Determination of spatial and temporal variability of soil hydraulic conductivity for urban runoff modelling

Radinja, Matej (author), Vidmar, Ines (author), Atanasova, Nataša (author), Mikoš, Matjaž (author), Šraj, Mojca (author)

Soil hydraulic conductivity has a direct influence on infiltration rate, which is of great importance for modelling and design of surface runoff and stormwater control measures. In this study, three measuring techniques for determination of soil hydraulic conductivity were compared in an urban catchment in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Double ring (DRI) and dual head infiltrometer (DHI) were applied to measure saturated hydraulic conductivity (K$_s$) and mini disk infiltrometer (MDI) was applied to measure unsaturated hydraulic conductivity (K), which was recalculated in K$_s$ in order to compare the results. Results showed significant differences between investigated techniques, namely DHI showed 6.8 times higher values of K$_s$ in comparison to DRI. On the other hand, K$_s$ values obtained by MDI and DRI exhibited the lowest difference. MDI measurements in 12 locations of the small plot pointed to the spatial variability of K ranging between 73%-89% as well as to temporal variability within a single location of 27%-99%. Additionally, a reduction of K caused by the effect of drought-induced water repellency was observed. Moreover, results indicate that hydrological models could be enhanced using different scenarios by employing a range of K values based on soil conditions.

• Language: English
• Keywords: hydraulic conductivity, urban runoff modelling, mini disk infiltrometer, double ring infiltrometer, dual head infiltrometer
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FGG - Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering; NTF - Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2019
• Number of pages: 15 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 11, iss. 5, art. 941
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-128429
• UDC: 556.5
• ISSN on article: 2073-4441
• DOI: 10.3390/w11050941
• COBISS.SI-ID: 8794209
• Publication date in RUL: 13.07.2021

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Water
• Shortened title: Water
• Publisher: Molecular Diversity Preservation International - MDPI
• ISSN: 2073-4441
• COBISS.SI-ID: 36731653

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.
• Licensing start date: 05.05.2019

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: hidravlična prepustnost, modeliranje urbanega odtoka, infiltrometer z mini diskom, infiltrometer z dvojnim obročem, infiltrometer z enojnim obročem

Projects

• Funder: ARRS - Slovenian Research Agency
• Project number: P2-0180
• Name: Vodarstvo in geotehnika: orodja in metode za analize in simulacije procesov ter razvoj tehnologij