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Borehole geophysical logging of four production wells completed in Precambrian metagranite in Fauquier County, Virginia (USA), was conducted to characterize stratigraphy, collect water-bearing fracture orientations and describe vertical hydraulic gradients in the vicinity of each borehole. Long-term (48–90 h) single-well pump test data were reevaluated for each well to better characterize this locally important aquifer system. Single-well aquifer test analyses indicate mid-to-late-time infinite acting radial flow conditions within the fractured rock aquifer, followed by increasing late-time contribution of stored groundwater from recharge boundaries. Later-time pump test results are believed to indicate that water-bearing fractures within the metagranite are ultimately recharged by groundwater stored within the regolith. Assumptions about the presence of a recharge boundary sourced by the regolith were tested with a simple groundwater flow model that was calibrated to observed drawdown data associated with one of the long-term pump tests. This study identifies fracturing associated with shear-related metamorphic fabrics in the wellbore and demonstrates the significance of these fractures as mechanisms for accessing groundwater. Results from this investigation indicate that shear-related metamorphic fabrics can be important structures for integrating transmissive fracture networks within the Marshall Metagranite and possibly within other Blue Ridge basement rocks possessing similar metamorphic history.

Made available in DSpace on 2022-05-01T10:18:55Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2021-11-01 Fundação para o Desenvolvimento da UNESP (FUNDUNESP) The sensitivity of the derivative analysis to the variation of flow rates allows it to solve ambiguities, provide diagnostics of the flow dimension, and identify the boundary conditions of the tested aquifer. Based on the results of a derivative analysis, it was hypothesized that the set of assumptions for the fitted solution to the drawdown curve are valid for the tested aquifer. Thus, combining the derivative analysis results and the detailed geological characterization, a new approach was developed to build preliminary conceptual hydrogeological models in cases where field data are scarce. Applying this approach, it was concluded that basaltic aquifers in the Serra Geral Aquifer System (SGAS) are comprised of leaky confined aquifers, which the alternation of basalt floods that have permeable horizons at the top and with low permeability of interior flow. The simulated drawdown curve in a transient flow model perfectly matched with the drawdown curve recorded in the field, thus supporting the suitability of the built conceptual model. This statement challenges the prevailing theory that conceptualizes SGAS as a fractured aquifer. Conclusively, the current approach is capable of producing suitable conceptual models in cases of field data scarcity. Future investigations in other complex geological contexts may validate the present approach. Center for Environmental Studies (CEA) São Paulo State University UNESP Basin Studies Laboratory São Paulo State University UNESP Department of Applied Geology São Paulo State University UNESP Center for Environmental Studies (CEA) São Paulo State University UNESP Basin Studies Laboratory São Paulo State University UNESP Department of Applied Geology São Paulo State University UNESP

Uncertainty quantification of groundwater (GW) aquifer parameters is critical for efficient management and sustainable extraction of GW resources. These uncertainties are introduced by the data, model, and prior information on the parameters. Here we develop a Bayesian inversion framework that uses Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) surface deformation data to infer the laterally heterogeneous permeability of a transient linear poroelastic model of a confined GW aquifer. The Bayesian solution of this inverse problem takes the form of a posterior probability density of the permeability. Exploring this posterior using classical Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods is computationally prohibitive due to the large dimension of the discretized permeability field and the expense of solving the poroelastic forward problem. However, in many partial differential equation (PDE)-based Bayesian inversion problems, the data are only informative in a few directions in parameter space. For the poroelasticity problem, we prove this property theoretically for a one-dimensional problem and demonstrate it numerically for a three-dimensional aquifer model. We design a generalized preconditioned Crank--Nicolson (gpCN) MCMC method that exploits this intrinsic low dimensionality by using a low-rank based Laplace approximation of the posterior as a proposal, which we build scalably. The feasibility of our approach is demonstrated through a real GW aquifer test in Nevada. The inherently two dimensional nature of InSAR surface deformation data informs a sufficient number of modes of the permeability field to allow detection of major structures within the aquifer, significantly reducing the uncertainty in the pressure and the displacement quantities of interest.

Faults can act as flow barriers or conduits to groundwater flow by introducing heterogeneity in permeability. We examine the hydrogeology of the Sandwich Fault Zone, a 137 km long zone of high-angle faults in northern Illinois, using a large-scale historic aquifer test. The fault zone is poorly understood at depth due to the majority of the faults being buried by glacial deposits and its near-vertical orientation which limits geologic sampling across faults. The aquifer test-perhaps one of the largest in terms of overall withdrawal in North American history-was conducted in 1942 at a facility adjacent to the fault zone. More than 34,000 m3 /day was pumped for 37 days from nine multiaquifer wells open to the stratified Cambrian-Ordovician sandstone aquifer system. We modeled the aquifer test using a transient MODFLOW-USG model and simulated pumping wells with the CLN package. We tested numerous fault core/damage zone conceptualizations and calibrated to drawdown values recorded at production and observation wells. Our analysis indicates that the fault zone is a low-permeability feature that inhibits lateral movement of groundwater and that there is at least an order of magnitude decrease in horizontal hydraulic conductivity in the fault core compared to the undeformed sandstone. Large head declines have occurred north of the fault zone (over 300 m since predevelopment conditions) and modifying fault zone parameters significantly affects calibration to regional drawdown on a decadal scale. The flow-barrier behavior of the fault zone has important implications for future groundwater availability in this highly stressed region.

This paper presents a comprehensive hydrogeological investigation that involves field work, aquifer test, hydrogeochemical analysis, environmental isotope analysis, and interpretations around a proposed nuclear power facility in South Africa. The study was undertaken to test the complementarity of the various methods in the coastal aquifer and to verify the hydrogeological conditions within and around the site. The study revealed the presence of two types of aquifers: an upper primary aquifer made up of the Cenozoic deposits of the Algoa Group, and a deeper fractured aquifer made of the Palaezoic Table Mountain Group (TMG) metasedimentary rocks. Owing to ductile deformation in the form of folding, the fractured quartzite and shale aquifers resulted in an artesian condition, often characterized by slightly acidic (pH &le, 6) and iron-rich groundwater. The most important hydrogeochemical processes responsible for the observed changes in the hydrochemical composition and facies are mineral dissolution, ion exchange and mixing. The environmental isotope results suggest that all groundwater samples are characterized by a depleted &delta, 18O and &delta, 2H signal, indicating high latitude moisture source (southern polar region) and recharge from rainfall, with no or minimal evaporation before and during infiltration. Similarities in the stable isotope signatures between the deeper and shallow aquifer confirm the presence of a strong hydraulic link. The residence time of groundwater in the aquifers underlying the proposed nuclear power plant is estimated using tritium (3H) and 14C, and the results indicate that in the shallow aquifer it ranges from recent recharge to 50 years, and in the deeper aquifer, it ranges from 430 &plusmn, 5 years to 1000 &plusmn, 10 years, which exists in a quasi-pristine condition.

