is paper presents a simple fractal model to quantify the effects of initial porosity on the soil-water retention curve and hydraulic conductivity of unsaturated soils. In the proposed conceptual model, the change of maximum pore radius, which largely determines the change of the air-entry value, is directly related to the fractal dimension of pore volume (D) and porosity change. e hydraulic properties of unsaturated soils are then governed by the maximum pore radius, the fractal dimension of pore volume (D), and the fractal dimension of drainable pore volume (D d ≤ D). e new fractal model removes the empirical fitting parameters that have no physical meaning from existing models for porosity-dependent water retention and hydraulic behaviour and employs parameters of fractal dimensions that are intrinsic to the nature of the fractal porous materials. e proposed model is then validated against experimental data from the literature on soil-water retention behaviour and unsaturated conductivity.
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