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Model Abstraction Techniques for Soil-Water Flow and
Transport (NUREG/CR-6884)
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Publication Information
Manuscript Completed: September 2005
Date Published: December 2006
Prepared by
Y.A. Pachepsky1, A.K. Guber3, M.T. Van Genuchten2,
T.J. Nicholson4, R.E. Cady4, J. Simunek3, M.G. Schaap3
1U.S. Department of Agriculture
Agricultural Research Service
Environmental Microbial Safety Laboratory
Beltsville, MD 20705 |
2U.S. Department of Agriculture
Agricultural Research Service
George E. Brown Jr. Salinity Laboratory
Riverside, CA 92705 |
3University of California Riverside
Department of Environmental Sciences
Riverside, CA 92521 |
4U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
Washington, DC 20555-0001 |
T.J. Nicholson, NRC Project Manager
Prepared for
Division of Fuel, Engineering & Radiological Research
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Washington, DC 20555-0001
NRC Job Code Y6724
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Abstract
This report describes the methodology of model abstraction in subsurface hydrology.
Model abstraction is defined as the methodology for reducing the complexity of a
simulation model while maintaining the validity of the simulation results with respect to
the question that the simulation is being used to address. The need in model abstraction
may stem from the need to improve the reliability and reduce uncertainty of simulations,
to make the modeling and its results more explicable and transparent to the end users, and
to enable more efficient use of available resources in data collection and computations.
A comprehensive review of model simplification techniques developed in subsurface
hydrology is included. Abstractions of both model structure and model parameter
determination are described. A systematic and objective approach to model abstraction is
outlined. A case study is presented that is designed to illustrate how model abstraction
can affect performance assessment of contaminant migration at a relatively humid site.
Although the model abstraction methodology is generic, it is designed to be of practical
use to NRC licensing staff in their review of the performance assessment of
decommissioning sites and waste disposal facilities. The model abstraction process
provides a systematic approach to understand the adequacy of model simplification, and
facilitates communication and transparency of the model to regulators, stakeholders, and
the general public.
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