Each year, the urbanised population grows exponentially and due to this growth, cities are forced to expand beyond their manageable borders resulting in greater pressure on the surrounding urban environment. Many South African towns or cities are dependent on surface water for water supply. These resources are slowly being depleted and the dependence on groundwater resources is becoming increasingly important. Due to increased mining, industrial and agricultural activities in South Africa the surface water and groundwater environments have become vulnerable to contamination. This study aimed to develop a methodology in which the risks of urbanisation can be quantified. The conceptualisation and qualitative site impact and risk assessments focused on any environmental changes. The urban environment was sub-divided into three distinct areas and analysed separately in order to detect possible groundwater impacts of the water flowing through the urban area. Upstream river flow gauge chemistry by way of tri-linear grouping (piper diagram) of the major anions and cations showed already impacted water due to mining activities north of Potchefstroom. Uranium concentrations in the downstream surface water showed negligible impact as the concentrations remained within the relevant standards over time. Total coliform bacteria concentrations were found to be well above the acceptable levels and these high concentrations are an indicator of water purification inefficiency. Different qualitative risk assessment approaches i.e. the Environmental Risk Assessment method, Fuzzy Logic and the Depth to water, recharge, Aquifer media, Soil media, Topography, Impact of the vadose zone media and Conductivity of the aquifer (DRASTIC) approach risk assessments were compared and used to determine the most effective way to determine the most likely risks associated with urbanisation. Different modelling tools namely, analytical element modelling method (AEM) using the Visual AEM program, a finite difference numerical modelling method using Processing Modflow v.8 (PMWin) were evaluated, however due to insufficient data, an analytical approach had to be developed. This approach incorporated logical steps and associated processes to serve as a guide for future urban hydrogeological investigations. A case study (namely Potchefstroom) was used to test the developed methodology. The developed methodology provides a step by step approach to urban risk assessment, even in areas where there is insufficient data. / MSc (Environmental Sciences), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Intact and fractured rock samples were studied in the laboratory in order to understand more fully the mechanism of closure of fractures subjected to high confining stresses and the resultant effect on specimen permeability. Confining stresses applied to the specimens ranged from 3.0 to 20.0 MPa, and the closure of fractures was observed by monitoring the change in the hydraulic conductivity of the specimens. Test results suggest that some resealing may occur due to crushing and realignment of mineral grains along a fracture surface. The closure of fractures is dependent upon the strength of the rock mass, the physical nature of the fracture, and the fluid pressure present in the fracture. Fracture closure is highly time dependent, and a number of nonlinear pressure flow relationships have been identified. These deviations are thought to represent two fundamentally different processes, the most important of which are turbulence in the flow and fracture expansion.

This item was digitized as part of the Million Books Project led by Carnegie Mellon University and supported by grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF). Cornell University coordinated the participation of land-grant and agricultural libraries in providing historical agricultural information for the digitization project; the University of Arizona Libraries, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and the Office of Arid Lands Studies collaborated in the selection and provision of material for the digitization project.

The thesis numerically models and investigates the effect of a variable water table on the soil moisture content. The modelling is done using COMSOL and Richards' equation. The temporal variation plots can be used to find the capillarity of the soil and its impact on other phenomenon such as vapor intrusion and infiltration.

