Simulation of flow in fractured aquifers is a complex issue. The problem of mathematical modeling of highly heterogeneous porous media, typical of natural systems, couples with the needs making proper simplifying assu...Simulation of flow in fractured aquifers is a complex issue. The problem of mathematical modeling of highly heterogeneous porous media, typical of natural systems, couples with the needs making proper simplifying assumptions and approximations. In this kind of groundwater systems, studying contamination spreading and analyzing risk are challenging tasks. The main difficulty stems from determining both the travel times and the maximum distances covered by pollutants. In this context, the risk of contamination in the deep carbonate aquifer of the Augusta coastal area is presented. We used a geostatistical approach and numerical codes (MODFLOW-2000, MT3DMS) to reconstruct the complex geological framework of the study area where several contamination scenarios of hypothetical point source in a risk assessment framework were simulated. Results on the contaminant spreading are discussed and the effect of the geological structures characterizing the zone under study, namely horst and graben, are described.展开更多
Sedimentary heterogeneity conditions of Catania Plain quaternary aquifer (CPQA), the wider alluvial multi-aquifer system of Sicily, were rebuilt to simulate and quantify groundwater flow. Transition probabilities base...Sedimentary heterogeneity conditions of Catania Plain quaternary aquifer (CPQA), the wider alluvial multi-aquifer system of Sicily, were rebuilt to simulate and quantify groundwater flow. Transition probabilities based on a Markov Chain (MC) and Sequential Indicator Simulation (SIS) are the structure-imitating simulators utilized for generating stochastic distributions of hydraulic conductivity fields of CPQA, basing on borehole data: plausible equiprobable solutions of the complex geological structure of the CPQA were simulated. This study highlights that the choice of geostatistical simulation method plays a fundamental role in predictive scenarios for groundwater resources managing of CPQA. Indeed, simulated characteristics of the sedimentary heterogeneity constituted the basis of finite difference models for simulating the groundwater flow of CPQA. In heterogeneous systems such as CPQA, SIS may be inadequate for reproducing the macrostructures. Instead, MC adequately reproduced spatial connection of lithofacies, representing a more realistic solution dealing to the proposed geological model of CPQA. MC and SIS models were utilized to both assess the uncertainty of the generated hydraulic conductivity fields of CPQA and predictions about its behavior under normal stress conditions induced by urbanization. The calibration of CPQA groundwater flow models based on MC and SIS simulations allowed to achieve a realistic feedback about the quality of the geostatistical reconstructions of the geological heterogeneity field.展开更多
文摘Simulation of flow in fractured aquifers is a complex issue. The problem of mathematical modeling of highly heterogeneous porous media, typical of natural systems, couples with the needs making proper simplifying assumptions and approximations. In this kind of groundwater systems, studying contamination spreading and analyzing risk are challenging tasks. The main difficulty stems from determining both the travel times and the maximum distances covered by pollutants. In this context, the risk of contamination in the deep carbonate aquifer of the Augusta coastal area is presented. We used a geostatistical approach and numerical codes (MODFLOW-2000, MT3DMS) to reconstruct the complex geological framework of the study area where several contamination scenarios of hypothetical point source in a risk assessment framework were simulated. Results on the contaminant spreading are discussed and the effect of the geological structures characterizing the zone under study, namely horst and graben, are described.
文摘Sedimentary heterogeneity conditions of Catania Plain quaternary aquifer (CPQA), the wider alluvial multi-aquifer system of Sicily, were rebuilt to simulate and quantify groundwater flow. Transition probabilities based on a Markov Chain (MC) and Sequential Indicator Simulation (SIS) are the structure-imitating simulators utilized for generating stochastic distributions of hydraulic conductivity fields of CPQA, basing on borehole data: plausible equiprobable solutions of the complex geological structure of the CPQA were simulated. This study highlights that the choice of geostatistical simulation method plays a fundamental role in predictive scenarios for groundwater resources managing of CPQA. Indeed, simulated characteristics of the sedimentary heterogeneity constituted the basis of finite difference models for simulating the groundwater flow of CPQA. In heterogeneous systems such as CPQA, SIS may be inadequate for reproducing the macrostructures. Instead, MC adequately reproduced spatial connection of lithofacies, representing a more realistic solution dealing to the proposed geological model of CPQA. MC and SIS models were utilized to both assess the uncertainty of the generated hydraulic conductivity fields of CPQA and predictions about its behavior under normal stress conditions induced by urbanization. The calibration of CPQA groundwater flow models based on MC and SIS simulations allowed to achieve a realistic feedback about the quality of the geostatistical reconstructions of the geological heterogeneity field.
