Classroom Activities to Illustrate Concepts of Darcy’s Law and Hydraulic Conductivity

Abstract

A Darcy bottle is a water bottle that is filled with porous material and liquid, and that contains a drain assembly on the bottom of the bottle to allow liquid to drain. A collection of Darcy bottles with different cross-sectional area, different types and amounts of porous material, and different types and amounts of liquid are used in a series of classroom activities to illustrate Darcy’s law and basic concepts of hydraulic conductivity. Each activity can be completed in a few minutes, and can be conducted during a regular class period to supplement the lecture. Assessment results show that the Darcy bottle activities enhance student learning, particularly for less intuitive concepts.