Application of flux-corrected transport to the Las Cruces Trench site

Journal Article · Mon Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 1994 · Water Resources Research; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/94WR01216· OSTI ID:7068542

Hills, R G ^[1]; Fisher, K A ^[2]; Kirkland, M R ^[3]; Wierenga, P J ^[4]

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1. New Mexico State Univ., Las Cruces, NM (United States)
2. Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA (United States)
3. Bath and Associates, Inc., El Paso, TX (United States)
4. Univ. of Arizona, Tucson, AZ (United States)

Transport algorithms that are appropriate for high-grid Peclet numbers are finding more applications in modeling contaminant transport as more detail about the heterogeneities of the flow fields is incorporated into the models. In this paper, the fluid corrected transport (FCT) algorithm, which was originally designed for advection only, has been modified for application to advection and dispersion of solute in a heterogeneous variably saturated soil undergoing transient flow conditions. The results presented using field observations for the hydraulic parameters over a vertical two-dimensional plane show that complex flow fields can result. The model for water flow and solute transport through the soil at the Las Cruces Trench site predicts preferential flow, with the new water bypassing old water. Overall, the effects of spatial variability appear to impact the new water more than the old water, which indicates that solute plumes that originate with the application of the new water can be much more complex than the spatial variability of the water contents would suggest.

• OSTI ID: 7068542
• Journal Information: Water Resources Research; (United States), Vol. 30:8; ISSN 0043-1397
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
FLUID FLOW
ALGORITHMS
FLOW MODELS
GROUND WATER
PLUMES
ADVECTION
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
MASS TRANSFER
MATHEMATICAL LOGIC
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
WATER
540220* - Environment
Terrestrial- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)
990200 - Mathematics & Computers