ACCELERATED GROUNDWATER TRANSPORT STUDIES USING A GEOTECHNICAL CENTRIFUGE

The use of a geotechnical centrifuge permits the simulation of long-term groundwater flow conditions through tests on scale models. In a centrifuge, relatively large soil samples can be tested under the same stress conditions as in the prototype. This allows for a more realistic representation of field conditions than is possible in small-scale laboratory experiments. In cases of contaminant migration through relatively impermeable soils, the times of interest span decades and even centuries. The scaling relations can be utilized in solving specific problems of groundwater flow through saturated soil and also to calibrate numerical models that can then be used for prediction purposes. The scaling relationships are established and the results are illustrated through an experiment in modeling of models. Two case studies simulating long-term contaminant migration through soil are presented. In the first, the transport of radioactive contaminants through groundwater was modeled. Geiger-Mueller detectors were used to observe the migration of the radionuclides. This is a nonintrusive method of observation that does not interfere with the normal flow of water through the soil medium. The second case study deals with the behavior of different types of landfill cover materials. Specifically the long-term behavior of paper sludge as a cover material was studied. Thirty years of prototype behavior was simulated in centrifuge tests on two types of paper sludges and on a clay cover used as a control material.

• Record URL:
  http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/trr/1994/1434/1434-007.pdf
• Record URL:
  https://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title=ACCELERATED+GROUNDWATER+TRANSPORT+STUDIES+USING+A+GEOTECHNICAL+CENTRIFUGE&author=T.+Zimmie&author=A.+De&author=M.+Mahmud&publication_year=1994
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• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper appears in Transportation Research Record No. 1434, Subsurface Drainage, Soil-Fluid Interface Phenomena, and Management of Unpaved Surfaces. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved
• Authors:
  • Zimmie, Thomas F
  • De, Anirban
  • Mahmud, Mahadzer B
• Publication Date: 1994

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References;
• Pagination: p. 47-54
• Monograph Title: Subsurface drainage, soil-fluid interface phenomena, and management of unpaved surfaces
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record
  • Issue Number: 1434
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Accelerated tests; Case studies; Centrifuges; Clay; Contaminants; Flow; Groundwater; Paper; Radioactive wastes; Scale models; Sludge (Deposit); Time duration
• Uncontrolled Terms: Long term
• Old TRIS Terms: Landfill cover materials; Paper sludges; Radioactive contaminants
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Geotechnology; Highways; I42: Soil Mechanics;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00666229
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 0309055113
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Sep 16 1994 12:00AM