Rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary change

Through conceptual models and potential energy distribution calculation methods based on specific working conditions, the seawater intrusion range and sustainable freshwater mining rate are dynamically evaluated, and the reliability and computing efficiency problems of traditional hydraulic boundary conditions assessment are solved, and efficient and accurate water resource management assessment is achieved.

CN119647343AActive Publication Date: 2025-03-18HOHAI UNIV

Patent Information

Application Number
CN202411858928.3
Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Applications(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-12-17
Publication Date
2025-03-18
Estimated Expiration
2044-12-17

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Traditional hydraulic boundary conditions are difficult to accurately reflect the hydraulic dynamic characteristics of natural boundaries, resulting in limited reliability of evaluation results of seawater intrusion range and sustainable freshwater extraction. Moreover, the general head boundary method is computationally large and time-consuming, making it difficult to meet the needs of rapid assessment.

Method used

A conceptual model based on specific working conditions is proposed. By calculating the potential energy distribution in the pressure-bearing aquifer, dynamically considering the variability of sea level and inland hydraulic boundary parameters, and using Fourier variation parameters and correction coefficients, the seawater intrusion range and sustainable freshwater mining rate are rapidly evaluated.

Benefits of technology

It significantly improves the evaluation accuracy and computing efficiency of seawater intrusion range and sustainable freshwater mining rate, dynamically considers hydraulic boundary changes, reduces evaluation errors, is suitable for rapid decision-making needs, and reduces the demand for computing resources and manpower and material resources.

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Abstract

The invention discloses a method for rapidly evaluating seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer by considering hydraulic boundary change. The method comprises the following steps: constructing a conceptual model based on specific working conditions; potential energy distribution in the confined aquifer is calculated; the seawater intrusion range is determined by searching an equipotential line equal to potential energy at a salt toe position in a potential energy field through interpolation and the height of a salt-fresh water interface; and calculating the sustainable fresh water exploitation rate: calculating the stagnation point position, wherein the water pumping rate when the stagnation point coincides with the salt toe position is the sustainable fresh water exploitation rate. According to the method, the evaluation precision and calculation efficiency of the seawater invasion range and the sustainable fresh water exploitation rate can be remarkably improved while the result accuracy is ensured; by adopting the conceptual model based on the working condition, the research area range and parameter setting can be flexibly adjusted according to actual requirements, and by optimizing the calculation model, the requirements of calculation resources and manpower and material resources are remarkably reduced under the condition that additional equipment or resource investment is not increased.
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Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation, and in particular to a rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer taking into account hydraulic boundary changes. Background Art

[0002] The problem of seawater intrusion is becoming increasingly serious due to the combined effects of sea level rise caused by climate change and human freshwater exploitation. Seawater intrusion can lead to deterioration of groundwater quality, threatening the ecosystem and human production and life in coastal areas. Therefore, scientifically and rationally assessing the scope of seawater intrusion and formulating sustainable freshwater exploitation strategies have become one of the core issues in water resource management in coastal areas.

[0003] In the study of seawater intrusion in coastal areas, traditional hydraulic boundary conditions, i.e., constant flow or constant head, are usually used. However, both types of boundaries are difficult to accurately reflect the hydraulic dynamic characteristics of natural boundaries, i.e., the changes in head and flow on the boundary lack rationality, which limits the reliability of the assessment results of the scope of seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater extraction. Although the groundwater numerical modeling method using the general-head boundary (GHB) can be closer to the actual hydraulic boundary conditions, it is computationally intensive and time-consuming, and it is difficult to meet the needs of rapid assessment. Summary of the invention

[0004] Purpose of the invention: The purpose of the present invention is to propose a rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in confined aquifers taking into account changes in hydraulic boundaries, which solves the limitations of traditional hydraulic boundary condition assessment methods and significantly improves the computational efficiency.

