Objective
Scientific objectives and approach:
The ground water content is at the present time estimated using different methods:
- the sounding drill and gravimetric sounding, that only give a punctual information
- the resistivity methods, based on the electrical current conduction properties, give more the ionic content than the water content and necessitates the use of electrodes that must be pushed inside the soil. This last operation is time consuming and impossible in a very dry ground
- the electromagnetic methods such as magneto-telury, infrared spectroscopy, thermometry, geological radar scan, which are able to obtain water profiles. However, the major limitation for all these methods is the small penetration depth (less than 1 meter).
- the classical geophysical prospecting methods - seismic reflection or gravimetry - are more adapted to deep exploration (>10 m).
The main objective is to develop a new technology based on magnetic resonance imaging for the detection and mapping of the water present in the first meters of the ground (0-10m). The equipment is based on the proton NMR detection of water in the ground magnetic field. Such instrumentation has already been developed. The originality of our system as compared to the existing one is the capability of geographical signal localisation, which was not presently possible with the existing system. The objective is to obtain ground water imaging from the surface to around 10 meters deep.
The industrial objective is clearly to provide a tool displaying new performances in the sector of ground water characterization with imaging capabilities. This should significantly improve the quality of the work and the time taken for the studies. The goal of the project is to build and validate a system prototype able to meet the stated objectives. The on-site validation of the prototype by the different SMEs constitutes the second important deliverable. To improve the economical value of the services supplied, it is planned to perform demonstration studies, and to examine the possibility of having other systems built by a specialised factory. The main sectors of activities for SMEs user are as follows: (i) environmental studies, forecasting of pollution and flooding, reclassifying industrial wastelands, water catchment determination (ii) agronomic and pedologic studies such as field classification, quality control and planning for drainage installations, (iii) building industry, motorways, risk and prevention of foundations, flooding, rocks, stones and cavity localisation for tunnelling. Other applications that could be developed include forest fire prevention by measuring ground water distribution and determination of the best water boring localisation. The methodology is also of interest for the detection and the estimation of archaeological resources and is therefore of central interest to our cultural heritage.
Problems to be solved:
The exact localization of the superficial ground water is of great interest for a large range of applications and economical issues. They first include environmental studies, as the superficial ground water is actively responsible for the quality of the drinking water. Imaging the soil water is expected to be a tool to anticipate the future pollution. This knowledge can help to prevent forest fires. In agronomy and agro-industries, the development of extensive farming with the multiplication of draining installations causes a soil washing and acidification; the ground water distribution image should constitute an important data in the planning of draining installation and quality control evaluation of existing installations. The field classification can be improved with the help of such information. Furthermore, the ground water image could also serves as a reference image for the remote detection study. The technique could be particularly adapted in the building industry. The absence of water in rocks and stones is the basis for their detection. Finally for archaeological studies, the water image can be used for the detection and the cartography of the site of interest.
Expected Impacts:
The consortium associates SMEs involved in environmental, agronomic and building industry investigations at the request of the economic sectors of activity concerned. The knowledge of ground water distribution is of particular interest to improve the relevance and the added value of the studies. Indeed, there is no well recognized method at present to image the first meters of the ground, so the proposed MR technique could become the reference in the field.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology environmental engineering water treatment processes drinking water treatment processes
- natural sciences physical sciences optics spectroscopy absorption spectroscopy
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering information engineering telecommunications radio technology radar
- natural sciences earth and related environmental sciences environmental sciences pollution
- engineering and technology medical engineering diagnostic imaging magnetic resonance imaging
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
33170 GRADIGNAN
France
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.