Статті в журналах з теми "Fractured crystalline-rock aquifer"

A multi-isotope approach in combination with hydrochemical data and borehole logging is applied to identify the source of brackish groundwater in a borehole in the well field of Neksø Municipal Waterworks in Bornholm, Denmark. The aquifer lithology consists of fractured Lower Cambrian sandstones resting on Proterozoic crystalline basement. The water body in the studied borehole is significantly stratified with respect to the hydrochemical and isotopic signatures and reveal a Na–Ca–Cl–HCO3 water type and TDS values >1,000 mg/L below a halocline at 40–55 m below measurement point (bmp). The occurrence of brackish groundwater is remarkable for this aquifer, which otherwise yields potable groundwater of good quality. The stable isotope (18O and 2H) compositions indicate a meteoric origin of the brackish groundwater, which rules out seawater intrusion into the aquifer. 14C activities show apparent 14C ages of the brackish groundwater in the range 2200–4300 yr (BP), whereas the freshwater samples above the halocline indicate modern age. Hydrochemical (Cl/Br and Sr) and isotopic studies (18O, 2H and 87Sr/86Sr) of the brackish groundwater point to a well-mixed and homogeneous water body reflecting long water–rock interaction and suggest a contribution of palaeowater from the fractured crystalline basement which has intruded into the Lower Cambrian sandstone aquifer.

Experimental characterization of thermal transport in fractured media through thermal tracer tests is crucial for environmental and industrial applications such as the prediction of geothermal system efficiency. However, such experiments have been poorly achieved in fractured rock due to the low permeability and complexity of these media. We have thus little knowledge about the effect of flow configuration on thermal recovery during thermal tracer tests in such systems. We present here the experimental set up and results of several single-well thermal tracer tests for different flow configurations, from fully convergent to perfect dipole, achieved in a fractured crystalline rock aquifer at the experimental site of Plœmeur (H+ observatory network). The monitoring of temperature using Fiber-Optic Distributed Temperature Sensing (FO-DTS) associated with appropriate data processing allowed to properly highlight the heat inflow in the borehole and to estimate temperature breakthroughs for the different tests. Results show that thermal recovery is mainly controlled by advection processes in convergent flow configuration while in perfect dipole flow field, thermal exchanges with the rock matrix are more important, inducing lower thermal recovery.

The potential for transport of bacteria by groundwater in fractured crystalline rock was assessed in a series of field-scale tracer tests. The breakthrough curves for injected Escherichla coll and “non-reactive” particle tracers were compared with those for conservative inorganic and radioactive tracers. Rapid transport, relative to the conservative tracers, of both bacteria and non-reactive particles was observed. The first appearance of both was with, or slightly before, the conservative tracers for water movement. Removal of the bacteria and particles by filtration processes occurred and was quantified through the calculation of filter factors. The filtration process in this fracture system is similar to that found in a gravel aquifer. From the results we can conclude that particulate contaminants can be very rapidly transported in fracture systems and that continuing sources of contamination could lead to relatively high local concentrations of particulate contaminants compared with the average at any given distance from the source. It was also concluded that the use of traditional conservative tracers, for water movement, to assess the potential for movement of particulate contaminants could lead to significant underestimates of exposure to particulate contaminants due to consumption of water from water recovery wells located in fractured media.

