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Geoelectrical mapping for improved performance of SUDS in clay tills

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Abstract

Many cities of the Northern Hemisphere are covered by low permeable clay tills, posing a challenge for stormwater infiltration practices. However, clay tills range amongst the most heterogeneous types of sediments and infiltration rates can vary by several orders of magnitude. This study evaluates if a 2D geoelectrical system can reveal such heterogeneity at field scale and thus be used to optimize the hydraulic performance of stormwater runoff infiltration systems. The assessment is based on a field study where data from non-invasive geoelectrical data are compared with data from invasive geological methods, including borehole soil sample descriptions, one excavation description and a near-surface spear auger-mapping project. The experiments returned a significant correlation of geoelectrical and spear auger-mapped surface sediments. Furthermore, a highly permeable oxidized fracture zone in greater depths could be revealed on the 2D geoelectrical profiles. The successful determination of highly permeable zones harbors potential for improved hydraulic performance of infiltration SUDS (sustainable urban drainage systems).

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Acknowledgments

The work was conducted as part of the innovation consortium Cities in Waterbalance (Byer i Vandbalance) financed by the Council for Technology and Innovation in Denmark. The authors would like to thank the reviewer Anna Gabàs for her valuable comments that have helped to improve the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Rolighedsvej 23, 1958, Frederiksberg, Denmark

    Britta Bockhorn & Marina Bergen Jensen

  2. Department of Quaternary and Groundwater Mapping, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, Østervoldgade 10, 1350, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Ingelise Møller & Knud Erik S. Klint

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  1. Britta Bockhorn
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  2. Ingelise Møller
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  3. Knud Erik S. Klint
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  4. Marina Bergen Jensen
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Correspondence to Britta Bockhorn.

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Bockhorn, B., Møller, I., Klint, K.E.S. et al. Geoelectrical mapping for improved performance of SUDS in clay tills. Environ Earth Sci 74, 5263–5273 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-015-4535-z

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