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STUDY OF INFILTRATION INTO A HETEROGENEOUS SOIL USING MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING
Author(s) -
AMIN M. H. G.,
CHORLEY R. J.,
RICHARDS K. S.,
HALL L. D.,
CARPENTER T. A.,
CISLEROVA MELENA,
VOGEL THOMAS
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
hydrological processes
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.222
H-Index - 161
eISSN - 1099-1085
pISSN - 0885-6087
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1099-1085(199704)11:5<471::aid-hyp454>3.0.co;2-v
Subject(s) - infiltration (hvac) , wetting , water content , soil science , magnetic resonance imaging , soil water , moisture , geology , geotechnical engineering , materials science , composite material , radiology , medicine
In this paper, the feasibility of using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study water infiltration into a heterogeneous soil is examined, together with its difficulties and limitations. MRI studies of ponded water infiltration into an undisturbed soil core show that the combination of one‐ and two‐dimensional imaging techniques provides a visual and non‐destructive means of monitoring the temporal changes of soil water content and the moisture profile, and the movement of the wetting front. Two‐dimensional images show air entrapment in repetitive ponded infiltration experiments. During the early stages of infiltration, one‐dimensional images of soil moisture profiles clearly indicate preferential flow phenomena. The observed advance of wetting fronts can be described by a linear relationship between the square root of infiltration time (√ t ) and the distance of the wetting front from the soil surface. Similarly, the cumulative infiltration is also directly proportional to √ t . Furthermore, from the MRI infiltration moisture profiles, it is possible to estimate the parameters that feature in infiltration equations. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.