In southeastern Florida, the majority of drinking water comes from the Biscayne aquifer. This aquifer is comprised of heterogeneous limestones, sandstones, sand, shell and clayey sand with zones of very high permeability. Visualizing the spatial variations in lithology, porosity and permeability of heterogeneous aquifers, like the Biscayne, can be difficult using traditional methods of investigation. Using the Roxar IRAP RMS software multi-layered 3D conceptual geomodels of the lithology, cyclostratigraphy and porosity were created in a portion of the Biscayne aquifer. The models were built using published data from borehole geophysical
measurements, core samples, and thin sections. Spatial relations between lithology,
cyclostratigraphy, porosity, and preferential flow zones were compared and contrasted to
better understand how these geologic features were inter-related. The models show local areas of differing porosity within and cross-cutting different cycles and lithologies. Porosity in the Biscayne aquifer study area follows a hierarchy attributed to lithofacies with a pattern of increasing porosity for the high frequency cycles. This modeling improves understanding of the distribution and interconnectedness of preferential flow zones, and is thus an invaluable tool for future studies of groundwater flow and groundwater contamination in the Biscayne aquifer. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fau.edu/oai:fau.digital.flvc.org:fau_30826 |
| Contributors | Westcott, Richard (author), Root, Tara L. (Thesis advisor), Florida Atlantic University (Degree grantor), Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Geosciences |
| Publisher | Florida Atlantic University |
| Source Sets | Florida Atlantic University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation, Text |
| Format | 78 p., application/pdf |
| Rights | Copyright © is held by the author, with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder., http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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