Crystalline rocks are generally characterized by negligible porosity and permeability in terms of groundwater exploitability. However, alteration processes can greatly increase their fracture permeability and induce formation of modest, but locally important aquifers. Therefore, subsurface characteristics of alteration zones are of major importance for hydrogeological evaluation of crystalline terrains. Alteration processes greatly affect rock total porosity and water content, causing contrasting electrical resistivity of rocks affected by varying degrees of weathering. This makes electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) a preferable geophysical method for the exploration of alteration zones in crystalline rocks. In our research, we used an integrated approach, combining the ERT method with monitoring of spring discharge and hydrochemistry to characterize metamorphic aquifers on slopes of the Medvednica Mountain (Croatia). Significant fracture flow aquifers are found to be formed in intensely fractured but not highly weathered rock masses (medium to high resistivity values), while highly weathered masses (low resistivity values) form local barriers for fracture flows. Subsurface structure of the alteration zone proved to be highly irregular, with sharp contacts between more and less weathered rocks. Decrease of permeability below the alteration zone keeps the water level near the surface and enables spring occurrence on the mountain slopes. Studied aquifers have relatively limited extent, resulting in typical capacity of major springs of a few l/s. More frequent but less productive springs are attributed to the draining of the shallow part of the alteration zone (mostly saprolite). Combination of the ERT method with spring monitoring proved to be very effective as a first and relatively inexpensive methodology for hydrogeological characterization of crystalline terrains, both in local and catchment scales.

In the process of improving the knowledge of the hydrogeological potential of weathered zones in crystalline rocks and compounds that can behave as aquifers, this article is performed whose area of study is located east of the metropolitan area of Bucaramanga, Santander Massif consists of two main lithological units; the Neis of Bucaramanga and Santander Group plutonic (diorite, granodiorite-tonalite gray quartz monzonite and monzogranite). These rocks have undergone brittle deformation, physico-chemical weathering mainly influenced by the tropical atmosphere of the area also are jointed and fractured creating conditions that facilitate the flow of water and in turn be optimized weathering processes in the region. He appealed to the identification and location of field weathering profiles made a detailed study of outcrops, presenting a thickness of 90.4 m for the profile of the Gneisic rock weathering and 68.5 m for the profile of granodiorite rock, made up 6 steps weathering of which samples each were taken and carry out macroscopic analysis, petrographic and geochemical using thin films, determining the percentage of porosity, humidity, dry unit weight, X-ray fluorescence, electron microscopy Sweeping and Grading; base characterizing weathering profiles and properties, highlighting the potential hydrogeological found in the Range II: Slightly weathered rock and interval V: Completely weathered rock profile of granodiorite rock and Rock Gneisic profile, the interval III : Moderately weathered rock and the range V: Completely weathered rock, since these stages of weathering, moisture peaks present, regular micro fractures and high porosities.

ABSTRACT: This work is a case study in Guyana with the goal of finding groundwater in rock layers with fracture-controlled porosity using electrical resistivity imaging. This work was carried out in two phases by the Brazilian Army, in eight communities in the region of Alto Tacutu – Alto Essequibo in southeast Guyana. All work was done in accordance with a technical agreement between Brazil and Guyana. In the first phase, the surveys were completed by the team which collected resistivity data using a SuperSting R8 electrical resistivity meter with dipole-dipole and dipole-gradient arrays. Then the software EarthImager was used to analyze the data and create two-dimensional (2D) pseudo-sections with depths up to 70m. In the second phase, eight wells were drilled in areas of low resistivity. The geology of this region consists of Precambrian granite rock layers with varying levels of fracturing. In this way, the effectiveness of the multielectrode resistivity imaging technique was demonstrated as a way to explore the availability of groundwater in crystalline rock formations with fracture-controlled porosity.Keywords: electrical resistivity imaging, well siting, groundwater.RESUMO: Este trabalho se constitui em um estudo de caso na Guiana Inglesa, com o objetivo de encontrar água subterrânea por meio de levantamentos de resistividade elétrica, nas áreas de porosidade controladas pelas zonas de fraturas. O trabalho foi realizado em duas fases pelo Exército Brasileiro em oito comunidades da região do Alto Tacutu – Alto Essequibo no sudeste da Guiana Inglesa, através de um acordo de cooperação técnica entre o Brasil e a Guiana. Na primeira fase, os levantamentos foram feitos por uma equipe que coletou dados de resistividade usando um eletrorresistivímetro SuperSting R8 com arranjos dos tipos dipolo-dipolo e dipolo gradiente. Em seguida foi utilizado o software EarthImager para analisar os dados e criar pseudoseções de duas dimensões (2D) até 70m de profundidade. Na segunda fase, oito poços foram perfurados em pontos de baixa resistividade. A geologia da região é constituída de rochas graníticas Pré-cambrianas com níveis variados de fraturamento. Desse modo, demonstrou-se a efetividade do método de resistividade elétrica multieletrodo para explorar a disponibilidade de água subterrânea em aquíferos fraturados em terrenos cristalinos.Palavras-chave: imageamento de resistividade elétrica, locação de poços, água subterrânea.

