Impacts of hydrogeological heterogeneity on groundwater transit time

Author(s):  
Mostaquimur Rahman ◽  
Andreas Hartmann

<p>Groundwater transit time refers to the travel time of a water molecule through an aquifer from recharge at the water table to discharge at a surface water body (e.g., river). Analysing transit times provides a primary way to understand the overall transport characteristics of a hydrological system and is of interest in many aspects of environmental management. For example, studying transit time distribution can facilitate the mitigation of pollutant transport risks and ecosystem restoration. Hydrogeological heterogeneity of an aquifer is a major controlling factor for groundwater flow paths and transit time distributions. In this study, we investigate the impacts of spatial variability of hydrogeological properties on transit times by combining measurements and a new semi-analytical numerical modelling scheme. Passive tracer transport data from several catchments in Europe are obtained from open databases. Groundwater transit time in these catchments are inferred from both tracer transport data and numerical modelling. Comparing the results in different catchments provides a comprehensive way of understanding the impact of hydrogeological heterogeneity on groundwater transit time.</p>

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan J. Moran ◽  
David F. Boutt ◽  
Lee Ann Munk ◽  
Joshua D. Fisher

<p>The challenge of deciphering connections between groundwater systems and surface water bodies and by extension connections to hydroclimate represent major unsolved questions in the hydrology community. Within the UPH framework, under the Interfaces in hydrology theme, this includes aspects of both questions <em>twelve</em> and <em>thirteen</em>. In arid regions, disentangling these processes is an especially difficult challenge due to the large spatial and temporal scales over which these systems are integrated. Yet we must improve our understanding if we are to use water sustainably in these landscapes. In the dry Andes, very deep water tables develop groundwater flow paths with long transit times, often crossing topographic boundaries before emerging at basin floors. These factors combined with the complex evaporite stratigraphy in which surface and groundwaters interact make it quite difficult to close water budgets and quantify groundwater fluxes across hydrological boundaries. As a result, many fundamental questions about connections across these interfaces remain unresolved. This study presents a novel examination of processes controlling fluxes across critical boundaries (groundwater recharge, inter-catchment flow, and riparian/stream/aquifer exchange) by employing a comprehensive set of ~150 <sup>3</sup>H samples from waters across the entire dry Andes paired with a large dataset (>1,500 samples) of <sup>18</sup>O, <sup>2</sup>H in water and dissolved major ions.</p><p>We present an integrated process-based conceptual framework describing the dominant controls on water compartment connections intrinsic to these arid mountain systems. The large range in mean transit times and the persistence of hydrologic features here allow for reliable delineation of multiple distinct source and flow path groupings. Repeat sampling over several years provides further constraints on connections between these compartments and the modern hydroclimate. Our results outline a few novel findings regarding the hydrological attributes of these environments: i) most of the water sustaining both the regional and local hydrological systems is old (0-10 % modern and 100-10000 yrs old) yet modern water (days-10 yrs old) is critical to sustaining many surface water bodies. ii) transit time distributions in specific water compartments (Groundwaters, Springs, Streams, Saline lagoons, and Vegas) are remarkably stable over time and show consistent patterns across the entire plateau; iii) the existence of surface water bodies and their connection to groundwater compartments is regulated by persistent hydrological features (regional flow paths, hydrogeology, fresh-saline interfaces); and iv) sharp divergence in mean residence and transit time of source waters occurs over very short spatial scales (<<1km).  By describing water age distributions and geochemical attributes of these features we define the dominant controls on several discrete water compartments and delineate clear distinctions between long-term average source waters and the decoupling of modern hydroclimate from the hydrologic system as a whole. This analysis represents a significant advancement in our understanding of controls on fluxes across boundaries in arid mountainous regions and freshwater-salt lagoon systems. An improved understanding of the primary controls on water source and transport will allow us to better protect communities and fragile ecosystems from the most damaging potential impacts of water extraction in these environments.</p>


2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 126
Author(s):  
D. Jørgensen ◽  
J.L. Poulsen ◽  
A.E. Olesen ◽  
C. Brock ◽  
T.H. Sandberg ◽  
...  

