Data Analysis in North Campus Research Site: How the Properties of The Aquifer Can be Characterized Best

Abstract:

Head data from pumping tests are often used to estimate the properties of the aquifers such as hydraulic conductivity. In this study, data from 15 pumping tests in the North Campus Research Site (NCRS) in Waterloo are analyzed through hydraulic tomography (HT). A mathematical tool, Successive Linear Estimator [SLE, see Yeh et al. 1996] is used, which can effectively interpret the data collected from HT, and has been validated many times [Berg and Illman, 2011, 2013, 2014]. During the analysis, different subsets of 15 pumping tests are used to estimate the parameters (hydraulic conductivity and specific storage), ranging from 15 single tests respectively to total number of 15 tests. By interpreting and comparing the results of inversions (L2, big difference of head, head scatter, hydraulic conductivity and specific storage, etc.), we will be able to determine the importance of the number and the locations of pumping tests that are used to both characterize the aquifers well and avoid redundancy. In addition, hydrographs will also be drawn to validate the head data from pumping tests.