Application of a geochemical model for assessing groundwater quality of the quaternary aquifer in el-Marashda area, Qena, Egypt

Abstract EN

Management of water supplies requires the planning, production, delivery and efficient management of water resources.

Actually, not only the amount but also the quality of groundwater is diminishing due to growing population and industrial activity, overuse of fertilizers in agricultural products and intensive cultivation.

This study aims to groundwater quality assessment based on the hydrogeochemical properties, and a geochemical model (NETPATH).

The physico-chemical parameters indicated that the total dissolved salts (TDS) value of the 37 groundwater samples varies between 176.56 to 2096 ppm.

The water type is dominance of Na- K- Cl-SO4, while only six samples represented in Ca-Mg-Cl-SO4 water type.

The saturation indices (SIs) of the water with regard to mineral phases were determined using NETPATH to detect the possible chemical reactions in the groundwater.

The state of mineral saturation helps to define the evolution of hydrochemistry and isolate the geochemical reactions that regulate water chemistry along the water flow path.

With regard to dissolved minerals, the SI quantitatively defines the divergence of water from equilibrium.