[0005] Technical solution: The present invention comprises the following steps:

[0006] Construct conceptual models based on specific working conditions;

[0007] Calculate the potential energy distribution within a confined aquifer:

[0008]

[0009] Where Φ(x,y) is the potential energy field distribution of groundwater, x and y are the coordinates of any point in the study area; H s is the initial sea level height, ΔH s is the height of sea level rise; Q is the groundwater extraction rate, x w is the x-coordinate of the freshwater production well; L is the length of the study area, B is the aquifer thickness of the confined aquifer, K is the permeability coefficient; α is the correction coefficient; D is the distance between the external hydraulic boundary and the inland hydraulic boundary, H refis the hydraulic head at the external hydraulic boundary, ω is the Fourier transform parameter;

[0010] The range of seawater intrusion is determined by interpolating the potential field Φ(x,y) to find the equipotential lines equal to the potential at the salt toe and the height of the fresh-salt water interface;

[0011] Calculate the sustainable freshwater extraction rate: Calculate the stagnation point position, and the pumping rate when the stagnation point coincides with the salt toe position is the sustainable freshwater extraction rate.

[0012] The correction coefficient α is calculated by the following formula:

[0013]

[0014] In the formula, ρ f is the density of groundwater, ρ s is the density of seawater, α T is the lateral dispersion.

[0015] The aquifer thickness B of the confined aquifer is determined by the elevation difference between the impermeable top plate and the impermeable base.

[0016] The potential energy at the salt toe position in the confined aquifer is calculated by the following formula:

[0017]

[0018] In the formula, Φ t is the potential energy at the salt toe.

[0019] The salt-fresh water interface height is determined by the following formula:

[0020]

[0021] Where Z is the height of the fresh water interface.

[0022] The stagnation point position in the confined aquifer is calculated by the following formula:

[0023]

[0024] In the formula, x s is the x-coordinate of the stationary point.

[0025] The construction of the conceptual model based on specific working conditions specifically includes obtaining geological parameters, hydrological parameters and water resource allocation conditions of the study area.

[0026] The geological parameters include the aquifer type, the elevation of the impermeable base, the elevation of the impermeable roof and the aquifer permeability coefficient.

[0027] The hydrological parameters include sea level elevation, head elevation of external hydraulic boundary, distance between external hydraulic boundary and inland hydraulic boundary, seawater density, freshwater density, and lateral dispersion.

[0028] The water resource allocation situation includes groundwater extraction rate and extraction well location.

[0029] Beneficial effects: The present invention can significantly improve the assessment accuracy and calculation efficiency of the seawater intrusion range and sustainable freshwater extraction rate while ensuring the accuracy of the results; compared with traditional assessment methods, the present invention can dynamically consider the variability of sea level and inland hydraulic boundary parameters, and effectively solve the assessment error problem caused by unreasonable traditional boundary condition settings; by adopting a conceptual model based on working conditions, the present invention can flexibly adjust the scope of the study area and parameter settings according to actual needs, and is particularly suitable for the rapid decision-making needs of seawater intrusion problems with relatively simple geological conditions but significant changes in hydrological conditions; in addition, the present invention significantly reduces the demand for computing resources and manpower and material resources by optimizing the calculation model without increasing additional equipment or resource investment, and has the technical advantages of high efficiency and economy. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] Figure 1 A top view of a model of a rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of

[0032] Figure 3 This is the fitting result of the seawater intrusion range verified by the numerical simulation method in the embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 4 This is the fitting result of sustainable freshwater extraction rate assessment verified by numerical simulation method in the embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 5 The figure compares the effects of the assessment method proposed in the present invention and the traditional hydraulic boundary method in the assessment of sustainable freshwater exploitation. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0036] The rapid assessment method of seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes of the present invention is applicable to confined aquifers 1 in coastal areas, such as Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, the study area includes a seawall 3 set on the sea side, a freshwater extraction well 4 in the aquifer, and an external hydraulic boundary 6 at a certain distance from the inland hydraulic boundary, such as a river, canal, reservoir or lake, etc. The external hydraulic boundary 6 maintains a constant distance from the hydraulic boundary of the study area on the inland side to ensure that the study area maintains hydraulic connection with the outside world. This method is suitable for coastal study areas where the lateral length (along the coastline direction) is greater than the longitudinal length (perpendicular to the coastline direction), and the longitudinal length of the study area can be adjusted according to actual research needs to ensure that the scope is reasonably delineated.

