Testing of lateral water flow in a moisture barrier

We have performed large-scale lateral-flow tests in a fine-textured material overlying a coarser medium. The goal was to investigate the effectiveness of a moisture barrier where the finer material has the texture of a silty sand. When we tested for induced lateral flow, a geotextile inhibited penetration of two overlying materials of different particle sizes. Our wick system provided data regarding time to failure of the barriers, but the data are qualitative because of the variance in moisture level around versus below the access tube. 1 reference, 2 figures.