Abstract. Water chemical analysis of 100 springs from the Orco and the Tinée valleys (Western Italy and Southern France) and a 7 years groundwater chemistry monitoring of the 5 main springs were performed. All these springs drain crystalline rock slopes. Some of these drain currently active gravitational slope deformations. The pyrite nuclei contained in crystalline rock materials were found in the fractures to be covered superficially by iron oxide coatings. Potentially, the infiltration of oxidigenated waters leads to the dissolution of iron(II) sulfides associated with precipitation of insoluble iron(III) oxides and with a consequent release of sulfate ions to solution, such as observed. All the waters flowing through unstable slopes show anomalies in the sulfate concentrations compared to stable aquifers. A sulfate concentrations increasing was observed repeatability after five consecutive landslides and suggest that the mechanical deformation is the origin of changes of the water composition and of the superficial mineralogy in the fractures. Moreover, the long-term observation of changes in water chemistry, rock mineral composition and associated calculation shows that sliding acceleration and chemical composition are closely related. Such signatures is produced even from slow (mm/yr) and low magnitude deformations. This result opens interesting perspective for the follow-up of sliding dynamic in landslides or in (a)seismic events and for the eventual prediction of catastrophic ruptures.

Environmental isotope tracers were applied in the Upper Crocodile River Basin, Johannesburg, South Africa, to understand the groundwater recharge conditions, flow mechanisms and interactions between surface and subsurface water. Stable isotope analysis indicated that recharge into the fractured quartzite aquifer occurs through direct mechanisms. The high variability in the stable isotope signature of temporal samples from Albert Farm spring indicated the importance of multiple samples for groundwater characterization, and that using a single sample may be yielding biased conclusions. The observed inverse relationship between spring discharge and isotope signature indicated the traces of rainfall amount effect during recharge, thereby suggesting piston groundwater flow. It is deduced that a measured discharge value can be used in this relationship to calculate the isotopic signature, which resembles effective rainfall. In the shallow alluvial deposits that overlie the granitic bed-rock, piezometer levels and stable isotopes revealed an interaction between Montgomery stream and interflow, which regulates streamflow throughout the year. This suggests that caution should be taken where hydrograph separation is applied for baseflow estimates, because the stream flow that overlies such geology may include significant interflow. The hydrochemistry evolution was observed in a stream fed by karst springs. As pH rises due to CO2 degassing, CaCO3 precipitates, thereby forming travertine moulds. The values of saturation indices that were greater than zero in all samples indicated supersaturation by calcite and dolomite and hence precipitation. Through 14C analysis, groundwater flow rate in the karst aquifer was estimated as 11 km/year, suggesting deep circulation in karst structures.

