Evaluation of transverse dispersion effects in tank experiments by numerical modeling: Parameter estimation, sensitivity analysis and revision of experimental design

Transverse dispersion represents an important mixing process for transport of contaminants in groundwater and constitutes an essential prerequisite for geochemical and biodegradation reactions. Within this context, this work describes the detailed numerical simulation of highly controlled laboratory experiments using uranine, bromide and oxygen depleted water as conservative tracers for the quantification of transverse mixing in porous media. Synthetic numerical experiments reproducing an existing laboratory experimental set-up of quasi two-dimensional flow through tank were performed to assess the applicability of an analytical solution of the 2D advection-dispersion equation for the estimation of transverse dispersivity as fitting parameter. The fitted dispersivities were compared to the “true” values introduced in the numerical simulations and the associated error could be precisely estimated. A sensitivity analysis was performed on the experimental set-up in order to evaluate the sensitivities of the measurements taken at the tank experiment on the individual hydraulic and transport parameters. From the results, an improved experimental set-up as well as a numerical evaluation procedure could be developed, which allow for a precise and reliable determination of dispersivities. The improved tank set-up was used for new laboratory experiments, performed at advective velocities of 4.9 m d− 1 and 10.5 m d− 1. Numerical evaluation of these experiments yielded a unique and reliable parameter set, which closely fits the measured tracer concentration data. For the porous medium with a grain size of 0.25–0.30 mm, the fitted longitudinal and transverse dispersivities were 3.49 × 10− 4 m and 1.48 × 10− 5 m, respectively. The procedures developed in this paper for the synthetic and rigorous design and evaluation of the experiments can be generalized and transferred to comparable applications.

► We defined an improved experimental tank set-up of 2D bench-scale experiments.
► Four experiments were performed in a saturated porous medium at two velocities.
► Uranine, bromide and oxygen depleted water were used as conservative tracers.
► We obtained a high quality numerical evaluation of the performed experiments.
► Results of the calibration indicate a small value of transverse dispersivity.