Improved regional groundwater flow modeling using drainage features: a case study of the central northern karst aquifer system of Puerto Rico (USA)
| Autor: | Reza Ghasemizadeh, Christoph Butscher, Ingrid Y. Padilla, Akram N. Alshawabkeh, Xue Yu |
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| Rok vydání: | 2016 |
| Předmět: |
Hydrology
geography geography.geographical_feature_category Hydrogeology 010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences Groundwater flow Sinkhole 0208 environmental biotechnology Aquifer Hydrograph 02 engineering and technology Karst 01 natural sciences Article 020801 environmental engineering Spring (hydrology) Earth and Planetary Sciences (miscellaneous) Drainage Geomorphology Geology 0105 earth and related environmental sciences Water Science and Technology |
| Zdroj: | Hydrogeology Journal. 24:1463-1478 |
| ISSN: | 1435-0157 1431-2174 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s10040-016-1419-6 |
| Popis: | In northern Puerto Rico (USA), subsurface conduit networks with unknown characteristics, and surface features such as springs, rivers, lagoons and wetlands, drain the coastal karst aquifers. In this study, drain lines connecting sinkholes and springs are used to improve the developed regional model by simulating the drainage effects of conduit networks. Implemented in an equivalent porous media (EPM) approach, the model with drains is able to roughly reproduce the spring discharge hydrographs in response to rainfall. Hydraulic conductivities are found to be scale dependent and significantly increase with higher test radius, indicating scale dependency of the EPM approach. Similar to other karst regions in the world, hydraulic gradients are steeper where the transmissivity is lower approaching the coastline. This study enhances current understanding of the complex flow patterns in karst aquifers and suggests that using a drainage feature improves modeling results where available data on conduit characteristics are minimal. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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