非饱和土壤渗透系数空间不确定性对溶质运移的影响

包气带渗透系数的不确定性是影响非饱和带溶质运移的主要因素。应用贝叶斯方法对非饱和土壤渗透系数进行前处理,使用Monte-Carlo方法模拟其空间不确定性,并通过HYDRUS-1D模型对溶质运移进行数值模拟,研究包气带渗透系数的空间不确定性对溶质运移的影响。结果表明,由于包气带渗透性的不确定性使得溶质浓度分布呈现明显的不确定性,包气带内不同点的浓度值相差很大。与忽略包气带土性参数空间不确定性的模拟结果相对比,考虑包气带渗透系数不确定性的模拟结果与实际情况更加接近,更具合理性和科学性。同时,根据模拟结果,对实际工作中进行地下水数值模拟时溶质初始浓度输入值的确定提出相应建议。     

Electrical resistivity tomography as monitoring tool for unsaturated zone transport: an example of preferential transport of deicing chemicals

Non-invasive spatially resolved monitoring techniques may hold the key to observe heterogeneous flow and transport behavior of contaminants in soils. In this study, time-lapse electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) was employed during an infiltration experiment with deicing chemical in a small field lysimeter. Deicing chemicals like potassium formate, which frequently impact soils on airport sites, were infiltrated during snow melt. Chemical composition of seepage water and the electrical response was recorded over the spring period 2010. Time-lapse electrical resistivity tomographs are able to show the infiltration of the melt water loaded with ionic constituents of deicing chemicals and their degradation product hydrogen carbonate. The tomographs indicate early breakthrough behavior in parts of the profile. Groundtruthing with pore fluid conductivity and water content variations shows disagreement between expected and observed bulk conductivity. This was attributed to the different sampling volume of traditional methods and ERT due to a considerable fraction of immobile water in the soil. The results show that ERT can be used as a soil monitoring tool on airport sites if assisted by common soil monitoring techniques.     

Oxygenated gasoline release in the unsaturated zone, Part 2: Downgradient transport of ethanol and hydrocarbons

In the event of a gasoline spill containing oxygenated compounds such as ethanol and MTBE, it is important to consider the impacts these compounds might have on subsurface contamination. One of the main concerns commonly associated with ethanol is that it might decrease the biodegradation of aromatic hydrocarbon compounds, leading to an increase in the hydrocarbon dissolved plume lengths. The first part of this study (Part 1) showed that when gasoline containing ethanol infiltrates the unsaturated zone, ethanol is likely to partition to and be retained in the unsaturated zone pore water. In this study (Part 2), a controlled field test is combined with a two-dimensional laboratory test and three-dimensional numerical modelling to investigate how ethanol retention in the unsaturated zone affects the downgradient behaviour of ethanol and aromatic hydrocarbon compounds. Ethanol transport downgradient was extremely limited. The appearance of ethanol in downgradient wells was delayed and the concentrations were lower than would be expected based on equilibrium dissolution. Oscillations in the water table resulted in minor flushing of ethanol, but its effect could still be perceived as an increase in the groundwater concentrations downgradient from the source zone. Ethanol partitioning to the unsaturated zone pore water reduced its mass fraction within the NAPL thus reducing its anticipated impact on the fate of the hydrocarbon compounds. A conceptual numerical simulation indicated that the potential ethanol-induced increase in benzene plume length after 20 years could decrease from 136% to 40% when ethanol retention in the unsaturated zone is considered.     

Preliminary 3-D site-scale studies of radioactive colloid transport in the unsaturated zone at Yucca Mountain,Nevada

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is actively investigating the technical feasibility of permanent disposal of high-level nuclear waste in a repository to be situated in the unsaturated zone (UZ) at Yucca Mountain (YM), Nevada. In this study we investigate, by means of numerical simulation, the transport of radioactive colloids under ambient conditions from the potential repository horizon to the water table. The site hydrology and the effects of the spatial distribution of hydraulic and transport properties in the Yucca Mountain subsurface are considered. The study of migration and retardation of colloids accounts for the complex processes in the unsaturated zone of Yucca Mountain, and includes advection, diffusion, hydrodynamic dispersion, kinetic colloid filtration, colloid straining, and radioactive decay. The results of the study indicate that the most important factors affecting colloid transport are the subsurface geology and site hydrology, i.e., the presence of faults (they dominate and control transport), fractures (the main migration pathways), and the relative distribution of zeolitic and vitric tuffs. The transport of colloids is strongly influenced by their size (as it affects diffusion into the matrix, straining at hydrogeologic unit interfaces, and transport velocity) and by the parameters of the kinetic-filtration model used for the simulations. Arrival times at the water table decrease with an increasing colloid size because of smaller diffusion, increased straining, and higher transport velocities. The importance of diffusion as a retardation mechanism increases with a decreasing colloid size, but appears to be minimal in large colloids.     