[0037] like Figure 2 As shown, the lowest elevation of the foundation of the seawall 3 on the sea side should be lower than the initial sea level 101; in the confined aquifer 1, the bottom of the seawall should be located above the impermeable roof 115; the freshwater production well 4 only draws water from the aquifer 114. The seawater intrusion range includes the steady-state seawater intrusion position along the impermeable base 108, that is, the area between the salt toe position 13 after the sea level rises and the salt-fresh water interface position 112 after the sea level rises. The evaluation results are quantitatively measured in length and height. The intersection of the salt-fresh water interface position 110 at the initial sea level and the impermeable base 108 is the salt toe position 11 at the initial sea level. The sustainable freshwater production rate refers to the maximum freshwater production rate of the freshwater production well before reaching the critical state. When the pumping rate exceeds this rate, the freshwater production well will extract salt water.

[0038] The specific steps include:

[0039] S1. Collect hydrological and geological parameters and construct a conceptual model based on specific working conditions: obtain the geological parameters of the study area, including the type of aquifer, the elevation of the impermeable base, the elevation of the impermeable top plate and the permeability coefficient of the aquifer; obtain hydrological parameters, including sea level elevation, head elevation of the external hydraulic boundary, the distance between the external hydraulic boundary and the inland hydraulic boundary, seawater density, freshwater density, and lateral dispersion; obtain water resource allocation, including groundwater extraction rate and extraction well location.

[0040] Through elevation benchmark conversion, the absolute elevation of the impermeable base is set as the benchmark elevation (elevation is 0), and the elevation of the impermeable top plate, the sea level elevation and the head elevation of the external hydraulic boundary are converted into relative elevations; the sea level elevation includes the initial sea level 101 elevation and the sea level 102 elevation after rising. The initial sea level elevation is the sea level elevation of the historical period when the hydraulic change characteristics are not obvious or the base year, or the sea level elevation of the base year required for the research is used. The height of the sea level 102 after rising can refer to the change in the evaluation period relative to the initial height, or be calculated based on the predicted values ​​of different carbon emission scenarios.

[0041] The water resource allocation situation in the study area can be determined based on the groundwater demand of established groundwater extraction activities or policy planning, and the extraction rate and well location can be determined. Usually the well is located on the axis of symmetry along the coastline, that is, the x-axis, and its position is the vertical distance from the coastline, that is, the x-coordinate.

[0042] S2. Calculation of potential energy distribution in confined aquifers

[0043] The origin position is determined. The origin O is located at the intersection of the aquifer base on the inland side of the seawall and the symmetry axis of the study area along the coastline. The x-axis is perpendicular to the coastline and points inland; the y-axis is set along the coastline; and the z-axis is vertically upward. The potential energy distribution in the confined aquifer is calculated by formula (1):

[0044]

[0045] Where Φ(x,y) is the potential energy field distribution of groundwater, x and y are the coordinates of any point in the study area; H s is the initial sea level height, ΔH s is the height of sea level rise; Q is the groundwater extraction rate, x w is the x-coordinate of the freshwater extraction well; L is the length of the study area; B is the thickness of the confined aquifer, which is determined by the elevation difference between the impermeable roof and the impermeable base; K is the permeability coefficient; α is determined by the density difference between seawater and groundwater, the lateral dispersion α T , and the thickness of the aquifer in the confined aquifer, B, which can be calculated by formula (2); D is the distance between the external hydraulic boundary and the inland hydraulic boundary, H ref is the hydraulic head at the external hydraulic boundary, ω is the Fourier transform parameter;

[0046]

[0047] In the formula, ρ f is the density of groundwater, ρ s is the density of seawater, α T is the lateral dispersion.

[0048] S3. Calculate the potential energy at the salt toe position

[0049] The potential energy at the salt toe position in the confined aquifer is calculated by formula (3):

[0050]

[0051] In the formula, Φ t is the potential energy at the salt toe.

[0052] S4. Determine the scope of seawater intrusion: Find equipotential lines through potential field interpolation and calculate the height of the fresh-salt water interface to comprehensively determine the scope of seawater intrusion.

[0053] The salt toe position is obtained by interpolating the potential energy field Φ(x,y) to find a value equal to Φ t The position of the fresh-salt water interface in the confined aquifer can be determined by formula (4):

[0054]

[0055] Where Z is the height of the fresh-salt water interface, and the salt toe and the fresh-salt water interface position are used to comprehensively determine the scope of seawater intrusion.

[0056] S5. Calculate the sustainable freshwater extraction rate: Calculate the stagnation point position. The pumping rate when the stagnation point coincides with the salt toe position is the sustainable freshwater extraction rate.

