Geophysical Groundwater Exploration

Geophysical Groundwater Exploration

Introduction
 Geophysical exploration is the scientific measurement of physical
properties of the earth’s crust for investigation of mineral deposits or
geologic structure (or groundwater)
 groundwater cannot be seen on the earth’s surface, a variety of
techniques can provide information concerning its occurrence and –
under certain conditions-even its quality from surface or above-surface
locations
 Geophysical Groundwater Exploration may be of
 Surface investigation
 Subsurface investigations
 Geologic methods -involving interpretation of geologic data and field
reconnaissance, represent an important first step in any groundwater
investigation
 Remote sensing from aircraft or satellite has become an increasing
valuable tool for understanding subsurface water conditions
 Geophysical Groundwater Exploration

 Geographical techniques, especially electric resistivity , seismic

refraction methods and others, provide only indirect indications
of groundwater so that underground hydrologic data must be
inferred from surface data
 Correct interpretation requires supplemental data from
subsurface investigation
 Geophysical methods detect differences, or anomalies, of
physical properties within the earth’s crust
 Density, magnetism, elasticity, and electrical resistivity are
properties most commonly measured
 Experience and research have enabled pronounced differences in
these properties to be interpreted in terms of geologic structure,
rock type and porosity, water content, and water quality
 Geophysical methods can be very effective in the search for
groundwater resources
 Groundwater Investigations

 KEY ISSUES
• Whether there are significant aquifers in the older rocks aquifers
underlying the alluvium, apart from the coal seams, e.g. sandstone
beds
• the impact of subsidence from underground mining and whether
this provide hydraulic connectivity between the coal seams and
the base alluvial aquifer;
• the potential for subsidence to capture stream flow;
• groundwater inflow to an underground mine from the coal seam;
• whether dewatering of an underground mine and
depressurization of the coal seams and overburden will impact the
alluvial aquifers;
• the impact on farm bores used for irrigation, stock and domestic
supplies
 Groundwater Investigations include:
• installation of monitoring bores in the aquifers and monitoring
of water levels and water quality. The data is used to assess the
degree on connection between the aquifer systems, if any, the
direction of groundwater flow, and to obtain baseline data
against which the impact of mining can be measured
• Undertaking permeability tests on the aquifers and on the rock
material that separates the aquifers. It involves either pumping
water out of the aquifers or pumping water into the rock units
under pressure and measuring various responses
• Geotechnical tests are also undertaken on rock samples to
assess the strength of the rock (which enables the height of
fracturing under mining conditions to be assessed)
 Geophysical Groundwater Exploration

 When combined with other available geologic and borehole

information geophysical data can refine the conceptual model
of the subsurface geology and provide additional detail to the
geologic interpretation
Surface Geophysical methods
• Electromagnetic methods, both frequency-
domain and time-domain
• Seismic refraction
• Seismic reflection
• DC resistivity
• Magnetic
• Gravity
• Controlled Source Audio Magneto-Telluric
(CSAMT)
 ELECTROMAGNETIC METHODS
 Electromagnetic methods induce small electrical currents in
the ground. These currents flow more readily in conductive
earth materials than in resistive strata
 Sand or gravel aquifers tend to be much more resistive than
silts and clays
 Electromagnetic methods are of two types
- Frequency-domain electromagnetic (FDEM)
- Time-domain electromagnetic (TDEM)
 The former used in a profiling mode to search for lateral
changes in soil conditions (e.g., mapping the geometry of a
gravel paleo-channel).
• Time-domain electromagnetic (TDEM) methods in
groundwater exploration are useful as sounding techniques,
as opposed to profiling techniques
• Sounding techniques measure the depth to an interface, or interfaces
• used to measure the thickness of a gravel unit, depth and thickness of a
clay aquitard , or depth to bedrock
• Commonly TDEM soundings are made by laying out a loop of wire 20 to
200 feet on a side and pulsing it with a controlled current
• Measurements are made, usually in the center of the loop, with an
antenna coil about three feet across
• All the equipment is easily portable; six to sixteen soundings can be made
in a day, depending on field conditions
• For investigations to depths of about 500 feet, the time domain
electromagnetic (TDEM) method has been successfully used
• however, at greater depths TDEM becomes logistically difficult and less
economic.
 SEISMIC REFRACTION and REFLECTION
 Seismic techniques use a small explosive or mechanical energy source to
impart a seismic pulse to the ground
 seismic waves travel through the soils to the bedrock or other competent
layers below
 the seismic waves are both reflected back to the surface and refracted
along the bedrock surface for some distance before they return to the
earth’s surface
 Seismic techniques are divided in to two
- Seismic Refraction
- Seismic Reflection
 Seismic Refraction is commonly used for engineering and groundwater
applications
 The most common objective is to map the bedrock surface (i.e., determine
the depth to bedrock, and variations in depth, along the survey line)
 For depths on the order of 200 feet or less, the seismic refraction method
is generally useful and economic
 Seismic Reflection can provide higher resolution of overburden stratigraphy
and the bedrock surface, but at substantially higher cost
 involves acquiring more field data, and processing data more intensively
than seismic refraction
 High resolution seismic reflection method is used for detailed mapping of
the subsurface structure and, in particular, detecting and mapping
groundwater layers and estimating their lateral extent
 For exploration depths of 1,500 to 2,500 feet, the seismic reflection method
has proven to be successful
 ELECTRICAL (DC) RESISTIVITY
 DC resistivity is one of the oldest and most well known geophysical methods
used in groundwater exploration
 technique measures the electrical resistivity of the ground
 DC resistivity generally has lower resolution than the TDEM technique, both
vertically and horizontally
 DC resistivity involves deploying long lengths of wire on the ground and
injecting a DC current into the earth through a widely spaced pair of
electrodes
 For depths on the order of 200 feet or less, the electrical resistivity profiling
method is generally useful and economic.
 Basic principle
o Groundwater, through the various dissolved salts it contains, is ionically conductive
and enables electric currents to flow into the ground
o Consequently, measuring the ground resistivity gives the possibility to identify the
presence of water, taking in consideration the following properties:
– a hard rock without pores or fracture and a dry sand without water or clay are
very resistive: several tens thousands ohm.m
– a porous or fractured rock bearing free water has a resistivity which depends
on the resistivity of the water and on the porosity of the rock (see below):
several tens to several thousands ohm.m
– an impermeable clay layer, which has bound water, has a low resistivity:
several units to several tens ohm.m
– mineral ore bodies (iron, sulphides, …) have very low resistivities due to their
electronic conduction: usually lower or much lower than 1 ohm.m