Modeling virus survival and transport in the subsurface

The significance of viruses as agents of waterborne disease in the United States is just beginning to be recognized. The ability to predict how far viruses can be transported and how long they can remain infective in soil and groundwater is desirable from the standpoint of planning the placement of sources of contamination so that they will not have an impact on drinking-water wells. This, in turn should have the effect of decreasing the number of waterborne disease outbreaks caused by viruses. This article reviews the factors that affect the survival and migration of viruses in soils and groundwater. It also discusses the efforts that have been made to mathematically model the movement of viruses in the subsurface, including the assumptions made by the modelers. At this time, it appears that modeling efforts are constrained by a lack of quantitative information on virus interactions with soil and fluid media, rather than on mathematical solution techniques.     

A set of constitutive relationships accounting for residual NAPL in the unsaturated zone

Although laboratory experiments show that non-aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) is retained in the unsaturated zone, no existing multiphase flow model has been developed to account for residual NAPL after NAPL drainage in the unsaturated zone. We developed a static constitutive set of saturation-capillary pressure relationships for water, NAPL and air that accounts for both this residual NAPL and entrapped NAPL. The set of constitutive relationships is formulated similarly to the set of scaled relationships that is frequently applied in continuum models. The new set consists of three fluid-phase systems: a three-phase system and a two-phase system, that both comply with the original constitutive model, and a newly introduced residual NAPL system. The new system can be added relatively easily to the original two- and three-phase systems. Entrapment is included in the model. The constitutive relationships of the non-drainable residual NAPL system are based on qualitative fluid behavior derived from a pore scale model. The pore scale model reveals that the amount of residual NAPL depends on the spreading coefficient and the water saturation. Furthermore, residual NAPL is history-dependent. At the continuum scale, a critical NAPL pressure head defines the transition from free, mobile NAPL to residual NAPL. Although the Pc-S relationships for water and total liquid are not independent in case of residual NAPL, two two-phase Pc-S relations can represent a three-phase residual system of Pc-S relations. A newly introduced parameter, referred to as the residual oil pressure head, reflects the mutual dependency of water and oil. Example calculations show consistent behavior of the constitutive model. Entrapment and retention in the unsaturated zone cooperate to retain NAPL. Moreover, the results of our constitutive model are in agreement with experimental observations.     

Fate and transport of chlormequat in subsurface environments

Background, aim and scope  

Chlormequat (Cq) is a plant growth regulator used throughout the world. Despite indications of possible effects of Cq on mammalian health and fertility, little is known about its fate and transport in subsurface environments. The aim of this study was to determine the fate of Cq in three Danish subsurface environments, in particular with respect to retardation of Cq in the A and B horizons and the risk of leaching to the aquatic environment. The study combines laboratory fate studies of Cq sorption and dissipation with field scale monitoring of the concentration of Cq in the subsurface environment, including artificial drains.     

Oxygenated gasoline release in the unsaturated zone - Part 1: Source zone behavior

Oxygenates present in gasoline, such as ethanol and MTBE, are a concern in subsurface contamination related to accidental spills. While gasoline hydrocarbon compounds have low solubility, MTBE and ethanol are more soluble, ethanol being completely miscible with water. Consequently, their fate in the subsurface is likely to differ from that of gasoline. To evaluate the fate of gasoline containing oxygenates following a release in the unsaturated zone shielded from rainfall/recharge, a controlled field test was performed at Canadian Forces Base Borden, in Ontario. 200L of a mixture composed of gasoline with 10% ethanol and 4.5% MTBE was released in the unsaturated zone, into a trench 20cm deep, about 32cm above the water table. Based on soil cores, most of the ethanol was retained in the source, above the capillary fringe, and remained there for more than 100 days. Ethanol partitioned from the gasoline to the unsaturated pore-water and was retained, despite the thin unsaturated zone at the site (~35cm from the top of the capillary fringe to ground surface). Due to its lower solubility, most of the MTBE remained within the NAPL as it infiltrated deeper into the unsaturated zone and accumulated with the gasoline on top of the depressed capillary fringe. Only minor changes in the distribution of ethanol were noted following oscillations in the water table. Two methods to estimate the capacity of the unsaturated zone to retain ethanol are explored. It is clear that conceptual models for sites impacted by ethanol-fuels must consider the unsaturated zone.     

