Chapter Four

Infiltration and Groundwater

Recharge
 Definition of infiltration
 Infiltration-the process of water entry into a soil
from rainfall, snow melt and irrigation.
 Percolation is the movement of water with in the
soil. The two phenomena are certainly interrelated
as infiltration can not continue unimpeded unless
percolation provides sufficient space in the
surface layer for infiltrated water.
 Infiltration capacity (fp) is the maximum rate at
which water can enter the soil at a particular point
under a given set of conditions.
 Infiltration rate (f) is changes of actual infiltration
as a function of time, (LT-1).
 The relationship between infiltration and the
infiltration capacity is 0 f  fp
 Cont.
 The general shape of an infiltration capacity curve can be
explained by the forces and processes at work. If the soil is
initially dry when infiltration begins, the infiltration capacity is
high since both strong capillary and gravity forces work to draw
water into the soil.
 As the soil becomes wet, capillary forces decrease causing the
rate of infiltration to decrease.
 Eventually, infiltration capacity approaches a low constant rate
controlled primarily by gravity and the rate that water can
percolate downward through the soil.
 Water is now only able to enter the soil as fast as space is made
available by downward percolation.
 Infiltration deserves special place in hydrology, since it
determines the amount of runoff generated by precipitation. This
is used for design flood analysis.
 Mechanics of infiltration
 If the intensity of rainfall is less than the rate of
infiltration, all water will enter the soil profile.
 When the intensity of rain fall is greater than the
rate of infiltration, surface runoff occurs.
 Infiltrating water finds its way downward along the
line of least resistance under the influence of
gravity.
 The force of capillary acts in all directions and
frequently exceeds the force of gravity.
 As per the law of capillary movement, capillary
water always moves from wet to dry zones. The dry
soil has high force of attraction than the wet soil
Factors affecting or controlling infiltration
 The factors that influence infiltration are :
a) The physical and chemical properties of the soil
b) Surface condition including vegetation and land
use
c) Antecedent moisture conditions
d) Seasonal factors
e) Topography characteristics
f) Precipitation characteristics
Continued…
a) The physical and chemical properties of the soil
 Soil-related factors include all of the properties and
characteristics that influence a soil‟s permeability.
 Permeability is the ability of a material to transmit water
and, like infiltration, has the dimensions of velocity (LT-1).
 Another term to describe the permeability of earth materials
is hydraulic conductivity (K). When the material is not
saturated the term is unsaturated hydraulic conductivity,
otherwise it is called the saturated hydraulic conductivity
(Ks)
 Most soils most of the time are unsaturated. For a given
material the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity is usually
much lower than the saturated value.
6
Continued…
 The soil related factors that affect infiltration include:
i. soil texture
ii. Soil structure
iii. entrapped air in soil
iv. the presence of subsurface horizons of low permeability

Soil texture
 Soil texture-refers to the of soil grains.
 Coarse-texture sandy soils are more permeable than fine-texture
clay soils and have a correspondingly greater infiltration
capacity (Figure 5.3).
 The small interstices in clay soils are difficult for water to move
through because strong capillary forces hold the water in place.
7
Continued…

