A new parameter estimation method for solute transport in a column. 2013

Quanrong Wang, and Hongbin Zhan, and Zhonghua Tang
School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, Hubei, 430074, China. Department of Geology and Geophysics, Texas A & M University, College Station, TX 77843-3115.

To study contaminant transport in groundwater, an essential requirement is robust and accurate estimation of the transport parameters such as dispersion coefficient. The commonly used inverse error function method (IEFM) may cause unacceptable errors in dispersion coefficient estimation using the breakthrough curves (BTCs) data. We prove that the random error in the measured concentrations, which might be described by a normal distribution, would no longer follow the normal distribution after the IEFM transformation. In this study, we proposed a new method using the weighted least squares method (WLSM) to estimate the dispersion coefficient and velocity of groundwater. The weights were calculated based on the slope of the observed BTCs. We tested the new method against other methods such as genetic algorithm and CXTFIT program and found great agreement. This new method acknowledged different characteristics of solute transport at early, intermediate, and late time stages and divided BTCs into three sections for analysis. The developed method was applied to interpret three column tracer experiments by introducing continuous, constant-concentration of sodium chloride (NaCl) into columns filled with sand, gravel, and sand-gravel media. This study showed that IEFM performed well only when the observed data points were located in the linear (intermediate time) section of BTCs; it performed poorly when data points were in the early and late time stages. The new WLSM method, however, performed well for data points scattering over the entire BTCs and appeared promising in parameter estimation for solute transport in a column.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D012984 Software Sequential operating programs and data which instruct the functioning of a digital computer. Computer Programs,Computer Software,Open Source Software,Software Engineering,Software Tools,Computer Applications Software,Computer Programs and Programming,Computer Software Applications,Application, Computer Software,Applications Software, Computer,Applications Softwares, Computer,Applications, Computer Software,Computer Applications Softwares,Computer Program,Computer Software Application,Engineering, Software,Open Source Softwares,Program, Computer,Programs, Computer,Software Application, Computer,Software Applications, Computer,Software Tool,Software, Computer,Software, Computer Applications,Software, Open Source,Softwares, Computer Applications,Softwares, Open Source,Source Software, Open,Source Softwares, Open,Tool, Software,Tools, Software
D014873 Water Pollutants Substances or organisms which pollute the water or bodies of water. Use for water pollutants in general or those for which there is no specific heading. Water Pollutant,Pollutant, Water,Pollutants, Water
D016018 Least-Squares Analysis A principle of estimation in which the estimates of a set of parameters in a statistical model are those quantities minimizing the sum of squared differences between the observed values of a dependent variable and the values predicted by the model. Rietveld Refinement,Analysis, Least-Squares,Least Squares,Analyses, Least-Squares,Analysis, Least Squares,Least Squares Analysis,Least-Squares Analyses,Refinement, Rietveld
D060587 Groundwater Liquid water present beneath the surface of the earth. Aquifers,Ground Water,Ground-Water,Subterranean Lakes,Underground Lakes,Underground Streams,Underground Water,Water Table,Aquifer,Ground Waters,Ground-Waters,Groundwaters,Lake, Subterranean,Lake, Underground,Lakes, Subterranean,Lakes, Underground,Stream, Underground,Streams, Underground,Subterranean Lake,Table, Water,Tables, Water,Underground Lake,Underground Stream,Underground Waters,Water Tables,Water, Underground,Waters, Underground

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