GPR detection of drainage pipes in farmlands

Our GPR study has been successful in locating on average 72% of the total amount of drainage pipe present at thirteen test plots in southwest, central, and northwest Ohio. Test results indicate that .a 250 MHz antenna frequency worked best for drainage pipes, and that data quality is good over a range of spatial sampling intervals and signal trace stacking. Drainage pipes that are as small as 5 cm (2 in) in diameter can be detected at shallow depths. The fired clay or plastic material of which the drainage pipe is comprised does not appear to have much of an impact. 2D grid surveys offer the best chance for finding all the buried drainage pipe possible, and for displaying a subsurface drainage system on an amplitude map, the narrower the spacing between GPR measurement lines, the better the result. The information supplied by this study can be employed to formulate guidelines that will enhance the potential of success for using ground penetrating radar in locating buried agricultural drainage pipe.