The Principles of Groundwater Flow

This On-Demand webinar presents an overview of groundwater flow in saturated media. Groundwater flow is governed by the three outside forces acting on groundwater: gravity (which pulls water downward), external pressure (combination of atmospheric pressure and the weight of the overlying water), and molecular attraction (adherence, surface – tension).

Groundwater possesses mechanical, thermal and chemical energy. As groundwater moves through a porous medium there are forces, which resist flow: shear stresses acting tangentially to the solid and normal stresses acting perpendicular to the surface of the solid. We know these collectively as friction. The internal molecular attraction of the fluid to itself resists the movement of fluid molecules past each other. This shearing resistance is known as the viscosity of the fluid.

The primary way we describe groundwater flow through an aquifer is through Darcy’s Law. Darcy’s Law states that Discharge is equal to hydraulic conductivity times the cross-sectional area of the aquifer times the hydraulic gradient.

Once you complete your course review, you need to take a multiple-choice quiz consisting of ten (10) questions to earn 1 PDH credit.

Learning Objectives

This course is intended to provide you with the following specific knowledge and skills:

Forces that act on groundwater: gravity, external pressure, and molecular attraction
The types of energy associated with groundwater
Darcy’s Law

We provide technical courses for PDH credits that meet Board requirements for Professional Engineers, Geologists and Land Surveyors.

This courses is guaranteed to be accepted in AK, AL, AR, GA, IA, IL, ID, IN, KS, KY, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WI, WV, and WY. Before purchasing this course, please confirm that your state Board is listed above.

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