Chromium contamination of groundwater and soils continues to pose a major environmental concern. Soils may have become contaminated with chromium through former industrial activities geochemical enrichment. The nature of the industrial activity will determine the form and concentration of the chromium as well as the presence of co-contaminants and the pH and redox of the soil. Chemical reductants have been widely used for the transformation of hexavalent chromium in the environment. Over recent decades attention focused on the chemical reductant calcium polysulphide which has performed effectively in the treatment of groundwater and soil samples contaminated with Cr(VI). Yet a detailed understanding of calcium polysulphide (CaSx) performance has not yet been established. Hexavalent chromium concentrations in aqueous and groundwater samples were significantly reduced by calcium polysulphide and CaSx:chromate molar ratio of 1.5 was sufficient to prevent partitioning of Cr(VI) into solution and to precipitate the solution phase. Calcium polysulphide was used for the remediation of solid chromite ore processing residue (COPR) samples. Prior to the application of calcium polysulphide to COPR, each of the key steps were optimized. A range-finding experiment was conducted to understand the dosage and treatment regime at which Cr(VI) immobilization within COPR was optimal. The results indicated that unsaturated deployment of CaSx into the medium outperformed that in saturated systems. A higher polysulphide amendment dose of 5% w/v concentration enhanced the final treatment of Cr(VI) within COPR. The toxicity and carcinogenicity of Cr(VI) over Cr(III) requires a technique capable of discriminating between valencies. The EPA Method 7196A specifically quantifies the concentrations of Cr(VI) in environmental samples and was used for all analysis to differentiate between Cr(VI) and Cr(III). Cr(III) was calculated as the difference between the Cr(VI) and Cr-total concentrations. In addition to the EPA 7196A, a novel ion exchange resin (IER) procedure was developed to differentiate the two species of chromium. After optimisation, Amberlite resins IRA 400 and IR-120 were used for the specific sorption and subsequent analysis of aqueous Cr(VI) and Cr(III) solutions. For the selective removal of chromate from groundwater, waste water and soil samples, Amberlite IRA 400 achieved a consistent performance of >97% removal in a range of trials. The IERs in this work were applied as analytical tools however they could be applied as remediation tools. While aqueous treatment of chromium contaminated media using CaSx was very successful, COPR treatment proved to be difficult due to the complex nature of the system. An understanding of stoichiometric responses to CaSX has been established, but the nuances of soil physicochemical interactions require more thorough investigation.

No description available.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Earth Sciences / Master / Master of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Earth Sciences / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

A field study was conducted to determine the applicability of multivariate geostatistical methods to the problem of estimating and simulating pesticide concentrations in groundwater from measured concentrations of nitrate and pesticide, when pesticide is undersampled. Prior to this study, no published attempt had been made to apply multivariate geostatistics to groundwater contamination. The study was divided into two complementary aspects of geostatistics: estimation and simulation. The use of kriging and cokriging to estimate nitrate and the herbicide dimethyl tetrachloroterepthalate (DCPA) contaminant densities is described in Chapter I. Measured concentrations of nitrate and the DCPA were obtained for 42 wells in a shallow unconfined alluvial and basin-fill aquifer in a 16.5 km² agricultural area in eastern Oregon. The correlation coefficient between log(nitrate) and log(DCPA) was 0.74. Isotropic, spherical models were fitted to experimental direct- and cross-semivariograms with correlation ranges and sliding neighborhoods of 4 km. The relative gain for estimates obtained by cokriging ranged from 14 to 34%. Additional sample locations were selected for nitrate and DCPA using the fictitious point method. A simple economic analysis demonstrated that additional nitrate samples would be more beneficial in reducing estimation variances than additional DCPA samples, unless the costs of nitrate and DCPA analysis were identical. These estimates are by definition, the Best Linear Unbiased Estimates (i.e., the estimates with minimized estimation variance), however the requirement of minimized variance smoothes the variability of contaminant values. The application of conditional simulations to groundwater contamination is described in Chapter 11. Conditional simulation allows the degree of fluctuation of nitrate and DCPA between sample points to be assesed. With knowledge of both the 'best' estimates and the of the variability between sample points, nitrate and DCPA groundwater contamination in the study area can be characterized Based on the semivariogram models found in Chapter I, univariate and multivariate conditional simulations of nitrate and DCPA were generated using the turning bands method and the kriging or cokriging system. Kriging was used to condition the univariate simulations, while cokriging was used to cross-correlate and condition the multivariate simulations. The mean of 25 conditional and coconditional simulations at 8 different locations in the study area were generated and compared to kriging and cokriging estimates and 95% confidence intervals. Both conditional and coconditional simulation of the DCPA and nitrate contaminant densities showed large variations when values in different simulations were compared. The fluctuation in values demonstrate the uncertainties in the contaminant distributions when sample sizes are small. As a result of this unkown component, simulated values vary widely. Coconditional simulation displayed the cross-correlation imposed by using the cokriging system to condition the simulations. After 25 simulations, the mean remained unstable indicating that more simulations would be required to enable comparisons with kriging and cokriging estimates. / Graduation date: 1989

No description available.