A Numerical study of unsaturated flow and transport through a fractured meter-sized rock block

Yongkoo Seol, Timothy J. Kneafsey, Kazumasa Ito, and Stefan Finsterle

Contact: Yongkoo Seol, 510/486-4806, yseol@lbl.gov

Research Objectives
Our work involves study of a meter-sized block of fractured rock to obtain experimental evidence in support of the active fracture concept (AFC). This concept assumes that only a portion of fractures in a connected unsaturated fracture network contributes to liquid water flow. Prior to this experimental evaluation, however, we need to perform a preliminary numerical simulation in which we incorporated the AFC into a dual-continuum model (DCM) to create an enhanced DCM. Through this integration, we intend to identify the most effective way to quantify the AFC parameter in the laboratory.

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