Numerical investigation of shallow aquifer recharge using small-diameter, low-cost wells and infiltration basins
Presented on Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Falk Händel1, Gaisheng Liu, Ph D.2, Peter Dietrich, Dr.3, Rudolf Liedl4 and James J. Butler, Ph.D.2, (1)Institute for Groundwater Management, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany, (2)Kansas Geological Survey, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, (3)UFZ, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Leipzig, Germany, (4)Institute for Groundwater Management, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
Scarcity of potable water has become a critical issue throughout the world; there is a pressing need to overcome the common temporal imbalance between water demand and availability. As a result, aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) methods are increasingly used. Common ASR recharge methods are based on surface infiltration basins and trenches or large-diameter wells and can be quite costly to implement. A new low-cost ASR method is currently being explored. This approach uses shallow small-diameter wells installed with direct-push (DP) technology and recharge via gravity; installation and operation costs can be very low. A numerical modeling investigation, which was carried out to explore the potential of the approach, will be described here. This investigation found the expected dependence of infiltration capacities on subsurface parameters. For sites in unconsolidated settings, DP technology provides an excellent means for carrying out the detailed subsurface characterization required at proposed ASR sites. The modeling results also demonstrate the advantages of small-diameter wells over a surface infiltration basin. For example, a small number of 2“ shallow wells can be used to recharge water at the same infiltration rate as a 60 m2 basin. Although a layer of low hydraulic conductivity (K) can significantly reduce the infiltration capacity of surface basins, this impact can be largely avoided by extending well screens below the low-K layer. A field demonstration of the approach at a site in north-central Kansas is in its early stages.
Falk Händel
Institute for Groundwater Management, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
Falk Händel is a doctoral student at the Technische Universität Dresden, Germany, and guest scientist at the UFZ, Department of Monitoring und Exploration Technologies, Germany. He holds a diploma in Water Management from the Technische Universität Dresden. His current research interests are aquifer storage and recovery, the influence of subsurface heterogeneity on flow and transport, and regional heat transport.
Gaisheng Liu, Ph D.
Kansas Geological Survey, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
Gaisheng Liu is an Assistant Scientist in the Geohydrology Section of the Kansas Geological Survey at the University of Kansas. He holds a B.S. in Hydrogeology and Engineering Geology from Chengdu University of Technology, China, and a Ph.D. in Geology from the University of Alabama. His current research interests focus on development of new methods for improved site characterizations, groundwater resources availability and sustainability modeling, and aquifer storage and recovery in near-surface aquifers.
Peter Dietrich, Dr.
UFZ, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Leipzig, Germany
Peter Dietrich is the Head of the UFZ Department Monitoring und Exploration Technologies (www.ufz.de/met) and Professor of Environmental and Engineering Geophysics at the University of Tübingen. He has studied geophysics at the TU Mining Academy in Freiberg (Saxony) and received his Ph.D. in Applied Geology from the University of Tübingen. Main topics of his current research are the development and evaluation of geophysics and direct push methods in hydrogeology, civil engineering and soil sciences.
Rudolf Liedl
Institute for Groundwater Management, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany
Rudolf Liedl is Professor and Head of the Institute for Groundwater Management at the Technische Universität Dresden. He has studied Physics and Mathematics at the Munich University of Technology and holds a Ph.D. from the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Surveying at the Munich University of Technology. His research interests are currently focused on groundwater flow and transport modeling, evaluation of hydrogeological models, hydrogeology of karst aquifer systems, and contaminant plume lengths.
James J. Butler, Ph.D.
Kansas Geological Survey, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
Jim Butler is a Senior Scientist and Chief of the Geohydrology Section of the Kansas Geological Survey at the University of Kansas. He holds a B.S. in Geology from the College of William and Mary, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Applied Hydrogeology from Stanford University. His current research interests include high-resolution subsurface characterization, well responses to natural stimuli, and the role of phreatophytes in stream-aquifer systems.
