Abstract
Unsaturated steady flow of mixtures of a liquid and a gas through sands and similar porous media at low Reynolds numbers obeys Darcy's law. The relative liquid permeability K is not constant, but a universal function of the degree of liquid saturation. An approximate theory gives its form, which is a cubic parabola. A similar expression is found for the gas permeability. Numerous experiments by Wyckoff ami Botset confirm the theory. This is in agreement with Gardner's hypothesis that K is a function of the concentration in water, and indirectly with Richards' hypothesis that it is a function of the capillary potential. The degree of liquid saturation seems to be a more useful unit of liquid percentage than any other.
Keywords
Hydraulic conductivitySaturation (graph theory)Degree of saturationPermeability (electromagnetism)Capillary actionPorous mediumRelative permeabilityChemistryThermodynamicsDarcy's lawLiquid flowSoil waterParabolaMathematicsPorosityMechanicsGeometryPhysicsSoil scienceGeologyOrganic chemistryMembrane
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Publication Info
- Year
- 1954
- Type
- article
- Volume
- 35
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 463-467
- Citations
- 217
- Access
- Closed
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Cite This
Shragga Irmay
(1954).
On the hydraulic conductivity of unsaturated soils.
Transactions American Geophysical Union
, 35
(3)
, 463-467.
https://doi.org/10.1029/tr035i003p00463
Identifiers
- DOI
- 10.1029/tr035i003p00463