Hydraulic modeling of saltwater infiltration with various concentrations into unsaturated bentonite-based buffer material

田窪 勇作*; 高山 裕介*; 杉田 裕; 生越 季理; 石田 圭輔*

Environmental Earth Sciences, 85(9), p.229_1 - 229_19, 2026/05

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-026-12955-9

In this study, sensitivity analysis was conducted to identify key parameters that strongly influence infiltration assessment. The results indicate that the intrinsic permeability and the water retention function have a significant impact on the simulation of liquid saturation as key parameters to be focused on the hydraulic modelling. Furthermore, the results of hydraulic analysis for saltwater infiltration with various concentrations suggest that the hydraulic analysis model is applicable for evaluating infiltration behaviour, by setting several analysis cases focused on variabilities of key parameters. This modeling approach, which focuses on the key parameters, has the potential to be a simple method to predict the hydraulic state transition of the buffer material during re-saturation period.