11 Groundwater
11 Groundwater
11 Groundwater
Groundwater
About half the domestic water use in US is from groundwater. Varies regionally.
Why groundwater is good
much less subject to seasonal variations in availability than surface water
slow movement leads to high biological purity
temperature is remarkably constant
available virtually everywhere if you go deep enough
Stream flow usually comes from groundwater discharge, which means the
other half of the water supply is from groundwater indirectly
Groundwater influences
weathering,
erosion,
mass wasting,
soil processes,
h
z is the elevation of the point of measurement,
is the pressure expressed as depth of water,
z
P is pressure
is the density of water
g is the acceleration of gravity.
Using atmospheric pressure as P=0 and sea level as z=0, hydraulic head is the elevation at which water stands in
a tube open at the bottom (sampling point) and top. Water (of like composition) flows from high to low
hydraulic head. Open-channel flow and plumbing examples both work with h
If you measure water level in a well, the elevation is the hydraulic head.
The hydraulic head in an open body of water is the elevation of the water surface. As you go deeper in a
body of water, the elevation decreases and the pressure increases.
Piezometric surface: a surface of hydraulic head in a connected zone. The water table is the piezometric
surface in the top unconfined zone.
Water table surface where pressure is zero. When youre digging, the water table is the level at which water
will stand in a hole. There may be saturated material above it.
Porosity fraction of rock occupied by pore space. Easy to determine. Varies from as little as 0.5% in
unweathered igneous rocks to as much as 50% in some soils. 10-30% is common in sediments.
Hydraulic conductivity K Material 'constant' in Darcys law that influences speed of flow. Hard to measure.
Varies tremendously (8 orders of magnitude easily). The variation in permeability is, ultimately, the main
employment of geologists.
Storativity is the ratio of depth of water released to drop in head If this is close to a porosity (0.2), its called
specific yield and indicates unconfined conditions. If its close to the compressibility of water (0.00005), it
indicates confined conditions.
Unconfined water release is due to gravity drainage. Usually, only the uppermost aquifer is unconfined, unless
you have a perched water table.
Confined water release is due to expansion of water and formation. Typically involves an impermeable
confining layer
Specific yield is the volume fraction of water released from the material when it is drained.
Specific retention is the amount still held in storage
A pump test involves pumping from a withdrawal well and observing the declines in head (and there's lots of
differential calculus involved): this is how we measure hydraulic parameters, but it's expensive, and not as useful
as it seems since the mathematical models are over-simplified and many possible combinations of properties can
give rise to the same observations.
Mapping permeability distributions is essential to understanding, using, and protecting groundwater. This is done
by correlating well logs, drilling, and geophysics.
Permeability distribution also controls the occurrence of oil and hydrothermal-related ore deposits.
Most professional activity by a geologist centers on mapping permeability distributions.
Rates of flow
Typical bulk groundwater flow rates range from 0.01 m/yr to 100 m/yr, mostly in the low range. Because much
groundwater flow is channeled, the actual rates of flow are often much higher or lower.
Permeability varies tremendously. Clean sandstone may have K=0.1 m/s, while clay can have K=1E-10 m/s.
Most of the movement happens in the most permeable materials, and the bulk of most materials act as storage. (Its sort
of like roads and parking lots/street parking).
Use of groundwater
Water
Use
> Quality
Groundwater picks
up dissolved
weathering products, and
sometimes deposits them. Metals present in the rock the water
flows through can end up in the water. Mostly, water picks up
calcite and dolomite, but also Na, minor Cl, SO4, and some
potassium. In some areas, there can be other elements found in
small quantities chemically but that are significant biologically,
like arsenic and lead.
Potential Problems
The book greatly exaggerates the severity of problems associated
with ground water. The vast majority of groundwater is safe to
drink. Most really un-drinkable water is associated with the
immediate vicinity of gas stations or other hydrocarbon storage
facilities, or military bases.
Declining water levels
Saltwater contamination from brines or seawater below
Subsidence (rare, usually only occurs in young,
unconsolidated sediments that have not been dried before)
Groundwater contamination (biologic and chemical)
Groundwater
Rocks contain pores, mostly filled with water. Near the surface, some are filled with air.
The water table defines the boundary between saturated 'rock' with pressure above and below atmospheric pressure. In the saturated capillary fringe, the
'rock' is still saturated, but held in tension. Very deep groundwater has lots of salt (10X seawater), and is called brine.
Water flows from high to low hydraulic head (combines pressure and elevation), usually according to Darcy's Law. Permeability influences how fast water
flows through 'rock'. Water flows at different rates through different materials: larger holes-> faster flow; more holes->faster flow
Groundwater
feeds streams,
moves calcite and silica cement for lithification,
corrodes carbonates to produce karst terrain
Directly provides half the US's drinking water supply