The complex nature of the Ethiopian aquifer requires detail, characterization, and analysis. Consequently, characterization of groundwater flow and major aquifer systems was conducted in the upper left bank of the Jemma River catchment in the Blue Nile Basin. The research area covered 1255 km2. The main objective of the research was to characterize the aquifer systems and groundwater flow dynamics of the area. The software applied during the research work were aquifer test, ArcMap 10.2, global mapper 17, AutoCAD, Exelis ENVI, geomatics, and rockworks. Pumping test data and spring discharge together with qualitative field description were used to classify the aquifer system. Accordingly, the different aquifer classes are fissured aquifer developed on basalts on the plateau (moderate to low groundwater potential), mixed aquifer (high permeability and very high productivity), fissured aquifer developed on basalts in the valleys (high permeability and low to moderate storage), porous and fissured sandstone aquifer in deep valleys, and localized aquifer with intergranular porosity and permeability (high permeability and high productivity). From the analysis of water level measurements of boreholes, hand-dug wells, and springs, the groundwater flow system is controlled by surface morphology and lineaments. Therefore, the groundwater flows from SE and S-SSE corner towards the N and NW corner of the catchment. Understanding groundwater dynamics and characterizing the aquifer in the catchment are very crucial which in turn help to manage the available water resource for domestic, industrial, and agricultural purpose. Besides, the research will be used to manage aquifers from depletion.

This study offers a reinterpretation of archive aquifer tests, predominantly on the basis of recovery data, from an original datasheet of thermal water wells located in carbonate and sandstone aquifer units in the vicinity of Budapest, Hungary. The study compares the hydraulic conductivity (K) and specific storage (Ss) values derived in the first instance from an aquifer test evaluation. This included an initial application of the classical analytical Cooper and Jacob method. Subsequently, the visual two-zone (VTZ) numerical method was applied, then third, a more complex model, namely, WT software. It was found that the simple analytical solution is not able to represent the field conditions accurately, while in the course of the application of the VTZ model, it proved possible to alter the various hydraulic parameters within reasonable limits to fit the field data. In the case of the VTZ model, the researcher is required to calculate the accuracy of the fitted model separately, while with the WT model, this is automatic, the software seeks out the best fit. In addition to VTZ parameters, the WT model can efficiently incorporate data on up to 500 model layers, water level, and pressure. The optimization of the parameters may be achieved by automatic calibration, improving the accuracy of the numerical results. Recovery tests for 12 wells were numerically simulated to obtain values for vertical and horizontal hydraulic conductivity and specific storage for Triassic and Eocene fractured carbonate and the Upper-Miocene-Pliocene granular sandstone aquifer units. When an analytical solution is applied, only average values could be obtained. The conclusion reached was that the results of the analytical solution can be improved by the use of numerical methods. These methods are able to incorporate basic information on well design, aquifer material and the hydrogeological environment in the course of the evaluation. The revision of the archive recovery data using numerical methods may assist in the quest for better data for numerical flow and transport simulations without the need to perform new tests. In addition, the methods employed here can explain cases in which the original analytical interpretations proved unable to yield reliable data and predictions.

Straightforward solutions have long been expected for the analysis of multiwell aquifer tests. In this paper, we derive series analytical solutions of steady-state groundwater flow in a rectangular-shaped aquifer with pumping/injection wells for both confined and unconfined conditions. Double Fourier Transform (DFT) technique is applied to deal with different combinations of impermeable and specified head boundaries on sides. The obtained solutions are compact and concise in mathematics and flexible in terms of well number, well locations, and pumping/injection rates. Hatoucaidang, a groundwater resource field in the Ordos Plateau, Northwestern China, is introduced as a field case study, where a multiwell aquifer test was conducted. One of the analytical solutions derived herein is used to estimate hydraulic conductivities by applying a direct calculation method and a least square estimation method regarding observed versus calculated drawdowns. By comparing with nearby single-well pumping tests, the reliability of the derived analytical solutions is proven. This study facilitates utilizing the multiwell aquifer test to analyze the general behavior of groundwater movement in aquifer systems.

Characterization the different volcanic rock aquifers and evaluation of their respective productivity was done in Kola Diba well field (221 km2), north-central Ethiopia. Collections and analyses of pertinent secondary data were followed by detailed field investigation. Geological and structural investigations was conducted in the field paying particular attention to the different features of the overlying sediments and underlying volcanic rocks units that made them to be a water bearing formations. The structural data were analyzed using Stereonet v7.3 software. Hydrogeological logs, Semi‐log scale (specialized plot) and Log‐Log scale (diagnostic plot) were prepared to determine the different aquifer types and also to characterize the nature of each aquifer. Inventory of groundwater structures (boreholes and hand dug wells) were also conducted as part of hydrogeological investigation. Pumping test data were collected from ten deep wells and were analyzed using Theis and Neuman methods using Aquifer Test v3.5 software. Stratigraphically, the geology of the area from bottom to top is aphanitic basalt, porphyritic basalt and alluvial sediments. The rocks are affected by different degree of weathering and fractures. The geological formations of the area are categorized hydrogeologically into intergranular and fractured medium and fracture medium. The major aquifers are confined, unconfined and leaky. Hydraulic conductivity values of these different aquifers ranges from 0.0048 to 1.46 m/day with mean of 0.444 m/day, transmissivity ranges from 0.5 to 474 m2/day and specific capacity ranges from 0.026 to 0.88 l/sec/m with mean values of 86.878 m2/day and 0.325 88 l/sec/m, respectively. On the basis of their corresponding transmissivity and specific capacity value, the different aquifers of the studied area were categorized into four aquifer potentiality groups: moderate to low, low to weak, weak and very weak aquifers potentiality. Any future development of groundwater should be focused on the moderate to low potentiality aquifers.

