A scoping study of water table excursions induced by seismic and volcanic events
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (United States)
- Strasbourg-1 Univ., 67 (France)
- Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
We develop conservative models of water table response to displacements just beneath the water table simulating (1) shallow intrusion of a dike and (2) high level slip on a normal fault locked at the end. For matrix flow, we fine local water table excursions of under 10 m. in cases of isotropic permeability which includes dike inflation of 4 m and fault slips corresponding to earthquakes having a moment magnitude of 7.4. Even for enhancements of vertical permeability up to 10{sup 4}:1, excursions did not exceed 15 m which implies that pumping is strongly volume limited. We also present an analysis of upward directed flow in cracks for the case of earthquake induced pore pressure changes. For matrix properties characteristic of the Calico Hills (vitric) formation and a crack distribution bounding the potential flow capacity of published data, we estimate an upper bound of 0.25 cu m. of ground water per m. of fault length as the amount capable of being pumped to a level 250 m. above the normal water table. While the presence of even larger fractures than assumed might carry more ground water to that level an absolute upper limit of less than 50 cu. m. per m. of fault length is available to be pumped assuming a value n=0.46 for the rock porosity. For less porous rocks typical of the Topopah Spring or Tiva Canyon formations (n{approx}0.10) the upper limit may be reduced to less than 10 cu. m. per m. of fault length. This upper limit depends only upon strain, the height of pumping above the water table and the formation porosity.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 138396
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-ID-105340; ON: DE92012395
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: Nov 1990
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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