SOIL-WATER CHARACTERISTICS OF SALINE SOIL IN NORTHWEST CHINA

摘要

Geotechnical engineers have become increasingly aware of salt damages caused by water-salt migration.The soil water characteristic curve (SWCC) is a very important tool for determining the engineering properties of unsaturated soil. Using pressure plate extractors, This paper carried out a research on soil-water characteristics of saline soil in northwest China. Then, The relationship between matrix suction and water content was analyzed, the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity in different water content was calculated through predicting model of Van Genuchten(1980). Based on the measurement and calculation, the correlation between unsaturated hydraulic conductivity and water content was established. Research results show that unsaturated hydraulic conductivity of saline soil decreases in non-linear trend with the water content reducing, while it decline linearly by a certam specific rate with the matrix suction increasing at a high-suction section (100kpa~ lOOOOOkpa) in double logarithmic coordinates.