[0057] The stagnation point position in the confined aquifer is calculated by formula (5):

[0058]

[0059] In the formula, x s is the x-coordinate of the stagnation point. The pumping rate when the stagnation point coincides with the maximum salt toe position (the salt toe position at y = 0) is the sustainable freshwater extraction rate.

[0060] The following is further explained in combination with numerical simulation.

[0061] like Figure 3 As shown, in this embodiment, a research area is selected, the area size is 500 meters (longitudinal length) × 1000 meters (lateral width), including a confined aquifer 1, and the permeability coefficient of the confined aquifer 1 is set to 10 meters / day. The elevation of the impermeable base 108 of the aquifer is set to 0 meters, and the thickness of the aquifer 114 is 30 meters. The initial sea level 101 height is 30 meters, and the sea level rise height is 0 meters.

[0062] A freshwater production well 4 is set in the study area, located on the x-axis 400 meters from the origin, and the freshwater production rate is set to 150 cubic meters per day. The distance D between the inland hydraulic boundary of the confined aquifer 1 and the external hydraulic boundary 6 is 2655 meters, and the hydraulic head of the external hydraulic boundary 6 is set to 35 meters.

[0063] Applying the above parameter settings to the rapid evaluation method of the present invention, we obtain Figure 3 To verify the accuracy of the assessment method, a numerical simulation model of seawater intrusion was constructed using SEAWAT software. Figure 3 The black dashed lines in the fresh-salt water interface and salt toe result diagram represent the 10% salinity line and 90% salinity line in the numerical simulation results, respectively. Since the head change in the confined aquifer has almost no effect on the evaluation results, it is not illustrated in the conceptual model. The confined head can be regarded as the pressure head in fluid mechanics.

[0064] It can be seen from the results that the rapid evaluation method proposed in the present invention is highly consistent with the numerical simulation results, can fit the numerical simulation results well, and has high accuracy.

[0065] To further evaluate the accuracy of the sustainable freshwater extraction rate assessment, this embodiment selects a study area with a longitudinal length of 2000 meters and a lateral width of 2000 meters, covering the confined aquifer 1. The permeability coefficient of the aquifer is set to 10 meters / day, the thickness of the aquifer 114 is 30 meters, the height of the initial sea level 101 is set to 30 meters, and the sea level rise height is 1 meter. The distance between the inland hydraulic boundary of the confined aquifer 1 and the external hydraulic boundary 6 is 3297 meters, and the head of the external hydraulic boundary 6 is set to 40 meters.

[0066] In this area, the sustainable freshwater extraction rate of different freshwater extraction well locations from the origin was tested, and the distances of the test points were 400 meters, 500 meters, 600 meters, 700 meters and 800 meters respectively. During the test, SEAWAT software was used for numerical simulation. In order to obtain the sustainable freshwater extraction rate, the numerical simulation continuously adjusted the pumping volume until the salinity in the freshwater extraction well dropped to one thousandth of the seawater salinity. This process is very time-consuming, especially under the calculation settings of this embodiment, using a computer with an i7-10700K processor, it takes an average of about one week to calculate the sustainable freshwater extraction rate of a freshwater extraction well. The method of the present invention significantly improves the calculation efficiency, and the test time is shortened to about twenty minutes.

[0067] according to Figure 4 The results shown in Figure 2 show that the method of the present invention can fit the sustainable freshwater extraction rate more accurately. As the distance from the well to the origin increases, the evaluation method will slightly overestimate the maximum pumping volume. This is because the method of the present invention is particularly suitable for research areas where the lateral width is greater than the longitudinal length, while the research area selected in this embodiment is equal in length and width. Therefore, the lateral boundary effect caused by pumping is relatively large, resulting in an increase in the evaluation error. However, this error does not affect the overall effect and application value of the evaluation method of the present invention.

[0068] In order to further highlight the advantages of the method proposed in the present invention, this embodiment selects the following seawater intrusion systems with inland boundary conditions for comparison: constant head inland hydraulic boundary ( Figure 5 The figure shows the inland hydraulic boundary with a constant flow rate (indicated by the black line marked with a triangle in the figure), the inland hydraulic boundary with a constant flow rate (indicated by the black line marked with a circle), and the universal hydraulic boundary with a constant flow rate (indicated by the colored straight line) proposed in the present invention. Different colors represent the changes of the external hydraulic boundary 6 under different hydraulic head conditions. The equivalent inland hydraulic boundary makes the seawater intrusion systems with different hydraulic boundary conditions comparable.

