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Scientific Investigations Report 2006–5133

Hydraulic and Field Water-Chemistry Characteristics of Piedmont Alluvial Deposits in the Middle Tyger River near Lyman, Spartanburg County, South Carolina, 2005

U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2006–5133, 32 pages (Published 2006)
(ONLINE ONLY)

By Larry G. Harrelson and Adrian D. Addison

This report is available online in pdf format (7 MB): USGS SIR 2006–5133

ABSTRACT

Cover of SIR 2006–5133.

This study explores the possibility of developing a bank-filtration process to improve water quality in which alluvial deposits serve as a natural sand filter to pretreat water to be used as a secondary drinking-water source in a small piedmont reservoir along the Middle Tyger River near Lyman in Spartanburg County, South Carolina. From January 2004 to September 2005, data from 10 auger borings, 2 sediment cores, 29 ground-penetrating radar transects, and 3 temporary observation wells, and field water-chemistry data were collected and analyzed. These data were collected and used to characterize the lithology, geometry, hydraulic properties, yield potential, and water-chemistry characteristics of the alluvial deposits in the channel and on the right bank of the reservoir. The assessment was undertaken to determine if an adequate amount of water could be withdrawn from the alluvial deposits to sustain a bank-filtration process and to characterize the water chemistry of the surface water and pore water.

The heterogeneous alluvial and fill material at the study site—clay, silty clay, clayey sand, fine- to coarse-grained sand, and mica—on the right bank of the Middle Tyger River ranges in thickness from 0.6 to 7 meters, has a calculated horizontal hydraulic conductivity of 1 meter per day, and yields approximately 0.07 liter per second of water. The small calculated horizontal hydraulic conductivity and water yield for these deposits restrict the use of the right bank as a potential bank-filtration site.

The coarse-grained alluvial sand deposit in the channel of the Middle Tyger River, however, may be used for a limited bank-filtration process. The discharge during pumping of the channel deposit yielded water at the rate of 1.9 liters per second. The coarse-grained channel deposit is approximately 49 meters wide and 3 meters thick near the dam. At approximately 183 meters upstream from the dam, the channel narrows to roughly 9 meters and the channel deposits thin to approximately 0.1 meter. Slug tests conducted in the channel deposits near the dam produced a calculated horizontal hydraulic conductivity of 60 meters per day. The limited thickness and aerial extent of the coarse-grained channel deposits coupled with large horizontal hydraulic conductivity likely would allow rapid transmission of water and may degrade the effectiveness of some water-chemistry improvements typical of a bank-filtration process.

Field water-chemistry data were collected for approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes at 10 to 15 minute intervals to compare the surface-water and pore-water quality in and beneath the channel of the Middle Tyger River. The waterchemistry data indicate that (1) the mean water temperature was higher in surface water (22.5 degrees Celsius) than in pore water (18.5 degrees Celsius), (2) the mean specific conductance was less in surface water (56.9 microsiemens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius) than in pore water (125.7 microsiemens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius), (3) alkalinity was lower in surface water (22.5 milligrams per liter) than in pore water (44.6 milligrams per liter), and (4) recorded pH values ranged between 6.2 and 6.3 in the surface water and pore water during the sampling period. The flow velocity was orders of magnitude slower in the pore water than in the surface water; therefore, the pore water interacts with the alluvial sediment for a longer period of time producing the variation in water-chemistry data between the two waters.


CONTENTS

Abstract

Introduction

Purpose and Scope

Previous Investigations

Description of Study Area

Description of the Bank-Filtration Process

Data-Collection Methods

Lithologic Characteristics of the Alluvial Deposits

Description of Ground-Penetrating Radar System

Ground-Penetrating Radar Data Collection

Ground-Penetrating Radar Data Processing

Correlation of Data from Auger Borings, Core Holes, and Ground-Penetrating Radar

Hydraulic Data Collection

Hydraulic Characterization of the Alluvial Deposits

Surface-Water and Pore-Water Chemistry Characterization

Summary

Acknowledgments

Selected References


REPORT AVAILABILITY

This report is available online in pdf format (7 MB): USGS SIR 2006–5133
To view the PDF document, you need the Adobe Acrobat® Reader installed on your computer. (A free copy of the Acrobat® Reader may be downloaded from Adobe Systems Incorporated.)

Suggested citation:

Harrelson, L.G., and Addison, A.D., 2006, Hydraulic and field water-chemistry characteristics of piedmont alluvial deposits in the Middle Tyger River near Lyman, Spartanburg County, South Carolina, 2005: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2006–5133, 32 p., available online at https://pubs.water.usgs.gov/sir2006-5133/

For more information, contact the South Carolina Publications Unit.

USGS South Carolina Publications South Carolina Water Science Center

 USGS South Carolina PublicationsSouth Carolina Water Science Center

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