[GIS] Creating DTM for two surfaces with point data and calculating volume between them using ArcGIS Desktop

arcgis-10.0arcgis-desktopdem

I have point data for a ground surface level which is captured in a grid of 35m spacings. I also have point data for the new surface level after soil has been removed which is captured at random locations using a mobile GPS. I want to create a DTM for both surfaces and then calculate a volume for the amount of soil removed.

Is this possible with ArcGIS Desktop 10.0?

Best Answer

Assuming you have created surfaces from your surveys; this is a simple cut and fill operation, however you will need either a Spatial Analyst or the 3D Analyst extension to do this. (Calculates the volume change between two surfaces.)

I beleive out of the 2 extensions, Spatial Analyst is pretty much essential however the 3D analyst will allow you to also work with triangulated irregular surfaces (TINs) i addition to rasters and you can do operations such as extrude between surfaced to create 3D representations of the cut and fill volumes. To just get the numbers (volumes and areas) you just need to run cut/fill.

Screen capture from ArcGIS 10.3 help: enter image description here

Related Question