Application of Sample Selection Model in Estimating Response Functions for Nitrate Percolation

The Seymour aquifer region of Texas has been identified as containing elevated levels of nitrate in ground water. Various state and federal agencies are currently studying policy options for the region by gathering more site-specific information. However, because of lack of sufficient information, cause and effect relationships between water quality and agricultural practices have not been well established for the region. Some recently available biophysical simulation models have impressive capabilities in generating large amounts of data on environmental pollution resulting from agricultural production practices. In this study, the data generated by a biophysical simulation model were used to estimate the nitrate percolation response functions for the Seymour aquifer region. Interestingly, nitrate percolation values obtained from simulation models often comprise acensoredsample because the non-zero percolation values are only observed under certain climatic events and input levels. It has been shown in the econometric literature that the use of Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) on censored sample data produces biased and inconsistent parameter estimates. Thus, a sample selection model was used in this study to estimate the response functions for nitrate percolation. The study provides some insight into the relationship between nitrate percolation and agricultural production practices. In particular, the study demonstrates the potential of selected design standards in minimizing agricultural nonpoint-source (NPS) pollution for the study area.     

Simulating Nitrate Leaching Profiles in a Highly Permeable Vadose Zone

An approach is developed to simulate leaching of a dissolved chemical constituent in the vadose zone of an aquifer. Specifically, nitrate loading at the water table for different water table depths, for a range of aquifer permeability values, and for different cases of heterogeneity of the aquifer, are considered. Models from the literature are first used to derive soil–water characteristic curves (water retention and hydraulic conductivity) from a grain size distribution curve for unsaturated conditions. Given infiltration from the surface, the initial conditions for the chemical concentration, and the water content profile, leaching of the chemical in the vadose zone is simulated as a function of both time and depth. The methodology is illustrated for a permeable aquifer. Simulations are undertaken using a finite element code for saturated and unsaturated flow. Different scenarios are simulated depending on the heterogeneity of the aquifer and the depth of the water table. Modeling results show that in the example case studied, nitrate concentration loading at the water table does not depend strongly on the position of the water table, but rather on the material properties of the aquifer. The contribution of this endeavor resides in the methodology which allows a prediction of nitrate leaching using only the grain size property of the aquifer. It allows practitioners to obtain a first assessment of leaching with limited data.     

A method for quick assessment of CO2 storage capacity in closed and semi-closed saline formations

Saline aquifers of high permeability bounded by overlying/underlying seals may be surrounded laterally by low-permeability zones, possibly caused by natural heterogeneity and/or faulting. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) injection into and storage in such “closed” systems with impervious seals, or “semi-closed” systems with non-ideal (low permeability) seals, is different from that in “open” systems, from which the displaced brine can easily escape laterally. In closed or semi-closed systems, the pressure buildup caused by continuous industrial-scale CO₂ injection may have a limiting effect on CO₂ storage capacity, because geomechanical damage caused by overpressure needs to be avoided. In this research, a simple analytical method was developed for the quick assessment of the CO₂ storage capacity in such closed and semi-closed systems. This quick-assessment method is based on the fact that native brine (of an equivalent volume) displaced by the cumulative injected CO₂ occupies additional pore volume within the storage formation and the seals, provided by pore and brine compressibility in response to pressure buildup. With non-ideal seals, brine may also leak through the seals into overlying/underlying formations. The quick-assessment method calculates these brine displacement contributions in response to an estimated average pressure buildup in the storage reservoir. The CO₂ storage capacity and the transient domain-averaged pressure buildup estimated through the quick-assessment method were compared with the “true” values obtained using detailed numerical simulations of CO₂ and brine transport in a two-dimensional radial system. The good agreement indicates that the proposed method can produce reasonable approximations for storage–formation–seal systems of various geometric and hydrogeological properties.     

