The course aims at providing the following learning outcomes: - ability to identify groundwater-related problems and solve them with a rigorous, technical and quantitative approach, also in the framework of a changing climate and water demand; - ability to face problems in the field of the characterization of aquifer systems, groundwater flow, contaminant propagation, remediation of contaminated aquifer systems, and underground site evaluation for carbon storage. - basic knowledge in the use of technical software commonly used in groundwater engineering; - improvement of critical skills and independent judgment capabilities based on the acquired technical knowledge (this skill will be developed in particular while solving preliminary design exercises focused on the main topics of the course); - development of written professional communication skills, acquired during the preparation of short technical reports on the exercises (which will be part of the final exam).

The course is intended for students in the second year of the Master program in Environment and Land Engineering. As a consequence, students are expected to have basic knowledge in: - chemistry - geology and geomechanics - hydraulics - calculus. Students are also expected to be experienced users of the Microsoft Office package (in particular, Word, Excel) or alternative text editing and spreadsheet software. Basic knowledge of Matlab programming can be useful.

The topics covered in the course include: - fundamental properties of porous media (aquifer system, deep geological formations for carbon storage): storage and flow capacity and associated characteristic parameters; Darcy law; classification of aquifer systems; piezometric maps (construction and interpretation). - groundwater flow: partial differential equation (PDE) for one-phase flow in porous media. Analytical solutions to the flow PDE for radial geometry (confined, leaky, unconfined aquifers). Hydrodynamic characterization of an aquifer system: well pumping tests, slug tests, indirect methods. Productive capacity and hydraulic efficiency of a pumping well. Optimization of a drinking water supply system. Managed aquifer recharge and groundwater flooding under climate change. - mobility (rock permeability and fluid viscosity) and fundamental properties of fluids and fluid-rock interactions (relative permeabilities, capillary pressures). - two-phase fluid flow: partial differential equation (PDE) for two-phase flow in porous media. Analytical solutions to the flow PDE for radial geometry and confined systems. Characterization of underground systems: well tests and lab tests. Well productivity and injectivity. Overview of 3D dynamic modeling. - contaminant transport and attenuation in aquifer systems: chemical, physical and toxicity properties of typical groundwater contaminants. Contaminant transport mechanisms in porous media: advection, hydrodynamic dispersion, sorption, degradation. PDE for solute transport in porous media and its analytical solutions for selected scenarios, including reactive and non-reactive contaminants. Basic mechanisms of propagation of immiscible contaminants (non-aqueous phase liquids, NAPLs). - groundwater remediation: approach to the management of a contaminated site, including site characterization, risk assessment and remediation. Focus on techniques for the characterization of a contaminated site. Overview of the main groundwater remediation technologies.

The course includes classes on the abovementioned topics (60 hours), exercises (18 hours) and practical activity in the field (approx. 2 hours). The exercises will cover the following topics: - reconstruction and interpretation of a piezometric map - interpretation of a well pumping test - interpretation of a slug test - preliminary design of a water supply system - assessment of storage capacity for carbon sequestration - design & interpretation of injection tests - risk evaluation for carbon injection and storage - exercises on the propagation of tracers and reactive contaminants in aquifer systems (analytical solutions to differential equations for reactive transport in porous media) - preliminary design of a managed aquifer recharge system - preliminary design of a permeable reactive barrier The exercises will be carried out with the support of the lecturer. The exercise hours will include a short introduction to the topic and the quantitative tools or specific software to be used (if any), and then the students will work independently with the support of the lecturer. Tutoring hours will provide further support for completing the exercises and preparing the technical reports for the exam. The field activity will include groundwater level measurements (and consequent reconstruction of the piezometric map), groundwater sampling and measurement of hydrochemical parameters, and a slug test (and associated interpretation) for the estimation of hydrodynamic parameters.

Most of the course topics are covered in the book R.Sethi, A. Di Molfetta (2019). Groundwater Engineering, Springer (https://tinyurl.com/yyvw67h7). A pdf print of the slides of all lectures will be uploaded to the student portal. Additional material will also be provided on the student portal for further reading on selected topics. On a case-by-case basis, it will be specified whether the material is compulsory for the final exam. Students can also refer to the following books (which are not compulsory, and cover the same topics included in the abovementioned books and the course slides): - Fetter C. W. (2014), Applied Hydrogeology. Fourth Edition. Pearson Ed. - P.A. Domenico, F.W. Schwartz, Physical and Chemical Hydrogeology, John Wiley & Sons Inc., New York, Second Edition, 1998. - V.Bathu, Aquifer Hydraulics, John Wiley & Sons Inc., New York 1998.

Lecture slides; Text book;

Exam: Written test; Optional oral exam; Group essay;

The onsite exam consists in: - Short written reports on the exercises carried out during the course. The reports will include the results of the exercises and a brief discussion. The reports can be prepared jointly by a maximum of 3 students and their submission (via the student portal) is compulsory to take the exam. The reports must be submitted periodically during the course, within 2 weeks after the exercises have been performed in class. The maximum score in this case is 5/30. As an alternative, students can submit the reports 5 working days before taking the written exam, and in this case, the maximum score is 2/30. - A written exam, which is structured in 2 parts. The first part includes 5 to 6 multiple-choice questions, focuses on the basic definitions and concepts of Groundwater Engineering; the maximum total score for this part is 9. The second part includes 5 to 6 open-answer theory questions and short exercises, to be solved on paper; the maximum score of this part is 18. The second part of the exam will be checked, and a score attributed, only if a minimum score of 6 (out of 9) is obtained in the first part. If the score of the first part is lower than 6, the student fails the exam. The total maximum score of the written test 27/30, the duration is 2 hours. The use of personal notes, books, or any other supporting material is not permitted. Students can take the written exam only if the reports have been submitted before the exam, as detailed above. - An elective short oral discussion of the written exam and other topics related to those of the written exam. The oral exam is not compulsory and will confirm or modify the mark of the written exam (leading to a lower or higher mark, depending on the general outcome of the oral discussion). The maximum variation with respect to the mark of the oral exam is 3 points (added or subtracted). The score of the written and oral questions and exercises is attributed to taking into account: - The correctness and completeness of the answers to the questions - The ability to elaborate on the topics presented and discussed in class for problem-solving - The ability to support the discussion with the correct language and clear form and with graphs (when relevant/required). The final score is calculated as the sum of the written test (with eventual increase/decrease of maximum 3 points as a result of the oral discussion, as described above), and the individual report results. Scores equal to 30.5 or higher will result in 30 cum laude.

In addition to the message sent by the online system, students with disabilities or Specific Learning Disorders (SLD) are invited to directly inform the professor in charge of the course about the special arrangements for the exam that have been agreed with the Special Needs Unit. The professor has to be informed at least one week before the beginning of the examination session in order to provide students with the most suitable arrangements for each specific type of exam.