Abstract. Water chemical analysis of 100 springs from the Orco and the Tinée valleys (Western Italy and Southern France) and a 7 year groundwater chemistry monitoring of the 5 main springs were performed. All these springs drain from crystalline rock slopes. Some of these drain from currently active gravitational slope deformations. All groundwaters flowing through presently unstable slopes show anomalies in the sulfate concentrations compared to stable aquifers. Particularly, an increase of sulfate concentrations was observed repeatedly after each of five consecutive landslides on the La Clapière slope, thus attesting to the mechanical deformations are at the origin of this concentration change. Significant changes in the water chemistry are produced even from slow (mm/year) and low magnitude deformations of the geological settings. Pyrite nuclei in open fractures were found to be coated by iron oxides. This suggests that the increase of dissolved sulfate relates to oxidative dissolution of Pyrite. Speciation calculations of Pyrite versus Gypsum confirmed that observed changes in the sulfate concentrations is predominantly provided from Pyrite. Calculated amounts of dissolved minerals in the springs water was obtained through inverse modelling of the major ion water analysis data. It is shown that the concentration ratio of calculated dissolved Pyrite versus calculated dissolved gneiss rock allows us to unambiguously distinguish water from stable and unstable areas. This result opens an interesting perspective for the follow-up of sliding or friction dynamic in landslides or in (a) seismic faults.

