Hard rock aquifer architecture and water circulation levels in the Strengbach critical zone observatory (France)
We present an integrated petrological, petrophysical, and hydrogeological study of the critical zone (CZ) developed in the Hercynian granitic basement of the Strengbach watershed (Vosges Massif, France) to characterize its deep architecture and water circulation levels. For this purpose, six borehol...
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Académie des sciences
2023-11-01
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| Series: | Comptes Rendus. Géoscience |
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| Online Access: | https://comptes-rendus.academie-sciences.fr/geoscience/articles/10.5802/crgeos.239/ |
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| author | Chabaux, François Négrel, Philippe Gal, Frederick Viville, Daniel Ranchoux, Coralie Van der Woerd, Jérome Delay, Frederick Ackerer, Julien Aquilina, Luc Diraison, Marc Masson, Frédéric Mériaux, Anne-Sophie Labasque, Thierry Lucas, Yann Pezard, Philippe Adrien Reuschlé, Thierry Schmitt, Anne-Désirée Stille, Peter Wyns, Robert Lerouge, Catherine Dezayes, Chrystel |
| author_facet | Chabaux, François Négrel, Philippe Gal, Frederick Viville, Daniel Ranchoux, Coralie Van der Woerd, Jérome Delay, Frederick Ackerer, Julien Aquilina, Luc Diraison, Marc Masson, Frédéric Mériaux, Anne-Sophie Labasque, Thierry Lucas, Yann Pezard, Philippe Adrien Reuschlé, Thierry Schmitt, Anne-Désirée Stille, Peter Wyns, Robert Lerouge, Catherine Dezayes, Chrystel |
| author_sort | Chabaux, François |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We present an integrated petrological, petrophysical, and hydrogeological study of the critical zone (CZ) developed in the Hercynian granitic basement of the Strengbach watershed (Vosges Massif, France) to characterize its deep architecture and water circulation levels. For this purpose, six boreholes (50–120 m depth), from which three are cored, and three piezometers (10–15 m depth) were drilled to define the vertical extension and lateral variability of the main CZ horizons.The Strengbach watershed is composed of a topsoil horizon of limited vertical extension (0.8–1.2 m), a mobile saprolite level, and an in-place fractured bedrock. The latter is subdivided into a few meters thick saprock horizon, defined by open sub-horizontal fractures and a deeper fractured bedrock horizon with steeply dipping fractures (${>}$50°). In the north-facing slope, the vertical extension of the mobile saprolite horizon increases from ${\approx }$1–2 m at the top of the slope to ${\approx }$9 m downstream, close to the valley bottom. In contrast, the south-facing and more easterly slope shows a mobile saprolite horizon with limited vertical extension (${\approx }$2–3 m thick). Such a difference is associated with the existence of a knickpoint in the river bed, separating a downstream zone marked by currently active erosion from an upstream one, less prone to erosion, with preserved reliefs formed around 20 ka ago.The water circulation scheme within the Strengbach watershed involves two different systems: a subsurface circulation within the shallow aquifer, corresponding to the mobile saprolite horizon and the saprock, and a deeper circulation in the fractured bedrock. The water circulation in the fractured bedrock is controlled by fractures of regional orientations, linked to the Vosges massif and the Rhine Graben Tertiary tectonics, and partly to reactivated Hercynian fracture zones. The unaltered bedrock was not reached by any of the three cores. These results from the Strengbach CZ demonstrate the importance of integrating geological history of the watershed, either the long-term geological bedrock evolution or the Quaternary erosion patterns, to better understand and model the CZ hydrological functioning at the watershed scale. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2ba89510c82e41ea939be5f70e9b542a |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1778-7025 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2023-11-01 |
| publisher | Académie des sciences |
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| series | Comptes Rendus. Géoscience |