Transport and degradation of propyleneglycol and potassium acetate in the unsaturated zone

De-icing chemicals used during the winter season are potential pollutants for the groundwater underneath the new main airport of Norway. Several field experiments examining the transport and degradation of propyleneglycol (PG), potassium acetate (KAc) and non-reactive tracers were performed in a lysimeter trench under natural snowmelting conditions. Chemicals were applied underneath the snow cover and the transport in a heterogeneous coarse sandy soil was examined by extracting soil water from 30 or 40 suction cups placed at five depths between 0.4 and 2.4 m depth. Transport and degradation was analysed by spatial moment calculations. The de-icing chemicals showed the same basic displacement as chemically inactive tracers, an initial fast transport during the melting period followed by a period of stagnation throughout the summer season. PG seemed to be displaced to greater depths compared to non-reactive tracer after the first application. However, computer simulations of transport and degradation in a heterogeneous unsaturated soil showed that decreasing degradation constants with depth can generate a downward movement of the centre of mass without any flow occurring in the system. Potassium acetate showed some adsorption, with calculated retardation factors of approximately 1.3 and 1.2. The degradation rate constant for PG was calculated to be 0.015 day-1 in 1994 and increased to 0.047 day-1 in the second application made in 1995. The degradation rate constant for acetate was estimated to be 0.02 day-1. Increased manganese concentrations seem to be a good indicator of degradation of PG and Ac.     

Characterization of flow and transport processes within the unsaturated zone of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, under current and future climates

This paper presents a large-scale modeling study characterizing fluid flow and tracer transport in the unsaturated zone of Yucca Mountain, Nevada, a potential repository site for storing high-level radioactive waste. The study has been conducted using a three-dimensional numerical model, which incorporates a wide variety of field data and takes into account the coupled processes of flow and transport in the highly heterogeneous, unsaturated fractured porous rock. The modeling approach is based on a dual-continuum formulation of coupled multiphase fluid and tracer transport through fractured porous rock. Various scenarios of current and future climate conditions and their effects on the unsaturated zone are evaluated to aid in the assessment of the proposed repository's system performance using different conceptual models. These models are calibrated against field-measured data. Model-predicted flow and transport processes under current and future climates are discussed.     

An integrated approach for assessing the migration behavior of chlorpyrifos and carbaryl in the unsaturated soil zone

Chlorpyrifos (O, O-diethyl O-3,5,6-trichloropyridin-2-yl phosphorothioate) and carbaryl (1-naphthyl methylcarbamate) are often applied concurrently as insecticides in food production. The aim of this study was to research their migration behavior in a real environment. We researched the leaching of both pesticides by setting up field lysimeters on a farm with the typical soil used in fruit production today. In order to analyze the variables involved in this process, we performed complementary adsorption studies, we performed complementary adsorption studies using batches and undisturbed soil laboratory columns for both compounds. The results for pesticide transport through the lysimeters showed that less than 1% of chlorpyrifos was recovered in the leachates, while almost 17% was recovered for carbaryl. Having completed the experiment in undisturbed laboratory columns, soil analysis showed that chlorpyrifos mainly remained in the first 5 cm, while carbaryl moved down to the lower sections. These results can be explained in view of the sorption coefficient values (K_D) obtained in horizons A and B for chlorpyrifos (393 and 184 L kg^?1) and carbaryl (3.1 and 4.2 L kg^?1), respectively. By integrating the results obtained in the different approaches, we were able to characterize the percolation modes of these pesticides in the soil matrix, thus contributing to the sustainable use of resources.     

