Factors affecting water seepage rate of clay pitchers in arid lands

Abstract EN

A field experiment was initiated to study the effect of pitcher material, potential evaporation and soil on the seepage rate of clay pitcher.

Eleven pitchers with varying shape and hydraulic conductivity were used in the experiments.

Seepage rate of pitchers were measured in the atmosphere and after burying them up to their neck in a silt loam soil.

Average seepage rate of pitchers were higher when buried in the soil under constant head (5500 mL /day) compared to that of variable head conditions (2700 mL /day) or atmospheric seepage (1700 mL /day).

Seepage rate was directly proportional to pitchers conductance and potential evaporation.

A linear relationship was found between seepage rate and potential evaporation for all pitchers showing a sign of auto-regulative capabilities.

Pitcher seepage rate was also found to be directly correlated to matrix potential of soil around pitcher wall suggesting that pitcher behavior is affected by soil moisture conditions.

A mathematical conceptual model was used to predict the seepage rates of pitchers buried in the soil under variable and constant head conditions.

The model prediction of seepage rate correlated very well with the experimental data with R2 equal to 0.74 and 0.62 for variable head and constant head experiments, respectively.