| spelling | doaj-art-2ba89510c82e41ea939be5f70e9b542a2025-02-07T10:40:14ZengAcadémie des sciencesComptes Rendus. Géoscience1778-70252023-11-01355S118520610.5802/crgeos.23910.5802/crgeos.239Hard rock aquifer architecture and water circulation levels in the Strengbach critical zone observatory (France)Chabaux, François0Négrel, Philippe1Gal, Frederick2Viville, Daniel3Ranchoux, Coralie4Van der Woerd, Jérome5Delay, Frederick6Ackerer, Julien7Aquilina, Luc8Diraison, Marc9Masson, Frédéric10Mériaux, Anne-Sophie11Labasque, Thierry12Lucas, Yann13Pezard, Philippe Adrien14Reuschlé, Thierry15Schmitt, Anne-Désirée16Stille, Peter17Wyns, Robert18Lerouge, Catherine19Dezayes, Chrystel20Institut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceBRGM, 45060 Orléans, FranceBRGM, 45060 Orléans, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceGéosciences Rennes, Université Rennes, CNRS, 35000 Rennes, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceGéosciences Rennes, Université Rennes, CNRS, 35000 Rennes, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceGéosciences Montpellier, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, Place Eugène Bataillon, 34000 Montpellier, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceInstitut Terre et Environnement de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, ENGEES, 67000 Strasbourg, FranceBRGM, 45060 Orléans, FranceBRGM, 45060 Orléans, FranceBRGM, 45060 Orléans, FranceWe present an integrated petrological, petrophysical, and hydrogeological study of the critical zone (CZ) developed in the Hercynian granitic basement of the Strengbach watershed (Vosges Massif, France) to characterize its deep architecture and water circulation levels. For this purpose, six boreholes (50–120 m depth), from which three are cored, and three piezometers (10–15 m depth) were drilled to define the vertical extension and lateral variability of the main CZ horizons.The Strengbach watershed is composed of a topsoil horizon of limited vertical extension (0.8–1.2 m), a mobile saprolite level, and an in-place fractured bedrock. The latter is subdivided into a few meters thick saprock horizon, defined by open sub-horizontal fractures and a deeper fractured bedrock horizon with steeply dipping fractures (${>}$50°). In the north-facing slope, the vertical extension of the mobile saprolite horizon increases from ${\approx }$1–2 m at the top of the slope to ${\approx }$9 m downstream, close to the valley bottom. In contrast, the south-facing and more easterly slope shows a mobile saprolite horizon with limited vertical extension (${\approx }$2–3 m thick). Such a difference is associated with the existence of a knickpoint in the river bed, separating a downstream zone marked by currently active erosion from an upstream one, less prone to erosion, with preserved reliefs formed around 20 ka ago.The water circulation scheme within the Strengbach watershed involves two different systems: a subsurface circulation within the shallow aquifer, corresponding to the mobile saprolite horizon and the saprock, and a deeper circulation in the fractured bedrock. The water circulation in the fractured bedrock is controlled by fractures of regional orientations, linked to the Vosges massif and the Rhine Graben Tertiary tectonics, and partly to reactivated Hercynian fracture zones. The unaltered bedrock was not reached by any of the three cores. These results from the Strengbach CZ demonstrate the importance of integrating geological history of the watershed, either the long-term geological bedrock evolution or the Quaternary erosion patterns, to better understand and model the CZ hydrological functioning at the watershed scale.https://comptes-rendus.academie-sciences.fr/geoscience/articles/10.5802/crgeos.239/Deep critical zone architectureHard rock aquiferWater circulation levelsGeological heritageStrengbach Critical Zone Observatory |
| spellingShingle | Chabaux, François Négrel, Philippe Gal, Frederick Viville, Daniel Ranchoux, Coralie Van der Woerd, Jérome Delay, Frederick Ackerer, Julien Aquilina, Luc Diraison, Marc Masson, Frédéric Mériaux, Anne-Sophie Labasque, Thierry Lucas, Yann Pezard, Philippe Adrien Reuschlé, Thierry Schmitt, Anne-Désirée Stille, Peter Wyns, Robert Lerouge, Catherine Dezayes, Chrystel Hard rock aquifer architecture and water circulation levels in the Strengbach critical zone observatory (France) Comptes Rendus. Géoscience Deep critical zone architecture Hard rock aquifer Water circulation levels Geological heritage Strengbach Critical Zone Observatory |
| title | Hard rock aquifer architecture and water circulation levels in the Strengbach critical zone observatory (France) |
| title_full | Hard rock aquifer architecture and water circulation levels in the Strengbach critical zone observatory (France) |
| title_fullStr | Hard rock aquifer architecture and water circulation levels in the Strengbach critical zone observatory (France) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Hard rock aquifer architecture and water circulation levels in the Strengbach critical zone observatory (France) |
| title_short | Hard rock aquifer architecture and water circulation levels in the Strengbach critical zone observatory (France) |
| title_sort | hard rock aquifer architecture and water circulation levels in the strengbach critical zone observatory france |
| topic | Deep critical zone architecture Hard rock aquifer Water circulation levels Geological heritage Strengbach Critical Zone Observatory |
| url | https://comptes-rendus.academie-sciences.fr/geoscience/articles/10.5802/crgeos.239/ |
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