Integration of Field and Map Data

At the start of the modelling process, mView provides direct integration of geologic, hydrogeologic and cultural data to create an integrated site model (ISM). ISM data may include:

• borehole geology;
• soil and groundwater analytic results;
• site Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) and geologic surfaces;
• water level data; and,
• GIS data such as roads, water features, etc.

Data may be imported into mView using standard formats such as dxf, ArcInfo export, Surfer grids, as well as generic table, grid and XYZ data.

Once the data is within mView, the data can be manipulated, visualized and exported. For example, mView’s data extraction capabilities allow borehole geological information and water levels to be extracted to assist in generating surfaces.

mView supports multiple coordinate systems, and provides transparent coordinate system transformations. For example, UTM grids and site grids can be easily used together. There are no limits on the number of coordinate systems that can be defined and used concurrently.

Numeric Model Development

• Visualize conceptual model, e.g. combined geologic horizons and borehole geology, assess contaminant distribution in 2D and 3D
  
• Generate 2D and 3D regular finite-difference or irregular finite-element grids
  
• Extensive range of facilities for assigning/specifying grid block/element properties
  selecting elements/nodes/ faces to define boundary conditions, model properties and fractures
  
• Generating model specific output files

Grid Generation

mView has a complete set of tools for generating 2D and 3D finite difference and finite element grids. Model specific coordinate systems can be defined and grid layers generated based on ISM surfaces or on other criteria such as thickness, absolute elevation, etc.

Property Assignment

Grid properties can be set using a variety of methods:

• by grid layer;
• by elevation;
• by location inside/outside XY polygons; and,
• by specified element/node indexes.

 

Discrete Fracture Networks

mView provides support for delineating discrete fracture features on a rectangular model grid. Given a three-dimensional polygon representation of actual fractures, mView will calculate the element faces that optimally represent the fractures.

Data Indexes

mView’s data index facilities are unique. Individual element/node indexes or groups of indexes can be extracted or generated according to a wide variety of criteria. These indexes can then be used in setting model properties and boundary conditions, and in visualizations. For example, indexes intersecting surface water features from an ISM can be used to selectively set top surface boundary conditions.

Index selection capabilities include: elements/nodes intersecting polygon planes, falling inside/outside 2D polygons, within a specified distance from XY lines and selected interactively by the user. Once indexes are extracted, they can be operated on using a variety of tools, such as boolean logic and node to element conversion.

Generating Input Files

After grids have been developed and properties assigned, general model input files can be generated. Model specific input files can be generated for FRAC3DVS and MODPATH.

Importing Model Results

After a model simulation is complete, mView is capable of directly converting model output files from any of the following models:

• TOUGH
• FEHM
• NUFT
• ASHPLUME
• WAPDEG
• MODFLOW/MODPATH
• FRAC3DVS

SWIFT Tabular output files can also be imported directly into mView.

Unlike many software products, mView is not limited to analyzing and visualizing model results from one model

Analysis of Model Results

• comparison of model results to field data
• calculation of calibration statistics
• results extractions, and data manipulation

Numerous analytic capabilities are available with mView, including:

• univariate statistics;
• extract results by property, location, and any specification;
• extract water table position from unsaturated model results;
• mathematical operations (e.g. calculate difference between results from two runs, or two time steps from the same run); and,
• CDF construction and data extraction (e.g. find 95th percentiles of data).
  

Intermediate and final output of analysis calculations are available for visualization.

An example analytic calculation that determines the advective velocity distribution at different model elevations is as follows:

1. Advective velocity results are converted to a scalar magnitude.
2. The resulting advective velocity results are extracted at various grid elevations.
3. Statistics and a CDF of each set of advective velocity magnitudes are calculated.
4. The CDF and the median of each set of advective velocity magnitudes are plotted, as shown below.

Visualization

• 2D and 3D spatial plots for visualizing fields and vectors
• 2D and 3D non-spatial plots for plotting time series and CDFs
• multiple model results comparison, including support for different coordinate systems
• report quality 2D and 3D figures/posters with postscript output
• integrated animation support

mView has two general categories of visualization: spatial and non-spatial. Spatial plots are linear and scaled by distance in two or three dimensions, and are used for most mView plotting. For example, spatial plots are used for plotting concentration plumes. Non-spatial plots may be linear or log scale for any axis (2D or 3D), and are used for plotting data such as time series data or CDFs.

There are no limits to the number of plots that can be displayed simultaneously. Each plot is displayed in a separate top level window, and can be cascaded, tiled or minimized. In addition, mView’s composite plot type allows multiple individual plots to be displayed in the same window.

2D Spatial Plots

2D spatial plots are oriented in plan view (XY) or as vertical slices (XZ and YZ) referenced to a coordinate system. Data that can be plotted in 2D include contour lines, color fills, velocity vectors, node/element outlines, symbols and identifiers, boreholes, particle tracks, and context data.

3D Spatial Plots

3D spatial plots are also referenced to a single coordinate system. All data presentations available for 2D plots are available for plotting on slices in 3D plots. Additionally, isovolumes, color fills, node/element outlines, boreholes and particle tracks plot as fully three dimensional.

mView is capable of plotting 3D data using a transparency function. For example, the figure shown below plots a series of concentration isovolumes intersecting a local fracture system.

Plot Output

Output from mView is available as bitmaps, jpegs, and vector postscript files. Additionally, the Windows clipboard can be used to copy/paste plot windows directly into applications such as Word and PowerPoint. Animation support is provided by automatically generating sequentially numbered files, for processing by third-party applications.

Special Applications

• nested model support
• MODPATH integration allows creation of modpath input files based on flow results from models other than MODFLOW

Nested Models

mView makes it easy to model local scale contaminant transport within complex large scale flow systems. Head boundary conditions for the local scale transport model can be extracted directly from flow-only simulations performed at a larger scale. The local scale model grid size and orientation does not have to match the larger scale grid.

MODPATH Integration

mView’s MODPATH integration features allow the generation of particle tracks from flow fields obtained from a model other than MODFLOW (rectangular grids only). This allows other models to be effectively used in groundwater capture zone modelling. MODPATH results can be analyzed and visualized using mView’s extensive particle track capabilities, including:

• selection of particle tracks by total track time, total distance, and start or end location;
• tracks can be visualized in 2D or 3D, with track color specified as a function of point time or track time;
• scalar data (e.g. head, concentration) at particle track points can be extracted, analyzed and plotted; and,
• capture zone outlines and areas can be determined from the convex hulls of selected particle points.