SYLLABUS

Groundwater Hydrology (476K)

Aquifer Testing (191)

Physical Hydrogeology (391C)

 

LECTURE/TOPIC SCHEDULE (Fall Semester, 2004)

 

 

         Objectives:  This course:

 

1. Reviews the basic principles of groundwater hydrology/physical hydrogeology from geological, physical, mathematical, and geotechnical points of view;

2. (in 191 or the 476K lab) Reviews or introduces students to basic computational and interpretative methods used in analyzing groundwater systems; and

3. Examines at promising areas of hydrogeologic research through lectures, assigned readings, and a student-selected project/term paper.

 

         Meeting times: The lecture is from 10:00-11:00 AM MWF in GEO 3.222.  476K labs and 191 will meet in GEO 3.104.  A bimonthly graduate discussion meeting will be arranged. The labs commence after Labor Day.  This means that until Thanksgiving, Monday lab is the last one; after Thanksgiving, the Monday lab is the first one.

 

         Texts:  two required texts are available at Speedway Copy in Dobie Mall:

                 

         1. Sharp, John M., Jr., 2004, A Glossary of Hydrogeological Terms: Department of Geological Sciences, The University of Texas, Austin, Texas, 56p.

 

         2. Sharp, J. M., Jr., 2004, Hydrogeology Notes: Department of Geological Sciences, The University of Texas, Austin, Texas, 364p.

 

         I also recommend you supplement the above materials with pertinent portions of the texts listed on the additional references. A series of "benchmark papers" on physical hydrogeology are on reserve (Freeze and Back, 1983).  A number of additional papers will be assigned during the semester. 

 

         Other opportunities: Hydrogeology Brown-Bag Seminar is an informal seminar meets Fridays at noon usually in GEO 3.222.  Bring your lunch, kick back, listen, and participate.  Other hydrogeology talks will be given in Technical Sessions (4:00 to 5:00PM, Tuesdays and Thursdays) and other seminars within the Department, at the BEG or UTIG, in other UT Departments (especially Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering, but also CE and Geography), at other agencies (e.g., USGS), and in other venues (e.g., Austin Geological Society, SIPES). I will try to keep you informed of these other opportunities that are somewhat unique to UT.  Classroom instruction and assignments should not the only source of your (scientific) education.

 

         Field trips: Three field trips are planned.  Extra credit is given for attendance. 

 

         Laboratory: All 476K students must register for one of the laboratory sessions.  Graduate students who have not had a previous class in physical hydrogeology definitely should take Geology 191.   Those that have should review the materials and attend labs where the need review or an introduction to the subject of the lab.  Generally, in the past those graduate students who took 191 did better in the exams and were far more satisfied with the course.  Geology 191 meets concurrently the 476K labs.

 

        


         Graduate discussion: This consists of literature reviews of articles selected by faculty and student, an annotated bibliography, and a short (3-page) research proposal.  Undergraduates are welcome to attend.

 

         Office hours: Student consultation times are 1:30-3:00 PM, Mondays and Wednesdays and immediately after class in GEO 3.316E, but occasionally I might be in GEO 3.104, 6.110, or 6.142 for discussions with graduate students.  Otherwise, whenever the door to my office is open, feel free to come in and chat.  Other informal office hours: when there are hydro speakers at Tech Sessions (typically, we take them out for a few beers or dinner afterwards) or during/after Hydrogeology “tea time”.  This meets in GEO 6.142 right after Hydrogeology Brown Bag Seminar.

 

         Lecture topics: The projected order of topics is below.  A revised syllabus may be distributed about mid-semester. Note that several guest lecturers in hydrogeology may present material that will result in a revision to the syllabus.

                                                                                                           

DATE:              TOPIC:                                                                        READINGS:

(* guest lecturer scheduled)

 

Aug. 25            The hydrological cycle                                                   1-12

 

Aug. 27            Case History: The Edwards aquifer                                Sharp and Banner, 1997

                                                                                                            Sharp and Banner, 2000

                                                                                                                     (CD ROM 680, v. 20)

 

Aug. 30            Porosity                                                                        13-30                                              

 

Sep. 1               Darcy's law                                                                  31-38, 59-60

 

Sep. 3               Permeability                                                                  39-58

 

Sep. 4               (Saturday) Field trip on the Edwards aquifer (0800 to 1200)

 

Sep. 6               Labor Day - no class

 

Sep. 8               Flow nets                                                                      61-68

 

Sep. 10             Regional flow systems                                                   69-72

                                                                                                             Sharp et al., 2003

 