AbstractAimsTo employ a human experimental model of opioid-induced bowel dysfunction (OIBD) in healthy volunteers, and evaluate the impact of opioid treatment compared to placebo on gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms and motility, assessed by questionnaires and regional GI transit times.MethodsTwenty-five healthy males were randomly assigned to oxycodone or placebo for five days in a double-blind, crossover design. Adverse GI effects were measured with bowel function index, gastrointestinal symptom rating scale, patient assessment of constipation symptoms questionnaire, and bristol stool form scale. Regional GI transit times were determined using the 3D-Transit system and segmental colonic transit times were determined using a custom Matlab® graphical user interface.ResultsGI symptom scores increased significantly across all applied questionnaires during opioid treatment. Oxycodone increased median total GI transit time from 22.2 to 43.9 h (P< 0.01), segmental transit times in the cecum and ascending colon from 5.7 to 9.9 h (P<0.05), rectosigmoid transit time from 2.7 to 9.0 h (P<0.05), and colorectal transit time from 18.6 to 38.6 h (P<0.01). No association between questionnaire scores and segmental transit times were detected.ConclusionsSelf-assessed adverse GI effects and increased GI transit times in different segments were induced during oxycodone treatment. This detailed information about segmental changes in motility has great potential for future interventional head-to-head trials of different laxative regimes for prevention and treatment of OIBD.


2018 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 295-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milan Onderka ◽  
Vladimír Chudoba

Abstract The ways how water from rain or melting snow flows over and beneath the Earth‘s surface affects the timing and intensity at which the same water leaves a catchment. Several mathematical techniques have been proposed to quantify the transit times of water by e.g. convolving the input-output tracer signals, or constructing frequency response functions. The primary assumption of these techniques is that the transit time is regarded time-invariant, i.e. it does not vary with temporarily changing e.g. soil saturation, evaporation, storage volume, climate or land use. This raises questions about how the variability of water transit time can be detected, visualized and analyzed. In this paper we present a case study to show that the transit time is a temporarily dynamic variable. Using a real-world example from the Lower Hafren catchment, Wales, UK, and applying the Continuous Wavelet Transform we show that the transit time distributions are time-variant and change with streamflow. We define the Instantaneous Transit Time Distributions as a basis for the Master Transit Time Distribution. We show that during periods of elevated runoff the transit times are exponentially distributed. A bell-shaped distribution of travel times was observed during times of lower runoff. This finding is consistent with previous investigations based on mechanistic and conceptual modeling in the study area according to which the diversity of water flow-paths during wet periods is attributable to contributing areas that shrink and expand depending on the duration of rainfall. The presented approach makes no assumptions about the shape of the transit time distribution. The mean travel time estimated from the Master Transit Time Distribution was ~54.3 weeks.


Pharmaceutics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 507
Author(s):  
Isabel Gonzalez-Alvarez ◽  
Marival Bermejo ◽  
Yasuhiro Tsume ◽  
Alejandro Ruiz-Picazo ◽  
Marta Gonzalez-Alvarez ◽  
...  

The purpose of this study was to predict in vivo performance of three oral products of Etoricoxib (Arcoxia® as reference and two generic formulations in development) by conducting in vivo predictive dissolution with GIS (Gastro Intestinal Simulator) and computational analysis. Those predictions were compared with the results from previous bioequivalence (BE) human studies. Product dissolution studies were performed using a computer-controlled multicompartmental dissolution device (GIS) equipped with three dissolution chambers, representing stomach, duodenum, and jejunum, with integrated transit times and secretion rates. The measured dissolved amounts were modelled in each compartment with a set of differential equations representing transit, dissolution, and precipitation processes. The observed drug concentration by in vitro dissolution studies were directly convoluted with permeability and disposition parameters from literature to generate the predicted plasma concentrations. The GIS was able to detect the dissolution differences among reference and generic formulations in the gastric chamber where the drug solubility is high (pH 2) while the USP 2 standard dissolution test at pH 2 did not show any difference. Therefore, the current study confirms the importance of multicompartmental dissolution testing for weak bases as observed for other case examples but also the impact of excipients on duodenal and jejunal in vivo behavior.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 268-271
Author(s):  
Michael Reiß ◽  
Ady Naber ◽  
Werner Nahm