Figure4.1 Stylized curves of infiltration capacity for a sand and

a clay soil.
8
Continued…
Soil structure
 Soil structure describes how individual soil particles combine to
form larger aggregates.
 Structure is controlled by the amount and disposition of the clay
particles in the soil.
 Clay particles are negatively charged colloidal minerals. In a
soil they may group together (flocculate) to form larger
aggregates and produce „good‟ soil structure, or they may
disperse (de-flocculate) as individual particles throughout the
soil creating „poor‟ structure.
 Flocculated clays produce good structure because the large
aggregates make the soil behave more like a coarse-texture soil.
 Whether clays flocculate or de-flocculate depends on the type
and quantity of cations in the soil.
9
Continued…
 When sodium (Na+) cations make up a significant
proportion (10 to 20%) of the cations in the soil, clays tend
to de-flocculate (swelling soil), creating poor structure and
reducing infiltration capacity. So soils rich in sodium clay
permit hydrolysis in the presence of infiltrated water
creating impermeable media. This is one of the detrimental
consequences of soil salinization.
 In experiment, course-texture sandy soils with good
structure had infiltration capacities ranging from 2.0 to 2.5
cm hr-1. Sandy loams and clay loams with good structure
had capacities of 1.3 cm hr-1 and 0.75 cm hr-1, respectively.
 With poor structure the infiltration rates were reduced
anywhere from 20 to nearly 50%.
10
Continued…
Entrapped air in the soil
 When infiltration occurs at nearly uniform rates over large area,
the air in the soil pores may be trapped temporarily. so, if the soil
mass has more entrapped air in pores this can block the water
movement downward.

The presence of subsurface horizons of low permeability

 The presence of low permeable layers of soil decreases the
infiltration of soil.

b) Surface condition including vegetation and land use

 Vegetation and land use influence infiltration through the direct
control on the entrance of water into the soil.
 Vegetated surfaces have greater infiltration capacities than non-
vegetated surfaces (e.g. bare rock and compacted dirt roads).
11
Continued…
 The higher infiltration rate by vegetated surfaces is due to the
fact that vegetation cover:
 Reduces impact of raindrops.

 Prevents dislodgements of fine soil particles and

reducing sealing off.
 Maintains open soil structure (high infiltration)

 Slows down the rate of runoff

 Bare soils or exposed soils subjected to intense rainfall suffers a

very quick reduction in the infiltration rate on account of the
combined effect of :
 Increment in the soil moisture

 Compaction of bare soil due to rainfall

 Sealing of pore spaces of exposed soils by fine particles

dislodged by raindrops
12
Continued…

 Forests and undisturbed pastures generally have the highest

infiltration capacities, while infiltration on cropland is
generally lower than most areas of continuous natural
vegetation. (Figure 5.4)
 Human-created impermeable surfaces like streets, parking
lots and driveways permit virtually no infiltration.
 Contour ploughing and terracing in agricultural areas have
the effect of delaying runoff, resulting thereby in increase
infiltration.

13
Continued…
c) Antecedent moisture conditions
 If antecedent soil moisture is high at the beginning of a rainfall,
capillary forces and available void space in the soil are lower
than if the same soil were initially dry (Figure 5.5). This is one of
the reason why the same soil can generate very different rates of
runoff from similar storms.

Figure 5.5:
Infiltration
capacity affected
by different
antecedent
moisture
conditions.

14
Continued…
d) Seasonal factors
 In continental climates with cold winters, the soil matrix freezes
during the winter season largely preventing infiltration. That is,
infiltration is lower in winter than summer.
 This can create a potential flood hazard when the snowpack melts
in the spring and the soil is still frozen. Vegetation is important
here too because it influences the degree and pattern of soil
freezing.

