Heat as a tracer to quantify water flow in near-surface sediments

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• 作者：Gabriel C. Rau ; Martin S. Andersen ; Andrew M. McCallum ; Hamid Roshan ; R. Ian Acworth
• 关键词：Heat as a tracer ; Conduction heat transport ; Convection heat transport ; Temperature data ; Hydrogeology ; Groundwater hydrology
• 刊名：Earth-Science Reviews
• 出版年：February, 2014
• 年：2014
• 卷：129
• 期：Complete
• 页码：40-58
• 全文大小：2470 K

文摘

The dynamic distribution of thermal conditions present in saturated near-surface sediments have been widely utilised to quantify the flow of water. A rapidly increasing number of papers demonstrate that heat as a tracer is becoming an integral part of the toolbox used to investigate water flow in the environment. We summarise the existing body of research investigating natural and induced heat transport, and analyse the progression in fundamental and natural process understanding through the qualitative and quantitative use of heat as a tracer. Heat transport research in engineering applications partly overlaps with heat tracing research in the earth sciences but is more advanced in the fundamental understanding. Combining the findings from both areas can enhance our knowledge of the heat transport processes and highlight where research is needed. Heat tracing relies upon the mathematical heat transport equation which is subject to certain assumptions that are often neglected. This review reveals that, despite the research efforts to date, the capability of the Fourier-model applied to conductive-convective heat transport in water saturated natural materials has not yet been thoroughly tested. However, this is a prerequisite for accurate and meaningful heat transport modelling with the purpose of increasing our understanding of flow processes at different scales. This review reveals several knowledge gaps that impose significant limitations on practical applications of heat as a tracer of water flow. The review can be used as a guide for further research directions on the fundamental as well as the practical aspects of heat transport on various scales from the lab to the field.