| Solute transport in groundwater has become an active and important research area because of the increasing awareness about the living environment and the need for its protection from contamination. The amount of work, so far done in this field, is vast but scattered. Therefore, the present study has first systematically reviewed the available theoretical and experimental works since early 1950s, in particular. The review has critically analyzed the developments of research and has summarized the research trends and the associated forthcoming challenges. The review necessitates rigorous modeling of solute transport in groundwater, considering the effect of solute aggressiveness on the fundamental properties of the porous medium.;To solve the model equations, derived from the general continuity equations, permeability, porosity and concentration were correlated, and a solution algorithm, using collocation finite element technique, has been developed. The algorithm not only solves the resulting nonlinear, coupled equations under varying initial and boundary conditions but also guarantees continuous velocity field without using numerical integration.;The numerical simulation shows that the solute aggressiveness introduces additional heterogeneity in the medium, which increases the uncertainty in the estimation of hydraulic conductivity and dispersion coefficient. Increasing solute aggressiveness increases the hydraulic conductivity and the groundwater head. The existence of incompressible unsteady flow has been confirmed through numerical experiments. Therefore, the hydrodynamics of groundwater must be coupled with the associated mass transport phenomenon with special reference to modeling the effects of solute aggressiveness.;A simple experimental model was developed in the laboratory to study the dynamics of flow and transport of aggressive solutes in porous media. It was, however, not possible to study the effects of solute aggressiveness due to significant growth of microorganisms in the system.;However, the modeling work is complicated and challenging because the solute transport process couples the flow of groundwater with the transport of mass in the porous medium. Because of solute aggressiveness, the hydraulic conductivity changes with concentration. Consequently, the medium becomes inhomogeneous and revises the existing concept of steady incompressible groundwater flow to an unsteady problem. The present study has modeled the groundwater solute transport incorporating these factors. |
