From Aquifer-scale Mapping of Injection Capacity for Aquifer Storage and Recovery Sites to Predicting Solute Transport in Fractured Aquifers

Friday, Nov. 12th, 3pm

375 Borlaug Hall

Dr. Peter Kang
Dept. of Earth and Environmental Sciences

Abstract

About 99% of global unfrozen freshwater is stored in groundwater systems, and the dependence on groundwater will continue to increase to meet the needs of increasing world population, maintaining food security, and sustaining economic and social development. Despite its critical importance, groundwater resources in many parts of the world are insufficiently managed and are experiencing unsustainable exploitation. In the first part of my talk, I will introduce the concept of aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) which can contribute to the sustainability of groundwater resources, and share a recent project where we studied the feasibility of ASR in several aquifers across Minnesota. 

Another major challenge in groundwater science comes from the fact that about 75% of near-surface aquifers on earth are considered to be fractured. However, conventional groundwater models often ignore fracture flow, and as a result, often fail to predict mass transport in groundwater systems. In the second part of my talk, I will share my group's recent works that contribute to improving our fundamental understanding and predictive capability related to solute transport, mixing, and reactive transport in fractured media.