人工地下水回灌过程中溶解性有机物的去除及变化

在实验室通过模拟土壤柱研究了人工地下水回灌过程中溶解性有机物的去除及其三卤甲烷生成势和三卤甲烷生成活性的变化.利用XAD树脂将回灌水中的溶解性有机物分为3个部分：疏水性有机酸、过渡亲水性有机酸和亲水性有机物.疏水性有机酸的三卤甲烷生成活性高于过渡亲水性有机酸和亲水性有机物.土壤含水层处理（SAT）对亲水性有机物的去除率为68.51%,对疏水性有机酸和过渡亲水性有机酸的去除率分别为58.64%和41.86%.经SAT系统处理后,溶解性有机物及各有机组分的三卤甲烷生成势减少,而三卤甲烷生成活性升高.疏水性有机酸是生成三卤甲烷的主要有机组分.亲水性有机物在SAT系统进水中的三卤甲烷生成活性较低,但由于含量高,三卤甲烷生成势也较大.而过渡亲水性有机酸由于含量和三卤甲烷生成活性较低,三卤甲烷生成势也较低.     

Model Development and Calibration of a Saltwater Intrusion Model in Southern California1

Abstract: A nine‐layered confined‐unconfined flow and transport model is developed for the Alamitos saltwater intrusion barrier in Southern California. The conceptual model is based on the geological structure of the coastal aquifer system. The key parameters in the flow and transport models are calibrated using a two‐phase procedure which matches the types of data available for calibration. Because of the abundance of point measurements of hydraulic conductivity, the heterogeneous and random hydraulic conductivity field for each of the five aquifers is estimated by the geostatiscal method of natural‐neighbor‐kriging in Phase 1. In Phase 2, the longitudinal and transverse dispersivities in the transport model are estimated by a traditional inverse procedure that minimizes the least‐squares error for concentration (LSE‐CON). The minimum LSE‐CON is achieved near 15.2 and 1.52 m for the longitudinal and transverse dispersivities, respectively. Additional simulations with increasing transport parameter complexity did not yield significant improvements in LSE‐CON. Also, tracking least‐squares error for head while parametrically varying the transport parameters revealed there is a negligible interaction between predicted head and transport parameters.     

GROUND WATER IN PERSPECTIVE1

ABSTRACT. Owing to their enormous capacity, ground-water reservoirs are at least equal in importance to the ground water itself. As regulators of water movement in the hydrological cycle, these reservoirs surpass all lakes combined, natural and manmade. While many aquifers are not well understood, data on many others are adequate for long-range broad-scale planning. An example is the basalt aquifer of the Snake River Plain in Idaho. However, the area has managerial problems which concern the time, the place and the feasibility of manipulations of water. All continents of the world contain great aquifers. For every huge aquifer, however, hundreds of smaller ones occur, and even these contain astonishing amounts of water. Aquifers in the Ohio River Basin of the United States are good examples. Management of total water resources is a difficult problem at many places. But many problems could be met and many water shortages alleviated or eliminated by use of aquifers, not merely as sources of water, but as reservoirs for management of water.     

UTILIZING INDUCED RECHARGE FOR REGIONAL AQUIFER MANAGEMENT1

ABSTRACT: The deep aquifers of the Portland Basin are used as a regional water supply by at least six municipalities in Oregon and Washington. Maximum continuous use of the aquifers in 1998 was 13 mgd and peak emergency use was 55 mgd. Continuous use of the deep aquifers at a rate of 55 mgd has been proposed and inchoate water rights have been reserved for expansion of pumping to 121 mgd. A study was completed, using a calibrated ground water flow model, to evaluate the role of induced recharge from the Columbia River in mitigating aquifer drawdown from continuous‐use and expanded pumping scenarios in the center and eastern areas of the basin. The absolute average residual was less than 3.6 feet for steady‐state model calibrations, and less than 8.0 feet for transient calibration to a 42 mgd pumping event in 1987 with 170 feet of drawdown. Continuous use of the aquifers at a rate of 55 mgd is predicted to increase drawdown to 210 feet. Expansion of pumping to 121 mgd in the center basin is predicted to cause 400 feet of drawdown. However, expansion of pumping in the east basin is predicted to result in only 220 feet of drawdown because of induced recharge from the Columbia River.     

