Effect of sorption intensities on dispersivity and macro-dispersion coefficient in a single fracture with matrix diffusion

Matrix diffusion and sorption are among the key processes impacting the efficiency of natural attenuation in the subsurface. While these processes have been studied extensively in fractured media, limited information exists on the sorption nonlinearity. To address this shortfall, a numerical model has been developed that couples matrix diffusion and nonlinear sorption at the scale of a single fracture using the dual-porosity concept. The study is limited to a constant continuous-solute-source boundary condition. The influence of sorption intensities on dispersivity and macro-dispersion coefficient is investigated using a method of spatial moments. Results suggest that mixing of solutes is significantly lowered by nonlinear sorptive behavior, with respect to the mixing caused by matrix diffusion for linearly sorbing solutes. Also, the magnitude of time dependent dispersivity during the pre-asymptotic regime is lower for nonlinearly sorbing solutes with respect to the linearly sorbing solutes. Reduced mixing is also observed for nonlinearly sorbing solutes under combined mechanisms of matrix diffusion and decay. © Springer-Verlag 2007.