Three-Dimensional Steady-state Groundwater Flow Modeling with Full Tensor Conductivities Using Finite Difference

Abstract

A new three-dimensional steady-state groundwater-flow forward-simulator with full conductivity tensors using a nineteen-points block-centered finite-difference method is presented. Hydraulic conductivity tensors are defined at the block interfaces eliminating the need to average conductivity tensors at adjacent blocks to approximate their values at the interfaces. The capabilities of the code are demonstrated in three heterogeneous formulations, two of the examples are two-dimensional, and the third one is three-dimensional and uses a nonuniform discretization grid. A benchmark, in the context of conductivity upscaling, is carried out with the MODFLOW LVDA module, which uses hydraulic conductivity tensors at block centers and then approximates their values at the interfaces. The results show that the code developed outperforms the MODFLOW LVDA module when the block conductivity principal directions are not parallel to the Cartesian axis.