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The 2022 drought highlighted Hungary's vulnerability to climate change, especially the Great Hungarian Plain. Soil moisture, which is crucial for agriculture, depends on the position of the shallow groundwater table. This study investigated the effects of climate change on groundwater table fluctuations in more than 500 wells on the plain. An integrated vertical hydrological model, assuming negligible horizontal subsurface flows, employed the Dunay–Varga-Haszonits methodology for evaporation and Kovács approach for the water retention curve. Verified with two meteorological databases, the model was accepted for 463 wells based on NSE > 0.4 and RMSE < 0.5 m criteria. The FORESEE HUN v1.0 dataset proved suitable after spatial consistency tests. Examining 28 bias- and discontinuity-corrected climate model projections on these wells revealed a general decline in the groundwater table. Differences between trends to 2050 and 2100 suggested lower groundwater levels by mid-century. This research highlights climate change impacts in a crucial Central-European agricultural region in the Carpathian Basin and emphasizes the importance of modeling climate change-induced changes in shallow groundwater levels in water resources management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The 2022 drought highlighted Hungary's vulnerability to climate change, especially the Great Hungarian Plain. Soil moisture, which is crucial for agriculture, depends on the position of the shallow groundwater table. This study investigated the effects of climate change on groundwater table fluctuations in more than 500 wells on the plain. An integrated vertical hydrological model, assuming negligible horizontal subsurface flows, employed the Dunay–Varga-Haszonits methodology for evaporation and Kovács approach for the water retention curve. Verified with two meteorological databases, the model was accepted for 463 wells based on NSE > 0.4 and RMSE

The present study indicates the quick response of a shallow aquifer to precipitation. The nitrate content in water from 20 wells was determined. The study showed a significant 1-m decrease in the water table in the studied wells at low precipitation levels (10 mm) in April (wells 13 and 16). In turn, the water table in the wells after the maximum rainfall in September (130 mm) increased by 0.5 m in well 19. The results of the chemical analysis of the water indicate that the permissible nitrate content was highly exceeded in wells 3, 17, and 18. The nitrate content in wells 1 and 2 was almost 50 mg/l, which is the permissible value for drinking water. The precipitation level did not influence the content of nitrates in the well water.

The present study indicates the quick response of a shallow aquifer to precipitation. The nitrate content in water from 20 wells was determined. The study showed a significant 1-m decrease in the water table in the studied wells at low precipitation levels (10 mm) in April (wells 13 and 16). In turn, the water table in the wells after the maximum rainfall in September (130 mm) increased by 0.5 m in well 19. The results of the chemical analysis of the water indicate that the permissible nitrate content was highly exceeded in wells 3, 17, and 18. The nitrate content in wells 1 and 2 was almost 50 mg/l, which is the permissible value for drinking water. The precipitation level did not influence the content of nitrates in the well water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a result of fluctuations in the shallow groundwater table, hydrodynamic conditions change alongside environmental conditions and hydrogeochemical processes to affect pollutant migration. The study aimed to investigate the migration, adsorption, and desorption characteristics of Pb on fine, medium, and coarse sand in the water table fluctuation zone by using several laboratory methods, including the kinetic aspects of Pb2+ adsorption/desorption and water table fluctuation experiments. The results showed that the adsorption and desorption curves fit the Elovich equation well at a correlation coefficient above 0.9. In the adsorption and desorption kinetic experiments for fine, medium, and coarse sand collected and from the floodplain, the maximum adsorption capacity of Pb2+ was 2367 mg·kg−1, 1848 mg·kg−1, and 1544 mg·kg−1, respectively. The maximum desorption capacity of Pb2+ was 29.18 mg·kg−1, 62.38 mg·kg−1, and 81.60 mg·kg−1, respectively. In environments with pH greater than 4, the adsorption capacity was proportional to the pH, but the desorption capacity decreased as the pH increased in water. As the water table varied, the lowest pH occurred in the polluted medium we set initially. When the distance between the pollutants and sample solution grew further, pH increased, and the Pb2+ concentration decreased in the sample solution. In the column experiment of water table fluctuations on coarse sand, Pb2+ migrated nearly 5 cm upward from the original pollutant and migrated less than 10 cm downward from that. In our experiments on medium and fine sand, the upward and downward migration distances were <5 cm. The groundwater table fluctuations, pH variation, and Pb concentration currently influence the migration of Pb. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a result of fluctuations in the shallow groundwater table, hydrodynamic conditions change alongside environmental conditions and hydrogeochemical processes to affect pollutant migration. The study aimed to investigate the migration, adsorption, and desorption characteristics of Pb on fine, medium, and coarse sand in the water table fluctuation zone by using several laboratory methods, including the kinetic aspects of Pb2+ adsorption/desorption and water table fluctuation experiments. The results showed that the adsorption and desorption curves fit the Elovich equation well at a correlation coefficient above 0.9. In the adsorption and desorption kinetic experiments for fine, medium, and coarse sand collected and from the floodplain, the maximum adsorption capacity of Pb2+ was 2367 mg·kg−1, 1848 mg·kg−1, and 1544 mg·kg−1, respectively. The maximum desorption capacity of Pb2+ was 29.18 mg·kg−1, 62.38 mg·kg−1, and 81.60 mg·kg−1, respectively. In environments with pH greater than 4, the adsorption capacity was proportional to the pH, but the desorption capacity decreased as the pH increased in water. As the water table varied, the lowest pH occurred in the polluted medium we set initially. When the distance between the pollutants and sample solution grew further, pH increased, and the Pb2+ concentration decreased in the sample solution. In the column experiment of water table fluctuations on coarse sand, Pb2+ migrated nearly 5 cm upward from the original pollutant and migrated less than 10 cm downward from that. In our experiments on medium and fine sand, the upward and downward migration distances were

