Contribution of multivariate statistical techniques in the hydrochemical evaluation of groundwater from the Ouargla phre
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Contribution of multivariate statistical techniques in the hydrochemical evaluation of groundwater from the Ouargla phreatic aquifer in Algeria Ahcène Semar & Hakim Saibi & Abderrahmane Medjerab
Received: 23 August 2011 / Accepted: 25 June 2012 / Published online: 8 July 2012 # Saudi Society for Geosciences 2012
Abstract A hydrochemical evaluation of the hydrogeological surface aquifer of Ouargla was conducted using 17 samples of water. The analysis of the samples focused on the determination of calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride, sulfate, bicarbonate, and nitrate, while electrical conductivity, temperature, and pH were measured on the ground. The obtained data are processed by multivariate techniques with a varimax rotation approach after standardization. The chemical data follow four factorial axes that provide a cumulative total variance explained by 67 %. Considering the EC as an additional variable, the matrix components after varimax rotation have identified a first axis related to NaCl, a second axis associated with CaSO4, a third axis of HCO3 and a fourth axis of NO3. These variables control a significant part of the chemistry of the groundwater in the region of Ouargla.
A. Semar Laboratoire de Géologie Appliquée, Département de Science du Sol, Ecole Nationale Supérieure Agronomique (ENSA), Hassan Badi, El Harrach 16200 Algiers, Algeria H. Saibi (*) Laboratory of Exploration Geophysics, Department of Earth Resources Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kyushu University, 744 Motooka, Nishi-ku, Fukuoka 819-0395, Japan e-mail: [email protected] A. Medjerab Faculté des Sciences de la Terre, de Géographie et de l’Aménagement du Territoire, Université des Sciences et de la Technologie Houari Boumediène, B.P.32, El Alia, Bab Ezzouar 16111 Algiers, Algeria
Keywords Groundwater . Chemistry . Factorial axis . Ouargla . Algeria
Introduction The hydrochemical evaluation of groundwater systems involves the identification of factors controlling water quality. These factors depend on natural environmental conditions, such as geology (lithology and tectonics) on the one hand and, on the other hand, such human actions on the environment as discharges of sewage or fertilizer. Multivariate statistical analysis is advantageous in relation to histogram techniques and line graphs and is a powerful tool for identifying sources. Several studies have been made within this method, such as that by Lawrance and Upchurch (1983), who used the technique to delineate areas of natural groundwater recharge of an aquifer in Florida, and Ashley and Lloyd (1978), who identified the process of the hydrogeological basin of Santiago de Chile. Briz Kishore and Murali (1992) have delineated source areas of salinity in Chitravati, India. Sanchez-Martos et al. (2001) combined multivariable analysis with geostatistics to map the groundwater quality of the Bajo Andarax (Spain) region. Hussein (2004) used the factorial analysis to evaluate the chemistry of groundwater in the basin of the Blue Nile (Sudan).
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