Examining the impacts of faults on aquifer flow systems: Implications for regional groundwater flow modeling
- New Mexico Tech, Socorro, NM (United States). Dept. of Geoscience
The importance of fault zones, a volume of geologic material significantly altered by faulting, is not solely relegated to seismic activities. Fault zones also can function as vital controls on groundwater flow through aquifers, either obstructing or channeling groundwater flow. Two groups of fault-induced changes govern how the fault zone influences groundwater flow. The first group lumps together all the petrophysical alterations of the parent material attributable to fault slip and post-slip (diagenesis) processes. The second group refers to structural alterations in the parent material`s position, geometry or continuity within the aquifer. These two groups of alterations can significantly influence groundwater flow and possess particular significance in rift basins such as the Albuquerque Basin. Presented here are the first results from preliminary work in developing a set of tools for solving the problem and a first cut at identifying effective performance measures. The approach focuses on estimating the effects of the petrophysical changes within fault zones; structural alterations are not considered. Although the work is still too preliminary to support firm conclusions, the approach`s initial results appear to indicate that fault zones exert a significant influence on an aquifer system, as measured by the mean and variance fields for heads.
- OSTI ID:
- 415645
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9411293-; TRN: IM9704%%276
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 39. annual Mexico water conference: water future of Albuquerque and middle Rio Grande Basin, Albuquerque, NM (United States), 3-4 Nov 1994; Other Information: PBD: 1995; Related Information: Is Part Of The water future of Albuquerque and Middle Rio Grande Basin: Proceedings of the 39. annual New Mexico water conference. WRRI report number 290; PB: 454 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Three-dimensional numerical modeling of the influence of faults on groundwater flow at Yucca Mountain, Nevada
Influence of faults on groundwater flow and transport at YuccaMountain, Nevada