Abstract: | Kinematic wave solutions are derived for transport of a conservative non‐point‐source pollutant during a rainfall‐runoff event over an infiltrating plane for two cases: (i) finite‐period mixing and (ii) soil‐mixing zone. Rainfall is assumed to be steady, uniform and finite in duration, and it is assumed to have zero concentration of pollutants. Infiltration is assumed constant in time and space. Prior to the start of rainfall, the pollutant is distributed uniformly over the plane. In the first case, when rainfall occurs, the mixing of pollutant in the runoff water occurs in a finite period of time. In the second case, the chemical concentration is assumed to be a linearly decreasing function of rainfall intensity and overland flow. The solute concentration and discharge are found to depend on the flow characteristics as well as the solute concentration parameters. The characteristics of solute concentration and discharge graphs seem to be similar to those reported in the literature and observed in laboratory experiments. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |