Transformations and hydraulic captures of petrochemical contaminants in a karst-fractured aquifer

 The development of a petrochemical industry may be responsible for petrochemical contamination of karst-fractured aquifers in an urban water supply system. In the Dawu Well Field, a karst-fractured aquifer in Zibo City, in the east of China, has been seriously polluted by petrochemicals from the operation of petrochemical plants. More than 60 species of organic contaminants have been detected in the water supply wells of the Liuhang-Hougao zone, in the west part of Dawu Well Field. Investigations indicate that contaminants are transported from the petrochemical plants to the karst-fractured aquifer along karst fractures and the Jinling Fault. In the groundwater, concentrations of pollutants vary with depth. Concentrations are greater with depth because of the transmissibility of the Jinling fault. The local convective flow field has a significant influence on transportation of contaminants. Hydraulic barriers can prevent the transportation of contaminants and they can be removed by extraction. Received: 22 October 1999 · Accepted: 14 February 2000     

Strong ground motion estimation in the Sea of Marmara region (Turkey) based on a scenario earthquake

We perform a broadband frequency bedrock strong ground motion simulation in the Marmara Sea region (Turkey), based on several fault rupture scenarios and a source asperity model. The technique combines a deterministic simulation of seismic wave propagation at low frequencies with a semi-stochastic procedure for the high frequencies. To model the high frequencies, we applied a frequency-dependent radiation pattern model, which efficiently removes the effective dependence of the pattern coefficient on the azimuth and take-off angle as the frequency increases. The earthquake scenarios considered consist of the rupture of the closest segments of the North Anatolian Fault System to the city of Istanbul. Our scenario earthquakes involve the rupture of the entire North Anatolian Fault beneath the Sea of Marmara, namely the combined rupture of the Central Marmara Fault and North Boundary Fault segments. We defined three fault rupture scenarios based on the location of the hypocenter, selecting a preferred hypocentral location near a fault bend for each case. We analysed the effect of location of the asperity, within the Central Marmara Fault, on the subsequent ground motion, as well as the influence of anelasticity on the high-frequency attenuation characteristics. The fault and asperity parameters for each scenario were determined from empirical scalings and from results of kinematic and dynamic models of fault rupture. We calculated the resulting time series and spectra for ground motion at Istanbul and evaluated the sensitivity of the predictions to choice of model parameters. The location of the hypocenter is thus shown to be a critical parameter for determining the worst scenario earthquake at Istanbul. We also found that anelasticity has a significant effect on the regional attenuation of peak ground accelerations. Our simulated ground motions result in large values of acceleration response spectra at long periods, which could be critical for building damage at Istanbul during an actual earthquake.     

Investigating the role of hydromechanical coupling on flow and transport in shallow fractured-rock aquifers

Fractured-rock aquifers display spatially and temporally variable hydraulic conductivity generally attributed to variable fracture intensity and connectivity. Empirical evidence suggests fracture aperture and hydraulic conductivity are sensitive to in situ stress. This study investigates the sensitivity of fractured-rock hydraulic conductivity, groundwater flow paths, and advection-dominated transport to variable shear and normal fracture stiffness magnitudes for a range of deviatoric stress states. Fracture aperture and hydraulic conductivity are solved for analytically using empirical hydromechanical coupling equations; groundwater flow paths and ages are then solved for numerically using groundwater flow and advection-dispersion equations in a traditional Toth basin. Results suggest hydraulic conductivity alteration is dominated by fracture normal closure, resulting in decreasing hydraulic conductivity and increasing groundwater age with depth, and decreased depth of long flow paths with decreasing normal stiffness. Shear dilation has minimal effect on hydraulic conductivity alteration for stress states investigated here. Results are interpreted to suggest that fracture normal stiffness influences hydraulic conductivity of hydraulically active fractures and, thus, affects flow and transport in shallow (<1 km) fractured-rock aquifers. It is suggested that observed depth-dependent hydraulic conductivity trends in fractured-rock aquifers throughout the world may be partly a manifestation of hydromechanical phenomena.     

Recent tectonics in the northern part of the Knipovich Ridge,Atlantic ocean

The walls of the Knipovich Ridge are complicated by normal and reverse faults revealed by a high-frequency profilograph. The map of their spatial distribution shows that the faults are grouped into domains a few tens of kilometers in size and are a result of superposition of several inequivalent geodynamic factors: the shear zone oriented parallel to the Hornsunn Fault and superposed on the typical dynamics of the midocean ridge with offsets along transform fracture zones and rifting along short segments of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR). According to the anomalous magnetic field, the Knipovich Ridge as a segment of the MAR has formed since the Oligocene including several segments with normal direction of spreading separated by a multitransform system of fracture zones. In the Quaternary, the boundary of plate interaction along the tension crack has been straightened to form the contemporary Knipovich Ridge, which crosses the previously existing magmatic spreading substrate and sedimentary cover at an angle of about 45° relative to the direction of accretion. The sedimentary cover along the walls of the Knipovich is Paleogene in age and has subsided into the rift valley to a depth of 500–1000 m along the normal faults.     

Characterization of preferential flow paths between boreholes in fractured rock using a nanoscale zero-valent iron tracer test

Recent advances in borehole geophysical techniques have improved characterization of cross-hole fracture flow. The direct detection of preferential flow paths in fractured rock, however, remains to be resolved. In this study, a novel approach using nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI or ‘nano-iron’) as a tracer was developed for detecting fracture flow paths directly. Generally, only a few rock fractures are permeable while most are much less permeable. A heat-pulse flowmeter can be used to detect changes in flow velocity for delineating permeable fracture zones in the borehole and providing the design basis for the tracer test. When nano-iron particles are released in an injection well, they can migrate through the connecting permeable fracture and be attracted to a magnet array when arriving in an observation well. Such an attraction of incoming iron nanoparticles by the magnet can provide quantitative information for locating the position of the tracer inlet. A series of field experiments were conducted in two wells in fractured rock at a hydrogeological research station in Taiwan, to test the cross-hole migration of the nano-iron tracer through permeable connected fractures. The fluid conductivity recorded in the observation well confirmed the arrival of the injected nano-iron slurry. All of the iron nanoparticles attracted to the magnet array in the observation well were found at the depth of a permeable fracture zone delineated by the flowmeter. This study has demonstrated that integrating the nano-iron tracer test with flowmeter measurement has the potential to characterize preferential flow paths in fractured rock.     

南京汤山温泉区地热水成因模式分析

汤山温泉是中国四大著名温泉疗养胜地之一,阐明其成因模式对于该温泉区的进一步开发和热水资源的可持续利用具有一定意义。基于硅-焓图解法和水文地球化学方法对其进行了系统研究,结果表明该区热储温度为90℃,岩溶热水与岩溶冷水、孔隙潜水和地表水之间在水化学和同位素组成上存在明显差异,地热井深度越大,冷水混入相对较少,地热水温度相对较高。经分析,该地热系统成因上属于中低温对流型。其补给区主要来自汤山山体(宁镇山区)及句容盆地东侧茅山山脉,循环深度为2.6~2.9 km,地热水通过汤山-东昌街断裂在浅部与区内NW向断裂、NE向断裂交汇形成温泉水。     

裂隙宽度空间变异性和泄漏条件对网络裂隙中DNAPLs运移影响研究

DNAPLs本身的化学性质、裂隙的几何性质以及泄漏条件等影响重非水相流体（DNAPLs）在裂隙介质中的运移和分布。针对DNAPLs的运移规律研究多集中在孔隙介质和单裂隙中,在随机网络裂隙中的研究较少。本研究生成随机网络裂隙是基于蒙特卡罗方法,运用像素扫描识别并输出裂隙的坐标和宽度,然后采用PetraSim模拟四氯乙烯(PCE)在随机网络裂隙中的运移,探讨裂隙宽度空间变异性和泄漏条件（包括泄漏速率和泄漏位置）对DNAPLs运移的影响。数值模拟结果表明:DNAPLs的空间展布和运移路径受裂隙宽度空间变异性影响,随着网络裂隙中裂隙宽度空间变异性增大,出现优势通道,DNAPLs运移的速率加快,DNAPLs的质心位置和饱和度空间分布发生明显变化;DNAPLs的运移速率和空间展布受泄漏速率影响,泄漏速率越大,DNAPLs运移速率越快,模型底部蓄积的DNAPLs的饱和度越大,DNAPLs的空间展布也越大;同一网络裂隙中,泄漏位置不同,导致DNAPLs的运移路径及分布范围不同,不同的泄漏位置重力方向裂隙空间变异性不同,导致DNAPLs运移路径和空间展布各不相同。研究结果可以丰富裂隙介质中DNAPLs运移机理研究,为裂隙介质中DNAPLs污染修复提供模型参考。     

英买34、35井区志留系柯坪塔格组储层特征及其控制因素

志留系柯坪塔格组海相砂岩是英买力地区的主要储层和产层.英买力34、35两个井区的储层岩性、沉积环境均十分相似,而储层物性相差很大.通过储层岩石学、孔隙类型和孔隙结构、储层物性、成岩作用等多种特征综合研究,认为英买34、35区储层同为无障壁滨浅海沉积石英砂岩.英买34井区储层物性较好,属于中孔、中渗储层;英买35井区储层基质物性很差,属于特低孔、特低渗储层,但是张性微细裂缝发育,属于孔隙-裂缝复合型储层.试油结果表明两个区均具有较高产能且比较稳定.在充分认识两个区储层特征的基础上,笔者认为英买34、35井区储层性质的差异是后生成岩作用和构造作用造成的.     

Recharge and discharge controls on groundwater travel times and flow paths to production wells for the Ammer catchment in southwestern Germany

Travel times and flow paths of groundwater from its recharge area to drinking-water production wells will govern how the quality of pumped groundwater responds to contaminations. Here, we studied the 180 km² Ammer catchment in southwestern Germany, which is extensively used for groundwater production from a carbonate aquifer. Using a 3-D steady-state groundwater model, four alternative representations of discharge and recharge were systematically explored to understand their impact on groundwater travel times and flow paths. More specifically, two recharge maps obtained from different German hydrologic atlases and two plausible alternative discharge scenarios were tested: (1) groundwater flow across the entire streambed of the Ammer River and its main tributaries and (2) groundwater discharge via a few major springs feeding the Ammer River. For each of these scenarios, the groundwater model was first calibrated against water levels, and subsequently travel times and flow paths were calculated for production wells using particle tracking methods. These computed travel times and flow paths were indirectly evaluated using additional data from the wells including measured concentrations of major ions and environmental tracers indicating groundwater age. Different recharge scenarios resulted in a comparable fit to observed water levels, and similar estimates of hydraulic conductivities, flow paths and travel times of groundwater to production wells. Travel times calculated for all scenarios had a plausible order of magnitude which were comparable to apparent groundwater ages modelled using environmental tracers. Scenario with groundwater discharge across the entire streambed of the Ammer River and its tributaries resulted in a better fit to water levels than scenario with discharge at a few springs only. In spite of the poorer fit to water levels, flow paths of groundwater from the latter scenario were more plausible, and these were supported by the observed major ion chemistry at the production wells. We concluded that data commonly used in groundwater modelling such as water levels and apparent groundwater ages may be insufficient to reliably delineate capture zones of wells. Hydrogeochemical information relating only indirectly to groundwater flow such as the major ion chemistry of water sampled at the wells can substantially improve our understanding of the source areas of recharge for production wells.     

Bottom-simulating reflections and geothermal gradients across the western Svalbard margin

Seismic reflection data reveal prominent bottom-simulating reflections (BSRs) within the relatively young (<0.78 Ma) sediments along the West Svalbard continental margin. The potential hydrate occurrence zone covers an area of c. 1600 km². The hydrate accumulation zone is bound by structural/tectonic features (Knipovich Ridge, Molloy Transform Fault, Vestnesa Ridge) and the presence of glacigenic debris lobes inhibiting hydrate formation upslope. The thickness of the gas-zone underneath the BSR varies laterally, and reaches a maximum of c. 150 ms. Using the BSR as an in-situ temperature proxy, geothermal gradients increase gradually from 70 to 115 °C km⁻¹ towards the Molloy Transform Fault. Anomalies only occur in the immediate vicinity of normal faults, where the BSR shoals, indicating near-vertical heat/fluid flow within the fault zones. Amplitude analyses suggest that sub-horizontal fluid migration also takes place along the stratigraphy. As the faults are related to the northwards propagation of the Knipovich Ridge, long-term disturbance of hydrate stability appears related to incipient rifting processes.     

基于分布式光纤温度示踪探测裂隙岩体地下水渗流特征

认识深部裂隙岩体中的地下水渗流特征(流速、渗流路径等),是深部地质工程开发建设的重要前提。近年来,分布式光纤测温技术作为识别深部裂隙岩体地下水渗流特征的有效方法,在国外开展了大量的研究,但在国内鲜少见在实际场地开展的相关工作。本研究以我国首个地下实验室场址甘肃北山新场花岗岩岩体中的两个钻孔(BSQ02及BSQ03)为试验对象,开展基于分布式光纤测温(Fiber-Optic Distributed Temperature Sensing, FO-DTS)的现场温度-水力试验,实现了对钻孔地下水温度的高精度、连续性观测。通过分析现场试验获取的钻孔温度-深度剖面随时间的变化,推断BSQ02在试验过程中存在外源地下水的流入,然后结合钻孔柱状图对钻孔中的入流导水裂隙进行了定位;基于现场观测数据建立了钻孔的渗流-传热耦合数值模型,反演估算出钻孔中地下水平均流速为0.01 m·s^-1,通过裂隙流入地下水温度小于钻孔中原地下水温度,两者之间的温度差为0.7℃,通过裂隙流入的地下水流速为1×10^-5 m·s^-1,获取了地下水的渗流特征。该...     

Do transcurrent faults guide volcano growth? The case of NW Bicol Volcanic Arc,Luzon, Philippines

ABSTRACT This paper shows that although volcanoes can be aligned along transcurrent faults, their growth can in reality be controlled by secondary structures that have a different orientation and kinematics. Assessing the relationships between local structures and volcano growth can be very useful for the evaluation of volcanic hazards and for economic purposes such as geothermal and hydrogeological exploration. In the north-western Bicol Volcanic Arc (Luzon, Philippines) the Quaternary Labo and Caayunan volcanoes are aligned with the NW-striking transcurrent Philippine Fault System. They are exceptional examples of composite volcanoes mostly comprising lava domes, where regional tectonic structures and hydraulic radial fracturing have alternated to control volcano growth. Field data and analogue modelling demonstrate that apical depressions affecting the domes reflect the geometry of magma-feeding fractures. These data, together with alignments of domes and hot springs and other structural information, suggest that magma rose at depth along the NW-striking transcurrent faults, but that in the uppermost crust magma rose along NE-striking fractures parallel to the greatest principal stress.     

塔里木盆地北部YM32下古生界潜山油气藏油气运移

YM32下古生界潜山油气藏是受断裂控制的低幅度油气藏,油气运聚复杂.结合新钻井的地球化学分析数据,对研究区油气藏油气运移规律进行剖析.依据YM32下古生界潜山气田藏的原油及抽体物样品中的饱和烃的烷烃、甾藿烷,芳烃的萘与菲、烷基二苯并噻吩、三芳甾烷等生物标志化合物进行系统分析,优选油气示踪参数,并归一化,结合族组分分析结果,形成了油气运移示踪二步法.综合研究发现,YM32下古生界潜山油气藏有YM342-YM343和YM322两个油气充注点,以及YM342-YM343→YM34-1H→YM32、YM342-YM343→YM34-7H→YM33、YM342-YM343→YM37-YM35,以及YM322→YM321→YM32共4条油气运移路径,并在YM342-YM343→YM37-YM35油气运移路径上,发现2个资源量超过1.00×106t的潜力圈闭.单参数与油气运移示踪二步法都可以反映油气运移路径,而后者具有全面、直观、准确地表征油气运移路径的特点.      

Dripping into unsaturated rock underground excavations—literature review and geologic and hydrogeologic setting description

A literature review of dripping in underground constructions in deep, unsaturated geologic media was performed as part of a phased study. The objective is to develop and test a formulation that can be used for studying unsaturated flow through rough multi-segmented fractures, with emphasis on predicting dripping initiation time. Geologic and hydrogeologic setting for the Yucca Mountain (YM) and its exploratory studies facility, which is the site where the model will be tested, are described.     

Lithospheric structure and crust–mantle decoupling in the southeast edge of the Tibetan Plateau

Convergence between the Indian plate and the Eurasian plate has resulted in the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau, and understanding the associated dynamical processes requires investigation of the structures of the crust and the lithosphere of the Tibetan Plateau. Yunnan is located in the southwest edge of the plateau and adjacent to Myanmar to the west. Previous observations have confirmed that there is a sharp transition in mantle anisotropy in this area, as well as clockwise rotations of the surface velocity, surface strain, and fault orientation. We use S receiver functions from 54 permanent broad-band stations to investigate the structures of the crust and the lithosphere beneath Yunnan. The depth of the Moho is found to range from 36 to 40 km beneath southern Yunnan and from 55 to 60 km beneath northwestern Yunnan, with a dramatic variation across latitude 25–26°N. The depth of the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary (LAB) ranges from 180 km to less than 70 km, also varying abruptly across latitude 25–26°N, which is consistent with the sudden change of the fast S-wave direction (from NW–SE to E–W across 26–28°N). In the north of the transition belt, the lithosphere is driven by asthenospheric flow from Tibet, and the crust and the upper mantle are mechanically coupled and moving southward. Because the northeastward movement of the crust in the Burma micro-plate is absorbed by the right-lateral Sagaing Fault, the crust in Yunnan keeps the original southward movement. However, in the south of the transition belt, the northeastward mantle flow from Myanmar and the southward mantle flow from Tibet interact and evolve into an eastward flow (by momentum conservation) as shown by the structure of the LAB. This resulting mantle flow has a direction different from that of the crustal movement. It is concluded that the Sagaing Fault causes the west boundary condition of the crust to be different from that of the lithospheric mantle, thus leading to crust–mantle decoupling in Yunnan.     

王府气田火山岩储层的孔渗特征及评价

利用纯岩石体积模型、测井数据回归方法分别计算了不同岩性的骨架参数。使用常规测井资料,给出了王府断陷盆地深部火石岭组火山岩储层孔隙度和渗透率的计算方法。分析了储层物性与岩性、岩相、孔缝和埋深的关系,发现有利储层主要发育在火山口杂岩相内,岩性主要为火山熔岩和火山角砾岩;溶孔和溶蚀缝是主要储集空间;埋深对火成岩储层的发育影响不大。利用储集层品质指数(RQI),定性地对王府气田20口井的火山岩储层物性进行综合评价,评价的结果与试气产能结论符合情况较好。     

Assessing flow paths in a karst aquifer based on multiple dye tracing tests using stochastic simulation and the MODFLOW-CFP code

Karst systems show high spatial variability of hydraulic parameters over small distances and this makes their modeling a difficult task with several uncertainties. Interconnections of fractures have a major role on the transport of groundwater, but many of the stochastic methods in use do not have the capability to reproduce these complex structures. A methodology is presented for the quantification of tortuosity using the single normal equation simulation (SNESIM) algorithm and a groundwater flow model. A training image was produced based on the statistical parameters of fractures and then used in the simulation process. The SNESIM algorithm was used to generate 75 realizations of the four classes of fractures in a karst aquifer in Iran. The results from six dye tracing tests were used to assign hydraulic conductivity values to each class of fractures. In the next step, the MODFLOW-CFP and MODPATH codes were consecutively implemented to compute the groundwater flow paths. The 9,000 flow paths obtained from the MODPATH code were further analyzed to calculate the tortuosity factor. Finally, the hydraulic conductivity values calculated from the dye tracing experiments were refined using the actual flow paths of groundwater. The key outcomes of this research are: (1) a methodology for the quantification of tortuosity; (2) hydraulic conductivities, that are incorrectly estimated (biased low) with empirical equations that assume Darcian (laminar) flow with parallel rather than tortuous streamlines; and (3) an understanding of the scale-dependence and non-normal distributions of tortuosity.     

Fractures, convection and underpressure: hydrogeology on the southern margin of the Piceance basin, west-central Colorado, USA

Grand Mesa is an erosional remnant on the southern margin of the Piceance basin (Colorado, USA) that appears to host topographically driven groundwater flow in low permeability strata via a pervasive network of vertical extensional fractures. The vertical fractures cut more than 1 km of clay-rich lithology ranging in age from Upper Cretaceous through Eocene, and likely formed from horizontal dilation, cooling, and erosional unloading associated with 2.8 km of regional uplift and 1.5 km of incision by the Gunnison and Colorado rivers. The vertical fractures create anisotropy in which vertical permeability exceeds horizontal permeability. This enhances vertical flow and depth of penetration of groundwater, favors local flow regimes over regional flow, and results in groundwater temperatures that are elevated by up to 10°C over mean surface temperatures at the location of springs. The uplift and cooling that formed the fractures may also have produced domains of abnormally underpressured pore fluids and natural gas within blocks of low permeability bedrock bounded by the fractures. Pore pressures inside these blocks may be in disequilibrium with the groundwater flow system due to ongoing stress release, and the long time scales required for pressure equilibration in the low permeability strata.     

Structural evolution and strike-slip tectonics off north-western Sumatra

Based on new multi-channel seismic data, swath bathymetry, and sediment echosounder data we present a model for the interaction between strike-slip faulting and forearc basin evolution off north-western Sumatra between 2°N and 7°N. We examined seismic sequences and sea floor morphology of the Simeulue- and Aceh forearc basins and the adjacent outer arc high. We found that strike-slip faulting has controlled the forearc basin evolution since the Late Miocene. The Mentawai Fault Zone extends up to the north of Simeulue Island and was most probably connected farther northwards to the Sumatran Fault Zone until the end of the Miocene. Since then, this northern branch jumped westwards, initiating the West Andaman Fault in the Aceh area. The connection to the Mentawai Fault Zone is a left-hand step-over. In this transpressional setting the Tuba Ridge developed. We found a right-lateral strike-slip fault running from the conjunction of the West Andaman Fault and the Tuba Ridge in SSW-direction crossing the outer arc high. As a result, extrusion formed a marginal basin north of Simeulue Island which is tilted eastwards by uplift along a thrust fault in the west. The shift of strike-slip movement in the Aceh segment is accompanied by a relocation of the depocenter of the Aceh Basin to the northwest, forming one major Neogene unconformity. The Simeulue Basin bears two major Neogene unconformities, documenting that differences in subsidence evolution along the northern Sumatran margin are linked to both forearc-evolution related to subduction processes and to deformation along major strike-slip faults.     

岩石中的渗透率、流体流动及热液成矿作用

热液成因的固体金属矿床形成过程中都曾拥有一段流动的历史。成矿物质以溶液的形式从矿源地穿过孔隙或断裂达到了现在的栖身之所,在此过程中流体通过的路径决定了它们的走向,而溶液本身也改变了路径的特征。因此,对于此类矿床的研究不能仅仅囿于眼之所见,而应将古流体流动的观念融入其中,并考察它们的跋涉之路。文中总结了近年来国内外在岩石孔隙、断裂介质及与其相关渗透率对热液成矿作用的控制等领域的研究成果和最新进展,对岩石渗透率、渗透率的影响因素、岩石中流体流动的特征等问题进行了阐述,讨论了渗透率对于热液成矿作用深度、成矿规模、矿质沉淀机制等方面的重要影响,藉此在固体金属矿床研究中强化流"体运动"的观念,并促进构造地质学和成矿作用地球化学间一个新研究方向的发展。