The nature and distribution of flowing features in a weakly karstified porous limestone aquifer

The nature and distribution of flowing features in boreholes in an area of approximately 400 km2 in a weakly karstic porous limestone aquifer (the Chalk) was investigated using single borehole dilution tests (SBDTs) and borehole imaging. One-hundred and twenty flowing features identified from SBDTs in 24 boreholes have densities which decrease from ∼0.3 m−1 near the water table to ∼0.07 m−1 at depths of more than 40 m below the water table; the average density is 0.20 m−1. There is some evidence of regional lithological control and borehole imaging of three boreholes indicated that most flowing features are associated with marls, hardgrounds and flints that may be developed at a more local scale. Borehole imaging also demonstrated that many flowing features are solutionally enlarged fractures, suggesting that even in carbonate aquifers where surface karst is developed on only a small scale, groundwater flow is still strongly influenced by dissolution. Fully connected solutional pathways can occur over 100s, sometimes 1000s of metres. However, conduits, tubules and fissures may not always be individually persistent along a flowpath, instead being connected together and also connected to unmodified fractures to create a relatively dense network of voids with variable apertures (15 cm). Groundwater therefore moves along flowpaths made up of voids with varying shape and character. Local solutional development of fractures at significant depths below the surface suggests that mixing corrosion and in situ sources of acidity may contribute to solutional enhancement of fractures. The study demonstrates that single borehole dilution testing is a useful method of obtaining a large dataset of flowing features at catchment-regional scales. The Chalk is a carbonate aquifer with small-scale surface karst development and this study raises the question of whether other carbonate aquifers with small-scale surface karst have similar characteristics, and what hydrological role small-scale dissolutional features play in highly karstic aquifers

Catchment scale tracer testing from karstic features in a porous limestone

Tracer testing was undertaken from sinking streams feeding the Chalk, a porous limestone aquifer characterised by frequent small-scale surface karst features. The objective was to investigate the nature and extent of sub-surface karstic development in the aquifer. Previous tracer testing has demonstrated rapid flow combined with low attenuation of tracer. In this study, at two sites rapid groundwater flow was combined with very high attenuation and at two other sites no tracer was detected at springs within the likely catchment area of the stream sinks tested, suggesting that tracer was totally attenuated along the flowpath. It is proposed that the networks beneath stream sinks in the Chalk and other mildly karstic aquifers distribute recharge into multiple enlarged fractures that divide and become smaller at each division whereas the networks around springs have a predominantly tributary topology that concentrates flow into a few relatively large cavities, a morphology with similarities to that of the early stages of karstification. Tracer attenuation is controlled by the degree to which the two networks are directly connected. In the first state, there is no direct linkage and flow between the two networks is via primary fractures in which tracer attenuation is extreme. The second state is at a percolation threshold in which a single direct link joins the two networks. A very small proportion of tracer reaches the spring rapidly but overall attenuation is very high. In the third state, the recharge and discharge networks are integrated therefore a large fraction of tracer reaches the spring and peak concentrations are relatively high. Despite the large number of stream sinks that recharge the Chalk aquifer, these results suggest that sub-surface conduit development may not always be continuous, with flow down smaller fissures and fractures causing high attenuation of solutes and particulates providing a degree of protection to groundwater outlets that is not seen in more highly karstic aquifers. Bacteriophage tracers that can be detected at very large dilutions (1015) are recommended for investigating groundwater pathways where attenuation may be high

Diagnosis of Periprosthetic Joint Infections in Clinical Practice

The diagnosis of a periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) can be challenging, either because of the variable clinical presentation or because of previous antimicrobial treatment interfering with the detection of the pathogen. In recent years, various means to diagnose PJI have been analyzed. These include invasive and non-invasive laboratory tests, imaging procedures, and novel techniques such as sonication of implants and the use of molecular microbiology. In this review, both established and novel diagnostic procedures are presented. An algorithm for detecting PJI in patients with acute and chronic symptoms is proposed

The decline of calendar seasonality in the Australian stock exchange, 1958–2005

Calendar effects, Market anomalies, Market efficiency, C12, C22, G14,