12/10/2020

Dr. Shakil Ahmad

NUST Institute of Civil Engineering (NICE)
School of Civil & Environmental Engineering (SCEE)
National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST)
Islamabad, Pakistan

Outline
Infiltration: Definition?

Distribution of Soil Moisture during Infiltration

Infiltration Capacity

Factors affecting Infiltration Rate

Measurement of Infiltration

Estimation of Infiltration

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Infiltration and Soil Moisture

Infiltration and Soil Moisture

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Infiltration and Soil Moisture

Infiltration Model

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Infiltration Capacity

Infiltration Capacity

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Factors affecting Infiltration Rate

Precipitation: intensity and duration
Soil Characteristics (texture, porosity,
initial soil moisture content, hydraulic
conductivity)
Condition of the soil surface
Current moisture content  initial
wetness
Vegetative cover and land use
Soil temperature
Depth of ground water table

Infiltration Measurement & Estimation

Infiltration characteristics of a soil at a
given location can be estimated by:
Using flooding type infiltrometers
Measurement of subsidence of free
water in a large basin or pond
Rainfall simulator
Infiltration Indices
Horton’s Equation
Hydrograph analysis

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Flooding-Type Infiltrometer

Rainfall Simulator

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Determination of Infiltration Indices

Infiltration Capacity
Maximum rate at which water enters the soil in a
given condition
Infiltration Rate
Rate at which water actually enters the soil during
a storm and is equal to the infiltration capacity or
the rainfall rate, whichever is less
Infiltration Index
Average rate of loss such that volume of rainfall in
excess of that rate will be equal to direct runoff

Determination of Infiltration Indices

Estimates of runoff volume from large areas are
sometimes made by the use of Infiltration Indices,
which assume a constant average infiltration rate
during a storm, although in actual practice the
infiltration will be varying with time.

Φ-Index
The Φ-index is defined as that rate of infiltration above
which rainfall volume equals the runoff volume.

Φ-index = basin recharge / duration of rainfall = P - Rsfc / tr

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Determination of Infiltration Indices

Determination of Infiltration Indices

W-Index
The W-index is the average infiltration rate during the
time rainfall intensity exceeds the infiltration capacity.
W = Fp / tr = (P – Rsfc – S)/tr
W = Index, cm/hr
Fp = Total Infiltration, cm
P = Precipitation, cm
Rsfc = Surface Runoff, cm
S = Effective Surface Retention, cm
tr = Duration of Storm during which i > fp , hr
i = Rainfall Intensity, cm/hr
fp = Infiltration Capacity, cm/hr

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Determination of Infiltration by Equation

Estimation of Infiltration by Equation

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Home Assignment
Solved Examples from H.M. Ragunath
and Dr. A.R. Ghuman eBooks

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