Water Resources Research Act Program

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Details for Project ID 2014KY238B

Use of time-lapse electrical resistivity to image solute transport in a karst conduit

Institute: Kentucky
Year Established: 2014 Start Date: 2014-03-01 End Date: 2015-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $5,000 Total Non-Federal Funds: $10,053

Principal Investigators: Audrey Sawyer

Project Summary: The objective of this study is to assess whether time-lapse electrical resistivity methods hold promise for detecting karst conduits. This research will potentially yield a new method for detecting conduits in karst and will also provide new information about a conduit feature that conveys water to Royal Spring, the municipal water source for Georgetown, Kentucky. The novelty of this study lies in the combined use of a salt tracer injection and remote geophysics (time-lapse electrical resistivity imaging, or ERI) to detect changes in electrical resistivity within a known conduit. We will validate results of ERI using in-situ conductivity measurements from a well that intersects the conduit.