Limestone aquifers are of great interest as a drinking water resource in many countries. They often have a complex crushed and fractured geology, which makes the analysis and description of flow and transport processes in such aquifers a challenging task. In this study, the solute transport behavior including fracture-matrix interaction in hydrogeological units of a limestone aquifer in eastern Denmark was characterized by designing, conducting and interpreting six depth-specific tracer tests involving natural- and forced-gradient conditions with multiple tracers representing different diffusion properties. To determine flow parameters, the tracer tests were complemented by a comprehensive set of depth-specific borehole and hydraulic tests.Based on the tests, a new and stronger conceptual understanding was developed for the different aquifer units. The investigated limestone aquifer is composed of a glacially crushed unit and two fractured units, with calcarenitic and bryozoan limestone of similar hydraulic properties. Hydraulic tests revealed, that the crushed unit has a lower hydraulic conductivity than the fractured limestone units, likely due to the crushed conditions with small limestone clusters and small-aperture fractures potentially filled with fine material.In the fractured limestone units, a distinct preferential flow and primary transport along major horizontal fractures was inferred from the tracer tests under forced-gradient conditions. The dominant horizontal fractures were identified on impeller flow logs and appear connected between wells, having an extent of up to several hundred meters. Connectivity between the aquifer units was investigated with a long-term pumping test and tracer tests, revealing restricted vertical flow and transport. A very pronounced hydraulic conductivity contrast between major fractures and matrix could also be inferred from the borehole and hydraulic tests, which is consistent with the findings from the tracer tests. However, the difference in the matrix diffusion behavior of the simultaneously injected tracers and a long tailing in the breakthrough curves revealed that matrix diffusion has a strong influence on the solute transport in the fractured limestone.

Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) data from multiple satellite missions were combined to study the temporal and spatial variability of head and storage properties in a confined aquifer system on a decadal time scale. The area of study was a 4,500 km2 agricultural basin in the San Luis Valley (SLV), Colorado. We had available previous analyses of C-band ERS-1/2 data from June 1992 to November 2000, and L-band ALOS PALSAR data from October 2009 to March 2011. We used C-band Envisat data to fill in the time period from November 2006 to July 2010. In processing the Envisat data, we successfully employed a phase interpolation between persistent scatterer pixels to reduce the impact of vegetation decorrelation, which can significantly reduce the quality of C-band InSAR data over agricultural basins. In comparing the results from the L-band ALOS data and C-band Envisat data in a 10-month overlapping time period, we found that the shorter wavelength of C-band InSAR allowed us to preserve small deformation signals that were not detectable using L-band ALOS data. A significant result was the finding that the elastic storage properties of the SLV confined aquifer system remained stable over the 20 year time period and vary slowly in space, allowing us to combine InSAR data acquired from multiple missions to fill the temporal and spatial gaps in well data. The InSAR estimated head levels were validated with well measurements, which indicate little permanent water-storage loss over the study time period in the SLV.

A new mathematical model is developed to describe the flow in response to a constant-head pumping (or constant-head test, CHT) in a leaky unconfined aquifer system of infinite lateral extent with considering unsaturated flow. The model consists of an unsaturated zone on the top, an unconfined aquifer in the middle, and a second aquifer (aquitard) at the bottom. The unsaturated flow is described by Richard's equation, and the flows in unconfined aquifer and second layer are governed by the groundwater flow equation. The well partially penetrates the unconfined aquifer with a constant head in the well due to CHT. The governing equations of the model are linearized by the perturbation method and Gardner's exponential model is adopted to describe the soil retention curves. The solution of the model for drawdown distribution is obtained by applying the methods of Laplace transform and Weber transform. Then the solution for the wellbore flowrate is derived from the drawdown solution with Darcy's law. The issue of the equivalence of normalized drawdown predicted by the present solution for constant-head pumping and Tartakovsky and Neuman's (2007) solution for constant-rate pumping is discussed. On the basis of the wellbore flowrate solution, the results of the sensitivity analysis indicate that the wellbore flowrate is very sensitive to the changes in the radial hydraulic conductivity and the thickness of the saturated zone. Moreover, the results predicted from the present wellbore flowrate solution indicate that this new solution can reduce to Chang’s et al. (2010a) solution for homogenous aquifers when the dimensionless unsaturated exponent approaches 100. The unsaturated zone can be considered as infinite extent in the vertical direction if the thickness ratio of the unsaturated zone to the unconfined aquifer is equal to or greater than one. As for the leakage effect, it can be ignored when the vertical hydraulic conductivity ratio (i.e., the vertical hydraulic conductivity of the lower layer over that of the unconfined aquifer) is smaller than 0.1. The present solution is compared with the numerical solution from FEMWATER for validation and the results indicate good match between these two solutions. Finally, the present solution is applied to a set of field drawdown data obtained from a CHT for the estimation of hydrogeologic parameters.

A phased multi-disciplinary approach was used to investigate potential environmental impact on the overburden aquifer and karst (bedrock) aquifer from the historic use of a suspected fire training pit at the former Marietta Air Force Station in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Investigation techniques have included direct push technology, real-time sample analysis via use of a mobile laboratory, earth resistivity imaging/induced polarization, geophysical borehole logging, packer testing, installation of one multi-port well with five sampling ports set in the karst aquifer, installation of multiple conventional monitoring wells, and completion of multiple rounds of groundwater sampling and data analysis. Both the vertical and lateral extents of groundwater contamination by chlorinated volatile organic compounds were delineated in the overburden and karst aquifer. The pathway-focused human health risk assessment has indicated that groundwater remediation is required to meet the federal and state health standards for volatile organic compounds. Based on the hydrogeological conditions and the nature and extent of the delineated contamination, plumes in both the overburden and karst aquifers, chemical oxidation (in the karst aquifer), and enhanced bioremediation (in the overburden aquifer) have been selected as the preferred alternatives for groundwater remediation, with monitored natural attenuation included as a common component of both alternatives.

Fractured-caved carbonate reservoirs have the characteristic of strong heterogeneity, poor connectivity and complicated oil-water relationship, these reservoirs generally contain edge-bottom aquifer support and has non-uniform oil-water contact. Because of wrong estimation of the well original oil in place, well drilling success ratio is generally low and the development performance is also poor. How to quantitatively evaluate this kind of reservoirs’ reserves and aquifer size by dynamic methods, which can provide support to the following new well drilling and development strategy decision, is the key problem need to solve. Based on the Blasingame method and flowing material balance method, this paper derives the dynamic reserves evaluation theory for reservoirs with pseudo-steady state water-drive and proposes a process and method according to aquifer influx identification to quantitatively evaluate dynamic reserves and aquifer size. This method firstly uses aquifer influx dynamic identification method to divide well production history into three periods: no aquifer influx period, early aquifer influx period and middle-late aquifer influx period. Then the dynamic reserves can be evaluated according to matching well production data of no aquifer influx period, and then the aquifer size can be quantitatively evaluated by means of matching well production data of early aquifer influx period. What’s more, the established numerical simulation conceptual model with edge and bottom aquifer support verifies that the method is reliable. This method has been widely used in a fractured-caved carbonate oil field in China, the application is good.

