A model of the transfer of water from an initially uniform wet slurry
to a dry material is described and tested. The model requires that the
hydraulic conductivity and water potential of the two materials be we
ll-defined functions of the water content. It permits the prediction o
f the time course of the redistribution process and the evolution of t
he water content profiles in each material. It offers an explanation o
f aspects of the capillary suction time method used to estimate the ''
filtrability'' of slurries, and of slip-casting, and in particular off
ers a physically based method for optimising that process.