Abstract Various cavities studied in western Niger and South Cameroon show the existence of important karstic phenomena into metagabbros and gneisses. These large-sized caves resulted from generalized dissolution of silicate formations in spite of their low solubility. Karstification is produced by deep hydrous transfer along lithological discontinuities and fracture net works. The existence of such caves has major implications in geomorphology, under either Sahelian and Equatorial climate, and in hydrogeology and water supply, particularly in the Sahel area. Introduction. – Since a few decades, several karst-like morphologies are described in non-carbonated rocks (sandstones, quartzites, schistes, gneisses…) [Wray, 1997 ; Vicat and Willems, 1998 ; Willems, 2000]. The cave of Guéssédoundou in West Niger seems to be due to a large dissolution of metagabbros. The cave of Mfoula, South Cameroon, attests for the same process in gneisses. This forms proof that big holes may exist deeper in the substratum even of non-carbonated silicate rocks. Their size and number could mainly influence the landscape and the hydrogeology, especially in the Sahelian areas. Guéssédoundou, a cave into metagabbros in West Niger. – The site of Guéssédoundou is located 70 km south-west of Niamey (fig. 1). The cave is opened at the top of a small hill, inside in NNE-SSW elongated pit (fig. 2 ; pl. I A). The hole, 3 to 4 m deep and 20 m large, has vertical walls and contains numerous sub-metric angular blocks. A cave, a few meters deep, comes out the south wall. Bedrocks consist of metagabbros of the Makalondi greenstone belt, a belt of the Palaeoproterozoic Birimian Formations of the West Africa craton [Pouclet et al., 1990]. The rock has a common granular texture with plagioclases, partly converted in albite and clinozoisite, and pyroxenes pseudomorphosed in actinote and chlorite. It is rather fairly altered. Chemical composition is mafic and poorly alkaline (tabl. I). A weak E-W schistosity generated with the epizonal thermometamorphism. The site depression was created along a N010o shear zone where rocks suffered important fracturation and fluid transfers, as shown by its silification and ferruginisation. The absence of human activity traces and the disposition of the angular blocks attest that the pit is natural and was due to the collapse of the roof of a vast cavity whose current cave is only the residual prolongation. To the vertical walls of the depression and at the cave entry, pluridecimetric hemispheric hollows are observed (pl. I B). Smooth morphology and position of these hollows sheltered within the depression dismiss the assumptions of formation by mechanical erosion. In return, these features are typical shape of dissolution processes observed into limestone karstic caves. That kind of process must be invoked to explain the opening of the Guéssédoundou cave, in the total lack of desagregation materials. Dissolution of metagabbro occurred during hydrous transfer, which was probably guided by numerous fractures of the shear zone. Additional observations have been done in the Sirba Valley, where similar metabasite rocks constitute the substratum, with sudden sinking of doline-like depressions and evidence of deep cavities by core logging [Willems et al., 1993, 1996]. It is concluded that karstic phenomena may exist even in silica-aluminous rocks of crystalline terrains, such as the greenstones of a Precambrian craton. Mfoula a cave into gneisses in South Cameroon. – The cave of Mfoula is located 80 km north-east of Yaoundé (fig. 3). It is the second largest cave of Cameroon, more than 5,000 m3, with a large opening in the lower flank of a deep valley (pl. I C). The cavity is about 60 m long, 30 m large and 5 to 12 m high (fig. 4; pl. I D). It is hollowed in orthogneisses belonging to the Pan-African Yaoundé nappe. Rocks exhibit subhorizontal foliation in two superposed lithological facies: the lower part is made of amphibole- and garnet-bearing layered gneisses, and the upper part, of more massive granulitic gneisses. Average composition is silico-aluminous and moderately alkaline (tabl. I). The cave is made of different chambers separated by sub-cylindrical pillars. The ceiling of the main chamber, 6 m in diameter, is dome-shaped with a smooth surface (D, fig. 4). The walls have also a smooth aspect decorated with many hemispherical hollows. The floor is flat according to the rock foliation. They are very few rock debris and detrital fragments and no traces of mechanical erosion and transport. The general inner morphology is amazingly similar to that of a limestone cave. The only way to generate such a cavity is to dissolve the rock by water transfer. To test the effect of the dissolution process, we analysed a clayey residual sampled in an horizontal fracture of the floor (tabl. I). Alteration begins by plagioclases in producing clay minerals and in disagregating the rock. However, there is no more clay and sand material. That means all the silicate minerals must have been eliminated. Dissolution of silicates is a known process in sandstone and quartzite caves. It may work as well in gneisses. To fasten the chemical action, we may consider an additional microbial chemolitotrophe activity. The activity of bacteria colonies is known in various rocks and depths, mainly in the aquifer [Sinclair and Ghiorse, 1989 ; Stevens and McKinley, 1995]. The formation of the Mfoula cave is summarized as follow (fig. 5). Meteoric water is drained down along sub-vertical fractures and then along horizontal discontinuities of the foliation, particularly in case of lithological variations. Chemical and biological dissolution is working. Lateral transfers linked to the aquifer oscillations caused widening of the caves. Dissolved products are transported by the vertical drains. Regressive erosion of the valley, linked to the epeirogenic upwelling due to the volcano-tectonic activity of the Cameroon Line, makes the cavities come into sight at the valley flanks. Discussion and conclusion. – The two examples of the Guéssédoundou and Mfoula caves evidence the reality of the karsts in non-carbonated silicated rocks. The karst term is used to design ≫ any features of the classical karst morphology (caves, dolines, lapies…) where dissolution plays the main genetical action ≫ [Willems, 2000]. Our observations indicate that (i) the karst genesis may have occurred into any kind of rocks, and (ii) the cave formation is not directly dependent of the present climate. These facts have major consequences to hydrogeological investigations, especially for water supply in Sahelian and sub-desertic countries. Some measurements of water transfer speed across either sedimentary pelitic strata of the Continental terminal or igneous rocks of the substratum in West Niger [Estèves and Lenoir, 1996 ; Ousmane et al., 1984] proved that supplying of aquifers in these silico-aluminous rocks may be as fast as in a karstic limestone. That means the West Niger substratum is highly invaded by a karstic net and may hidden a lot of discontinuous aquifers. The existence of this karst system can be easily shown by morphological observations, the same that are done in karstic limestone regions (abnormally suspended dry valleys, collapses, dolines…). Clearly, this must be the guide for any search of water, even in desertic areas where limestones are absent.

