What is "hydraulic conductivity"

n. (context geology English) A material property (e.g., for rocks or soil) that describes the rate which water can flow through pore spaces or fractures. SI units: m/s. Symbol: K.

Hydraulic conductivity, symbolically represented as K, is a property of vascular plants, soils and rocks, that describes the ease with which a fluid (usually water) can move through pore spaces or fractures. It depends on the intrinsic permeability of the material, the degree of saturation, and on the density and viscosity of the fluid. Saturated hydraulic conductivity, K, describes water movement through saturated media.

By definition, hydraulic conductivity is the ratio of velocity to hydraulic gradient indicating permeability of porous media.