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Wastewater Irrigation Impacts on Soil Hydraulic Conductivity: Coupled Field Sampling and Laboratory Determination of Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity

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Simulation of water-table aquifers using specified saturated thickness.

Rodney A Sheets¹, Mary C Hill, Henk M Haitjema

¹U.S. Geological Survey, 3215 Marine St., Boulder, CO 80303-1066.

|February 8, 2014

Summary

Simulating groundwater flow in unconfined aquifers is challenging due to variable saturated thickness. A specified-thickness approximation, though criticized, offers significant time savings and accurate results for groundwater modeling.

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Area of Science:

Hydrology
Hydrogeology
Numerical Modeling

Background:

Groundwater flow simulation in unconfined aquifers is complex because saturated thickness varies with hydraulic heads.
This variability complicates numerical modeling, often requiring iterative solutions.

Purpose of the Study:

To review the theoretical basis of the specified-thickness approximation for groundwater flow models.
To derive an error analysis for this approximation.
To demonstrate its practical utility in complex hydrogeological scenarios.

Main Methods:

Theoretical review of the specified-thickness approximation.
Derivation of an error analysis for idealized conditions.
Application and evaluation of the approximation on a complex test problem (transient and steady-state).

Main Results:

The specified-thickness approximation yielded maximum drawdown errors of ~4% (transient) and ~20% (steady-state) of initial saturated thickness.
Mean errors in steady-state simulations were approximately 5% of initial saturated thickness.
The method significantly reduces computation time and enhances model stability.

Conclusions:

The specified-thickness approximation is a valuable tool for accelerating groundwater model development, especially during calibration and sensitivity analyses.
It facilitates convergence and is particularly useful for extensive model runs like uncertainty analysis and resource management scenario development.
Despite potential criticisms, the approximation provides accurate results and substantial computational benefits in unconfined aquifer modeling.