e) Topography characteristics
 Topography modifies infiltration directly and indirectly. Slope
angle directly affects infiltration because steep slopes promote
rapid surface runoff giving the water less time to infiltrate.
15
Continued…
f) Precipitation characteristics (intensity and duration)
 The duration of sustained heavy rainfall results in a steady
reduction in the infiltration capacity.
 If the intensity of rainfall is greater than the infiltration rate ,
the infiltration capacity of the soil will be reduced.
 Intense rainfall has the effect of progressive reduction of the
infiltration capacity of because of:
 Increased supply of moisture to the surface layers of
soil.
 Mechanical compaction of soil by raindrop impact
 The reduction in capillary intake of moisture in the
surface layers.
 The dislodging of fine particles to seal the pore
spaces in the near surface soil layer.
16
4.1 Infiltration (definition, Significance, processes
and controls)
• Infiltration is defined as the passage of water through the
surface of the soil, via pores or small openings, into the soil
profile.
• There is a maximum rate at which the soil in a given condition
can absorb water; this upper limit is called infiltration capacity
of the soil.
• If rainfall intensity is less than this capacity, the infiltration will
be equal to rainfall rate, where as if rainfall intensity exceeds
the ability of the soil to absorb soil moisture, infiltration occurs
at the capacity rate.
 Infiltrometer is a device used to measure the rate of water
infiltration into soil or other porous media.
 Commonly used infiltrometers are single ring or double ring
infiltrometer.
 Significance of infiltration
• Reduce Volume of storm runoff
• Peak rate of flow
• Timing of peak with respect to rainfall are affected by
infiltration rate. More over
• Conservationists also are concerned with erosion of top soil
and organic matter which is related to rate of infiltration of
the soil
• Geomorphologists are also interested in the magnitude,
frequency, and spatial characteristics of infiltration because it
affects runoff
 Process and controls of infiltration
• The rate of infiltration declines rapidly during the early part of
a storm and reaches an approximately constant value after
one or two hours of rain.
• The downward movement of water through a soil profile
occurs due to tension and gravitational forces in the soil
matrix. The rise of water owing to the effect of tension or
capillary force can be estimated by the following equation
 Contd.

2 cos 
h
 w gR
 contd
• Where
• hc is the height of the capillary rise (L)
• σ is the surface tension of the fluid (M/T2)
• λ is the angle of the meniscus
• ρw is the density of the fluid (m/L3)
• g is the accelaration of gravity (L/T2)
• R is the radius of the capillary tube (L)
• Compute the rise of water in a glass capillary
tube.
• For water at 18°C, the surface tension is
73g/s2, the density is 0.999g/cm3, and the
contact angle may be taken as 0
 Controls of infiltration
• Rainfall characteristics
• Soil properties
• Vegetation
• Land use
 Rainfall characteristics

• Long, intense rainfall packs down the soil surface,

disperses fine soil particles and causes them to
plug soil pores.
 Soil properties
• Coarse textures soil such as sands have large pores down which
water can easily drain, while the exceedingly fine pores in clays
retard drainage
• Deep well drained coarse textured soils with large content of
organic matter will tend to have high infiltration rate , where as
shallow soil profiles developed in clay will accept only low rates
and volumes of infiltration.
 Vegetation cover and land use
• Vegetation and litter protect soil from packing
by raindrops and provide organic matter for
binding soil particles together in open
aggregate.
Groundwater Recharge and Discharge
What are the
main inflow and
outflow
components in
the following
figures?
What are the
distinction you
observe with
regard to
groundwater
budget among
these figures?
 4.2 Estimating groundwater recharge
• Rough quantification of groundwater recharge at a
basin level can be done using the following
methods.
• But more accurate estimates of groundwater
recharge for a specific groundwater body is more
complex.
– water balance method
– Hydrograph separation
• Conventional Method
• Isotope method
– Chloride mass balance
– Water level fluctuation
 4.3 Soil water balance Method
• The term water balance was first used by C. Waren
Thornthwaite. Water balance is a balance between the incoming
water in the form of precipitation and the outflow of water in the
form of evapotranspiration, groundwater discharge and runoff.
In some cases there might be a change in storage (Soil moisture,
Groundwater or water bodies)
• The general formula of water balance is given by
• I=O±ΔS
• Where: I = inflow to the system
• O = outflow from the system
• ΔS = Change in storage
• To Apply the water balance method we are
required to estimate most of the hydro
meteorological and hydrological element.
• Such as:
– Precipitation (P)
– Evaporation (E)
– Evapotranspiration (ET)
– Groundwater recharge (R)
– Surface Runoff (Q) , etc
And then we try to estimate one of the unknown
element.
Quick estimate of groundwater recharge using water
balance method can be calculated by the following
formula: R= P – (E+ET+Q).
The most difficult element to estimate is actual
evapotranspiration.
• For a long term calculation on annual bases and
for a large catchment and assuming the basin to be
closed the water balance equation could be
simplified as follows:

• Infiltration (Recharge) = ( Precipitation -Actual

Evapotranspiration - Reservoir evaporation -
Surface water runoff
 2.1.2 Base Flow as Recharge
(Assumptions)
• In a catchment where groundwater does not go out of the
basin, the base flow represents the groundwater recharge of
the basin upstream of the gauging point.