AbstractTransit times of a bolus through an organ can provide valuable information for researchers, technicians and clinicians. Therefore, an indicator is injected and the temporal propagation is monitored at two distinct locations. The transit time extracted from two indicator dilution curves can be used to calculate for example blood flow and thus provide the surgeon with important diagnostic information. However, the performance of methods to determine the transit time Δt cannot be assessed quantitatively due to the lack of a sufficient and trustworthy ground truth derived from in vivo measurements. Therefore, we propose a method to obtain an in silico generated dataset of differently subsampled indicator dilution curves with a ground truth of the transit time. This method allows variations on shape, sampling rate and noise while being accurate and easily configurable. COMSOL Multiphysics is used to simulate a laminar flow through a pipe containing blood analogue. The indicator is modelled as a rectangular function of concentration in a segment of the pipe. Afterwards, a flow is applied and the rectangular function will be diluted. Shape varying dilution curves are obtained by discrete-time measurement of the average dye concentration over different cross-sectional areas of the pipe. One dataset is obtained by duplicating one curve followed by subsampling, delaying and applying noise. Multiple indicator dilution curves were simulated, which are qualitatively matching in vivo measurements. The curves temporal resolution, delay and noise level can be chosen according to the requirements of the field of research. Various datasets, each containing two corresponding dilution curves with an existing ground truth transit time, are now available. With additional knowledge or assumptions regarding the detection-specific transfer function, realistic signal characteristics can be simulated. The accuracy of methods for the assessment of Δt can now be quantitatively compared and their sensitivity to noise evaluated.


2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 156-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophia F Shakur ◽  
Denise Brunozzi ◽  
Ahmed E Hussein ◽  
Andreas Linninger ◽  
Chih-Yang Hsu ◽  
...  

BackgroundThe hemodynamic evaluation of cerebral arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) using DSA has not been validated against true flow measurements.ObjectiveTo validate AVM hemodynamics assessed by DSA using quantitative magnetic resonance angiography (QMRA).Materials and methodsPatients seen at our institution between 2007 and 2016 with a supratentorial AVM and DSA and QMRA obtained before any treatment were retrospectively reviewed. DSA assessment of AVM flow comprised AVM arterial-to-venous time (A-Vt) and iFlow transit time. A-Vt was defined as the difference between peak contrast intensity in the cavernous internal carotid artery and peak contrast intensity in the draining vein. iFlow transit times were determined using syngo iFlow software. A-Vt and iFlow transit times were correlated with total AVM flow measured using QMRA and AVM angioarchitectural and clinical features.Results33 patients (mean age 33 years) were included. Nine patients presented with hemorrhage. Mean AVM volume was 9.8 mL (range 0.3–57.7 mL). Both A-Vt (r=−0.47, p=0.01) and iFlow (r=−0.44, p=0.01) correlated significantly with total AVM flow. iFlow transit time was significantly shorter in patients who presented with seizure but A-Vt and iFlow did not vary with other AVM angioarchitectural features such as venous stenosis or hemorrhagic presentation.ConclusionsA-Vt and iFlow transit times on DSA correlate with cerebral AVM flow measured using QMRA. Thus, these parameters may be used to indirectly estimate AVM flow before and after embolization during angiography in real time.