Crystalline rocks constitute aquifers that are of interest for water supply in many countries. In Italy, the hydrogeological characteristics of crystalline rocks are not well known and the interest in these aquifers is generally scarce. Nevertheless, the large extent of these rocks in Sardinia and Calabria regions and the local scarcity of water resources justify this preliminary analysis. Crossing the information derived by the available data on climate conditions, type of crystalline rock, structural setting, characteristics of wells and springs, base flow of streams and rivers and pumping test results, a preliminary quantification of the potential yield of the crystalline aquifers of both regions was performed. The processing of data involving different aspects confirmed that the crystalline rocks of Sardinia and Calabria form low-permeability aquifers where groundwater circulation occurs in the weathered layer and, mainly, in the most fissured layers closest to the surface. In the heavily fractured zones, it was seen that the groundwater flow is more active and can also occur at a greater depth. Groundwater mainly outflows in the valleys, feeding streams, numerous low discharge springs and surrounding aquifers. Climate, rock covers and tectonic style influence the aquifer yield, which has been evaluated herein to range from 1 to 2 L/s per km2 and from 2 to 12 L/s per km2 in Sardinia and Calabria, respectively. This preliminary characterization shows that there are reasons to deepen the present knowledge on these aquifers in order to optimize the present use of their groundwater resources

The major rock types mapped in the Tsiga area NW Nigeria, include gneisses and granites associated with minor rocks such as xenoliths and some structural features including foliation, joints, faults and veins (quartz and pegmatite).The mineralogy includes feldspar (orthoclase and plagioclase), quartz, biotite and some accessory minerals. These rock types and the associated structural features have their trends in N-S direction. The structural analysis of joints on the granites of the study area shows that the joints have a trend of NNE-SSW. The joints on the gneisses have a trend of NE-SW. In terms of age relationships of the rocks, gneisses are older than the granites based on deformed features. The gneisses probably originated from sediments, para-gneisses. The granites must have resulted from magma intrusion. The structures in the study area suggests the imprint of the Pan-African Orogeny, as indicated by the structural analysis of fractures. The major rivers in the study area include Yali and Moryaji with their tributaries which formed a dendritic drainage pattern, and are structurally controlled. Surface water occurs during the raining season and underground water are available in the area, occurring in shallow pit dug along the stream and river channels, and the fractured crystalline aquifer. The economic potentials in the area includes; rock aggregates, dimension stone, lateritic soil and alluvium deposits which are used for different purposes and include building houses and construction of roads and bridges and probably rare earth elements at the contact zones between the igneous and metamorphic rocks.

AbstractDuring the past few years, the number of regional and national assessments of groundwater quality in regard to saltwater intrusion in coastal aquifers has increased steadily. However, most of the international literature on saltwater intrusion is focused on coastal plains with aquifers in unconsolidated material. Case studies, modelling approaches and parameter studies dealing with saltwater intrusion in those systems are abundant. While the hydrogeology of fractured rock has been intensively studied with both modelling approaches and parameter studies—mainly in relation to deep-laying fractured crystalline bedrock as potential waste repositories—case studies on saltwater intrusion in shallow fractured rocks are still an exception. This review summarizes the actual knowledge on saltwater intrusion in fractured crystalline rock. In combination with short overviews of the processes of saltwater intrusion, flow in fractured systems and the genesis of these systems, the review highlights the importance of the fracture systems and its specific characteristics. Fracture properties are a direct consequence of the geological history as well as the current situation of the coastal area. A holistic assessment of water quality in coastal areas hosting fractured crystalline bedrock therefore requires the combination of different approaches in order to investigate the impact of saltwater intrusion through the fractured system.

