Brooks–Corey Modeling by One-Dimensional Vertical Infiltration Method

Abstract

The laboratory methods used for the soil water retention curve (SWRC) construction and parameter estimation is time-consuming. A vertical infiltration method was proposed to estimate parameters α and n and to further construct the SWRC. In the present study, the relationships describing the cumulative infiltration and infiltration rate with the depth of the wetting front were established, and simplified expressions for estimating α and n parameters were proposed. The one-dimensional vertical infiltration experiments of four soils were conducted to verify if the proposed method would accurately estimate α and n. The fitted values of α and n, obtained from the RETC software, were consistent with the calculated values obtained from the infiltration method. The comparison between the measured SWRCs obtained from the centrifuge method and the calculated SWRCs that were based on the infiltration method displayed small values of root mean square error (RMSE), mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), and mean absolute error. SWMS_2D-based simulations of cumulative infiltration, based on the calculated α and n, remained consistent with the measured values due to small RMSE and MAPE values. The experiments verified the proposed one-dimensional vertical infiltration method, which has applications in field hydraulic parameter estimation.

Parameter Estimation for Soil Water Retention Curve Using the Salp Swarm Algorithm

“…Hosseini et al [2] used the van Genuchten and Fredlund-Xing equations for the estimation of the SWRC, which takes the plasticity index and fine content into consideration. Xing et al [16] proposed a vertical infiltration method to estimate parameters α and n and further develop the SWRC and establish the relationships describing the cumulative infiltration and infiltration rate with the depth of the wetting front. Oh et al [17] modified van Genuchten's function for SWRC within the range of low matric suction to improve the Mualem hydraulic conductivity (HC), and van Genuchten-Mualem hydraulic conductivity was then modified to integrate the proposed SWRC for each interval decomposed by a tangential curve.…”

Determination of soil water hydraulic parameters from infiltration data

“…In the previous studies on hydraulic parameter inversion, for example, Xing et al (2018b) and Ma et al (2017) carried out vertical infiltration tests for inversing α and n, and furthering constructing SWRC. Although water infiltration is common in the cropland particular after irrigation events, the gravity accelerates downward flow, which may cause inaccordance with actual situation and large errors.…”

“…Soil water retention curve (SWRC) is a crucial hydraulic parameter, which characterizes soil's ability to store and release water under the action of soil suction (Wen et al, 2020;Xing and Ma, 2019). The SWRC is the basis for the estimation of hydraulic parameters, which are the required inputs for simulations of water flow and solute transport (Smagin, 2011;Xing et al, 2018bXing et al, , 2021. In many previous researches, the SWRC was widely adopted to evaluate the size and distribution of soil pores and soil water availability (Mengistu et al, 2019;Neyshaburi et al, 2015); moreover, among the SWRC models, the van-Genuchten model (van Genuchten, 1980) and the Brooks-Corey model (Brooks and Corey, 1964) were also widely applied to determine soil hydraulic conductivity and soil water diffusivity (Latorre and Moret-Fern andez, 2019;Ma et al, 2016;Peña-Sancho et al, 2017;Wen et al, 2019;Zhao et al, 2020).…”

Ecuación de Richards para el estudio del flujo de agua en suelos insaturados, basada en el modelo de Brooks Corey

“…Para valores de tensión cercanas a cero, el contenido de agua tiende al valor de saturación del suelo, mientras que si la succión se incrementa asintóticamente hacia valores elevados, la humedad en el suelo tiende a disminuir. Si bien el modelo de Brooks-Corey [17], expresa la curva de retención de agua como una función potencial, esta ecuación sin embargo no incluye un punto de inflexión (PI) bien definido, pero sí así un marcado AE, por lo que el modelo de Brooks-Corey funciona de forma más efectiva para tipos de suelo con un AE bien definido y para curvas de retención en forma de J. mientras que otros modelos como el de Van Genuchten, [18] sí incluye un PI pero no un AE, esto genera que este modelo represente de mejor manera los suelos con curvas en forma de S pero no las curvas tipo J, finalmente, el modelo de Vogel-Cislerova es el más reciente y se basa en una variante del modelo de Van Genuchten permitiendo la inclusión de un AE con lo cual combina las bondades del modelo de Brooks-Corey y el Van Genutche [19].…”