Ponded infiltration into a heterogeneous porous medium was studied using a numerical solution of the flow equation. The medium was assumed to exhibit scale heterogeneity, the heterogeneity being specifically defined in terms of a linear variation of the resaturated hydraulic conductivity with depth. The spatial variation of the hydrologic characteristics was initially defined in terms of the water entry value of the medium at the point in question and an empirical relationship between the water entry value and the resaturated hydraulic conductivity. Pressure head and water content profiles were obtained for two hydraulic conductivity distributions and compared with that for a homogeneous soil having an average conductivity. The profiles reveal distinct regions that are different from the uniform case depending on whether the conductivity is increasing or decreasing with depth.
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Whisler et al. (1972) studied this question.