Correlation of Outcrop Hydraulic Conductivity with its Aquifer: A Case Study of the Phu Phan Sandstone in Northeast, Thailand

Abstract

Fractured rock aquifers provide the most extensive groundwater resources in Northeast Thailand. The hydraulic conductivity (K) of these aquifers controls the flow of water and is therefore, an essential parameter for groundwater modeling and management. K values may be directly determined by conducting pumping tests at the aquifer or by performing fracture analysis using data acquired from outcrops. The K value at outcrop should be greater than that at aquifer of deeper position due to the effect of aperture reduction by overburden compression. The goal of this study was therefor to find the correlation between K values determined from outcrop with those directly measured at an aquifer. This study was conducted on the Phu Phan sandstone aquifer at the Huay Luang watershed, Udon Thani Province of Northeast Thailand. The orientation, aperture, and spacing of fractures were measured at four outcrops and used for determining the K values by fracture analysis. Single well pump test data from 17 wells in the Phu Phan aquifer (30-120 m depth) were analyzed to obtain transmissivity (T) and K. Both sets of the K values, from outcrop and aquifer, were correlated using the plotting position of Weibull. Both plots were linear on a semi-log scale but the outcrop curve was steeper. Lognormal distributions fitted both plotting positions quite well. These results show that for the same probability value, K values found from the pumping test to be about an order of magnitude smaller than K values determined from outcrop data.