Numerical methods for improving sensitivity analysis and parameter estimation of virus transport simulated using sorptive-reactive processes

Using one- and two-dimensional homogeneous simulations, this paper addresses challenges associated with sensitivity analysis and parameter estimation for virus transport simulated using sorptive-reactive processes. Head, flow, and conservative- and virus-transport observations are considered. The paper examines the use of (1) observed-value weighting, (2) breakthrough-curve temporal moment observations, and (3) the significance of changes in the transport time-step size. The results suggest that (1) sensitivities using observed-value weighting are more susceptible to numerical solution variability, (2) temporal moments of the breakthrough curve are a more robust measure of sensitivity than individual conservative-transport observations, and (3) the transport-simulation time step size is more important than the inactivation rate in solution and about as important as at least two other parameters, reflecting the ease with which results can be influenced by numerical issues. The approach presented allows more accurate evaluation of the information provided by observations for estimation of parameters and generally improves the potential for reasonable parameter-estimation results.     

Flow transiency on analytical modeling of subsurface solute transport

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Groundwater flow velocity and dispersivity might be temporally or spatially variable rather than constant. In this paper, linearly-asymptotically or...     

Virus transport in physically and geochemically heterogeneous subsurface porous media

A two-dimensional model for virus transport in physically and geochemically heterogeneous subsurface porous media is presented. The model involves solution of the advection-dispersion equation, which additionally considers virus inactivation in the solution, as well as virus removal at the solid matrix surface due to attachment (deposition), release, and inactivation. Two surface inactivation models for the fate of attached inactive viruses and their subsequent role on virus attachment and release were considered. Geochemical heterogeneity, portrayed as patches of positively charged metal oxyhydroxide coatings on collector grain surfaces, and physical heterogeneity, portrayed as spatial variability of hydraulic conductivity, were incorporated in the model. Both layered and randomly (log-normally) distributed physical and geochemical heterogeneities were considered. The upstream weighted multiple cell balance method was employed to numerically solve the governing equations of groundwater flow and virus transport. Model predictions show that the presence of subsurface layered geochemical and physical heterogeneity results in preferential flow paths and thus significantly affect virus mobility. Random distributions of physical and geochemical heterogeneity have also notable influence on the virus transport behavior. While the solution inactivation rate was found to significantly influence the virus transport behavior, surface inactivation under realistic field conditions has probably a negligible influence on the overall virus transport. It was further demonstrated that large virus release rates result in extended periods of virus breakthrough over significant distances downstream from the injection sites. This behavior suggests that simpler models that account for virus adsorption through a retardation factor may yield a misleading assessment of virus transport in "hydrogeologically sensitive" subsurface environments.     

Particle transport in unsaturated fractured chalk under arid conditions

A series of field and laboratory experiments were conducted to study the mechanisms of particle detachment and transport from fractures in vadose chalk. Experiments of intermittent flow events along fracture surfaces were carried out in the laboratory. In the field, water was percolated from land surface via a discrete fracture into a compartmental sampler installed inside a horizontal corehole located I m below the surface. The mass, size distribution, and composition of the particles drained from the fracture voids were examined along with flow rates and salt dissolution. Two boreholes penetrating the underlying saturated zone were sampled and analyzed for colloidal concentration and composition. Most of the particle and solute release at the drained effluents occurred during the first several hours of flow, but erratic pulses of particles were still observed after long periods of time. Most of the detached particles had a mean diameter of >2 microm, while the mobile colloidal phase in the groundwater had a mean diameter of approximately 1 microm. Mineralogical composition of the groundwater colloids and the particles detached from the upper vadose fracture were similar. Laboratory observations demonstrated the importance of the existence of a coating layer, made of weathered particles and salts, on particle detachment. The results of this study suggest that: (1) particle detachment causes flow-rate variability in the unsaturated fracture; (2) the mechanisms of particle detachment and salt dissolution within the fracture are linked: and (3) although most of the detached particles are large and likely to accumulate inside fractures, some colloidal particles also eroded from the fracture void and are likely to be transported to the groundwater.     

An analytical solution for vertical transport of volatile chemicals in the vadose zone

An analytical solution is presented for one-dimensional vertical transport of volatile chemicals through the vadose zone to groundwater. The solution accounts for the important transport mechanisms of the steady advection of water and gas, diffusion and dispersion in water and gas, as well as adsorption, and first-order degradation. By assuming a linear, equilibrium partitioning between water, gas and the adsorbed chemical phases, the dependent variable in the mathematical model becomes the total resident concentration. The general solution was derived for cases having a constant initial total concentration over a discrete depth interval and a zero initial total concentration elsewhere. A zero concentration gradient is assumed at the groundwater table. Examples are given to demonstrate the application of the new solution for calculating the case of a non-uniform initial source concentration, and estimating the transport of chemicals to the groundwater and the atmosphere. The solution was also used to verify a numerical code called VLEACH. We discovered an error in VLEACH, and found that the new solution agreed very well with the numerical results by corrected VLEACH. A simplified solution to predict the migration of volatile organic chemical due to the gas density effect has shown that a high source concentration may lead to significant downward advective gas-phase transport in a soil with a high air-permeability.     

