Flow Processes Laboratory

The flow processes laboratory is equipped with custom made testing equipment used for studying flow phenomena in soils. Three flow pumps for precisely controlling flow rates are connected to modified triaxial cells in which various tests with saturated, unsaturated, and multiphase flow are performed. Typical tests performed in the laboratory include:

• Hydraulic conductivity of saturated soils
• Seepage induced consolidation test on soft soils
• Desiccation and shrinkage tests for both one dimensional and three dimensional shrinkage
• Suction tests for determining unsaturated soil characteristic curves
• Unsaturated hydraulic conductivity tests for both coarse and fine grained soils
• Multiphase flow experiments using both miscible and imiscible fluid

A PC based multi-user data acquisition system continuously collects the data from precision differential pressure transducers used in the experiments.