Experimental Study on the Effect of Degree of Saturation on the Electrical Conductivity of Soils

Hyojung Ko; Hyunwook Choo

doi:10.7843/kgs.2023.39.8.29

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2023 Vol.39, Issue 8 Preview Page Next Page

Experimental Study on the Effect of Degree of Saturation on the Electrical Conductivity of Soils 포화도에 따른 흙의 전기전도도 변화에 대한 실험적 연구

31 August 2023. pp. 29-39

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Abstract

The degree of saturation determines the connectivity of void space and the particle surface. Thus, it greatly affects the electrical conductivity of soils. This study aimed to analyze the electrical conductivities of coarse grains with a high relevance of pore water conduction and fine grains with a high relevance of surface conduction based on the degree of saturation. It also aimed to express the electrical conductivity of unsaturated soils as a combination of surface and pore water conductions using the modified Archie’s equation. Samples were prepared in a plastic cell equipped with four electrodes, and the electrical conductivity was measured based on the porosity at various degrees of saturation (40%~100%). The results demonstrate that Archie’s equation can be used to express the electrical conductivity of coarse grains, with a saturation exponent of ~1.93 regardless of the pore water conductivity. However, the saturation exponent of fine grains varied considerably with pore water concentration. This variation can be attributed to the relative magnitude of surface conduction with respect to the electrical conductivity of soils at different pore water concentrations. Thus, the degree of saturation has varying effects on pore water conduction and surface conduction. Therefore, different saturation exponents must be used for pore water conduction and surface conduction to predict the electrical conductivity of unsaturated soils using the modified Archie’s equation.

Keywords

Degree of saturation

Electrical conductivity

Modified Archie’s equation

Pore water conduction

Surface conduction

Unsaturated soils

흙은 간극수와 이중층수를 통해 전기적 흐름이 발생하기 때문에 간극수 및 이중층수의 연결성, 즉 포화도에 따라 전기전도도가 변화한다. 본 연구에서는 간극수 전도가 지배적인 사질토와 표면 전도 효과가 두드러진 세립토에서 포화도에 따른 전기전도도를 분석하고, 수정된 Archie의 방정식을 통해 불포화토의 전기전도도를 표면 전도와 간극수 전도의 합으로 표현하고자 한다. 4개의 전극이 설치된 플라스틱 셀에 다양한 포화도(40%-100%)와 간극률(0.45-0.82)를 갖는 시료를 조성하였으며, 간극수의 농도를 조절하기 위해 시료 조성에 사용된 간극수는 0M(증류수)-0.5M NaCl 용액을 사용하였다. 시험 결과, 사질토의 전기전도도는 포화도의 지수함수로 표현되었으며, 포화도의 지수는 간극수의 농도와 관계없이 1.93로 결정되었다. 반면 세립토의 경우, 포화도의 지수는 간극수의 농도에 따라 큰 차이를 보였다. 이는 각 간극수의 농도에서 흙의 전기전도도에 대한 표면전도의 상대적인 크기가 다르기 때문이다. 다시 말해, 포화도가 간극수전도와 표면전도에 미치는 영향이 다르며, 수정된 Archie의 방정식으로 흙의 전기전도도를 예측하기 위해서는 간극수 전도와 표면 전도에 각각 다른 포화도의 지수를 사용해야함을 의미한다.

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Information

Publisher :The Korean Geotechnical Society
Publisher(Ko) :한국지반공학회
Journal Title :Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
Journal Title(Ko) :한국지반공학회 논문집
Volume : 39
No :8
Pages :29-39
Received Date : 2023-06-19
Revised Date : 2023-08-20
Accepted Date : 2023-08-20
DOI :https://doi.org/10.7843/kgs.2023.39.8.29

Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society ISSN:1229-2427(Print) 2288-646X(Online) 한국지반공학회 논문집

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