[0069] from Figure 5 It can be seen that there are differences in the evaluation of sustainable freshwater extraction rate of seawater intrusion systems under different boundary conditions. Under most working conditions, the evaluation method proposed in the present invention that considers the change of hydraulic boundaries obtains a smaller sustainable freshwater extraction rate. This is because the sustainable freshwater extraction rate is not only determined by the hydraulic gradient of inland freshwater, but also closely related to the hydraulic conductivity of the external hydraulic boundary. Therefore, the method proposed in the present invention can more accurately reflect the dynamically changing hydraulic boundary conditions. Ignoring the impact of pumping on the change of inland hydraulic boundaries will lead to unrealistic inland freshwater replenishment assessments and may produce dangerous freshwater extraction rate results.

[0070] Based on potential energy theory and Fourier transform method, combined with universal head boundary conditions, this paper develops a mathematical analytical model suitable for confined aquifers, which can quickly calculate the range of steady-state seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater extraction. This paper not only solves the limitations of traditional hydraulic boundary condition assessment methods, but also simplifies the calculation model by reasonably setting the study area and hydraulic boundary conditions, improves the calculation efficiency while maintaining the assessment accuracy, and provides an efficient and practical solution for water resource management in coastal areas.

Claims

1. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater extraction in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: Construct conceptual models based on specific working conditions; Calculate the potential energy distribution within a confined aquifer: Where Φ(x,y) is the potential energy field distribution of groundwater, x and y are the coordinates of any point in the study area; H s is the initial sea level height, ΔH s is the height of sea level rise; Q is the groundwater extraction rate, x w is the x-coordinate of the freshwater production well; L is the length of the study area, B is the aquifer thickness of the confined aquifer, K is the permeability coefficient; α is the correction coefficient; D is the distance between the external hydraulic boundary and the inland hydraulic boundary, H ref is the hydraulic head at the external hydraulic boundary, ω is the Fourier transform parameter; The range of seawater intrusion is determined by interpolating the potential field Φ(x,y) to find the equipotential lines equal to the potential at the salt toe and the height of the fresh-salt water interface; Calculate the sustainable freshwater extraction rate: Calculate the stagnation point position, and the pumping rate when the stagnation point coincides with the salt toe position is the sustainable freshwater extraction rate.

2. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes according to claim 1, characterized in that: The correction coefficient α is calculated by the following formula: In the formula, ρ f is the density of groundwater, ρ s is the density of seawater, α T is the lateral dispersion.

3. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes according to claim 1, characterized in that: The aquifer thickness B of the confined aquifer is determined by the elevation difference between the impermeable top plate and the impermeable base.

4. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes according to claim 3, characterized in that: The potential energy at the salt toe position in the confined aquifer is calculated by the following formula: In the formula, Φ t is the potential energy at the salt toe.

5. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes according to claim 1, characterized in that: The salt-fresh water interface height is determined by the following formula: Where Z is the height of the fresh water / salt water interface; Φ is the potential energy.

6. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes according to claim 1, characterized in that: The stagnation point position in the confined aquifer is calculated by the following formula: In the formula, x s is the x-coordinate of the stationary point.

7. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes according to claim 1, characterized in that: The construction of the conceptual model based on specific working conditions specifically includes obtaining geological parameters, hydrological parameters and water resource allocation conditions of the study area.

8. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes according to claim 7, characterized in that: The geological parameters include the aquifer type, the elevation of the impermeable base, the elevation of the impermeable roof and the aquifer permeability coefficient.

9. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes according to claim 7, characterized in that: The hydrological parameters include sea level elevation, head elevation of external hydraulic boundary, distance between external hydraulic boundary and inland hydraulic boundary, seawater density, freshwater density, and lateral dispersion.

10. A rapid assessment method for seawater intrusion and sustainable freshwater exploitation in a confined aquifer considering hydraulic boundary changes according to claim 7, characterized in that: The water resource allocation situation includes groundwater extraction rate and extraction well location.

Citation Information

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