A review of modeling approaches to simulate saline-upconing under skimming wells

Abstract

The occurrence of saline water along with fresh water in inland aquifers is due to different reasons. The extraction of fresh water from these aquifers is severely hampered by the underlying saline water. The saline water may rise in the form of a cone under the well bottom if the design and operational parameters for skimming well are not selected carefully. Physically, it is difficult to play with different design and operational scenarios due to economic and time constraints. Analytical and numerical models can help solve this problem. The paper reviews different models to simulate the saline-upconing under different pumping regimes. These models are categorized based on the assumptions of sharp interface and transition zone.