Evaluation of Topsoil Competence, Aquifer Types, Groundwater Prospect and Flow Pattern using Geoelectric Characterization for Part of Ogbomoso, Nigeria

Abstract

Part of Ogbomoso Southwestern Nigeria was assessed using electrical resistivity method with a view to obtaining the subsurface  geoelectric parameters (resistivities and thicknesses), categorizes the topsoil into different competence zones and evaluates the aquifer  types, groundwater prospect and flow pattern. Fiftyfour Vertical Electrical Sounding (VES) data were quantitatively interpreted using the  partial curve matching technique to obtain the preliminary layer parameters which were further refined through 1-D forward modelling  WinResist software package. The resulting final layer parameters were used to generate 2D geoelectric sections, isopach and isoresistivity  maps and subsequently used to categorize the study area into different topsoil Competence, Aquifer types and  Groundwater Potential zones. Static water levels of hand-dug wells in the area were used to generate the groundwater flow pattern. Four  subsurface geoelectric layers were delineated. These were the topsoil, laterite, weathered/partly weathered layer (main aquifer)  and fractured/fresh bedrock. The resistivities and thicknesses of the layers were 76-1858, 649- 2021, 17-880 and 260-33385 Ωm and 0.4-4,  0.7-1.9 and 1.9-25.2 m respectively. The groundwater flow pattern in the area was NE-SW. The study concluded that incompetent to highly  competent topsoil, weathered bedrock (main) aquifer unit/partly weathered/fractured bedrock aquifer and generally low    groundwater potential with NE-SW flow direction underlay the study area.