ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with deterministic fractal geometric objects that exhibit power-law behaviors similar to those encountered in real soils. An attempt is made to clarify the difference between two main types of fractal modeling concepts. The chapter presents different models of fragmentation and aggregation processes that result in scaling laws and could explain observed data. It reviews of available experimental data on fragmented or aggregated soils and of the methods currently in use to assess the degree to which given soils exhibit fractal behavior. In each case, it is pointed out which underlying fractal structure the observed power laws may reveal. The chapter explores issue of modeling and is devoted to a brief discussion of the predicting ability of fractal models as far as hydraulic properties are concerned. The hydraulic properties of soils are intimately reated to geometry of the pore space and their description is therefore affected by the choice of a particular fractal model.
