Pedotransfer functions for hydraulic and thermal properties of soil and the tool HERCULES

Scientists have developed complex computer models to simulate water and solute movement in the unsaturated and saturated zones. Lack of relevant input data is considered a major obstacle to progress. Therefore, existing databases have been used to derive input data from measured soil data. Pedotransfer functions (PTFs) have been selected for predicting hydraulic and thermal properties using soil texture data. Data from peat and coarse sandy soils for the production of PTFs are still lacking. The PTFshave been programmed in the computer model HERCULES in order to ease the use of the functions.