2005 ◽  
Vol 71 (12) ◽  
pp. 8721-8728 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. L. Stoner ◽  
S. M. Watson ◽  
R. D. Stedtfeld ◽  
P. Meakin ◽  
L. K. Griffel ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Here we introduce the use of transparent experimental models fabricated by stereolithography for studying the impacts of biomass accumulation, minerals precipitation, and physical configuration of flow paths on liquid flow in fracture apertures. The internal configuration of the models ranged in complexity from simple geometric shapes to those that incorporate replicated surfaces of natural fractures and computationally derived fracture surfaces. High-resolution digital time-lapse imaging was employed to qualitatively observe the migration of colloidal and soluble dyes through the flow models. In this study, a Sphingomonas sp. and Sporosarcina (Bacillus) pasteurii influenced the fluid dynamics by physically altering flow paths. Microbial colonization and calcite deposition enhanced the stagnant regions adjacent to solid boundaries. Microbial growth and calcite precipitation occurred to a greater extent in areas behind the fabricated obstacles and less in high-velocity orifices.


Author(s):  
Angela Ballantyne ◽  
Lorna Rashid ◽  
Rebecca Pattenden

Background Maternal serum free beta human chorionic gonadotrophin (free β-hCG) is used as a biomarker in first trimester screening for fetal Down’s syndrome. Production of free β-hCG can occur in vitro in a time- and temperature-dependent manner; thus, the current Scottish screening protocol states samples must be received by the laboratory within 72 h. To assess the validity of the protocol, an audit was conducted to determine the impact of transit time on maternal serum free β-hCG multiple of median (MoM) values in the Scottish screened population. Methods Corrected MoM values from antenatal screening carried out over one year (April 2017 to March 2018) were stratified according to sample transit time and compared. To investigate possible environmental temperature effects, the data were split according to season and maternal serum free β-hCG concentrations from summer and winter compared. Results Of the 28,368 samples included in the study, 24,368 were received on the day of phlebotomy or after one day in transit. Only 1.5% of samples were received after 3 days in transit. The difference in maternal serum free β-hCG MoM values due to transit time was not significant. No statistical difference was found between maternal serum free β-hCG concentrations from samples collected in summer and winter months. Conclusion The current sample receipt protocol in use by the Scottish Down’s syndrome screening programme is fit for purpose.


1995 ◽  
Vol 79 (3) ◽  
pp. 1008-1026 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. R. Fine ◽  
D. Glasser ◽  
D. Hildebrandt ◽  
J. Esser ◽  
R. E. Lurie ◽  
...  

Hepatic function can be characterized by the activity/time curves obtained by imaging the aorta, spleen, and liver. Nonparametric deconvolution of the activity/time curves is clinically useful as a diagnostic tool in determining organ transit times and flow fractions. The use of this technique is limited, however, because of numerical and noise problems in performing deconvolution. Furthermore, the interaction of part of the tracer with the spleen and gastrointestinal tract, before it enters the liver, further obscures physiological information in the deconvolved liver curve. In this paper, a mathematical relationship is derived relating the liver activity/time curve to portal and hepatic behavior. The mathematical relationship is derived by using transit time spectrum/residence time density theory. Based on this theory, it is shown that the deconvolution of liver activity/time curves gives rise to a complex combination of splenic, gastrointestinal, and liver dependencies. An anatomically and physiologically plausible parametric model of the hepatic vascular system has been developed. This model is used in conjunction with experimental data to estimate portal, splenic, and hepatic physiological blood flow parameters for eight normal volunteers. These calculated parameters, which include the portal flow fraction, the splenic blood flow fraction, and blood transit times are shown to adequately correspond to published values. In particular, the model of the hepatic vascular system identifies the portal flow fraction as 0.752 +/- 0.022, the splenic blood flow fraction as 0.180 +/- 0.023, and the liver mean transit time as 13.4 +/- 1.71 s. The model has also been applied to two portal hypertensive patients. The variation in some of the model parameters is beyond normal limits and is consistent with the observed pathology.


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