Process-based groundwater models are useful to understand complex aquifer systems and make predictions about their response to hydrological changes. A conceptual model for evaluating responses to environmental changes is presented, considering the hydrogeologic framework, flow processes, aquifer hydraulic properties, boundary conditions, and sources and sinks of the groundwater system. Based on this conceptual model, a quasi-three-dimensional transient groundwater flow model was designed using MODFLOW to simulate the groundwater system of Mahanadi River delta, eastern India. The model was constructed in the context of an upper unconfined aquifer and lower confined aquifer, separated by an aquitard. Hydraulic heads of 13 shallow wells and 11 deep wells were used to calibrate transient groundwater conditions during 1997–2006, followed by validation (2007–2011). The aquifer and aquitard hydraulic properties were obtained by pumping tests and were calibrated along with the rainfall recharge. The statistical and graphical performance indicators suggested a reasonably good simulation of groundwater flow over the study area. Sensitivity analysis revealed that groundwater level is most sensitive to the hydraulic conductivities of both the aquifers, followed by vertical hydraulic conductivity of the confining layer. The calibrated model was then employed to explore groundwater-flow dynamics in response to changes in pumping and recharge conditions. The simulation results indicate that pumping has a substantial effect on the confined aquifer flow regime as compared to the unconfined aquifer. The results and insights from this study have important implications for other regional groundwater modeling studies, especially in multi-layered aquifer systems.

Groundwater stored in the deep seated sedimentary aquifers is the most important source of water supply. The lack of sufficient groundwater recharge and the overdependence on groundwater might lead to unavailability of this precious natural resource if proper management practices are not adopted. Finite difference modelling using the MODFLOW program was carried out in the east of Riyadh city to simulate the groundwater level conditions under different abstraction scenarios. The simulated aquifer system combines the Wasia and Biyadh aquifer (composed of sandstone) and Aruma aquifer (limestone) which lies between 24°30'00"- 25°30'00" N and longitudes 47°00'00"- 48°00'00"E. The transmissivity and storage coefficient values of Biyadh aquifer are 7.0x10-3 to 7.0x10-2 m2/day and 3.7x10-4 to 9.4x10-4 respectively. The transmissivity and storage coefficient values of Wasia aquifer ranges from 6.7x10-3 to 8.5x10-2 m2/day and 2x10-4 to 2.3x10-4 respectively. The model calibration involved altering the values of model input parameters to match field conditions within certain acceptable limits to forecast the aquifer response over a period of 35 years (2015-2050). The modelling grid consisted of 20 and 24 columns with the grids spacing of 4 km for the small grids and 6 km for large grids. The results showed that though the Wasia aquifer was productive, it showed a large decline in water levels if water abstraction continued at the present rate. If the existing trends of groundwater withdraw continues; the piezometric heads in Wasia and Biyadh aquifers will decline by the year 2050. A reduction in 25% of the existing groundwater pumping rate in the well field will minimize the rate of groundwater decline in the aquifer to a considerable extent.

The Triffa plain covering about 307 km2 is located in the semiarid region of northeastern Morocco. The cover consists of Quaternary and Mio-Pliocene formations, including alluvial material, silt, sandstone, limestone, clay, and marl, underlain by a sequence of Jurassic carbonates and clastics. Two principal aquifers occur in this region: (1) An unconfined aquifer hosted by the Quaternary formations, which opens up on the coastal plain of Saidia, giving rise to the Ain Chebbak and Ain Zebda springs; and (2) a confined aquifer hosted by the underlying Liassic (Jurassic) formations, composed of limestone and dolostone. In this paper, we present a conceptual hydrogeological model for the Triffa aquifer, which opens laterally into the Saidia aquifer, based on borehole data, bedrock geology, hydrodynamic parameters, piezometric maps, and time series groundwater level and precipitation data, obtained from several meteorological stations and pumping wells. These comprehensive data were incorporated in the Geographic Information System platform and processed using groundwater modeling software, with the development of the numerical model and its limitations discussed in detail in the present work. Subsequently, we evaluated the impact of climate change on the Triffa aquifer, assuming three different climate scenarios developed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. These were the B1—low, A1B—mean, and A1F1—extreme scenarios, which we modeled by simulating a decrease in the recharge in all of the study area up to year 2099 that would correspond to 9, 19, and 47%, respectively. The calibration of the model in steady and transient states produced a good agreement between the observed and simulated heads. The simulation of the impact of climate change on groundwater by a decrease in the recharge highlights the groundwater drawdown occurring in this region. This work can significantly help the authorities in the sustainable management and exploitation of local groundwater.

Flow to a partially penetrating vertical well is made more complex by intra-wellbore losses. These are caused not only by the frictional effect, but also by the kinematic effect, which consists of the accelerational and fluid inflow effects inside a wellbore. Existing models of flow to a partially penetrating vertical well assume either a uniform-flux boundary condition (UFBC) or a uniform-head boundary condition (UHBC) for treating the flow into the wellbore. Neither approach considers intra-wellbore losses. In this study a new general solution, named the mixed-type boundary condition (MTBC) solution, is introduced to include intra-wellbore losses. It is developed from the existing solutions using a hybrid analytical-numerical method. The MTBC solution is capable of modeling various types of aquifer tests (constant-head tests, constant-rate tests, and slug tests) for partially or fully penetrating vertical wells in confined aquifers. Results show that intra-wellbore losses (both frictional and kinematic) can be significant in the early pumping stage. At later pumping times the UHBC solution is adequate because the difference between the MTBC and UHBC solutions becomes negligible.

The hydraulic diffusivity gives a measure of diffusion speed of pressure disturbances in groundwater system; large values of hydraulic diffusivity lead to fast propagation of signals in aquifer. This research provides a novel design and derives spectral representation to determine hydraulic diffusivity using spectral analysis of groundwater levels coupled with time-dependent boundary adjacent to marine system and no flow boundary in aquifer system. To validate the proposed method, water levels of fluctuated boundary and groundwater well in a sandy confined aquifer were collected. The hydraulic diffusivity is then obtained by an inverse process in the non-linear complex form of spectral relationship. The method essentially is constructed on the conceptual design of natural forcing transmitted in large aquifer. It is unlike the conventional field pumping test which is only used to determine hydraulic properties of groundwater in small range around the well. Hydraulic diffusivity of the confined aquifer is determined using real observation and then checked by comparing to the published range. It suggests that without local aquifer test to estimate hydraulic diffusivity in a coastal aquifer using spectral representation with its relevant flow system and boundary has become feasible.

