Hydraulic Conductivity and Diffusivity: Laboratory Methods

Abstract

This chapter describes several laboratory methods of determining the hydraulic conductivity and hydraulic diffusivity. Water moves through soil in response to various forces acting upon it. The chemical species water may be transported due to bulk movement of the liquid phase or soil solution, or it may be transported by diffusion relative to the mean motion of the liquid phase. The chapter deals with bulk movement, under isothermal conditions, of the liquid phase in response to mechanical driving forces. However, the transport of water in the gas phase by vapor diffusion will be included in the measured hydraulic conductivity and diffusivity, especially at low water contents. The concept of parameter identification has been applied to the determination of the parameters in the hydraulic conductivity and water retention functions. The method involves the measurement of some aspect of the response of a soil water flow system to a set of applied boundary conditions.