Non-invasive geophysical methods for monitoring the shallow aquifer based on time-lapse electrical resistivity tomography, magnetic resonance sounding, and spontaneous potential methods.

The Ningdong coalfield has played a pivotal role in advancing local economic development and meeting national energy. Nevertheless, mining operations have engendered ecological challenges encompassing subterranean water depletion, land desertification, and ground subsidence, primarily stemming from the disruption of coal seam roof strata. Consequently, the local ecosystem has incurred substantial harm. Water-preserved coal mining presently constitutes the pivotal technology in mitigating this problem. The primary challenge of this technique lies in identifying critical aquifer layers and understanding the heights of water-conducting fracture zones. To obtain a precise comprehension of the seepage patterns within the upper coal seam aquifer during mining, delineate the extent of water-conducting fracture zones, non-invasive geophysical techniques such as time-lapse electrical resistivity tomography (TL-ERT), magnetic resonance sounding (MRS), and spontaneous potential (SP) have been employed to monitor alterations within the shallow coalfield's aquifer throughout the mining process in the Ningdong coalfield. By conducting meticulous examinations of fluctuations in resistivity, moisture content, and self-potential within the superjacent strata during coal seam extraction, the predominant underground water infiltration strata were ascertained, concurrently enabling the estimation of the development elevation of water-conducting fracture zones. This outcome furnishes a geophysical underpinning for endeavors concerning local water-preserved coal mining and ecological rehabilitation.

Advantages of the Optimum Pulse Moment in Surface NMR and Application in Groundwater Exploration.

The surface nuclear magnetic resonance (SNMR) method is widely used in groundwater detection because of its sensitivity to hydrogen in water and direct water detection. However, low signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) restrict the development of this technique. An optimum pulse sequence is designed according to correspondence between the pulse moment strength and its best detection depth. Because only selection of the pulse intensity distribution according to the target aquifer depth is required and the "on-resonance" pulse pattern is still employed, this pulse sequence emission can be easily achieved using existing SNMR instrumentation. Numerical simulation results and field experiments show that, compared with traditional exponential growth pulses, the optimum pulse sequence effectively improves the SNR of the SNMR method. The aquifer boundary, water content, and pore characteristics of the inversion result are thus more consistent with characteristics of underground structures. Additionally, because the optimum pulse sequence focuses most of the pulse moments in the target depth range, in situations where two aquifers are separated by a relatively narrow aquitard, it is better able to resolve the individual aquifers than the traditional pulses. Optimum pulse moments improve the SNR by enhancing the signal amplitude, compared with various filtering methods, and obtain a better detection effect. This kind of pulse sequence can be used as an alternative pulse sequence form of the SNMR method.