South Eastern Pennsylvania Science Project

This site has been constructed based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0230587.

Porosity~Permiability
by Mike Hirsh

Purpose:

The objective of this lab is to measure and calculate permiability and porosity for different types of soil. The first kind will be a fine sand and the second soil will be coarse sand. One of your goals will be to relate the characteristics of the soil samples, based on the experimental data, and the degree to which each sample could store and and transmit a pollutant in groundwater.

Terms:

Pore Spaces - Air openings found in rock or soil, which could be saturated with groundwater. 

Porosity - The measure of pore spaces found in rock or soil. It is measured as a percentage. 

Permiability - The rate at which fluids or water will flow through pore spaces. Permiability is a function of porosity.

Flow of liquid between particles

Particles of soil