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Application of Geophysical Methods for Hydrogeology—Second Edition
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Application of Geophysical Methods for Hydrogeology—Second Edition

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Hydrogeology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 July 2025 | Viewed by 3731

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Alex Sendros

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Water Research Institute. Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Interests: hydrogeology; geophysical prospecting; water management; hydrogeophysics; aquifer management recharge; wastewater treatment; nature-based solutions; aquifer vulnerability
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. María del Carmen Cabrera Santana

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Dpto de Física, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 35017-Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Geovol, Spain
Interests: groundwater resources; hydrogeochemistry and water quality; seawater intrusion; coastal aquifers; contamination of groundwater; vadose zone; hydrogeology of volcanic terrains; water–rock interaction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Albert Casas Ponsati

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mineralogy, Petrology and Applied Geology, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Interests: geophysical prospecting; water management; near-surface geophysics; geophysical prospecting; groundwater resources; hydrogeochemistry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The characterization of the subsoil and its hydraulic properties is essential for groundwater and surface water management, but it is often difficult to evaluate from traditional borehole drilling, water well and piezometer pumping tests, and soil sampling techniques. Traditional soil sampling methods typically provide only data from the upper layers, and boreholes are expensive and only provide spotty information. The integration of geophysical data with direct hydrogeological measurements is a challenging issue that could help to characterize, monitor, and investigate hydrological parameters and processes in the shallow subsurface at a variety of resolutions and over many spatial scales in a minimally invasive manner.

This Special Issue of Water aims to gather research on advances and obstacles associated with using geophysical methods, with a special focus on case studies demonstrating their potential to improve our understanding of subsurface hydrogeological parameters and processes. Papers on novel data acquisition procedures and innovative hydrogeological mapping, hydrological parameter estimation, and monitoring of hydrological processes are welcome to be submitted. Papers focused on the integration of geophysical and hydrogeological measurements and petrographic relationships will also be appreciated.

Dr. Alex Sendros
Prof. Dr. María del Carmen Cabrera Santana
Prof. Dr. Albert Casas Ponsati
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • hydrogeophysics
  • petrophysics
  • hydrogeology
  • water management
  • near-surface geophysics
  • groundwater resources
  • coastal aquifers
  • aquifer characterization
  • vadose zone
  • saturated zone
  • Earth’s critical zone
  • water–rock interaction
  • contamination of groundwater