Sep. 13             Safe yield; sustainability                                                 231-240

 

Sep. 15             Groundwater law and economic systems                         241-240

                                                                                                            Mace et al., 2004

 

Sep. 17             Concept of storativity; subsidence                                   113-120

 

Sep 17-20         (starting Friday at 2:00PM) Field trip to Trans-Pecos Texas (may be moved to Oct 1-4)

 

Sep. 20*           Derivation of the main equations of flow                         121-132

         

Sep. 22             (2) Derivation of the main equations of flow                    -

DATE:              TOPIC:                                                                                                                               READINGS:

 

Sep. 24             Case history: subsidence on the Gulf Coast                     Germiat and Sharp, 1990

                                                                                                            Sharp and Hill, 1995

 

Sep. 27             Pumping tests                                                                133-146

 

Sep. 29             Piezometer tests                                                            -

 

Oct. 1               The unsaturated zone                                                     147-152

                        Due: 476K/191 Term paper/project outline (before 2:00PM)

 

Oct. 1-4            Possible field trip day=te (from Sep. 17-20)

 

Oct. 4               Flow in fractured rocks; cubic law; turbulent flow            153-166; 321-324

 

Oct. 6               (2) Flow in fractured rocks; cubic law; turbulent flow      -

 

Oct. 8               Free convection                                                             167-170

 

Oct. 11             Mid-Term Exam I

 

Oct. 13 *          Groundwater geology: karstic systems                            283-300

 

 

Oct. 15 *          Streamflow hydrographs                                                261-268

 

Oct. 18             Stream-groundwater interactions                                    269-280;

                        (also review of IAH)                                                     DNAG, Ch. 21, 33, 3

 

Oct . 20            Case history: Effects of urbanization in Austin                 Garcia-Fresca & Sharp, 2003           

 

Oct. 22*           Mass transport                                                              171-186

 

Oct. 22-25        Field trip to El Zacatón, Mexico (you will need passports)

 

Oct. 25*           Diffusion and dispersion                                                 187-204

 

Oct. 27             (2) Diffusion and dispersion                                            -

 

Oct. 29             Characterization of heterogeneity; geostatistics                361-364

                                                                                                            Galloway and Sharp, 1998                

                        Due: 476K/191 Term paper/project draft (before 5:00PM)

 

Nov. 1                          Contaminant hydrogeology                                 223-230

 

Nov. 3                          NAPLS and DNAPLS                                      supplemental readings

 

Nov.5               Fracture skins; transport on fractured systems                 supplemental readings

 

Nov 8               Mid-Term Exam II

 

Nov. 10            NO CLASS, GSA (work on you term papers/projects)

 

DATE:              TOPIC:                                                                                                                               READINGS:

 

Nov. 12            Energy transport and hydrothermal systems                    205-218

                        (also review of GSA)

                        Due: 391C Annotated bibliography (before 5:00 PM)

 

Nov. 15            (2) Energy transport and hydrothermal systems               -

         

Nov. 17            Chemical geothermometers                                            219-222                                           

                       

Nov. 19            Sedimentary basin hydrogeological evolution                    303-312                                           

 

Nov. 22            Case history: Gulf of Mexico Basin                                 supplemental readings

 

Nov. 24            Petroleum migration/maturation                                      313-320

                        Due: 391C Research proposal  (before 12:00 noon)

 

Nov. 26            NO CLASS (UT vs. A&M)

 

Nov. 29            Hydrogeologic concepts in mineral deposition                  249-250

                                                                                                            Sharp & Kyle, 1988

                        Due: 476K/191 Term paper/project  (before 5:00PM)

 

Dec. 1                          Groundwater geology and exploration                 247-260

 

Dec. 3              Review day                              

 

Dec. 9              FINAL (2:00-5:00 PM, Thursday, at a place to be determined)

 

Final will consist of:

 

    50 multiple choice – 100 points

    14 (out of 16) short answers – 140 points

    2 of 5 application questions – 60 points

 

 

 

Grading:                                              476K                391C                191

Mid-term I                                100                   100                     -

Mid-term II                               100                   100                     -

Final examination II                   300                   300                     -

Lab problem sets                       200                     -                     200

Term paper or map project         100                     -                     100

Literature reviews                       -                     100                    

Annotated bibliography                -                     100                     -                                                     

Research proposal                       -                     100                     -

                                  Totals:                800                   800                   300

 

Note: Geology 191 and the labs for GEO 476K will meet in GEO 3.104 and in the computer laboratory.

 

Additional references

 

Batu, V., 1998, Aquifer Hydraulics: John Wiley & Sons, New York, 727p.

