Hydrogeology and
Soil Science
The porosity of a soil is computed by determining the fraction of void space as compared to solids in a given volume. If in a cubic meter of water saturated soil there is 0.3m
3 of water, then the porosity, n, is 0.3
n = Vv/Vtot
Typical soils have porosity in the range of 0.3-0.4;
clayey soils may be higher.
A similar measure is the
void ratio, e. It is simple to convert between void ratio and porosity:
n = e/(1+e)