ASTM D5490-93e1

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Designation: D 5490 – 93
Standard Guide for
Comparing Ground-Water Flow Model Simulations to Site-
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Specific Information
This standard is issued under the fixed designation D 5490; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (e) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.
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e NOTE—Paragraph 1.9 was added editorially October 1998.
1. Scope responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-
priate safety and health practices and determine the applica-
1.1 This guide covers techniques that should be used to
bility of regulatory limitations prior to use.
compare the results of ground-water flow model simulations to
1.9 This guide offers an organized collection of information
measured field data as a part of the process of calibrating a
or a series of options and does not recommend a specific
ground-water model. This comparison produces quantitative
course of action. This document cannot replace education or
and qualitative measures of the degree of correspondence
experience and should be used in conjunction with professional
between the simulation and site-specific information related to
judgment. Not all aspects of this guide may be applicable in all
the physical hydrogeologic system.
circumstances. This ASTM standard is not intended to repre-
1.2 During the process of calibration of a ground-water flow
sent or replace the standard of care by which the adequacy of
model, each simulation is compared to site-specific informa-
a given professional service must be judged, nor should this
tion such as measured water levels or flow rates. The degree of
document be applied without consideration of a project’s many
correspondence between the simulation and the physical hy-
unique aspects. The word “Standard” in the title of this
drogeologic system can then be compared to that for previous
document means only that the document has been approved
simulations to ascertain the success of previous calibration
through the ASTM consensus process.
efforts and to identify potentially beneficial directions for
further calibration efforts.
2. Referenced Documents
1.3 By necessity, all knowledge of a site is derived from
2.1 ASTM Standards:
observations. This guide does not address the adequacy of any
D 653 Terminology Relating to Soil, Rock, and Contained
set of observations for characterizing a site.
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Fluids
1.4 This guide does not establish criteria for successful
E 978 Practice for Evaluating Environmental Fate Models
calibration, nor does it describe techniques for establishing
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of Chemicals
such criteria, nor does it describe techniques for achieving
successful calibration.
3. Terminology
1.5 This guide is written for comparing the results of
3.1 Definitions:
numerical ground-water flow models with observed site-
3.1.1 application verification—using the set of parameter
specific information. However, these techniques could be
values and boundary conditions from a calibrated model to
applied to other types of ground-water related models, such as
approximate acceptably a second set of field data measured
analytical models, multiphase flow models, noncontinuum
under similar hydrologic conditions.
(karst or fracture flow) models, or mass transport models.
3.1.1.1 Discussion—Application verification is to be distin-
1.6 This guide is one of a series of guides on ground-water
guished from code verification which refers to software testing,
modeling codes (software) and their applications. Other stan-
comparison with analytical solutions, and comparison with
dards have been prepared on environmental modeling, such as
other similar codes to demonstrate that the code represents its
Practice E 978.
mathematical foundation.
1.7 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as the
3.1.2 calibration—the process of refining the model repre-
standard.
sentation of the hydrogeologic framework, hydraulic proper-
1.8 This standard does not purport to address all of the
ties, and boundary conditions to achieve a desired degree of
safety problems, if any, associated with its use. It is the
correspondence between the model simulations and observa-
tions of the ground-water flow system.
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This guide is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee D-18 on Soil and
Rock and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee D18.21 on Ground Water and
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Vadose Zone Investigations. Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 04.08.
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Current edition approved Nov. 15, 1993. Published January 1994. Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 11.04.
Copyright © ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.
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D 5490
3.1.3 censored data—knowledge that the value of a variable 4.3.3 Assessment of the reasonableness or justifiability of
in the physical hydrogeolo
...