The use of an Arduino moisture sensor for determining of the water retention curve of a porous systems

Abstract In this paper, we present the use of an Arduino moisture sensor for determining the water retention curve of a porous system, such as, for instance, the soil. This curve is extremely important in studies related to the physical-hydric characterization of a porous systems. Its determination permits examining soil water retention properties and obtaining pore geometry parameters related to the system under investigation. The experimental data was fitted using the van Genuchten equation and a simple model for describing the pores presented in the investigated samples is presented. This work had also the objective of introducing innovative methodology for presenting experimental activities in Applied Physics for undergraduate students of Engineering, such as: Environmental, Agronomic and Civil.