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A Method for Measuring Hydraulic Properties of Brittle Soil Horizons
Author(s) -
Vroon H. R. J.,
Dekker L. W.,
Hendrickx J. M. H.
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
soil science society of america journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.836
H-Index - 168
eISSN - 1435-0661
pISSN - 0361-5995
DOI - 10.2136/sssaj1988.03615995005200010053x
Subject(s) - hydraulic conductivity , geology , soil water , brittleness , soil science , geotechnical engineering , soil horizon , soil test , water retention , materials science , composite material
A method is presented for measuring hydraulic properties of undisturbed samples of brittle soil horizons oriented vertically or horizontally. A soil pedestal is carved out in situ and covered with a mixture of nitrocellulose lacquer and thinner. The saturated hydraulic conductivity is measured by infiltrating water into the exposed upper surface and by collecting it below the exposed lower surface of the pedestal. In brittle soil horizons, the method yielded more representative conductivity values than the method that uses steel cylinders for taking “undisturbed” soil cores. Measurements of water retention and hydraulic conductivities showed that the latter method often disturbed the structure of the sample. Therefore, artificially high conductivity values were obtained. The method presented allows measurement of vertical and horizontal conductivities and soil‐water retention using the same sample. The method is simple and allows adjusting the sample volume to the phenomenon under study. Therefore, the method facilitates the study of hydraulic properties of brittle horizons, such as sandy humus hardpans.