Water Table Fluctuation in the Presence of a Time-Varying Exponential Recharge and Depth-Dependent ET in a Two-Dimensional Aquifer System with an Inclined Base
Publication: Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 136, Issue 7
Abstract
An analytical solution is presented for water table fluctuation between ditch drains in presence of exponential recharge and depth-dependent evapotranspiration (ET) from groundwater table in a two-dimensional gently sloping aquifer. The groundwater head above the drain is small compared to the saturated thickness of the aquifer. A sound mathematical transformation is devised to transform the two-dimensional groundwater flow equation into a simple form, which makes possible to obtain an analytical solution. The transient midpoint water table variations from the proposed solution compare well with the already existing solutions for horizontal aquifer. A numerical example is used to illustrate the combined effect of depth-dependent ET coupled with a time-varying exponential recharge on the water table fluctuation. The inclusion of a depth-dependent ET in the solution results in water table decline at a faster rate as compared to the case when ET is not considered. With an increase in slope of the aquifer base, water table profiles become asymmetric and the water table divide shifts towards the lower drain. The height of the water table profiles increases on moving away from the boundary of the aquifer and the highest level of the ground water table is obtained in the central portion of the aquifer basin due to the presence of drainage ditches on the aquifer boundary. When the effect of ET is incorporated in combination with recharge, the analytical solution results in accurate and reliable estimates of water table fluctuations under situations subjected to a number of controlling factors. This study will be useful for alleviation of drainage problems of the aquifers receiving surface recharge and surrounded by streams.
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Acknowledgments
The authors are grateful to Director, National Institute of Hydrology, Roorkee, India for his kind permission to publish this work.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 136 • Issue 7 • July 2010
Pages: 502 - 507
Copyright
© 2010 ASCE.
History
Received: Jan 28, 2009
Accepted: Dec 13, 2009
Published online: Dec 18, 2009
Published in print: Jul 2010
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