Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2010MT213B

Characterization of shallow subsurface hydraulic heterogeneity in the Silver Bow Creek - Butte, Montana area through field and laboratory experiments

Institute: Montana
Year Established: 2010 Start Date: 2010-03-01 End Date: 2011-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $13,217 Total Non-Federal Funds: $26,435

Principal Investigators: Bwalya Malama

Project Summary: The research proposed here in is aimed at hydraulic characterization of subsurface heterogeneity that would inform models of contaminant transport in the study area. This characterization will be accomplished through a combination of experimental and analytical work. The experimental component of the work comprises slug tests at the laboratory and field scale, and permeameter tests at the laboratory scale. The analytical component comprises extension of available slug test mathematical model to include the effect of water table kinematics of predicted slug test responses and estimates of hydraulic parameters. Laboratory slug tests are designed to provide an experimental basis for the mathematical model to be developed in the analytical component of the research. The major results expected from the project include a detailed description of vertical profiles of hydraulic conductivity at selected well locations, a variogram model describing the variability and correlation structure of the hydraulic conductivity field in the study area, and a mathematical model for slug test analysis that accounts for water table kinematics.