Open AccessEvaluation of cavity occurrence in the Maynardville Limestone and the Copper Ridge Dolomite at the Y-12 Plant using logistic and general linear models
Author(s) -
Lisa Shevenell,
Jacques Beauchamp
Publication year - 1994
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/39114
Subject(s) - karst , dolomite , geology , ridge , aquifer , hydrogeology , data set , drilling , hydrology (agriculture) , flow (mathematics) , soil science , mineralogy , groundwater , geotechnical engineering , statistics , paleontology , mathematics , mechanical engineering , engineering , geometry
Several waste disposal sites are located on or adjacent to the karstic Maynardville Limestone (Cmn) and the Copper Ridge Dolomite (Ccr) at the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant. These formations receive contaminants in groundwaters from nearby disposal sites, which can be transported quite rapidly due to the karst flow system. In order to evaluate transport processes through the karst aquifer, the solutional aspects of the formations must be characterized. As one component of this characterization effort, statistical analyses were conducted on the data related to cavities in order to determine if a suitable model could be identified that is capable of predicting the probability of cavity size or distribution in locations for which drilling data are not available. Existing data on the locations (East, North coordinates), depths (and elevations), and sizes of known conduits and other water zones were used in the analyses. Two different models were constructed in the attempt to predict the distribution of cavities in the vicinity of the Y-12 Plant: General Linear Models (GLM), and Logistic Regression Models (LOG). Each of the models attempted was very sensitive to the data set used. Models based on subsets of the full data set were found to do an inadequate job of predicting the behavior of the full data set. The fact that the Ccr and Cmn data sets differ significantly is not surprising considering the hydrogeology of the two formations differs. Flow in the Cmn is generally at elevations between 600 and 950 ft and is dominantly strike parallel through submerged, partially mud-filled cavities with sizes up to 40 ft, but more typically less than 5 ft. Recognized flow in the Ccr is generally above 950 ft elevation, with flow both parallel and perpendicular to geologic strike through conduits, which tend to be large than those on the Cnm, and are often not fully saturated at the shallower depths