhoest & Troch is also analysed and it is shown that the QS depth profiles approximate the transient ones well, only if Δt exceeds a system-dependent transition time between flow states (possibly >>1 day). In an application example for a 30-day recharge series, the QS solution differs from the transient one by as much as 20% (RMSE = 15%), does not track recharge changes as well and fails to conserve mass.