Wells along two regional flow paths were sampled to characterize changes in water quality and the vulnerability to contamination of the Memphis aquifer across a range of hydrologic and land-use conditions in the southeastern United States. The flow paths begin in the aquifer outcrop area and end at public supply wells in the confined parts of the aquifer at Memphis, Tennessee. Age-date tracer (e.g. SF6, 3H, 14C) data indicate that a component of young water is present in the aquifer at most locations along both flow paths, which is consistent with previous studies at Memphis that documented leakage of shallow water into the Memphis aquifer locally where the overlying confining unit is thin or absent. Mixtures of young and old water were most prevalent where long-term pumping for public supply has lowered groundwater levels and induced downward movement of young water. The occurrence of nitrate, chloride and synthetic organic compounds was correlated to the fraction of young water along the flow paths. Oxic conditions persisted for 10 km or more down dip of the confining unit, and the presence of young water in confined parts of the aquifer suggest that contaminants such as nitrate-N have the potential for transport. Long-term monitoring data for one of the flow-path wells screened in the confined part of the aquifer suggest that the vulnerability of the aquifer as indicated by the fraction of young water is increasing over time.

Analytical simulation of groundwater flow is a necessary and useful technique to predict the various behavior patterns of a groundwater system. The main aim of the present study is to derive new analytical solutions to compute the unsteady flows inside an aquifer between two parallel streams of constant and varying heads. The problems are solved by means of Laplace transform method and the solution results are verified with the results of MODFLOW. It is observed that the obtained results agreed very well with the results of MODFLOW. The solutions are carried out for two cases of ascending and descending water levels and the obtained results are compared with each other. In addition, the sensitivity of hydraulic heads to aquifer parameters and how locations of water divide change by change in aquifer parameters are investigated. In sensitivity analysis of hydraulic heads to changes in recharge rate with different values of hydraulic conductivity, thickness, and length of the aquifer, it is shown that among these parameters the length of the aquifer is the most important parameter affecting the hydraulic heads. Furthermore, the sensitivity of flow rates to recharge rates and water level change rates are analyzed.

Wei, Y., Fan, J., Xu, X., & Lei, J. (March-April, 2017). Water table response to a pumping test in the hinterland core area of the Taklimakan Desert, China. Water Technology and Sciences (in Spanish), 8(2), 151-158. In this article, hydrogeological parameters were determined by a single well pumping test. Over the course of the study, BETCO was used to eliminate the effects of atmospheric pressure changes on water level based on the regression deconvolution method. The aquifer test was used to analyze data and to calculate hydrogeological parameters. Finally, from the three unconfined aquifer models, though the Boulton model cannot successfully gain well-fitting results, the Theis model with Jacob correction and the Neuman model results obtained hydrogeological parameters by curve-fitting. Additionally, permeability coefficient of the two models is in good agreement with previous research, which can provide a reference for further study in the hinterland of the desert, especially for the construction of hydrological modeling research.

In a natural aquifer, the aquifer properties are complicated, which normally vary with aquifer depth and geographic characteristics. Most previous studies have been limited to the case of isotropic aquifer with uniform characteristics. In the proposed model, the fully coupled ground water flow and land deformation due to groundwater pumping in cross-anisotropic aquifer system is used to analyze and predict. Based on this model, pumping-recovery tests in various conditions are numerically simulated to reveal the effects of cross-anisotropic aquifer behavior on hydraulic head and land deformation. Finally, the proposed method is applied to a project in Shanghai of China due to pumping of groundwater predicted. Comparing the calculated results with the measured field values indicates that the methods can be a useful tool for designing groundwater pumping projects.

In recent years, the water demand has been increasing considerably in Bojnourd, capital of Northern Khorasan province in NE of Iran, and the extracted water from Bojnourd alluvial aquifer, with an area of 65 km2, is not sufficient for residents. The required water is going to be supplied from Shirindare dam, located out of Bojnourd aquifer’s catchment area; therefore, the groundwater levels will rise in some parts of the aquifer, due to the return flow of supplied water, which will cause serious problems for the city. In this paper, the groundwater flow system of Bojnourd aquifer has been numerically simulated using MODFLOW code in GMS interface. The model, primarily, was calibrated for a steady state condition for the mean values of oneyear period (Sep. 2009 to Sep. 2010) which has a steady condition with low stresses on the aquifer. Then the model was run/calibrated for transient conditions for a two year period (Sep. 2007 to Sep. 2009). After determining the hydraulic properties of the aquifer and confirming their validity, different management scenarios, were applied to the model. Results reveal that groundwater levels in the urban area will rise by over 3 m, by infiltrating 40% of supplied water from the Shirindare dam into the aquifer. To manage the rising water levels, two different management scenarios were applied to the aquifer model. In doing so and with proper management of aquifer exploitation during critical situations, not only will the groundwater level drop; also the city of Bojnourd can develop urban landscaping by constructing sports/cultural camping area using the extra pumped water.

Management of water resources in alluvial aquifers relies mainly on understanding interactions between hydraulically connected streams and aquifers. Numerical models that simulate this interaction often are used as decision support tools in water resource management. However, the accuracy of numerical predictions relies heavily on the unknown system parameters (i.e. stream bed conductivity and aquifer hydraulic conductivity) which are spatially heterogeneous and difficult to measure directly. This paper employs an Ensemble Smoother to invert groundwater level measurements to jointly estimate spatially-varying streambed and alluvial aquifer hydraulic conductivity along a 35.6 km segment of the South Platte River in northeastern Colorado. The accuracy of the inversion procedure is evaluated using a synthetic experiment and historical groundwater level measurements, with the latter constituting the novelty of this study in the inversion and validation of high resolution fields of streambed and aquifer conductivities. Results show that the estimated streambed conductivity field and aquifer conductivity field produce an acceptable agreement between observed and simulated groundwater levels and stream flow rates. The estimated parameter fields are also used to simulate the spatially varying flow exchange between the alluvial aquifer and the stream, which exhibit high spatial variability along the river reach with a maximum average monthly aquifer gain of about 2.3 m3/day and a maximum average monthly aquifer loss of 2.8 m3/day, per unit area of streambed (m2). These results demonstrate that data assimilation inversion provides a reliable and computationally affordable tool to estimate the spatial variability of streambed and aquifer conductivities at high resolution in real-world systems.

Fracture network properties in geological media are described and analyzed to evaluate the hydrodynamic functioning of fractured aquifer as well as permeability and transmissivity. In this paper, a concise approach for mapping and analyzing fracture properties in the outcrops was applied. The adopted methodology aims to explore the spatial distribution and properties of fractures to estimate the aquifer permeability. A detailed geological mapping was established to define the geometry and spatial extension of the fractured aquifer. A correlation between these data and the transmissivity values is discussed to evaluate groundwater flow in fractured aquifer. The Horchane basin was explored to investigate fracture distribution and their aperture, density and frequency. The fracture mapping at 1/1 scale was done over 42 stations containing 1000 fractures. Results of this investigation show that fracturing is the only parameter responsible for the circulation of water in the aquifer. Aperture and density of fractures have an important effect on permeability and water flow in the Horchane-Braga basin.