 

Bear, J., 1972, Dynamics of Fluids in Porous Media: American Elsevier( reprinted by Dover Pubs.), New York, 764p.

 

Bear, J., Tsang,C.-F., and de Marsily, G. (eds.), 1993, Flow and Contaminant Transport in Fractured Rock: Academic Press, San Diego, 560p.

 

Bouwer, H.,1978, Groundwater Hydrology: McGraw-Hill, New York, 480p.

 

Davis, S.N., and DeWeist, R.J.M., 1966, Geohydrology: John Wiley & Sons, New York, 463p.

 

de Marsily, G., Quantitative Hydrogeology: Academic Press, Orlando, 440p.

 

Deming, D., 2002, Introduction to Hydrogeology: McGraw-Hill, New York, 468p.

 

DeWeist, R.J.M., 1967, Geohydrology: John Wiley & Sons, New York, 366p.

 

Domenico, P.A., 1972, Concepts and Models in Groundwater Hydrology: McGraw-Hill, New York, 404p.

 

Domenico, P.A., and Schwartz, F.W., 1998, Physical and Chemical Hydrogeology (2nd ed.): John Wiley & Sons, New York, 506p.

 

Fetter, C.W., 2001, Applied Hydrogeology (4th ed.): Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 598p.

 

Freeze, R.A., and Cherry, J.A., 1979, Groundwater: Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 604p.

 

Hermance, J.F., A Mathematical Primer on Groundwater Flow: Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 230p.

 

Ingebritsen, S.E.,  and Sanford, W.E., Groundwater in Geologic Processes: Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, UK, 341p.

 

Kresic, N., Quantitative Solutions in Hydrogeology and Groundwater Modeling: CRC Press/Lewis Pub., Boca Raton, FL, 461p.

 

Price, M., 1985, Introducing Groundwater (2nd ed.); Stanley Thornes, Cheltenham, UK, 278p. [Excellent introduction and review at a very introductory level].

 

Schwartz, F.W., and Zhang, H., 2003, Fundamentals of Groundwater: John Wiley & Sons, New York, 583p.

 

Sen, Z. 1995, Applied Hydrogeology: CRC Press/Lewis Pub., Boca Raton, FL, 461p.

 

Soliman, M.M., LaMoreaux, P.E., Memon, B.A., Assaad, F.A., and LaMoreaux, J.W., 1998, Environmental Hydrogeology, CRC Press/Lewis Pub., Boca Raton, FL, 461p.

 

Todd, D.K., 1980, Groundwater Hydrology (2nd ed.): John Wiley & Sons, New York, 535p.

 

Tolman, C.F., 1937, Ground Water: McGraw-Hill, New York, 793p.

 

Walton, W.C., 1970, Groundwater Resource Evaluation: McGraw-Hill, New York, 664p.

 

 

GENERAL BOOKS ABOUT GEOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

 

Gleick, James, Chaos.

Leaky and Lewin, The Sixth Extinction.

Lomborg, Bjorn, 1998, The Skeptical Environmentalist: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 515p.

McPhee, John, 1986, Rising From the Plains, The Noonday Press, New York, 214p.  McPhee has written a number of other excellent books including In Suspect Terrain and Control of Nature. (which is probably the most water-oriented book),

Schneiderman, Jill (ed.), 2000, The Earth Around Us: W.H. Freeman, New York, 455p.

Thorton Joe, 2000, Pandora’s Poison: MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 599p.

Winchester, Simon, 2001, The Map That Changed the World: Harper Collins Publishers, New York, 329p.

 

GENERAL BOOKS ABOUT HYDROGEOLOGY AND WATER RESOURCES

Bowden, Charles, 1977, Killing the Hidden Waters: University of Texas Press, Austin, 174p.

De Villiers, Marq, 2000, Water –the Fate of our Most Precious Resource: Houghton Mifflin Co., New York, 352p. [TD 345 D473 2000 MAIN]

De Weist, R.J., 1981, Night Flight to Brussels: Philosophical Library, New York, 253p.

Glennon, R., 2002, Water Follies: Island Press, Washington, DC, 314p.

Harr, Jonathan, 1995, A Civil Action: Random House, New York, 500p.

McDonald B. and Jehl, D. (ed.), 2003, Whose Water Is it? National Geographic Society, Washington, DC, 232p.

Reisner, Marc, 1986, Cadillac Desert: Penguin Books, New York, 582p.

Westcoat, James. L., and White, Gilbert F., 2003, Water for Life: Cambridge University press, Cambridge, UK, 322p.