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 14467 KiB  
Article
Optimization of 3D Borehole Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) Measurements for Real-Time Subsurface Imaging
by Marios Karaoulis
Water 2025, 17(11), 1695; https://doi.org/10.3390/w17111695 - 3 Jun 2025
Viewed by 373
Abstract
In this work, we explore the optimization of 3D Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) measurement protocols for a 3D borehole grid configuration. Currently, there is no widely accepted standard measurement scheme for such setups. The use of numerous electrodes and the possibility of cross-borehole [...] Read more.
In this work, we explore the optimization of 3D Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) measurement protocols for a 3D borehole grid configuration. Currently, there is no widely accepted standard measurement scheme for such setups. The use of numerous electrodes and the possibility of cross-borehole configurations lead to an extremely large number of potential electrode combinations. However, not all these combinations contribute significantly to the final resistivity model, and a complete measurement cycle requires substantial time to perform. This becomes particularly problematic in dynamic subsurface conditions, where changes may occur during data acquisition. In such cases, the measurements collected within a single cycle may reflect different subsurface states. Conversely, attempting to shorten acquisition time can result in too few measurements to resolve the subsurface structure at high resolution. Furthermore, most existing approaches assume a uniform half-space model and treat all measurements equally, failing to prioritize those that are most sensitive to actual subsurface changes. To address these challenges, we propose a 3D measurement optimization approach that yields an efficient acquisition scheme. This method produces inversion results comparable to those obtained from much larger datasets while reducing both measurement and processing requirements. Our optimization is based on a sensitivity-driven selection algorithm that accounts for the real subsurface structure rather than assuming a generic half-space. The proposed methodology is validated using synthetic data and tested with experimental data obtained from a laboratory tank setup. These experimental measurements were used to monitor permeation grouting; a technique applied to reduce permeability and/or increase the strength of granular soils through targeted injection. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geophysical Methods for Hydrogeology—Second Edition)
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26 pages, 8360 KiB  
Article
Hydrogeological, Hydrochemical, and Geophysical Analysis of a Brine-Contaminated Aquifer Addressing Non-Unique Interpretations of Vertical Electrical Sounding Curves
by Barry J. Hibbs
Water 2024, 16(24), 3557; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16243557 - 10 Dec 2024
Viewed by 1131
Abstract
A comprehensive hydrogeological, geophysical, and hydrochemical investigation was conducted in southeastern Hitchcock County, Nebraska, within the Driftwood Creek alluvial aquifer. This study assessed groundwater contamination stemming from the surface disposal of saline wastes from oilfield activities. A contaminated area, initially identified through regional [...] Read more.
A comprehensive hydrogeological, geophysical, and hydrochemical investigation was conducted in southeastern Hitchcock County, Nebraska, within the Driftwood Creek alluvial aquifer. This study assessed groundwater contamination stemming from the surface disposal of saline wastes from oilfield activities. A contaminated area, initially identified through regional groundwater sampling, was examined in detail. Monitoring wells were installed, and groundwater and soil samples were collected for chemical analysis. Surface electrical resistivity surveys were also performed to delineate contamination patterns. The findings revealed that the groundwater contamination originated from the leaching of residual evaporative salts through the vadose zone, beneath an abandoned emergency-evaporation brine storage pit. Data from down-hole specific conductance logs, water quality analyses, and computer-generated interpretations of surface electrical resistivity indicated that contaminant migration was primarily influenced by gravity, bedrock topography, and the local hydraulic gradient. An initial surface electrical resistivity profile survey was conducted to optimize the placement of monitoring wells and soil sampling sites within the vadose zone. Following well installation, a contaminant source with complex brine contamination patterns was detected within the shallow aquifer. Vertical electrical soundings were then carried out as the final investigative step. The data from these soundings, combined with test hole records, water level measurements, brine contaminant distribution, and soil analyses, were refined through a computer program employing the method of steepest descent. By incorporating known layer thicknesses and resistivities as constraints, this approach minimized the common issue of non-unique electrical sounding interpretations, providing information on the distribution of brine contaminants within the alluvial aquifer. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geophysical Methods for Hydrogeology—Second Edition)
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12 pages, 4155 KiB  
Article
Investigating Arctic Permafrost Dynamics Using Electrical Resistivity Imaging and Borehole Measurement in Svalbard
by Ding-Jiun Lin, Ping-Yu Chang, Ying-Lon Chen, Jordi Mahardika Puntu, Chuen-Fa Ni, Slawomir Jack Giletycz, Ireneusz Sobota, Kamil Czarnecki and Yu-Huan Chang
Water 2024, 16(19), 2707; https://doi.org/10.3390/w16192707 - 24 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1649
Abstract
This study utilized electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) to investigate subsurface characteristics near Nicolaus Copernicus University Polar Station on the western Spitsbergen-Kaffiøyra Plain island in the Svalbard archipelago. Surveys along two lines, LN (148 m) collected in 2022 and 2023, and ST (40 m) [...] Read more.
This study utilized electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) to investigate subsurface characteristics near Nicolaus Copernicus University Polar Station on the western Spitsbergen-Kaffiøyra Plain island in the Svalbard archipelago. Surveys along two lines, LN (148 m) collected in 2022 and 2023, and ST (40 m) collected in 2023, were conducted to assess resistivity and its correlation with ground temperatures. The LN line revealed a 1- to 2-m-thick resistive unsaturated outwash sediment layer, potentially indicative of permafrost. Comparing the LN resistivity result between 2022 and 2023, a 600 Ohm.m decrease in the unsaturated active layer in 2023 was observed, attributed to a 5.8 °C temperature increase, suggesting a link to global warming. ERI along the ST line depicted resistivity, reaching its minimum at approximately 1.6 m, rising to over 200 Ohm.m at 4 m, and slightly decreasing to around 150 Ohm.m at 7 m. Temperature measurements from the ST line’s monitoring strongly confirmed that the active layer extends to around 1.6 m, with permafrost located at greater depths. Additionally, water content distribution in the ST line was estimated after temperature correction, revealing a groundwater depth of approximately 1.06 m, consistent with measurements from the S4 borehole on the ST line. This study provides valuable insights into Arctic subsurface dynamics, emphasizing the sensitivity of resistivity patterns to climate change and offering a comprehensive understanding of permafrost behavior in the region. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Application of Geophysical Methods for Hydrogeology—Second Edition)
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