Laboratory experimental check of a conceptual model for infiltration under complex rainfall patterns

Experimental evidence of the accuracy of the model proposed by Corradini et al. (1997, Journal of Hydrology 192: 104–124) for local infiltration–redistribution–reinfiltration in homogeneous soils is given. The model provides infiltration through the time evolution of the soil water content vertical profile, which is described by an ordinary differential equation in any stage of a given rainfall event. A nearly horizontal laboratory slope was used for the experiments performed over both a medium- and a coarse-textured soil. During each experiment characterized by a complex rainfall pattern, the soil water content at different depths was continuously monitored using the time-domain reflectometry method. Our results indicate that the model simulated the experimental vertical profiles of soil water content accurately, particularly during the infiltration and reinfiltration stages separated by a rainfall hiatus with redistribution of soil water. These results indicate the reliability of the model in computing the local effective rainfall for hydrological response.