Theme 3-4-A finite element program for groundwater pollutant transport and simulation

Abstract

Groundwater, once believed to be the purest water source on earth, has been now contaminated as a result of rapid industrialization and other human activities in most parts of the worlds. Management of the groundwater systems requires a detailed understanding of the response of the aquifer under the imposed conditions. Due to non-linear and non-analytical nature of the pollutant transport model, numerical methods are must for solving the problem. In this research work, a model for groundwater pollutant transport has been formulated using Galerkin finite element numerical method. Using this formulation of the model an FEM program has been developed. The model is applicable for nonhomogeneous and unisotropic aquifer with irregular boundaries and single conservative pollutant. The use of the model has been demonstrated with the help of two case studies. The success of the model shows that the developed program can be used as a tool to solve the problems directed towards the management for groundwater resources.