ARTIFICIAL INFILTRATION MODEL TO INCREASE INFILTRATION CAPACITY IN URBAN RESIDENTIAL LAND

Abstract

The change of land use from rainwater catchment area to residential land has an effect on changes in soil parameters. These changes can reduce infiltration capacity. The aim of this research is to design an artificial infiltration model to increase infiltration capacity in urban residential land with the criteria: easy to make, economical, can be applied on limited area, does not disturb bearing capacity, and can be integrated with the urban drainage system. This new infiltration model considers the groundwater level, embankment thickness, and the ratio of yard area to house area. This artificial infiltration model is box-shaped with dimensions of 50cm x 50cm x 100cm, filled with split and a 4 inches perforated-PVC pipe installed in the center. The pipe is installed vertically, where the top of the pipe branches horizontally to drain off excess water into urban drainage. The soil parameters used in this model are the same as the soil in residential areas. The model results show that the infiltration capacity is 342 mm/hour. Meanwhile, the surface infiltration capacity measured using a double ring infiltrometer was 59mm/hour. Comparison of these results shows that the infiltration model is able to increase infiltration capacity up to 6 times. The model is also capable of slowing down initiation of surface runoff. Therefore, rainwater that falls on the ground surface can be absorbed quickly into the ground, which make surface runoff smaller.