Groundwater Flow Model Calibration Using Variable Density Modeling for Coastal Aquifer Management

The paper investigates the mechanism of seawater intrusion and the performance of free and open-source codes for the simulation of variable density flow problems in coastal aquifers. For this purpose, the research focused on the Marathon Watershed, located in the northeastern tip of Attica, Greece....

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Hydrology 2024-04, Vol.11 (4), p.59
Main Authors: Perdikaki, Martha, Chrysanthopoulos, Efthymios, Markantonis, Konstantinos, Kallioras, Andreas
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aquifer management
Aquifers
Calibration
Chemical analysis
Coastal aquifers
Coastal management
Codes
Density
Density flow
Dry season
Environmental aspects
Flow simulation
Geology
Groundwater
Groundwater flow
Hydraulics
Management
Mathematical models
MODFLOW
Parameters
Piezometric head
Porous materials
Precipitation
Rainy season
Saline water
Saline water intrusion
Salt water intrusion
Saltwater encroachment
SEAWAT
Seawater
seawater intrusion
Sensitivity analysis
Simulation
UCODE
Water
Water analysis
Citations: Items that this one cites
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The paper investigates the mechanism of seawater intrusion and the performance of free and open-source codes for the simulation of variable density flow problems in coastal aquifers. For this purpose, the research focused on the Marathon Watershed, located in the northeastern tip of Attica, Greece. For the simulation of the groundwater system, MODFLOW, MT3DMS and SEAWAT codes were implemented, while sensitivity analysis and calibration processes were carried out with UCODE. Hydraulic head calibration was performed on the MODFLOW model, and TDS concentration was validated in the SEAWAT model. The calibrated parameters of the MODFLOW model were obtained for the variable density flow simulation with SEAWAT. The MODFLOW and SEAWAT hydraulic head outputs were analyzed and compared to one another. The outcome of this analysis is that SEAWAT produced slightly better results in terms of the hydraulic heads, concluding that parameter transferability can take place between the two models. For the purpose of the seawater intrusion assessment, the use of the SEAWAT code revealed that the aquifer is subjected to passive and passive–active seawater intrusion during wet and dry seasons, respectively. Finally, an irregular shape of a saltwater wedge is developed at a specific area associated with the hydraulic parameters of the aquifer.
ISSN:2306-5338
2306-5338
DOI:10.3390/hydrology11040059