Modeling Soluble Contaminant Migration by Advection Process in Subsurface Water in the Eastern Niger Delta, Nigeria

The advective property of an aquifer in the Eastern Niger Delta was evaluated using a conservative tracer. Tracer migration was monitored in observation boreholes at various radial distances simultaneously. Particle size distribution analysis for the sand samples collected from the boreholes in the study site revealed aquifer composition to be predominantly fine sand (silt =13.42%, fine sand = 41.76%, medium sand = 36.71% and coarse sand = 8.09%) for the 8m depth sampled. This field tracer test thus, provides a definitive data on the simultaneous transport of a soluble contaminant and allows a quantitative appraisal of the advective property of the study site. The mean velocity determined 1.212×10 ms, represents the advective velocity of groundwater carrying the dissolved tracer substance. This is an indication of how soluble components of hydrocarbon will be transported in the study area. Modeling tracer migration by advection process to estimate where and when a soluble contaminant problem can first be noticed in an environmental matrix and its application in hydrological studies is an effective tool to address problems such as sustainability and uncertainty in groundwater resource system.

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