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Shapes of steady state perched groundwater mounds
Author(s) -
Khan Muhammad Yunus,
Kirkham Don,
Handy R. L.
Publication year - 1976
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/wr012i003p00429
Subject(s) - groundwater recharge , water table , hydraulic conductivity , geology , stratum , hydrology (agriculture) , geometry , groundwater flow , structural basin , groundwater , steady state (chemistry) , mathematics , geotechnical engineering , geomorphology , soil science , aquifer , soil water , chemistry
A potential theory flow solution for the potential function, stream function, and shape of the water table is given for a class of steady state two‐ and three‐dimensional perched groundwater mounds formed under a long rectangular recharge basin or under a circular recharge basin. The solutions are done by a Gram‐Schmidt method and a simple iteration scheme. The mounds are formed in a stratum of conductivity k 1 overlying a perching stratum of much lower conductivity k 2 . Capillary fringe effects are neglected. The recharge rate is R . Potential theory mound heights are compared with those given by the Dupuit‐Forchheimer (DF) theory. For the cases computed ( R / k 2 = 10, 100, and 500 and k 1 / k 2 = 50,100, 500, 600, 750, and 1000) the DF theory gives apex heights of mounds correct to better than 7% for two‐ dimensional mounds. For three‐dimensional mounds the DF theory gives in one case a mound height that is 69% too low (for R / k 2 = 500 and k 1 / k 2 = 600) and in another case a mound height that is 28% too low (for R / k 2 = 500 and k 1 / k 2 = 1000). Profiles of the computed mounds are graphed, and examples of use of the graphs in applications are given. Sample flow nets are presented.