A case study on water sealing efficieny of groundwater storage caverns using discrete fracture network method and flow numerical simulation

Abstract

Containment property is the key to ensuring the safe operation of groundwater-sealed caverns.At present, the main difficulty in studying the water sealing property of groundwater-sealed caverns lies in the strong heterogeneity and anisotropy of fractured rock aquifer.In this paper, a discrete fracture network model is established based on the measured fracture geometry parameters to analyze the fracture development characteristics.Based on the understanding and assumption of the basic law of fracture seepage, a high-precision heterogeneous and anisotropic seepage model is established, and the permeability characteristics of the study area are analyzed.Through the establishment of heterogeneous anisotropic seepage model, the water seal performance of water curtain system is discussed and compared with the traditional homogeneous isotropic seepage model.The model can make up for the deficiencies of the traditional homogeneous isotropic seepage model, and more accurately evaluate the storage leakage risk caused by the heterogeneity and anisotropy of fractured rock mass.

Keywords

• underground water-sealed caverns
• discrete fracture network model
• heterogeneity and anisotropy
• numerical simulation