Current Science

Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Subscription Access

Improving Groundwater Recharge by Ventilation of Unsaturated Zone


Affiliations
1 Department of Geology, Anna University, Chennai 600 025, India
 

Groundwater recharge is affected by the entrapment of air in the unsaturated zone. During the infiltration process, air phase moves ahead of the wetting front and confined air mass resists wetting front propagation. This study aims at assessing the feasibility of improving groundwater recharge by providing ventilation in the unsaturated zone through the removal of entrapped air. In a laboratory sand column, ponded infiltration tests were carried out by providing vents of different diameters. Increase in diameter and number of vents improved the infiltration rate. Thus, simple pipes of any diameter inserted within the unsaturated zone beneath the recharge structures such as check dams, percolation ponds, surface spreading, etc. will lead to rapid increase in infiltration rate.

Keywords

Groundwater Recharge, Infiltration, Unsaturated Zone, Ventilation.
User
Notifications
Font Size

  • Gleeson, T., Wada, Y., Bierkens, M. F. P. and van Beek, L. P. H., Water balance of global aquifers revealed by groundwater footprint. Nature, 2012, 488, 197–200.

  • Shah, T., Roy, A. D., Qureshi, A. S. and Wang, J., Sustaining Asia’s groundwater boom: an overview of issues and evidence. Nat. Resour. Forum, 2003, 27, 130–141.

  • Ferguson, G. and Gleeson, T., Vulnerability of coastal aquifers to groundwater use and climate change. Nat. Clim. Change, 2012, 2, 342–345.

  • Gowrisankar, G. et al., Chemical, microbial and antibiotic susceptibility analyses of groundwater after a major flood event in Chennai. Sci. Data, 2017, 4, 170135.

  • Nättorp, A. et al., Overview of Managed Aquifer Recharge in India. In Natural Water Treatment Systems for Safe and Sustainable Water Supply in the Indian Context (eds Wintgens, T. et al.), IWA Publishing, London, UK, 2016, vol. 5, pp. 79–98.

  • Keller, A. A., Sakthivadivel, R. and Seckler, D. W., Water Scarcity and the Role of Storage in Development, Research Report Number 39. IWMI, Colombo, Sri Lanka, 2000.

  • Agarwal, A. and Narain, S., Dying Wisdom. Rise, Fall and Potential of India’s Traditional Water Harvesting Systems. Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi, 1997, 4, p. 404.

  • Shah, T., Gulati, A., Shreedar, H. P. G. and Jain, R. C., Secret of Gujarat’s agrarian miracle after 2000. Econ. Polit. Wkly, 2009, 44, 45–55.

  • CGWB, Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Groundwater. Report Central Ground Water Board, Ministry of Water Resources, Government of India, New Delhi, India, 2013.

  • Nimmo, J. R., Unsaturated zone flow processes. Encyclop. Hydrolog. Sci., 2005, 4, 2299–2322.

  • Kim, M., Jeong, G.-C., Chung, M. and Kim, N. W., Experimental assessment of the infiltration properties of a coarse soil medium in a dielectric infiltration test. Environ Geol., 2009, 57, 591–600.

  • Kuang, X., Jiao, J. J. and Li, H., Review on airflow in unsaturated zones induced by natural forcings, Water Resour. Res., 2013, 49, 6137–6165.

  • Bond, W. J. and Collis-George, N., Ponded infiltration into simple soil systems: 2. Pore air pressures ahead of and behind the wetting front. Soil Sci., 1981, 131, 263–270.

  • Adrian, D. D. and Franzini, J. B., Impedance to infiltration by pressure build‐up ahead of the wetting front. J. Geophys. Res., 1966, 71, 5857–5862.

  • Dixon, R. M. and Linden, D. R., Soil air pressure and water infiltration under border irrigation. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 1972, 36, 948–953.

  • Bond, W. J. and Collis-George, N., Ponded infiltration into simple soil systems: 1. the saturation and transition zones in the moisture content profiles. Soil Sci., 1981, 131, 202–209.

  • Wang, Z., Feyen, J., Genuchten, M. Th. and Nielsen, D. R., Air entrapment effects on infiltration rate and flow instability. Water Resour. Res., 1998, 34, 213–222.

  • Touma, J. and Vauclin, M., Experimental and numerical analysis of two-phase infiltration in a partially saturated soil. Transp. Porous Med., 1986, 1, 27–55.

  • Faybishenko, B. A., Hydraulic behavior of quasi-saturated soils in the presence of entrapped air: laboratory experiments. Water Resour. Res., 1995, 31, 2421–2435.

  • Culligan, P. J., Barry, D. A., Parlange, J., Steenhuis, T. S. and Haverkamp, R., Infiltration with controlled air escape. Water Resour. Res., 2000, 36, 781–785.

  • Vachaud, G., Vauclin, M. and Khanji, D., Effects of air pressure on water flow in an unsaturated stratified vertical column of sand. Water Resour. Res., 1973, 9, 160–173.

  • Constantz, J., Herkelrath, W. N. and Murphy, F., Air encapsulation during infiltration. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 1988, 52, 10–16.

  • Horton, R. E., An approach toward a physical interpretation of infiltrationcapacity. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 1941, 5, 399–417.

  • Free, G. R. and Palmer, V. J., Interrelationship of infiltration, air movement, and pore size in graded silica sand. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 1941, 5, 390–398.

  • Parlange, J. Y. and Hill, D. E., Air and water movement in porous media: compressibility effects. Soil Sci., 1979, 127, 257–263

  • Ma, Y., Feng, S., Zhan, H., Liu X., Su, D., Kang, S. and Song, X., Water infiltration in layered soils with air entrapment: modified Green-Ampt model and experimental validation. J. Hydrol. Eng., 2010, 16, 628–638.

  • Grismer, M. E., Orang, M. N., Clausnitzer, V. and Kinney, K., Effects of air compression and counter flow on infiltration into soils. J. Irrig. Drain. Eng., 1994, 120, 775–795.


Abstract Views: 330

PDF Views: 118




  • Improving Groundwater Recharge by Ventilation of Unsaturated Zone

Abstract Views: 330  |  PDF Views: 118

Authors

V. K. Haritha
Department of Geology, Anna University, Chennai 600 025, India
L. Elango
Department of Geology, Anna University, Chennai 600 025, India

Abstract


Groundwater recharge is affected by the entrapment of air in the unsaturated zone. During the infiltration process, air phase moves ahead of the wetting front and confined air mass resists wetting front propagation. This study aims at assessing the feasibility of improving groundwater recharge by providing ventilation in the unsaturated zone through the removal of entrapped air. In a laboratory sand column, ponded infiltration tests were carried out by providing vents of different diameters. Increase in diameter and number of vents improved the infiltration rate. Thus, simple pipes of any diameter inserted within the unsaturated zone beneath the recharge structures such as check dams, percolation ponds, surface spreading, etc. will lead to rapid increase in infiltration rate.

Keywords


Groundwater Recharge, Infiltration, Unsaturated Zone, Ventilation.

References





DOI: https://doi.org/10.18520/cs%2Fv116%2Fi11%2F1914-1919