Which instrument is used to measure fluid transmission properties of the vadose zone?

Which instrument is used to measure fluid transmission properties of the vadose zone?

• A. Tensiometer
• B. Infiltrometer
• C. Piezometer
• D. Permeameter

Answer: (B)

Focusing on how water moves through the unsaturated vadose zone, you want data on how fast water infiltrates into soil. An infiltrometer provides exactly that by measuring the rate at which water enters the soil surface. From infiltration measurements you can infer the soil’s ability to transmit water in unsaturated conditions, i.e., the fluid transmission properties of the vadose zone. The other instruments serve different purposes: a tensiometer gauges soil water suction, not flow rate; a piezometer measures pressure head in the saturated zone; and a permeameter assesses permeability under saturated conditions in a laboratory sample. So the infiltrometer is the best choice for vadose-zone fluid transmission properties.

Focusing on how water moves through the unsaturated vadose zone, you want data on how fast water infiltrates into soil. An infiltrometer provides exactly that by measuring the rate at which water enters the soil surface. From infiltration measurements you can infer the soil’s ability to transmit water in unsaturated conditions, i.e., the fluid transmission properties of the vadose zone. The other instruments serve different purposes: a tensiometer gauges soil water suction, not flow rate; a piezometer measures pressure head in the saturated zone; and a permeameter assesses permeability under saturated conditions in a laboratory sample. So the infiltrometer is the best choice for vadose-zone fluid transmission properties.