The Ganga-Brahmaputra river system together forms one of the largest deltas in the world comprising some 59570 sq km. The waterpower resources of the Brahmaputra have been presumed to be the fourth biggest in the world being 19.83 x 103 m3s1. The entire lower portion of the Brahmaputra consists of a vast network of distributary channels, which are dry in the cold season but are inundated during monsoon. The catchment area of the entire river is about 580,000 sq km, out of which 195,000 sq km lies in India. The maximum discharge as measured at Pandu in 1962 was of the order of 72800 m3 s-1 while the minimum was 1750 m3 s-1 in 1968. The drainage pattern in the valley is of antecedent type while the yazoo drainage pattern is most significant over the composite flood plain to the south of the Brahmaputra. The Brahmaputra valley is covered by Recent alluvium throughout its stretch except a few isolated sedimentary hills in the upper Assam, inselbergs/bornhardt of gneissic hills in the Darrang, Kamrup and Goalpara districts and a few inlying patches of Older Alluvium in the Darrang and Goalpara districts. The basin is very unstable. The present configuration of the basin is the result of uplift and subsidence of the Precambrian crystalline landmasses. Four geotectonic provinces can be delineated in the N-E India through which the Brahmaputra flows. These are bounded by major tectonic lineaments such as the basement E-W trending Dauki fault, a NE-SW trending structural feature of imbricate thrusts known as 'belt of Schuppen' and the NW-SE trending Mishmi thrust. Hydrogeologically, the Brahmaputra basin can be divided into two distinct categories, viz(a) dissected alluvial plain and (b) the inselberg zone. The first category is rep resented in the flood plain extending from the south of Sub-Himalayan piedmont fan zone in the north to right upto the main rock promontory of Garo Hills and Shillong Plateau. The inselberg zone is characterized by fractured, jointed and weathered ancient crystalline rocks with interhill narrow valley plains, consisting of thin to occasionally thick piles of assorted sediments. From the subsurface lithological data, two broad groups of aquifers are identified. These are i) shallow water table and ii) deeper water table or confined ones, separated by a system of aquicludes. The shallow aquifer materials, in general, consist of white to greyish white, fine grained micaceous sand and the thickness ranges from 1.2 to 10.3 m. The sand and clay ratio varies from 1: 2.5 to 1:26. The bedrock occurs at depth ranges of 30.4 to 39.5 m. The materials of the deeper aquifers comprise grey to greyish white, fine to medium grained sand. The sand and clay ratio varies from 1:2 to 1:7. The effective size of the aquifer materials varies from 0.125 to 0.062 mm with uniformity co-efficient around 4.00, porosity 38 to 42%, co-efficient of permeability 304 to 390 galls per day/0.3m2. The ground water is mildly alkaline with pH value 6.5 to 8.5, chloride 10 to 40 ppm, bi-carbonate 50 to 350 ppm, iron content ranges from a fraction of a ppm to 50 ppm. Total dissolved solids are low, hardness as CaCo3 50 to 300 ppm, specific conductance at 25 °C 150 to 650 mhos/cm. The yield from shallow aquifers is 1440 litres to 33750 litres/hour and for deeper aquifers ~ 1700 litres/hour at a drawdown of 13.41 m, specific capacity 21 litres/minute. The temperatures of ground water are 23°-25° C during winter, 24°-26° C during pre-monsoon and 27°- 28° C during peak monsoon. The general hydraulic gradient in the north bank is 1:800 whereas in the south bank it is 1: 300-400 The Tertiary sediments yield a range of water from 200 to 300 l.p.m whereas the yield from the Older Alluvium is 500 to 700 1.p.m. The estimated transmissibility and co-efficient of storage is of the order of ~ 800 1.p.m/ m and 8.2 x 10-3 respectively. Depths to water levels range from 5.3 to 10m below land surface (b.l.s). In the Younger or Newer Alluvium, ground water occurs both under water table and confined conditions. Depths to water levels vary from ground level to 10 m b.l.s. Depth to water ranges from 6 m b.l.s. to 2 m above land surface. The yield of the deep tubewells ranges from 2 to 4 kl/minute for a drawdown of 3 m to 6 m. The transmissibility of the aquifers varies from 69 to 1600 l.p.m/m and the storage co-fficient is of the order of 3.52 x 10-2.

