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Hydrogeological assessment of the Tabarteh fault zone by physicochemical analysis and multivariate statistical methods

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Abstract

Hydrogeologically, faults may impede, conduit, exert no influence, or may play a combination of these roles on groundwater flow. The object of this paper is to study the hydrogeological role of the Tabarteh fault, which is located on the border of Zagros and Central Iran tectonic zones in an alluvial aquifer. The recorded data of water table levels, chemical parameters, and discharge rate of wells, in addition to geological maps and geophysical results, were collected and evaluated. The outcrop of travertine in limited areas and the emergence of a few small springs within the alluvium show a barrier role of the fault in the groundwater flow. The spatial analysis of chemical components, head time series, and groundwater flow direction assessment demonstrated that the fault acts as both a barrier and a non-barrier in different sections. The multivariate statistical methods of cluster and discriminant analyses also confirm the dual role of the fault.

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Acknowledgments

Authors would like to thank Kharazmi University, Tehran University, and Markazi Regional Water Company for supporting the research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geoscience Department, Science Faculty, Tehran University, Tehran, Iran

    Javad Ashjari

  2. Geology Department, Science Faculty, Kharazmi University, Alborz, Karaj, Iran

    Mojtaba Noori & Mohammad Nakhaei

  3. Regional Water Department of Markazi, Arak, Iran

    Reza Azimi

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  1. Javad Ashjari
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  2. Mojtaba Noori
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  3. Reza Azimi
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  4. Mohammad Nakhaei
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Correspondence to Javad Ashjari.

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Ashjari, J., Noori, M., Azimi, R. et al. Hydrogeological assessment of the Tabarteh fault zone by physicochemical analysis and multivariate statistical methods. Arab J Geosci 9, 227 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-015-2176-x

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