Infiltration/Capacity/Rates

Abstract Infiltration is the process of water entry into the surface of a soil. It involves surface water entry, transmission through the soil, and depletion of the soil water storage capacity. Surface water entry is influenced by surface vegetation cover, soil texture, soil porosity, soil structure (e.g., cracks, surface crusting), and compaction. Land management can influence all of these parameters and therefore influence infiltration. The infiltration rate is the volume of water passing into the soil per unit area per unit time and therefore has dimensions of velocity (e.g., m s −1 ; mm h −1 ). The infiltration rate is often measured using an infiltrometer and is one of the most easily and frequently measured soil water processes. Despite the units of velocity, the values of infiltration rate are actually volume fluxes expressed as volume flux density and therefore do not indicate the effective velocity of vertical water movement in the soil. The maximum rate at which water soaks into or is absorbed by the soil is the infiltration capacity.