Light Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid (LNAPL) flow on the water table is highly mobile and is sensitive to the fluctuation of groundwater. This process is highly complex and involves the migration of three immiscible phases (i.e. water, LNAPL and air) which need the explicit definition of multiple parameters. A coupled experimental and numerical simulation methodology is performed by using Time Domain Reflectrometer (TDR) and multiphase simulation of a controlled environment to mimic the water table fluctuation and its effect on the LNAPL residual saturation. TDR probes are installed in different locations of a 2D tank (i.e. a cuboid box with relatively low off-plane thickness) and the bulk permittivity of the phases are measured through artificially imposed boundary conditions. The bulk permittivity is then translated into saturation of the three different phases. The translated residual saturations along with the previously measured porous media properties (e.g. porosity and saturated permeability) are then inserted into the numerical simulator (i.e. COMSOL Multiphysics®) and the migration of the three phase in porous media is simulated. The numerical exponents and entry pressures needed for the simulation of the multiphase flow are estimated using the temporal experimental values. The exponents of water LNAPL relative permeability were estimated to be around 2 while the exponents gas LNAPL relative permeability were estimated to be closer to 3. The results, simulated with the optimized parameters, are then evaluated with pictures taken from the transparent face of the 2D tank different stages of the experiment. The temporal evolution of different phase saturation has been compared and validated between the experimental results obtained and interpreted by the TDR probe measurements and the simulations. The relative error stays in the 5 % confidence level for most reported points and only in the highly dynamic flow time steps the error reaches around 12% which are discussed in the text and is accepted due to the highly nonlinear nature of the problem. • The LNAPL distribution on water table in highly permeable porous media was simulated and studied experimentally in a 2D tank. • Temporal phase saturation was interpreted by measuring the bulk permittivity in the 2D tank using TDR probes. • The Stone was used to simulate the three-phase flow in COMSOL Multiphysics® • The model was considered valid as it reproduced the experimental 2D temporal flow of the three-phase system. • Coupled TDR measurements and FEM simulations are used to estimate parameters needed for three-phase flow in porous media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Groundwater table fluctuation during natural and anthropogenic processes can facilitate the interaction between oxygen (O 2) from the unsaturated zone and ferrous iron (Fe2+) from the saturated zone. In light of previous findings that Fe(III)-reducing bacteria can be killed by the reactive oxidants produced from Fe2+ oxidation under static oxic conditions, we hypothesize that Fe(III)-reducing bacteria will be attenuated during groundwater table fluctuations. To test this hypothesis, this study explored the variations of cell numbers of Shewanella oneidensis strain MR-1 (MR-1), a typical strain of Fe(III)-reducing bacteria, together with dissolved oxygen (DO) and Fe2+, at different points during controlled groundwater table fluctuations in a sand column. The results showed that, during the rise of the water table, O 2 in the pore air was entrapped by the deoxygenated groundwater, and Fe2+ in the groundwater was oxidized by the entrapped O 2. In this process, 1.40–2.42 orders of magnitude of viable MR-1 cells were killed at different points in the column. Further investigation proposed that the death of MR-1 is caused by the production of intracellular reactive oxidants, such as O 2 •− and OH•, from the oxidation of adsorbed/absorbed Fe2+ instead of by bulk reactive oxidants, such as OH• and Fe(IV), produced from the oxidation of aqueous Fe2+. The findings here provide new insights for Fe biogeochemical cycling in the redox-dynamic zone. Unlabelled Image • Fe(III)-reducing bacterium MR-1 was attenuated during the rise of groundwater table. • Fe2+ oxidation killed MR-1 during the rise of groundwater table. • Intracellular reactive oxidants might be the main reason for MR-1 death. • Intracellular reactive oxidants were produced from adsorbed Fe2+ oxidation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]