胶态微泡沫用于冲洗含水层的迁移分布特征

目前有关胶态微泡沫（CGAs）冲洗含水层过程中的迁移分布特性尚不明确,本研究利用二维模拟实验详细探究了注入速率、表面活性剂浓度和介质条件对CGAs迁移分布时空变化特征的影响.结果表明,在单侧单点注入条件下,CGAs的波及区域形状近似半圆形,迁移锋面相对规则;CGAs破裂产生的泡沫液分布在其迁移锋面四周,泡沫气体受地下水浮力影响向上方迁移,导致出现在纵向向上迁移距离大于向下迁移距离的"向上漂移"现象.表面活性剂浓度对CGAs的迁移分布影响较小;注入流速低或介质渗透性差,CGAs均会在迁移后期出现明显的“向上漂移”现象,同时其波及区域形状逐渐趋向于半椭圆形;恒定流量注入CGAs,其在含水层中的波及面积存在最大值.相对传统液相冲洗液,CGAs在非均质含水层中迁移分布较为均匀,受介质非均质性影响较小.     

纳米乳化油修复地下水硝酸盐过程中产气及微生物增殖代谢对多孔介质堵塞的模拟评估

为有效评估纳米乳化油原位处理地下水硝酸盐过程中,产气及微生物增殖代谢对含水层多孔介质的堵塞作用,以纳米乳化油为碳源,采用市售反硝化菌剂接种微生物进行硝酸盐降解批实验研究,探讨产气及微生物增殖代谢的动态变化及特征,并基于Kozeny-Carman(K-C)方程、Clement、Pham及Kozeny Grain(KG)模型,对假定含水层一维流模拟柱,预估产气及微生物增殖代谢造成的渗透性损失,识别堵塞过程及主导因素.结果显示,反硝化菌降解效果良好,硝氮总去除率达90.23%.CO_2及N_2为主要产气成分,降解1 mg硝氮对应的平均CO_2产气量为0.71 mL,平均N_2产气量为0.14 mL;微生物代谢产物胞外聚合物以蛋白质及多糖为主,降解1 mg硝氮平均蛋白产量为0.64 mg,平均多糖产量为0.16 mg.在含水层不与外界交换气体的假设前提下,K-C方程预测显示产气可在2个周期内造成渗透性完全损失,Clement、Pham及KG模型评估的微生物增殖代谢造成中、细砂渗透性损失分别为10.87%～31.10%、12.77%～48.32%,分析认为初期细胞生物量是导致渗透性骤降的关键因素,后期为细胞生物量和胞外聚合物共同作用.此外,封闭体系中产气是堵塞的主导因素,随着含水层开启程度增加,产气的贡献占比会下降,微生物的贡献占比提高.因此,对于相对封闭的含水层系统,探索增强其开放状况是缓解堵塞的有效途径之一.     

Scenario simulations of CO2 injection feasibility, plume migration and storage in a saline aquifer, Scania, Sweden

Deep saline aquifers have large capacity for geological CO₂ storage, but are generally not as well characterized as petroleum reservoirs. We here aim at quantifying effects of uncertain hydraulic parameters and uncertain stratigraphy on CO₂ injectivity and migration, and provide a first feasibility study of pilot-scale CO₂ injection into a multilayered saline aquifer system in southwest Scania, Sweden. Four main scenarios are developed, corresponding to different possible interpretations of available site data. Simulation results show that, on the one hand, stratigraphic uncertainty (presence/absence of a thin mudstone/claystone layer above the target storage formation) leads to large differences in predicted CO₂ storage in the target formation at the end of the test (ranging between 11% and 98% of injected CO₂ remaining), whereas other parameter uncertainty (in formation and cap rock permeabilities) has small impact. On the other hand, the latter has large impact on predicted injectivity, on which stratigraphic uncertainty has small impact. Salt precipitation at the border of the target storage formation affects CO₂ injectivity for all considered scenarios and injection rates. At low injection rates, salt is deposited also within the formation, considerably reducing its availability for CO₂ storage.