Assessment of alluvial aquifer heterogeneity and development of stochastic hydrofacies models for the Hat Yai Basin in Southern Thailand

In previous studies, the groundwater flow models formulated for the Hat Yai Basin were conventional and deterministic because the geologic heterogeneity of the alluvial aquifer system in the basin had not yet been assessed. This paper describes an effort to develop hydrofacies models, such that the spatial variability of the aquifer system can be represented in a systematic way. Variogram parameters that characterize the alluvial aquifer heterogeneity were determined. Based on these variogram parameters, an indicator-based geostatistical approach was used to develop hydrofacies models using sequential indicator simulation. The hydrofacies models indicate three distinct aquifer units, namely Hat Yai, Khu Tao, and Kho Hong aquifers, which is in good agreement with a conceptual model, and incorporates spatial variability as observed in field data from borehole logs. The hydrofacies models can be used in groundwater modeling and simulations.     

Large to intermediate-scale aquifer heterogeneity in fine-grain dominated alluvial fans (Cenozoic As Pontes Basin,northwestern Spain): insight based on three-dimensional geostatistical reconstruction

Facies reconstructions are used in hydrogeology to improve the interpretation of aquifer permeability distribution. In the absence of sufficient data to define the heterogeneity due to geological processes, uncertainties in the distribution of aquifer hydrofacies and characteristics may appear. Geometric and geostatistical methods are used to understand and model aquifer hydrofacies distribution, providing models to improve comprehension and development of aquifers. However, these models require some input statistical parameters that can be difficult to infer from the study site. A three-dimensional reconstruction of a kilometer scale fine-grain dominated Cenozoic alluvial fan derived from more than 200 continuously cored, closely spaced, and regularly distributed wells is presented. The facies distributions were reconstructed using a genetic stratigraphic subdivision and a deterministic geostatistical algorithm. The reconstruction is only slightly affected by variations in the geostatistical input parameters because of the high-density data set. Analysis of the reconstruction allowed identification in the proximal to medial alluvial fan zones of several laterally extensive sand bodies with relatively higher permeability; these sand bodies were quantified in terms of volume, mean thickness, maximum area, and maximum equivalent diameter. These quantifications provide trends and geological scenarios for input statistical parameters to model aquifer systems in similar alluvial fan depositional settings.     

Aquifer hydraulic conductivity estimation from surface geoelectrical measurements for Krauthausen test site, Germany

The physical explanation is presented for two types of theoretical equations which encompass a direct and an inverse relationship between the hydraulic conductivity and electrical resistivity of an aquifer. Using the theory of direct current (DC) resistivity prospecting, it is shown that a direct relation exists if the bulk of the current flow is in the vertical direction, whereas the inverse relation exists if the current is in the horizontal direction. Consequently, the relation in question is direct in the case of a relatively conducting basement and inverse in the case of a comparatively resistive basement. Then, the aquifer hydraulic conductivity for the hydrogeologically well-studied area of Krauthausen in Germany is estimated by two different techniques using surface geoelectrical data. The estimated values are compared with those conventionally determined by a pump test experiment and it can be concluded that the estimation is better whenever geoelectrical data are used.     

大地电磁法的1D无偏差贝叶斯反演

应用贝叶斯理论对一维(1D)大地电磁反演问题进行无偏差不确定度分析。在贝叶斯理论中,测量数据和先验信息包含在后验概率密度函数(PPD)中,它可以解释成模型的单点估计和不确定度等贝叶斯推断,这些信息的获取需要对反演问题进行优化求最优模型和在高维模型空间中对PPD进行采样积分。采样的完全、彻底和效率,对反演结果有着重要的影响。为了使采样更有效、更完全,数值积分采用主分量参数空间的Metropolis Hastings采样,并采用了不同的采样温度。在反演中,同时采用了欠参数化和超参数化方法,数据误差和正则化因子被当成随机变量。反演结果得到各参数的不确定度、参数间的相关关系和不同深度模型的不确定度分布。COPROD1数据的反演结果表明模型空间中存在双峰结构。非地电参数在反演中得到了约束,说明数据本身不仅包含地球物理模型信息(电导率等),还包含了这些非地电参数的信息。     

Global curve-fitting for determining the hydrogeological parameters of leaky confined aquifers by transient flow pumping test

Proper management of groundwater resources requires an accurate evaluation of the parameters (hydraulic properties) that control the movement and storage of groundwater. Hydrogeological parameters are the basis of groundwater evaluation, modeling, and management and so on. A global curve-fitting method incorporating pumping test data and water table recovery data was introduced in the present study. The principal and procedures of the method were elucidated in detail. The drawdown and recovery data from two sets of transient flow pumping test conducted in no. 2 water source site of Shizuishan city were used to verify the calculation accuracy of the proposed method. The hydrogeological parameters were also estimated with traditional type curve-fitting method on the basis of formula derived by Hantush and Jacob. The hydrogeological parameters calculated by the two methods were compared and the results show that the parameters obtained by the global curve-fitting method are a little bigger than but very close to those obtained by the traditional type curve-fitting method. The proposed method which possesses three major advantages is feasible and reliable in aquifer parameter identification. A comparative study on various methods for parameter identification is required and expected in future study.     

江汉平原典型含水层水文地质参数反演

含水层参数对于定性分析区域地下水资源评价、数值模拟及预报、开发利用与保护及科学管理具有重要意义,而江汉平原水文地质参数求解的研究却相对较少.2015年江汉平原1:50 000水文地质调查项目完成杨林尾图幅与陆溪口图幅,选择杨林尾图幅和陆溪口图幅中的4个代表性钻孔,分别做了3组抽水试验和一组压水试验.对抽水数据使用Dupuit公式法结合抽水稳定阶段数据求解含水层参数,同时利用Aquifer Test软件中Theis标准曲线法、直线图解法对抽水试验中非稳定条件下抽水数据对含水层参数求解,得到孔隙水含水层渗透系数及弹性给水度;利用压水试验工程规范求解基岩裂隙含水层的渗透系数.探讨了利用非稳定抽水试验条件下求解含水层参数方法的可行性及该方法的优势.计算结果表明:杨林尾镇浅层(20.2~64.55 m)含水层渗透系数为0.075 m/d,弹性给水度为5.8×10-2;深层(138~160 m)含水层渗透系数为9.89 m/d,弹性给水度为2.3×10-5;陆溪口镇浅层(19.4~36.4 m)含水层渗透系数1.26 m/d,弹性给水度为1.1×10-1;基岩渗透系数为0.012 m/d.通过结果对比分析发现对于单孔非稳定抽水试验,对前期水位降深数据筛选分析,同样可以利用非稳定井流理论反演含水层参数,结果比较可靠.      

抽水试验和长观水位联合模拟确定含水层参数

为了更加准确地确定含水层参数,提出了利用地下水流数值模拟软件Modflow耦合大型抽水试验和长观孔水位两个模型的方法,对含水层参数进行了识别与校验。该方法求得的含水层参数避免了只利用抽水试验模型校验所带来的不确定性,同时利用抽水实验数据进行抽水与恢复的全过程曲线拟合,水位降深模拟相对误差小于6%,提高了含水层参数的准确性。     

Conceptual model of leachate migration in a granular aquifer derived from the integration of multi-source characterization data (St-Lambert,Canada)

Numerical models encompassing source zones and receptors, based on representative conceptual models and accounting for aquifer heterogeneity, are needed to understand contaminant migration and fate; however, aquifer characterization seldom provides the necessary data. This study aimed to develop a workflow for field characterization and data integration, which could: (1) be adapted to the definition of subwatershed-scale aquifer heterogeneity (over 10 km²) and (2) adequately support mass transport model development. The study involved the field investigation of a shallow granular aquifer in a 12-km² subwatershed in Saint-Lambert-de-Lauzon, Canada, in which a decommissioned landfill is emitting a leachate plume managed by natural attenuation. Using proven field methods, the characterization sequence was designed to optimize each method in terms of location, scale of acquisition, density and quality. The emphasis was on the acquisition of detailed indirect geophysical data that were integrated with direct hydraulic and geochemical data. This report focuses on the first qualitative and geostatistical data integration steps of the workflow leading to the development of a hydrogeological conceptual model. This is a prerequisite for further integration steps: prediction of hydrofacies and hydraulic conductivity (K), geostatistical simulations of K, studies of geochemical processes and numerical modeling.     

Field characterization and data integration to define the hydraulic heterogeneity of a shallow granular aquifer at a sub-watershed scale

Providing a sound basis for aquifer management or remediation requires that hydrogeological investigations carried out to understand groundwater flow and contaminant transport be based on representative data that capture the heterogeneous spatial distribution of aquifer hydraulic properties. This paper describes a general workflow allowing the characterization of the heterogeneity of the hydraulic properties of granular aquifers at an intermediate scale of a few km². The workflow involves characterization and data integration steps that were applied on a 12-km² study area encompassing a decommissioned landfill emitting a leachate plume and its main surface water receptors. The sediments composing the aquifer were deposited in a littoral–sublittoral environment and show evidence of small-scale transitional heterogeneities. Cone penetrometer tests (CPT) combined with soil moisture and electrical resistivity (SMR) measurements were thus used to identify and characterize spatial heterogeneities in hydraulic properties over the study area. Site-specific statistical relationships were needed to infer hydrofacies units and to estimate hydraulic properties from high-resolution CPT/SMR soundings distributed all over the study area. A learning machine approach was used due to the complex statistical relationships between colocated hydraulic and CPT/SMR data covering the full range of aquifer materials. Application of this workflow allowed the identification of hydrofacies units and the estimation of horizontal hydraulic conductivity, vertical hydraulic conductivity and porosity over the study area. The paper describes and discusses data acquisition and integration methodologies that can be adapted to different field situations, while making the aquifer characterization process more time-efficient and less labor-intensive.     

Regularized joint inverse estimation of extreme rainfall amounts in ungauged coastal basins of El Salvador

A regularized joint inverse procedure is presented and used to estimate the magnitude of extreme rainfall events in ungauged coastal river basins of El Salvador: Paz, Jiboa, Grande de San Miguel, and Goascoran. Since streamflow measurements reflect temporal and spatial rainfall information, peak-flow discharge is hypothesized to represent a similarity measure suitable for regionalization. To test this hypothesis, peak-flow discharge values determined from streamflow recurrence information (10-year, 25-year, and 100-year) collected outside the study basins are used to develop regional (country-wide) regression equations. Peak-flow discharge derived from these equations together with preferred spatial parameter relations as soft prior information are used to constrain the simultaneous calibration of 20 tributary basin models. The nonlinear range of uncertainty in estimated parameter values (1 curve number and 3 recurrent rainfall amounts for each model) is determined using an inverse calibration-constrained Monte Carlo approach. Cumulative probability distributions for rainfall amounts indicate differences among basins for a given return period and an increase in magnitude and range among basins with increasing return interval. Comparison of the estimated median rainfall amounts for all return periods were reasonable but larger (3.2–26%) than rainfall estimates computed using the frequency-duration (traditional) approach and individual rain gauge data. The observed 25-year recurrence rainfall amount at La Hachadura in the Paz River basin during Hurricane Mitch (1998) is similar in value to, but outside and slightly less than, the estimated rainfall confidence limits. The similarity in joint inverse and traditionally computed rainfall events, however, suggests that the rainfall observation may likely be due to under-catch and not model bias.     

Hydrogeologic control of shear-related fracturing in Blue Ridge basement rocks: a case study from production wells in the Marshall Metagranite,Fauquier County,Virginia (USA)

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.

     

Joint hydrogeophysical inversion: state estimation for seawater intrusion models in 3D

Seawater intrusion (SWI) is a complex process, where 3D modeling is often necessary in order to monitor and manage the affected aquifers. Here, we present a synthetic study to test a joint hydrogeophysical inversion approach aimed at solving the inverse problem of estimating initial and current saltwater distribution. First, we use a 3D groundwater model for variable density flow based on discretized flow and solute mass balance equations. In addition to the groundwater model, a 3D geophysical model was developed for direct current resistivity imaging and inversion. The objective function of the coupled problem consists of data misfit and regularization terms as well as a coupling term that relates groundwater and geophysical states. We present a novel approach to solve the inverse problem using an alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) to minimize this coupled objective function. ADMM enables to treat the groundwater and geophysical part separately and thus use the existing software with minor changes. To further reduce the computational cost, the sensitivities are derived analytically for the discretized system of equations, which allows us to efficiently compute the gradients in the minimization procedure. The method was tested on different synthetic scenarios with groundwater and geophysical data represented by solute mass fraction data and direct current resistivity data. With the ADMM approach, we were able to obtain better estimates for the solute distribution compared to just considering each data separately, solving the problem with a simple coupled approach or by a direct substitution of the coupling constraint.     

A Simple Approach to Account for Radial Flow and Boundary Conditions When Kriging Hydraulic Head Fields for Confined Aquifers

The estimation and mapping of realistic hydraulic head fields, hence of flow paths, is a major goal of many hydrogeological studies. The most widely used method to obtain reliable head fields is the inverse approach. This approach relies on the numerical approximation of the flow equation and requires specifying boundary conditions and the transmissivity of each grid element. Boundary conditions are often unknown or poorly known, yet they impose a strong signature on the head fields obtained by inverse analysis. A simpler alternative to the inverse approach is the direct kriging of the head field using the measurements obtained at observation wells. The kriging must be modified to incorporate the available information. Use of the dual kriging formalism enables simultaneously estimating the head field, the aquifer mean transmissivity, and the regional hydraulic gradient from head data in steady or transient state conditions. In transient state conditions, an estimate of the storage coefficient can be obtained. We test the approach on simple analytical cases, on synthetic cases with solutions obtained numerically using a finite element flow simulator, and on a real aquifer. For homogeneous aquifers, infinite or bounded, the kriging estimate retrieves the exact solution of the head field, the exact hydrogeological parameters and the flow net. With heterogeneous aquifers, kriging accurately estimates the head field with prediction errors of the same magnitude as typical head measurement errors. The transmissivities are also accurately estimated by kriging. Moreover, if inversion is required, the kriged head along boundaries can be used as realistic boundary conditions for flow simulation.     

储层地质模型建立步骤

本文系统介绍了单砂体模型、单井模型、二维模型和三维模型的建立步骤，是目前较为普及和实用的一种建模过程。文章对每种模型的关键点、参数选取和方法都作了概要的叙述，这一方法和步骤特别是对油田开发早期的模型建立具有很好的实用性。     

Estimation of regional-scale groundwater flow properties in the Bengal Basin of India and Bangladesh

Quantitative evaluation of management strategies for long-term supply of safe groundwater for drinking from the Bengal Basin aquifer (India and Bangladesh) requires estimation of the large-scale hydrogeologic properties that control flow. The Basin consists of a stratified, heterogeneous sequence of sediments with aquitards that may separate aquifers locally, but evidence does not support existence of regional confining units. Considered at a large scale, the Basin may be aptly described as a single aquifer with higher horizontal than vertical hydraulic conductivity. Though data are sparse, estimation of regional-scale aquifer properties is possible from three existing data types: hydraulic heads, ¹⁴C concentrations, and driller logs. Estimation is carried out with inverse groundwater modeling using measured heads, by model calibration using estimated water ages based on ¹⁴C, and by statistical analysis of driller logs. Similar estimates of hydraulic conductivities result from all three data types; a resulting typical value of vertical anisotropy (ratio of horizontal to vertical conductivity) is 10⁴. The vertical anisotropy estimate is supported by simulation of flow through geostatistical fields consistent with driller log data. The high estimated value of vertical anisotropy in hydraulic conductivity indicates that even disconnected aquitards, if numerous, can strongly control the equivalent hydraulic parameters of an aquifer system.     

水力层析法与克立金法估算非均质含水层渗透系数场比较

含水层非均质性空间分布特征的识别,是准确模拟地下水流和污染物运移的前提.基于室内非均质含水层砂箱实验,分别利用水力层析法和克立金插值法刻画了非均质含水层渗透系数场.研究结果表明:(1) 水力层析法与克立金法相比,不仅可以更好地刻画非均质含水层渗透系数场,还可以更高精度地预测地下水流过程;(2) 水力层析抽水实验中,通过增加抽水实验组数可以有效地提高水力层析参数反演的精度,但是抽水实验组数增加到一定程度以后,再增加抽水组数不会显著提升参数反演的效果.后续需要进一步研究水力层析抽水实验合适的组数,进一步对抽水井进行优化布设.      

On the application of combined geoelectric weighted inversion in environmental exploration

Geophysical surveying methods are of great importance in environmental exploration. Inversion-based data processing methods are applied for the determination of geometrical and physical parameters of the target model. The use of this geoelectric inversion method is advantageous in environmental research where highly reliable information with large spatial resolution is required. The 2D combined geoelectric inversion (CGI) method performs more accurate parameter estimation than conventional 1D single inversion methods by efficiently decreasing the number of unknowns of the inverse problem (single means that data sets of individual vertical electric sounding stations are inverted separately). The quality improvement in parameter space is demonstrated by comparing the traditional 1D inversion procedure with a 2D series expansion-based inversion technique. The CGI method was further developed by weighting individual direct current geoelectric data sets automatically in order to improve inversion results. The new algorithm was named combined geoelectric weighted inversion, which extracts the solution by a special weighted least squares technique. It is shown that the new inversion methodology is applicable to resolve near-surface structures such as rapidly varying layer boundaries, laterally inhomogeneous formations and pinch-outs.     

井间资料约束下地震波阻抗反演方法研究

采用多井约束的随机逆反演方法,结合井间地震反射成像与测井资料,首先对反射成像后的井间地震数据进行测井约束的波阻抗反演,进而从反演剖面中抽取一定量的反演道作为虚拟井数据,结合测井数据对地面地震数据进行井地联合反演。理论数据和实际数据的试算表明,井地联合反演可以为地面地震测井约束反演提供更多的约束条件,从而提高了地面地震反演的精度。     

A geoelectrical and hydrogeological study for the assessment of groundwater resources in Wadi Al Bih, UAE

Drilling information, historical water table levels, groundwater salinity records of the existing water wells in Wadi Al Bih area, United Arab Emirates, were stored in a geodatabase and used to characterize the geological and hydrogeological settings of this area. A 2D earth resistivity imaging survey was conducted for the first time in the Northern UAE to determine the potential of the Quaternary aquifer and its groundwater quality in the areas where there are no monitoring wells. The results of the chemical analyses of the collected groundwater samples together with the inversion results of the resistivity data were used to draw a total salinity map and determine the spatial variations in groundwater quality. The inversion results of the 2D earth resistivity imaging data indicated that the Quaternary aquifer in the study area is in a good connection with the underlying carbonate aquifer. It also indicated that the carbonate aquifer is of major regional and vertical extension and it contains the fresh water in this area. The data stored in the developed database were used to produce different types of geopotential maps.     

Joint inversion of groundwater flow,heat, and solute state variables: a multipurpose approach for characterization and forecast of karst systems

Characterization of karst systems and forecast of their state variables are essential for groundwater management and engineering in karst regions. These objectives can be met by the use of process-based discrete-continuum models (DCMs). However, results of DCMs may suffer from inversion nonuniqueness. It has been demonstrated that the joint inversion of observations regulated by different natural processes can tackle the nonuniqueness issue in groundwater modeling. However, this has not been tested for DCMs thus far. This research proposes a methodology for the joint inversion of hydro-thermo-chemo-graphs, applying to two small-scale sink-to-spring experiments at Freiheit Spring, Minnesota, USA. In order to address conceptual uncertainty, a multimodel approach was implemented, featuring seven mutually exclusive variants. Spring hydro-thermo-chemo-graphs, for all the variants simulated by MODFLOW-CFPv2, were jointly inverted using a weighted least squares algorithm. Subsequently, models were compared in terms of inversion and forecast performances, as well as parameter uncertainties. Results reveal the suitability of the DCM approach for simultaneous inversion and forecast of hydro-physico-chemical behavior of karst systems, even at a scale of meters and seconds. The estimated volume of the tracer conduit passage ranges from approximately 46–51 m³, which is comparable to the estimate from the flood-pulse method. Moreover, it was demonstrated that the thermograph and hydrograph contain more information about aquifer characteristics than the chemograph. However, this finding can be site-specific and should depend on the analysis scale, the considered conceptual models, and the hydrological state, which are potentially affected by minor unaccountable processes and features.