ABSTRACT
Groundwater is considered as a supplementary source to supply increasing demands of water. This chapter discusses the movement of groundwater in its simplest forms to illustrate the principles involved. The pure velocity of groundwater is obtained from dividing the superficial flow velocity by the porosity of the porous medium. Considering that natural groundwater flow mostly occurs when the Reynolds number is less than 1, Darcy’s law is applicable to groundwater movement. In groundwater studies, fluid potential and hydraulic head are equivalent; however, hydraulic head is most commonly used. Pumping tests are common ways for measuring hydraulic conductivity at a field. Hydraulic conductivity is estimated from observations of water levels near the pumping wells. A homogeneous formation has uniform hydraulic conductivity at all points in the aquifer. The maximum rate of groundwater flow occurs when the soil layer between the permeable strata and ground surface is totally saturated.
