INFILTRATION

Infiltration is the physical process involving movement of water through the boundary area where the atmosphere
interfaces with the soil. Infiltrated water provides soil moisture, groundwater, and streamflow.

Infiltration capacity: maximum rate at which a soil can absorb water

Water soaks into the soil and percolates downward through the unsaturated zone. This is the zone of soil
where some openings in the soil (pores) contain water and some do not (they contain air).

Infiltrated water:
- increases soil moisture (important to vegetation)
- percolates downward and becomes a part of groundwater flow
- flows laterally underground and comes out as streamflow

Without infiltration, wells would go dry and streams would stop flowing soon after rainstorms, soils would
erode, and increased surface runoff would cause increased flooding
Typically, the infiltration rate depends on the puddling of the water at the soil surface by the impact of
raindrops, the texture and structure of the soil, the initial soil moisture content, the decreasing water concentration as
the water moves deeper into the soil filling of the pores in the soil matrices, changes in the soil composition, and to
the swelling of the wetted soils that in turn close cracks in the soil. Water that is infiltrated and stored in the soil can
also become the water that later is evapotranspired or becomes subsurface runoff.
High infiltration rates occur in dry soils, with infiltration slowing as the soil becomes wet. Coarse textured
soils with large well-connected pore spaces tend to have higher infiltration rates than fine textured soils. However,
coarse textured soils fill more quickly than fine textured soils due to a smaller amount of total pore space in a unit
volume of soil. Runoff is generated quicker than one might have with a finer textured soil.
Some water that infiltrates will remain in the shallow soil layer, where it will gradually move vertically and
horizontally through the soil and subsurface material. Eventually, it might enter a stream by seepage into the stream
bank. Some of the water may infiltrate deeper, recharging groundwater aquifers. If the aquifers are porous enough to
allow water to move freely through it, people can drill wells into the aquifer and use the water for their purposes.
Water may travel long distances or remain in groundwater storage for long periods before returning to the surface or
seeping into other water bodies, such as streams and the oceans.






As water infiltrates into the soil, it encounters several zones of subsurface water

Water that moves far enough downward encounters the capillary fringe above the water table

- The capillary fringe is the zone of ground immediately above the water table, where water is pulled upward by
capillary action
- The water table is the boundary between the unsaturated and saturated zones
- The saturated zone is the zone where all the soil and rock pores are filled with water

The infiltration process

When rain falls or sprinkling occurs, the water supply rate may either be less than or greater than the
saturated hydraulic conductivity of the surface soil.

If the rate is less than the hydraulic conductivity, all the water enters the soil. In this case the
infiltration rate, that is, the rate at which water enters the soil, is equal to the water supply rate. In
this case the only way that runoff can occur is if the soil becomes saturated above an impermeable
layer, or if the soil has a layer in which the hydraulic conductivity is less than the hydraulic
conductivity of the layers above it.

If the water supply rate is greater than the hydraulic conductivity and the soil is dry, then for a while
all the water enters the soil. In this case the rate at which water enters the soil is greater than the
saturated hydraulic conductivity. This occurs because water not only flows in response to gravity, but
also in response to the soil suction. As the water content of the soil decreases, the soil suction also
decreases. Sooner or later, the supply rate begins to exceed the capability of the soil to absorb the
water. At this point water begins to build up on the soil surface and runoff begins.

The time between the start of the rainfall and the initiation of runoff is known as the time to ponding.

The infiltration rate continues to decrease and asymptotically approaches the saturated hydraulic
conductivity. The steady state infiltration rate is termed the steady state infiltrability. It is
approximately the same as the field saturated hydraulic conductivity of the surface soil.

Factors affecting infiltration
Precipitation: The greatest factor controlling infiltration is the amount and characteristics (intensity, duration,
etc.) of precipitation that falls as rain or snow. Precipitation that infiltrates into the ground often seeps into
streambeds over an extended period of time, thus a stream will often continue to flow when it hasn't rained
for a long time and where there is no direct runoff from recent precipitation.
Soil characteristics: Some soils, such as clays, absorb less water at a slower rate than sandy soils. Soils
absorbing less water result in more runoff overland into streams.
Soil saturation: Like a wet sponge, soil already saturated from previous rainfall can't absorb much more ...
thus more rainfall will become surface runoff.
Land cover: Some land covers have a great impact on infiltration and rainfall runoff. Vegetation can slow the
movement of runoff, allowing more time for it to seep into the ground. Impervious surfaces, such as parking
lots, roads, and developments, act as a "fast lane" for rainfall - right into storm drains that drain directly into
streams. Agriculture and the tillage of land also changes the infiltration patterns of a landscape. Water that,
in natural conditions, infiltrated directly into soil now runs off into streams.
Slope of the land: Water falling on steeply-sloped land runs off more quickly and infiltrates less than water
falling on flat land.
Evapotranspiration: Some infiltration stays near the land surface, which is where plants put down their
roots. Plants need this shallow groundwater to grow, and, by the process of evapotranspiration, water is
moved back into the atmosphere.

Estimating the Volume of Water Infiltrated

The infiltration rate curve serves to partition the water supply between infiltration and runoff. The volume of
water infiltrated is given by the area under the infiltration rate curve. The volume of runoff is the area
between the supply line and the infiltration rate curve.






In order to estimate the volume of infiltration, the curve may be treated as a series of trapezia. The volume of water
infiltrated is the sum of the area of the individual trapezia.






If equal time increments are used then the area can be estimated by the trapezium rule.
The smaller the time increments, the more accurate the resulting estimate of infiltration volume. In the limit, the area
under the curve can be evaluated exactly using the principles of calculus. This is beyond the scope of this course. In
order to determine the infiltration rate at any time approximate infiltration rate equations have been developed. Most
of these equations are empirical, that is they are based on observed behavior. In some equations the parameters
have no physical meaning.

Kastiakov Equation


where ft is the infiltration rate at time t; and Kk and a are constants. These constants have to be evaluated from
experimental data. One of the benefits of this equation is that it can be used to determine when ponding will occur.

Horton Equation



where R is the rainfall (sprinkler) rate; tp is the time to ponding; and b is a soil parameter which depends on initial
conditions and application rate. In most irrigation designs, the point at which water is applied is fixed, so b can be
treated as a constant. (e is a number commonly used in mathematical formulations. It has a value approximately
equal to 2.7183).



PERCOLATION







Percolation is the movement of water though the soil, and it's layers, by gravity and capillary forces. The prime
moving force of groundwater is gravity.




















http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycleinfiltration.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infiltration_(hydrology)
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