Oil contaminant migration in an aquifer is analyzed by applying some power law relationships between the porous medium parameters and oil saturation. Such an application generates a self-similar model whose solutions are used to analyze the effect of the porous structure and the oil properties on the oil migration in the aquifer. By using hypothetical saturation data, the model was used to find the characteristic length and time scales of the aquifer, and then to predict the temporal saturation distribution of the oil contamination in the aquifer.

Shallow geothermal resource exploitation through the use of groundwater heat pump systems not only has hydraulic and thermal effects on the environment but also induces physicochemical changes that can compromise the operability of installations. This study focuses on chemical clogging and dissolution subsidence processes observed during the geothermal re-injection of pumped groundwater into an urban aquifer. To explain these phenomena, two transient reactive transport models of a groundwater heat pump installation in an alluvial aquifer were used to reproduce groundwater-solid matrix interactions occurring in a surrounding aquifer environment during system operation. The models couple groundwater flow, heat and solute transport together with chemical reactions. In these models, the permeability distribution in space changes with precipitation-dissolution reactions over time. The simulations allowed us to estimate the calcite precipitation rates and porosity variations over space and time as a function of existent hydraulic gradients in an aquifer as well as the intensity of CO2 exchanges with the atmosphere. The results obtained from the numerical model show how CO2 exolution processes that occur during groundwater reinjection into an aquifer and calcite precipitation are related to hydraulic efficiency losses in exploitation systems. Finally, the performance of reinjection wells was evaluated over time according to different scenarios until the systems were fully obstructed. Our simulations also show a reduction in hydraulic conductivity that forces re-injected water to flow downwards, thereby enhancing the dissolution of evaporitic bedrock and producing subsidence that can ultimately result in a dramatic collapse of the injection well infrastructure.

This study introduces an analytical approach to estimate drawdown induced by well extraction in a heterogeneous confined aquifer with an irregular outer boundary. The aquifer domain is divided into a number of zones according to the zonation method for representing the spatial distribution of a hydraulic parameter field. The lateral boundary of the aquifer can be considered under the Dirichlet, Neumann or Robin condition at different parts of the boundary. Flow across the interface between two zones satisfies the continuities of drawdown and flux. Source points, each of which has an unknown volumetric rate representing the boundary effect on the drawdown, are allocated around the boundary of each zone. The solution of drawdown in each zone is expressed as a series in terms of the Theis equation with unknown volumetric rates from the source points. The rates are then determined based on the aquifer boundary conditions and the continuity requirements. The estimated aquifer drawdown by the present approach agrees well with a finite element solution developed based on the Mathematica function NDSolve. As compared with the existing numerical approaches, the present approach has a merit of directly computing the drawdown at any given location and time and therefore takes much less computing time to obtain the required results in engineering applications. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

A method is presented for obtaining depth-discrete values of specific storage ( Ss ) from single-hole hydraulic tests in fractured rock boreholes using straddle packers (1.5–17 m test intervals). Low flow constant head (CH) step tests analyzed using the Thiem method provide transmissivity ( T ) values free from non-Darcian error. Short-term, constant-rate pumping tests (0.5–2 h) analyzed using the Cooper-Jacob approximation of the Theis method provide S from the hydraulic diffusivity using the Darcian T value from the CH step test. This synergistic use of two types of hydraulic tests avoids the common source of error when pumping tests (injection or withdrawal) are conducted at higher flow rates and thereby induce non-Darcian flow resulting in the underestimation of T. Other errors, such as well bore storage and leakage, can also substantially influence S by causing a shift in the time axis of the Cooper-Jacob semi-log plot. In this approach, the Darcian T values from the CH step tests are used in the analysis of the transient pumping test data for calculating S throughout the pumping test using the Cooper-Jacob approximation to minimize all of the aforementioned errors, resulting in more representative S values. The effect of these non-idealities on the measured drawdown is illustrated using the Theis equation with the Darcian T and S values to calculate drawdown for comparison to measured data. The Ss values for tests in sandstone obtained from this approach are more consistent with confined aquifer conditions than values derived from the traditional Cooper-Jacob method, and are within the range of field and lab values presented from a compilation of literature values for fractured sandstone. (10 −7 –10 −5 m −1 ) This method for obtaining Ss values from short-interval, straddle packer tests improves the estimation of both K and Ss and provides opportunity to study their spatial distribution in fractured rock.

Many islands consist of limestone sedimentary deposits that are better described as a two-aquifer system consisting of an unconfined aquifer (Quaternary sediments) above a fractured aquifer (fractured limestone) in which groundwater heads are closely regulated by tidal fluctuations on both sides of the islands (dual tides). Propagation of tidal signal, reflected in hydraulic head fluctuation in such a two-aquifer system is significantly different from that in a single aquifer system that is often assumed. The Laplace domain solution of the head fluctuation in such a two-aquifer system subjected to dual tides is obtained first and subsequently inverted to yield real-time solution. Unlike previous solutions, Fourier series with complex variables are avoided and Fourier sine transform is used instead. The solution takes into account an instantaneously drainable water table, hydraulic conductivity anisotropy and arbitrary time-dependent tidal fluctuations. The hydraulic connection of the underlying fractured aquifer and the overlying unconfined aquifer is explored in details. The presented solution can be used to evaluate the head fluctuations and the aquifer parameter estimation of the two-aquifer system underneath a strip-shape island subjected to dual tides. The results can be used to determine the optimum piezometer location to estimate hydraulic parameters of the two-aquifer system using groundwater head fluctuation data. Stream-aquifer interaction is similar to the tidal-aquifer interaction if the chemical difference of the salt water and fresh water is not a concern. The developed solution for tidal-aquifer interaction here can also be used to investigate the aquifer response to stream stage variations in river basin aquifers.

Poorly constructed wells can cause deterioration of groundwater quality by carrying surface contaminants into a deep subsurface aquifer system. In this study, the impact of leaky wells on groundwater contamination was quantitatively evaluated in a layered aquifer system of the Gosan agricultural fields, Jeju Island, Korea, where degradation in groundwater quality by nitrate has been reported. We introduce a leaky-well module and a double-domain integration method to compute nitrate cross-contamination through a layered aquifer system. The simulation results clearly revealed that the leaky wells rapidly degraded the water quality of the underlying aquifer by acting as a direct pathway for nitrate-rich shallow groundwater. The model results predicted that in order to decrease the NO3-N concentration at the regional groundwater wells below the maximum contamination level (MCL), the maximum allowable fertilizer amount of Gosan would be 45–65% of the currently applied fertilizer level, whereas sealing of the regional groundwater wells would rapidly decrease the NO3-N concentration below the MCL without reducing fertilizer usage. Our study demonstrated that the well conditions and hydrogeological system play major roles in the occurrence of nitrate in the underlying aquifer in Gosan; therefore, a proper groundwater management plan against nitrate contamination should be established on the basis of a comprehensive understanding of the hydrogeologic system of the area.

