Hydrogeophysical imaging of fluid content variations in the shallow subsurface

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An important parameter in the characterization of the shallow subsurface is the volumetric content of air, water and other pore fluids.  These parameters significantly impact many important hydraulic processes, such as groundwater recharge.  Information about fluid content is essential for the characterization of sites impacted by immiscible contaminants and the evaluation of subsequent remediation processes, as well as assessing the performance of engineered covers for isolating buried waste.  Subsurface water content and its variation, both temporally and spatially, are critical input parameters in the design of precision agricultural techniques.   Geophysical methods provide an efficient and minimally invasive means to obtain information about subsurface fluid content over an extensive spatial area.  Many geophysical techniques respond strongly to fluid content variations.  This research project will improve the extraction of fluid content information from geophysical data, particularly in the presence of hysteretic saturation effects.  This goal will be achieved through an integrated research program.  First, improved relationships between geophysical response and fluid content will be determined.  Subsequently, these relationships will be incorporated into new interpretation models that can be used to infer fluid content from geophysical field data.   The resulting enhancement in subsurface fluid content information will lead to better groundwater resource evaluation and protection, contaminated site characterization, remediation planning and monitoring.  Improved geophysical information will permit less reliance on data obtained from traditional hydrogeological sampling methods, leading to potential cost savings, minimizing subsurface disturbance and decreasing the small sampling volume problems inherent with the traditional methods.