土壤非饱和带柴油入渗的试验研究

通过土柱模拟试验研研了0#轻质柴油(简称柴油)在不同含水率和容重的壤土及砂土中的入渗及残留特征.结果表明:(1)相同时间内,柴油在壤土中的润湿锋面下渗距离随含水率的增加不断减小,风干土中柴油穿透时间最短;柴油在砂土中的润湿锋面下渗距离随含水率的增加先增大后减小,含水率为10.0%的砂土中柴油穿透时间最短.土壤含水率对润...     

Analytical modelling of stable isotope fractionation of volatile organic compounds in the unsaturated zone

Analytical models were developed that simulate stable isotope ratios of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) near a point source contamination in the unsaturated zone. The models describe diffusive transport of VOCs, biodegradation and source ageing. The mass transport is governed by Fick's law for diffusion. The equation for reactive transport of VOCs in the soil gas phase was solved for different source geometries and for different boundary conditions. Model results were compared to experimental data from a one-dimensional laboratory column and a radial-symmetric field experiment. The comparison yielded a satisfying agreement. The model results clearly illustrate the significant isotope fractionation by gas phase diffusion under transient state conditions. This leads to an initial depletion of heavy isotopes with increasing distance from the source. The isotope evolution of the source is governed by the combined effects of isotope fractionation due to vaporisation, diffusion and biodegradation. The net effect can lead to an enrichment or depletion of the heavy isotope in the remaining organic phase, depending on the compound and element considered. Finally, the isotope evolution of molecules migrating away from the source and undergoing degradation is governed by a combined degradation and diffusion isotope effect. This suggests that, in the unsaturated zone, the interpretation of biodegradation of VOC based on isotopic data must always be based on a model combining gas phase diffusion and degradation.     

Modeling colloid-facilitated transport of multi-species contaminants in unsaturated porous media

Colloid-facilitated transport has been recognized as a potentially important and overlooked contaminant transport process. In particular, it has been observed that conventional two phase sorption models are often unable to explain transport of highly sorbing compounds in the subsurface appropriately in the presence of colloids. In this study a one-dimensional model for colloid-facilitated transport of chemicals in unsaturated porous media is developed. The model has parts for simulating coupled flow, and colloid transport and dissolved and colloidal contaminant transport. Richards' equation is solved to model unsaturated flow, and the effect of colloid entrapment and release on porosity and hydraulic conductivity of the porous media is incorporated into the model. Both random sequential adsorption and Langmuir approaches have been implemented in the model in order to incorporate the effect of surface jamming. The concept of entrapment of colloids into the air-water interface is used for taking into account the effect of retardation caused due to existence of the air phase. A non-equilibrium sorption approach with options of linear and Langmuir sorption assumptions are implemented that can represent the competition and site saturation effects on sorption of multiple compounds both to the solid matrix and to the colloidal particles. Several demonstration calculations are performed and the conditions in which the non-equilibrium model can be approximated by an equilibrium model are also studied.     

A numerical model for transient-hysteretic flow and solute transport in unsaturated porous media

A two-dimensional flow and transport model was developed for simulating transient water flow and nonreactive solute transport in heterogeneous, unsaturated porous media containing air and water. The model is composed of a unique combination of robust and accurate numerical algorithms for solving the Richards', Darcy flux, and advection-dispersion equations. The mixed form of Richards' equation is solved using a finite-element formulation and a modified Picard iteration scheme. Mass lumping is employed to improve solution convergence and stability behavior. The flow algorithm accounts for hysteresis in the pressure head-water content relationship. Darcy fluxes are approximated with a Galerkin and Petrov-Galerkin finite-element method developed for random heterogeneous porous media. The transport equation is solved using an Eulerian-Lagrangian method. A multi-step, fourth-order Runge-Kutta, reverse particle tracking technique and a quadratic-linear interpolation scheme are shown to be superior for determining the advective concentration. A Galerkin finite-element method is used for approximating the dispersive flux. The unsaturated flow and transport model was applied to a variety of rigorous problems and was found to produce accurate, mass-conserving solutions when compared to analytical solutions and published numerical results.