Articles | Volume 27, issue 24
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-4579-2023
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-4579-2023
Research article
 | 
20 Dec 2023
Research article |  | 20 Dec 2023

Prediction of absolute unsaturated hydraulic conductivity – comparison of four different capillary bundle models

Andre Peters, Sascha C. Iden, and Wolfgang Durner

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Subject: Vadose Zone Hydrology | Techniques and Approaches: Theory development
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Cited articles

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Short summary
While various expressions for the water retention curve are commonly compared, the capillary conductivity model proposed by Mualem is widely used but seldom compared to alternatives. We compare four different capillary bundle models in terms of their ability to fully predict the hydraulic conductivity. The Mualem model outperformed the three other models in terms of predictive accuracy. Our findings suggest that the widespread use of the Mualem model is justified.