HR: 08:00h
AN: H11H-01    [Abstracts]
TI: Temporal Correlation Patterns of Soil Moisture During Preferential Infiltration
AU: * Germann, P F
EM: germann@giub.unibe.ch
AF: University of Bern, Geography Department Hallerstrasse 12, Bern, 3012 Switzerland
AB: Wetting fronts of preferential infiltration move fast with velocities between 0.1 and 1 mm.s-1 (i.e., 0.36 to 3.6 m.h-1). Capillary heads in the water phase behind the wetting fronts drop close to zero (i.e., pressure in the water phase is close to atmospheric pressure). In some instances the heads are slightly above, in other instances slightly below 0, the approximate range is about 0 ñ 0.5 kPa. The drop of capillary heads indicates flow close to the equilibrium of momentum where gravity adds to it and viscosity consumes it. However, wetting fronts are not cohesive but indicate flow along fingers. In connection with infiltration soil moisture variations at various depths were measured with TDR-equipment at 6 to 30 s time intervals. Temporal correlations between measurements are highest during the most rapid increase of soil moisture. There are similarly well correlated clusters during the advancement of the draining front after the cessation of infiltration. The temporal correlation patterns are related with initial soil moisture, intensity of infiltration, and depth in the soil profile, and flow mechanisms are deduced from them. The concept of equivalent Poiseuille pores, ePp, will be applied to the estimation of the geometry of flow.
DE: 1838 Infiltration
DE: 1847 Modeling
DE: 1849 Numerical approximations and analysis
DE: 1866 Soil moisture
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005