Thesis defence by Lorraine Dewaide

 This thesis tackles issues related to solute transport in karst conduits, especially the geometrical control of the conduits on artificial tracer transport. The Furfooz karst system in the carbonate mudmounds of the Waulsort Formation (Tournaisian-Visean) of Southern Belgium was chosen as study site. In this system, the underground river flows through contrasted geometries, i.e. small conduits vs. underground voluminous lakes. First, field information was gathered with numerous tracer tests on the system. Double-peaked breakthrough curves were sampled downstream the lakes. Hypothesis about the origin of these multi-peaked BTCs are proposed and documented by the tracer tests analysis, and water-level and physico-chemical data. The physical and numerical modelling of the tracer tests are also proposed to dimension the system and verify some postulates. Second, to a smaller extent, the PhD gives a first analysis of dolomitisation/dedolomitisation complex processes that seem related to the karstogenesis of the Furfooz massif.

Lorraine will present the results of her PhD thesis she conducted in the Department of Geology under the supervision of Vincent Hallet.

See invitation file in French