For gas reservoirs with strong bottom or edge aquifer support, the most important thing is avoiding aquifer breakthrough in a gas well. Water production in gas wells does not only result in processing problems in surface facilities, but it also explicitly reduces well productivity and reservoir recovery. There are a lot of studies on the prediction of water breakthrough time, but they are not completely practicable due to reservoir heterogeneity. This paper provides a new method together with three diagnostic curves to identify aquifer influx status for single gas wells; the aforementioned curves are based on well production and pressure data. The whole production period of a gas well can be classified into three periods based on the diagnostic curves: no aquifer influx period, early aquifer influx period, and middle-late aquifer influx period. This new method has been used for actual gas well analysis to accurately identify gas well aquifer influx status and the water breakthrough sequence of all wells in the same gas field. Additionally, the evaluation results are significantly beneficial for well production rate optimization and development of an effective gas field.

This paper presents the results obtained from the application of aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) technique to control seawater intrusion (SWI) in coastal aquifers. The study is based on the numerical modelling experiments performed using the SUTRA (Saturated–Unsaturated TRAnsport) finite-element code on the Wadi Ham aquifer in the UAE. A three-dimensional numerical model of this aquifer is developed and calibrated based on the available hydrogeological data in real scale. A significant amount of SWI has been calculated for the year 2015 due to the high rates of pumping from the available local well fields. To study the future responses of the aquifer to different control actions, the transient responses of SWI are simulated over a 10-year planning horizon. The proposed management measure (ASR) is implemented in repeated cycles of artificial recharge, storage and recovery using an additional set of wells defined in the model. The results show that ASR is a reliable method in controlling SWI in coastal aquifer systems besides its conventional role in subsurface water banking.

The Thiem equation of radial groundwater flow to a well is more than 100 years old and is still commonly used. Here, deviations caused by some of its simplifications are quantified by comparing the analytical to a numerical model that allows the implementation of more complex geometries. The assumption of horizontal flow in the Thiem equation, which necessitates uniform inflow over the entire screen length of the fully penetrating well, was found to cause deviations from actual pumping wells where the pump is placed above the screen, resulting in non-uniform inflow and additional drawdown. The same applies to partially penetrating wells, where inflow peaks and additional drawdown occur, especially when the well is screened in the lower part of the aquifer. The use of the Thiem equation in the near-field of a well should thus be restricted to situations where the screen inflow is relatively uniformly distributed, e.g. when it covers large portions of the aquifer thickness. The presence of a gravel pack and a background gradient, on the other hand, are of limited importance.

Summary A semi-analytical solution was presented for groundwater flow due to pumping in a leaky sloping fault-zone aquifer surrounded by permeable matrices. The flow in the aquifer was descried by a three-dimensional flow equation, and the flow in the upper and lower matrix blocks are described by a one-dimensional flow equation. A first-order free-water surface equation at the outcrop of the fault-zone aquifer was used to describe the water table condition. The Laplace domain solution was derived using Laplace transform and finite Fourier transform techniques and the semi-analytical solutions in the real time domain were evaluated using the numerical inverse Laplace transform method. The solution was in excellent agreement with Theis solution combined with superposition principle as well as the solution of Huang et al. (2014). It was found that the drawdown increases as the sloping angle of the aquifer increases in early time and the impact of the angle is insignificant after pumping for a long time. The free-water surface boundary as additional source recharges the fault aquifer and significantly affect the drawdown at later time. The surrounding permeable matrices have a strong influence on drawdown but this influence can be neglected when the ratio of the specific storage and the ratio of the hydraulic conductivity of the matrices to those of the fault aquifer are less than 0.001.

The applicability of geophysical techniques has been examined for evaluating aquifer properties like transmissivity and hydraulic conductivity of coastal aquifers, Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu. The pumping test data of 10 wells are interpreted by using forward modelling to obtain the aquifer characteristics in the study area. The available vertical electrical soundings (VES) data in the vicinity of the sites of pumping test have been interpreted; and true resistivity and thickness are determined at each site in the study area. Empirical relationships are established for estimating the hydraulic parameters from the electrical data.

The article considers the method of hydro geological calculation of wells at abrupt decrease of their flow rates as a result of injecting in them additional hydraulic resistance. Based on the previously carried out individual investigations, the authors present the analytic relation for determining the value of the resistance that ensures the target value of the well flow rate. The suggested relation enables staged automatic control of the flowing well operation. The article ascertains the applicability of Theis equation for determining the value of partial recovery of the head after abrupt decrease of the well flow rate. At that it is accepted that at the given point there is concurrently operating virtual injection well with constant rate, at the value equal to the diminished one.

Most simulation studies have focused on small-scale CO 2 injection in deep saline aquifers. Recently, a significant amount of simulation studies on large-scale CO 2 storage have been conducted. This study investigates what an actual CO 2 storage project might entail using field data for the Woodbine aquifer in East Texas. A geological model of the Woodbine aquifer was created based on existing structural, petrophysical, and aquifer data found in the Bureau of Economic Geology (BEG) website. A key feature in the model is the Mexia-Talco fault system that serves as a likely boundary between the saline aquifer region suitable for CO 2 storage and an updip fresh water region. Three CO 2 injection scenarios were considered: CO 2 bulk injection and two aquifer management strategies (AMS). The AMS were CO 2 injection with brine extraction; and CO 2 injection with brine extraction, and concentrated brine reinjection (from desalination). Simulation results indicate that aquifer pressurization limits bulk injection of the CO 2 from surrounding power plants to 20 years, but the AMS would store CO 2 injected at the same rate for up to 240 years. The simulation also enabled investigation of fluid migration across the Mexia-Talco fault system by using a fault transmissibility multiplier to adjust fault transmissibilities. For bulk CO 2 injection small leakage through or around the fault system permits a volume of brine equal to the injected CO 2 volume eventually to leak into the fresh water aquifer. For the two AMS, fresh water is drawn into the saline aquifer during brine extraction, and brine and/or CO 2 ultimately will migrate into the fresh water aquifer. The rate of fluid migration across the fault system depends on its transmissibility, and CO 2 would leak into the fresh water aquifer after 905 and 1080 years for cases with fault transmissibility multiplier of 0.1 and 1, respectively. Because fault displacements are typically more than 200 m (700 ft), and because there is a sharp contrast in salinity across the Mexia-Talco fault system, the likelihood of nonzero fault transmissibility may be low and may remain low provided that neither increased nor decreased pressure across the fault system from CO 2 and concentrated brine injection or brine production alter the fault transmissibility over time.