• There should not be loss of water below the river bed at the
measuring site.

• No diversion from or addition to of water in to the river from

anthropogenic sources to or from other basins.
 Hydrograph Separation
A hydrograph is a graph showing
the rate of flow (discharge) versus
time past at a specific point in a
river, or other channel or conduit
carrying flow. The rate of flow is
typically expressed in cubic meters
or cubic feet per second (cms or
cfs).
Therefore, hydrographs display the
change of a hydrologic variable over
time. Thus, a hydrograph gives
information of hydrological
processes in a catchment

Component of Hydrograph
MAJOR COMPONENT OF RIVER DISCHARGE
1) Direct or storm or surface runoff
2) Base flow/groundwater
In Borkena river it is estimated that out of the
Hydrograph with Two Component mean annual flow of 9.7m3 /sec, 60% (5.8m3/s)
is a contribution from the base flow and 40%
(3.9m3/s) is a contribution from overland flow.

Base flow Separation of Borkena River

using Time-plot
 Discharge(m3/s) Discharge(m3/s)

0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70

0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
1-Jan 1-Jan

1-Feb 1-Feb

1-Mar 1-Mar

1-Apr 1-Apr

1-May 1-May

1-Jun 1-Jun
Total runoff

Total runoff
1-Jul 1-Jul
Days of the year

Days of the year

1-Aug 1-Aug
Baseflow

Baseflow
1-Sep 1-Sep

1-Oct 1-Oct
Base flow separation using TMSPLOT

1-Nov 1-Nov

1-Dec 1-Dec
HYDROGRAPH SEPARATION USING ISOTOPES ---
-THE MIXING MODEL
• 2-Component Mixing Model

“New”? Water
%
(Snowmelt)

Streamflow
?%
“Old” Water

Tracer = d18O
(Groundwater)

• One Conservative Tracer

• Mass Balance Equations for
Water and Tracer
DERIVATION OF TWO COMPONENT MIXING EQUATION

Say we want to know the contribution of Direct

runoff “Qn” and Base flow “Qo” to an observed
hydrograph.-
We know that the total flow, Qt, should be
equal to the sum of the flows of old (Qo) and
new (Qn) water:
Qt = Qo + Qn then we can, substitute

that Qn= Qt- Qo--------------------(1)

