Delineating groundwater-surface water exchange flux using temperature-time series analysis methods

Groundwater-surface water interactions can play a crucial role in river-, riparian and wetland management. Their delineation and quantification at various spatial and temporal scales has become an important aspect in the study of contaminant transport and attenuation processes at the groundwater-surface water interface. One of the main parameters of interest is the groundwater-surface water exchange flux, which provides indications regarding stream-aquifer connectivity, the local flow regime as well as hydrogeological properties of the streambed. One of the methods to assess vertical exchange flux is through the analysis of temperature time-series. In this paper we delineate vertical exchange flux from temperature-time series collected at a Belgian River by comparing established numerical and analytical techniques with a novel approach. Results indicate a spatial variability of vertical fluxes over two orders of magnitude at the site

Optimizing Traffic Flow and Space Utilization at ISU Transportation Services

Transportation services is looking to alleviate some of the congestion during peak times by putting in a self-service kiosk to allow for checkouts outside of normal business hours. In order to do this, the parking lot must be redesigned to fit enough cars and handle the traffic flow

LPMLE3 : a novel 1-D approach to study water flow in streambeds using heat as a tracer

We introduce LPMLE3, a new 1-D approach to quantify vertical water flow components at streambeds using temperature data collected in different depths. LPMLE3 solves the partial differential equation for coupled water flow and heat transport in the frequency domain. Unlike other 1-D approaches it does not assume a semi-infinite halfspace with the location of the lower boundary condition approaching infinity. Instead, it uses local upper and lower boundary conditions. As such, the streambed can be divided into finite subdomains bound at the top and bottom by a temperature-time series. Information from a third temperature sensor within each subdomain is then used for parameter estimation. LPMLE3 applies a low order local polynomial to separate periodic and transient parts (including the noise contributions) of a temperature-time series and calculates the frequency response of each subdomain to a known temperature input at the streambed top. A maximum-likelihood estimator is used to estimate the vertical component of water flow, thermal diffusivity, and their uncertainties for each streambed subdomain and provides information regarding model quality. We tested the method on synthetic temperature data generated with the numerical model STRIVE and demonstrate how the vertical flow component can be quantified for field data collected in a Belgian stream. We show that by using the results in additional analyses, nonvertical flow components could be identified and by making certain assumptions they could be quantified for each subdomain. LPMLE3 performed well on both simulated and field data and can be considered a valuable addition to the existing 1-D methods

ISU Transportation Services Kiosk Implementation and Parking Lot Redesign

Constructed in 1970, the Iowa State Transportation Service Building and adjoining lot have been home to the complete fleet of vehicles made available to various departments of the university. Transportation Services is an operation of only seven employees. This small but efficient staff, led by Director Kathy Wellik, responsible for tracking and maintaining a fleet of over six hundred vehicles, stay true to their mission of providing economical transportation options for the university faculty to perform their duties. Currently, fleet rentals can only be made within operating hours, 6:15 A.M. to 5 P.M., when there is staff on-site to process the reservation. However, there has been an increase in demand for off-hours rentals. To alleviate the economic burden of staffing the facility 24-hours a day, Transportation Services has invested in a Kiosk customers can use to rent and return vehicles during off-hours. The client has requested the fenced lot be redesigned to support one hundred and twelve vehicles, that can be rotated out as the fleet inventory and demand changes. The kiosk system must be outfitted with an accessible and easy to understand interface that will guide a customer through the process of picking-up and dropping-off a vehicle. All training material must be clear and concise, applicable for a customer with any level of experience renting a vehicle. Many different industries are undergoing similar changes to address needs of the customer outside of normal business hours. The self-service kiosk is becoming a common solution. Most of the big-name car rental industries employ a similar method to the one mentioned above. With the success and economic benefits seen in the car rental industry, the self-service kiosk has spread from the postal industry to tech repair and continues to grow