Analytical Solution for Transient Hydraulic Head, Flow Rate and Volumetric Exchange in an Aquifer Under Recharge Condition

Abstract

Analytical Solution for Transient Hydraulic Head, Flow Rate and Volumetric Exchange in an Aquifer Under Recharge ConditionThis paper presents closed form solution for unsteady flow equation corresponding to the transient hydraulic head, flow rate and volumetric exchange of a confined aquifer which is in contact with a constant piezometric head at one end and a stream whose water level is rising at a constant rate at the other end. The aquifer is also subjected to receive constant inflow due to rain infiltration. The unsteady groundwater flow equation is solved using Laplace transform to get analytical expressions for the transient hydraulic head and flow rate at the left and right interfaces and the net volumetric exchange of water at the aquifer-stream interface. The analytical results presented here show the effect of recharge due to rain infiltration on the net volumetric exchange and reveal the conditions for which net inflow in the aquifer could be positive, negative or zero. The results obtained have the capability to determine transient hydraulic head for two extreme scenarios: (i) very slow rise and (ii) very fast rise in the stream water. Analytical result show that the net volumetric exchange could be positive, zero or negative depending on the surface infiltration and stream water rise rate.