If the new and old waters have different
concentrations of a tracer, the product of total
amount of tracer (Ct)and total flow (Qt)is the
sum of the new and old flows times their
respective concentrations of tracer(Cn,Co):
Ct=Co+Cn --------(2)
QtCt = QoCo + QnCn---------(3)
Qt=Qn+Qo
Qt-Qo=Qn / Qt-Qn=Qo
We can re-write the first expression to solve for
either one of the water sources, Direct runoff or
baseflow. Here’s how we solve to get the new
or old water flow:
QtCt = QoCo + (Qt-Qo)Cn
QtCt = QoCo+QtCn-QoCn
QtCt-QtCn=QoCo-QoCn
Qt(Ct-Cn)/(Co-Cn)=Qo/
 4.4 Geochemical method
Chloride mass balance method for groundwater
recharge estimation
• The basic equation applicable for the estimation of recharge
using chloride mass balance method is: Rgw = Pyear(Clp / Clgw)
• Where Rgw is the annual recharge rate (mm), Pyear is the
average annual rainfall (mm) while Clp and Clgw are the
chloride concentrations of the rainfall and groundwater (mg/l),
respectively.
• Chloride mass balance method (CMB) is a reconnaissance
level recharge estimation methodology applicable to entire
hydrographic basins if precipitation, chloride in precipitation,
chloride in groundwater is known (Mizell et al., 2007).
• This method severely under estimate recharge rates in the non
irrigated areas when compared to with the other methods,
although the chloride mass balance method estimated recharge
rates for irrigated areas are similar to those from other methods
(Grismer et al., 2000).
 4.5 Groundwater level fluctuation method
• Taking mean groundwater levels per month over a run of
many years results in an average amplitude of
groundwater fluctuations with high groundwater levels
following recharge times and low groundwater levels
following dry weather conditions.
• These average fluctuations (Δh) mark the recharge space
in an aquifer.
• Taking this amplitude and supposing that groundwater
fluxes do not change significantly with water levels,
allows to calculate groundwater recharge if the porosity
(n) for unconfined aquifer and storativity for confined
aquifer is known:
• R = Δh*n, Where Δh is water level fluctuation
 st nd nd th th
ID UTME UTMN Elevatio Depth SWL 1 SWL 2 SWL 3 SWL 4 SWL 5
Groun
n (m) (m) measurem measure measureme measurem measurem
Water dwater
ent ment nt ent ent
level rechar
fluctua ge
tion (mm)
Well 483784 105976 2627 96 3/7/2013 23/08/1326/09/13
no.1 2 Date 9/11/201322/12/13
Depth 26.4 25.44 25.2 25.2 25
elevatio 2601.8 2601.8 2602
n 2600.6 2601.56 1.4 28
Well 485941 106089 2615 96 6/7/2013 23/08/1326/09/13
no.2 9 Date 9/11/201322/12/13
Depth 20.53 18.89 18.64 18.76 18.91
elevatio 2594.47
n 2596.11 2596.36 2596.24 2596.09 1.89 37.8
Well 484980 106125 2617 90 9/7/2013 22/08/1326/09/13
no.3 6 Date 9/11/201322/12/13
Depth 28.7 27.2 26.97 26.76 26.79
elevatio 2590.03 2590.24 2590.21
n 2588.3 2589.8 1.94 38.8
Well 483642 106137 2641 99 12/7/2013 22/08/1326/09/13
no.4 3 Date 9/11/201322/12/13
Depth 36.33 35.46 34.72 33.96 33.38
elevatio
n 2604.67 2605.54 2606.28 2607.04 2607.62 2.95 59
Averag
e 40.9
2612

2607

2602

Well 1
Well 2
Well 3
Well 4
2597

2592

2587
3/7/2013 23/08/13 26/09/13 9/11/2013 22/12/2013
 70 3000

2800
60

2600
50

Water level flactuation(mm)

2400
Recharge(mm)

40 2200
Level Flacuation
30 2000 Recharge (mm)

1800
20
1600

10
1400

0 1200
Well no.1 Well no.2 Well no.3 Well no.4 Average
• Groundwater recharge quantification for a
particular groundwater body should take into
account a more detailed investigation,
measurement and modeling.
 Individual assignment with presentation(10%)
Mon. Sep Oc Nov Dec Jan Fe Mar Ap May Jun Jul Aug Annual
b

Monthly 25 38 15 12 22 40 80 70 60 100 150 160

precipitation(mm)

Mean monthly air 16 12.1 10 18 27.1 21 20 19 21 19 18 18

Temp(oc)

i. Assumed that in the awash river catchment the annual rate of evaporation in river
catchment and the overland flow into the river is given as 25, 30 cm3 respectively
and the ground water recharge calculated from chloride mass balance method and
concentration of chloride in precipitation is given as 250mm, 35mg/l respectively
then, based on the table given above:
A) Calculate concentration of chloride in ground water?
B) Calculate annual actual evapotranspiration?hint:use Turc formula
C) Calculate the ground water recharge using water balance method?
ii)Briefly explain about types of aquifer and its characteristics with appropriate
figure