International Journal of Civil Engineering

en An improved solution to capillary rise of water in soils Soil Mechanics Classic Soil Mechanics Classic Research Paper Research Paper Evaluating the rate and maximum height of capillary rise is of prime interest in unsaturated soil mechanics. Antecedent solutions to this problem have dwelled mostly on determining the maximum capillary rise height, overlooking moisture and suction changes in the capillary region. A comprehensive improved solution for the capillary rise of water in soils is presented. Salient features of the formulation including consideration of initial soil suction (if any) prior to capillary rise, and determination of water content variation in the capillary region are elaborately discussed. Results reveal that suction head variation within the capillary region is non-linear, where the curvature decreases as water rises to higher elevations. The solution is verified and compared with existing solutions, by means of two sets of experimental data available in the literature. The comparison suggests that the improved formulation is more accurate and versatile than previous solutions for capillary rise. Unsaturated soils, capillary rising, unsaturated transient seepage, suction 275 281 http://ijce.iust.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-256-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Hamed Farshbaf Aghajani hfarshbaf@iust.ac.ir 1800319475328460010219 1800319475328460010219 No Amirkabir University of Technology Abbas Soroush soroush@aut.ac.ir 1800319475328460010220 1800319475328460010220 Yes Amirkabir University of Technology Piltan Tabatabaie Shourijeh 1800319475328460010221 1800319475328460010221 No Amirkabir University of Technology