Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2012NJ309B

Predicting the matric potential of unsaturated porous media using nuclear magnetic resonance

Institute: New Jersey
Year Established: 2012 Start Date: 2012-03-01 End Date: 2013-05-31
Total Federal Funds: $10,000 Total Non-Federal Funds: $20,002

Principal Investigators: Sam Falzone, Kristina Keating

Project Summary: Quantifying matric potential is essential for predicting groundwater flow within the vadose zone. Current methods of determining matric potential consist of invasive instruments such as tensiometers, which can alter the natural hydrogeological state of the vadose zone. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) is a non-invasive geophysical method that is sensitive to the presence as well as physical and chemical environments of hydrogen in a porous media. This study consists of a joint laboratory and field study to confirm the hypothesis: NMR relaxation times can be used to determine matric potential.