Involving a limited resource, the assessment of groundwater aquifers is of utmost importance. A key component of any such assessment is the determination of key properties that permit water resource managers to estimate aquifer drawdown and safe yield. This paper presents a particle filtering approach to estimate aquifer properties from transient data sets, leveraging recently published analytically-derived models for confined aquifers and using sample-based approximations of underlying probability distributions. The approach is examined experimentally through validation against three common aquifer testing problems: determination of (i) transmissivity and storage coefficient from non-leaky confined aquifer performance tests, (ii) transmissivity, storage coefficient, and vertical hydraulic conductivity from leaky confined aquifer performance tests, and (iii) transmissivity and storage coefficient from non-leaky confined aquifer performance tests with noisy data and boundary effects. On the first two well-addressed problems, the results using the particle filter approach compare favorably to those obtained by other published methods. The results to the third problem, which the particle filter approach can tackle more naturally than the previously-published methods, underscore the flexibility of particle filtering and, in turn, the promise such methods offer for a myriad of other geoscience problems.

Geoelectrical methods have been widely used for the estimation of aquifer hydraulic properties. In this study, geoelectrical methods were applied in a lithologically and hydrochemically complex porous aquifer to estimate its porosity, hydraulic conductivity and transmissivity. For this purpose, the electrical resistivity of the aquifer as well as the electrical conductivity of the groundwater was measured in 37 sites and wells. Initially, the Archie's law was used to generate sets of cementation factor (m) and alpha (α) parameter from which the mode values of α=0.98 and m=1.75 are representative of the studied aquifer. The transmissivity of the aquifer varies from 5.1×10(-3) to 3.1×10(-5)m(2)/s, whereas the mean value of its porosity is 0.45. The hydraulic conductivity of the aquifer which was calculated according to Archie's law varies from 2.08×10(-6) to 6.84×10(-5)m/s and is strongly correlated with the pumping test's hydraulic conductivity. In contrast, the hydraulic conductivity which was calculated using Dar-Zarrouk parameters presents lower correlation with the pumping test's hydraulic conductivity. Furthermore, a relation between aquifer resistivity and hydraulic conductivity was established for the studied aquifer to enable the estimation of these parameters in sites lacking data.

Summary Karst spring/stream discharge reflects the global configuration of the aquifer. However, quantitative description of the aquifer structure such as effective porosity (neff) and water storage capacity by the discharge analysis is difficult because of the complex conduit/fracture system. This study attempted to quantify the characteristics of karst aquifer based on discharge recession and time series analysis methods. Three recession models, including modified Maillet, Mangin and Boussinesq models, were evaluated to choose the most suitable one for analyzing the aquifer structure, and auto-correlation and cross-correlation functions were applied to study the aquifer response in both year and rainfall event time scales. The results showed that the modified Maillet model was more suitable in the study catchment with Mangin model overestimating and Boussinesq model underestimating the discharge. The neff was 3.73% for the total aquifer, and it was 0.07%, 0.33% and 3.33% for the conduit, fracture and matrix, respectively. Based on a case study of a rainfall event with precipitation of 68 mm, the water volumes drained by the three media were 25.43%, 33.40% and 41.17%, respectively. This indicates that, although conduit network is not very developed with lower neff, it is still an important water transmissive element (draining more than a quarter of water after the rainfall event). The memory time of the aquifer was 4 days for the year scale and 8 h for the rainfall event (68 mm) scale. This demonstrates that the aquifer has a well developed drainage system with a quick response to the rainfall. The above results provide further insights for hydrological processes modeling and water resources management for the small catchment in karst regions.

Most previous solutions for groundwater flow induced by localized recharge assumed either aquifer incompressibility or two-dimensional flow in the absence of the vertical flow. This paper develops a new three-dimensional flow model for hydraulic head variation due to localized recharge in a rectangular unconfined aquifer with four boundaries under the Robin condition. A governing equation describing spatiotemporal head distributions is employed. The first-order free-surface equation with a source term defining a constant recharge rate over a rectangular area is used to depict water table movement. The solution to the model for the head is developed with the methods of Laplace transform and double-integral transform. Based on Duhamel's theorem, the present solution is applicable to flow problems accounting for arbitrary time-dependent recharge rates. The solution to depth-average head can then be obtained by integrating the head solution to elevation and dividing the result by the aquifer thickness. The use of a rectangular aquifer domain has two merits. One is that the integration for estimating the depth-average head can be analytically achieved. The other is that existing solutions based on aquifers of infinite extent can be considered as special cases of the present solution before the time when the aquifer boundary had an effect on head predictions. With the help of the present solution, the assumption of neglecting the vertical flow effect on the temporal head distribution at an observation point outside a recharge region can be assessed by a dimensionless parameter related to the aquifer horizontal and vertical hydraulic conductivities, initial aquifer thickness, and the shortest distance between the observation point and the edge of the recharge region. The validity of assuming aquifer incompressibility is dominated by the ratio of the aquifer specific yield to its storage coefficient. In addition, a sensitivity analysis is performed to investigate the head response to the change in each of the aquifer parameters.

Author(s): Burns, ER; Ingebritsen, SE; Manga, M; Williams, CF | Abstract: A one-dimensional (1-D) analytic solution is developed for heat transport through an aquifer system where the vertical temperature profile in the aquifer is nearly uniform. The general anisotropic form of the viscous heat generation term is developed for use in groundwater flow simulations. The 1-D solution is extended to more complex geometries by solving the equation for piece-wise linear or uniform properties and boundary conditions. A moderately complex example, the Eastern Snake River Plain (ESRP), is analyzed to demonstrate the use of the analytic solution for identifying important physical processes. For example, it is shown that viscous heating is variably important and that heat conduction to the land surface is a primary control on the distribution of aquifer and spring temperatures. Use of published values for all aquifer and thermal properties results in a reasonable match between simulated and measured groundwater temperatures over most of the 300 km length of the ESRP, except for geothermal heat flow into the base of the aquifer within 20 km of the Yellowstone hotspot. Previous basal heat flow measurements (110 mW/m2) made beneath the ESRP aquifer were collected at distances of g50 km from the Yellowstone Plateau, but a higher basal heat flow of 150 mW/m2 is required to match groundwater temperatures near the Plateau. The ESRP example demonstrates how the new tool can be used during preliminary analysis of a groundwater system, allowing efficient identification of the important physical processes that must be represented during more-complex 2-D and 3-D simulations of combined groundwater and heat flow.