The geology and hydro-geophysical features can aid in identifying borehole location. The study aims to investigate groundwater aquifers and best location of boreholes in the crystalline basement area of Abu Zabad near El Obeid Southwest, Sudan. The study area is underlain by two aquifers formations from Precambrian age. The oldest units of basement complex of area under investigation consist of metamorphic rocks including gneiss, schist, and quartzite.The geophysical methods electromagnetic (EM) and vertical electrical sounding (VES) surveys showed that best aquifers yield for construction of boreholes are in weathering and fractures formation. The EM results revealed that structural features are significant for groundwater potential and interpretation of the VES data also revealed four geo-electric layers, but generally two distinct lithologic layers, which include Superficial deposit and bedrock-basement respectively. The curves generated from the data revealed H curve and HK curve, and thickness of these layers varies from 15 m to 50 m in the area. The aquifer thickness range from 20 m to 30 m. The study concludes that these techniques are suitable for identifying borehole location in the basement rock in Abu Zabad Area Sudan.

AbstractHard rocks or crystalline rocks (i.e., plutonic and metamorphic rocks) constitute the basement of all continents, and are particularly exposed at the surface in the large shields of Africa, India, North and South America, Australia and Europe. They were, and are still in some cases, exposed to deep weathering processes. The storativity and hydraulic conductivity of hard rocks, and thus their groundwater resources, are controlled by these weathering processes, which created weathering profiles. Hard-rock aquifers then develop mainly within the first 100 m below ground surface, within these weathering profiles. Where partially or noneroded, these weathering profiles comprise: (1) a capacitive but generally low-permeability unconsolidated layer (the saprolite), located immediately above (2) the permeable stratiform fractured layer (SFL). The development of the SFL’s fracture network is the consequence of the stress induced by the swelling of some minerals, notably biotite. To a much lesser extent, further weathering, and thus hydraulic conductivity, also develops deeper below the SFL, at the periphery of or within preexisting geological discontinuities (joints, dykes, veins, lithological contacts, etc.). The demonstration and recognition of this conceptual model have enabled understanding of the functioning of such aquifers. Moreover, this conceptual model has facilitated a comprehensive corpus of applied methodologies in hydrogeology and geology, which are described in this review paper such as water-well siting, mapping hydrogeological potentialities from local to country scale, quantitative management, hydrodynamical modeling, protection of hard-rock groundwater resources (even in thermal and mineral aquifers), computing the drainage discharge of tunnels, quarrying, etc.

ABSTRACTAdsorption processes are important in controlling U concentrations in ground water. Quantifying such processes is extremely difficult in that in situ conditions cannot be directly measured. One rock characteristic that must be known to quantify adsorption is the specific surface area of reactive minerals exposed to the ground water. We evaluate here three methods for estimating specific surface area in situ. The first is based on the dissolution kinetics of sodium feldspars, the second on emanation of radon-222 and the third on adsorption of naturally-occurring U. The radon-222 method yields estimates 5 to 8 orders of magnitude greater than those obtained via the other two methods; too large probably because of effects related to fracture geometry. Estimates of specific surface area based on modelling adsorption of natural U by aquifer materials are of comparable magnitude to those from the feldspar-dissolution kinetics approach. These conclusions are based on analyses of water from 145 wells in crystalline-rock aquifers from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Colorado. Computer modelling of the chemical data using PHREEQE [1] showed that uraninite or coffinite approach saturation in reducing water, limiting total U to <2 × 10−9 m. Generally, U minerals are below saturation in oxidizing ground water, where uranyl-carbonate complexes are the dominant dissolved U species. Autoradioluxographs of thin sections show areas of concentration of radioactivity in the rocks and establish that U is concentrated along fracture boundaries and on ferric oxyhydroxide grain coatings. Because U minerals generally are undersaturated, U mobility is limited by adsorption onto ferric oxyhydroxides and other mineral surfaces. Calculations of uranyl adsorption from the ground water onto goethite using the program M1NTEQ [2] show that adsorption decreases with increased carbonate concentrations due to the formation of uranyl-carbonate complexes. Results of this paper improve our understanding of the mobility of U that might be released into oxidized ground water in crystalline rock from a breached radioactive-waste repository.