What question did this study set out to answer?

To evaluate the capabilities and limitations of cross-borehole electrical resistivity tomography for imaging subsurface structure and unsaturated water flow in a complex vadose zone.

May 1, 1992Water Resources Research

Electrical resistivity tomography of vadose water movement

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Authors

WDWilliam DailyLawrence Livermore National Security ARAbelardo RamirezLawrence Livermore National Laboratory DLDouglas LaBrecqueInstitute for Radiological Image Sciences

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Implication

Field experiment demonstrates dynamic moisture plume migration in the vadose zone, indicating that electrical resistivity tomography effectively tracks complex unsaturated subsurface flow.

Key Points

To evaluate the capabilities and limitations of cross-borehole electrical resistivity tomography for imaging subsurface structure and unsaturated water flow in a complex vadose zone.
Conducted two controlled water infiltration experiments introducing water directly into a heterogeneous vadose zone.
Collected time-lapse cross-borehole electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) data before and during water infiltration to map changing resistivity fields.
Compared reconstructed resistivity tomographs against geological well logs and numerical unsaturated flow simulations.
Baseline tomographs differentiated subsurface lithology, imaging well-drained sands and gravels as resistive zones and moisture-retaining silts and clays as conductive zones.
Time-lapse imaging resolved expanding infiltration plumes, capturing capillary barrier mechanisms, capillary-driven flow through fines, and gravity-driven flow through permeable sediments.
Tomographic reconstructions matched numerical flow models and successfully tracked circuitous moisture pathways undetectable by standard single-borehole measurements.

Cite This Study

Daily et al. (1992) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a7142885671bbf00bc2dbbf https://doi.org/10.1029/91wr03087

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Implication

Field experiment demonstrates dynamic moisture plume migration in the vadose zone, indicating that electrical resistivity tomography effectively tracks complex unsaturated subsurface flow.

Electrical resistivity tomography of vadose water movement

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

Electrical resistivity tomography of vadose water movement

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

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