 ARCHIE LAW
The resistivity of a porous non-clayey material can be estimated by the
following Archie law formula:
Rock resistivity = a* (water resistivity) / (porosity) n
Electrical Properties Rocks
 MAGNETIC RESONANCE METHOD
 The Magnetic Resonance Method permits a direct detection of water from
surface measurements: it consists in exciting the H protons of the water
molecules with a magnetic field produced by a loop of current at a specific
frequency
 The amplitude of the magnetic field produced in return by these protons in the
same loop is proportional to the water content, while the time constant of the
decay is linked to the mean pore size of the formation, thus to the permeability.
 The clay layers which have bound water produce responses with very short time
constants, filtered by the equipment. The only response measured is coming
from free water
 For reconnaissance or regional basin-wide surveys, the gravity and/or magnetic
methods have often been applied, but it is risky to select groundwater targets
from those methods alone
– Conditions of Application of the method
• The Magnetic Resonance method can hardly be used in magnetic rocks such as
volcanic, because the amplitude of the Earth magnetic field which determines
the frequency of excitation of the water molecules has to be stable in the area of
investigation.
• the method is very sensitive to natural and cultural electromagnetic noises
such as power lines, pipes, fences, etc.
• the maximum depth of investigation which can be reached with this
method to detect an aquifer layer is 150m.
• Being a property of H protons, the Magnetic Resonance method, does not
see the difference between fresh and salted water
• The main advantage of the method is that it permits to directly detect the
presence of water at depth
CONTROLLED SOURCE AUDIO
MAGENETOTELLURIC(CSAMT)
 a hybrid method that determines subsurface electrical resistivity
distribution by measuring time-dependent variations of the earth’s natural
electric and magnetic fields (MT), as well as the electric and magnetic
fields resulting from high-frequency, non-polarized, artificially transmitted
electromagnetic waves (CSAMT)
 The CSAMT/MT method has been used to identify groundwater
exploration targets and to site wells in a variety of geologic conditions
 For exploration depths of 1,500 to 2,500 feet, the seismic reflection and
controlled source audio magneto-tellurics / magneto-tellurics
 In recent years, the CSAMT/MT method has become more widely used as
it produces economic, structural, and stratigraphic detail to depths
approaching 3,000 feet.

Sub-surface Geophysical Method

 gives more accurate result than the surface method and should be
followed when quality information is required
 Various sub-surface geophysical methods involve
 Test drilling
 Electrical logging
 Radiation
 Sonic
 Geochemical
 Test-drill Method
 It is surest method of determining aquifer formation exceeding 100m
 A log of the rock samples is obtained while drilling is in progress
 Over an area when good number of such drills are under taken, a geologic
formation map of the area can be prepared which helps to reveal the character,
depth and thickness of various strata, water levels and water quality
 These test holes can be used as observation wells for recording water levels
while conducting pumping tests
 Electrical Logging Method
 comprising a recorder, a hoist unit, logging tools, electric generator, a mud
resistivity measuring kit along with its accessories are mounted on a mobile van
 The recorder has the components of oscillator, amplifier, servo motors, control
panel, recorder channel, electronic potential meter, depth recorder, recording
pens, chart paper and other materials
 At the bore hole, recording instrument is lowered and recordings on
- resistivity of the aquifer zone and
- spontaneous potential logs are obtained by the instrument
 Resistivity logs yield information on lithology, sequence and log formation
boundaries, location of fresh and salt water bodies
 Spontaneous potential log indicate permeable zones in terms of
permeability
 Information from both resistivity and potential logs give most of the data
a hydrologist needs for any aquifer investigation
Radiation Method
 Radiation loggers are essentially of two types
• Gamma ray and
• Neutron logger
 Although three-fourths of the Earth’s surface is covered with
water, only a fraction of one percent is available for human use. Most
water is salty, frozen, or inaccessible in the soil and atmosphere.