Groundwater quality and its hydrochemical characteristics in a shallow weathered rock aquifer of southern India

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Water Quality, Exposure and Health ISSN 1876-1658Volume 7Number 4 Water Qual Expo Health (2015)7:515-524DOI 10.1007/s12403-015-0166-6

Groundwater Quality and itsHydrochemical Characteristics in a ShallowWeathered Rock Aquifer of Southern India

R. Rajesh, K. Brindha & L. Elango

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ORIGINAL PAPER

Groundwater Quality and its Hydrochemical Characteristicsin a Shallow Weathered Rock Aquifer of Southern India

R. Rajesh1 • K. Brindha2 • L. Elango1

Received: 19 December 2014 / Revised: 30 March 2015 / Accepted: 31 March 2015 / Published online: 7 April 2015

� Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2015

Abstract Suitability of groundwater for domestic and

irrigation purposes as well as its hydrochemical charac-

teristics was estimated in a part of Nalgonda district, Te-

langana state in southern India. Water samples were

collected from 45 wells once every 2 months from March

2008 to January 2010. EC and pH were measured in situ

while concentrations of calcium, magnesium, sodium,

potassium, sulphate and chloride in groundwater were

analysed using ion chromatograph. Carbonate and bicar-

bonate concentration were determined by acid base titra-

tion. General order of dominance of cations in the

groundwater of this study area is Na?[Ca2?[Mg2?[K? while that for anions is HCO3

-[Cl-[ SO4-2. Ca–

HCO3, Na–Cl, mixed Ca–Na–HCO3 and mixed Ca–Mg–Cl

types of groundwater were dominant in this area.

Groundwater is generally fresh with medium to high sali-

nity and low alkalinity. Chloride and bicarbonate concen-

trations were present within the permissible limits for

drinking whereas, some samples exceed the permissible

limits of the Bureau of Indian Standards for pH, TDS, TH,

sodium, calcium, magnesium and sulphate. Potassium ex-

ceeded the maximum permissible limits for drinking pro-

posed by World Health Organisation. Sodium adsorption

ratio, sodium percentage, residual sodium carbonate and

permeability index indicates that the groundwater quality

was suitable for irrigation in most parts of the study area.

Keywords Groundwater quality � Domestic use �Irrigation � Nalgonda district � Telangana � India

Introduction

Demand for freshwater has increased in the recent decades

due to population explosion and intense irrigation ac-

tivities. Availability of freshwater is decreasing especially

in several arid and semi-arid regions of the world. The

future adequacy of freshwater resources is difficult to

assess, owing to complex and rapidly changing geography

of water supply and use (Vorosmarty et al. 2000). Even

today, due to inadequate supply of surface water, most of

the people in developing countries depend on the use of

locally available groundwater resources for different pur-

poses. Quality of groundwater is affected by rainfall, cli-

mate, geology, irrigation practices, anthropogenic sources

of contamination and several other reasons. The hydro-

chemical characteristics of groundwater play a significant

role in assessing its quality for various purposes. It also

provides a better understanding of possible changes in

groundwater quality. Worldwide several researchers have

discussed the groundwater quality-related problems

(Stamatis et al. 2011; Li et al. 2012; Massoud 2012; Chen

and Feng 2013; Moosavirad et al. 2013). In India too,

numerous studies have been carried out to assess the suit-

ability of groundwater quality for drinking and irrigation

uses (Gowd 2005; Rao 2006; Brindha and Elango 2011;

Dar et al. 2011; Ramesh and Elango 2012; Sharma et al.

2012; Vetrimurugan et al. 2013). Thus, hydrochemical

study related to quality has become very important. Such a

study was carried out in a rural part of southern India where

people depend on groundwater for both domestic and ir-

rigation needs. This region is located in the administrative

& L. Elango

[email protected]; [email protected]

1 Department of Geology, Anna University, Chennai 600025,

India

2 International Water Management Institute, Vientiane,

Lao PDR

123

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district of Nalgonda, in the state of Telangana (formerly

Andhra Pradesh), southern India (Fig. 1) and is noted for

the high fluoride concentration in groundwater (Rao et al.

1993; Brindha et al. 2011a; Brindha and Elango 2013a).

Groundwater in watersheds near the present study area too

has high fluoride owing to the fluoride rich minerals in the

aquifer materials and high degree of weathering due to

alkaline groundwater (Reddy et al. 2010). Other studies in

this region include the exploration of unconformity-related

uranium mineralization in the Kurnool group sediments

located in the southeast of Nalgonda district (Singh et al.

2002). Geochemical processes affecting the groundwater

chemistry of this region and its temporal variation were

identified by Rajesh et al. (2012) and the occurrence of

bromide (Brindha and Elango 2010, 2013b), nitrate

(Brindha et al. 2010, 2012; Brindha and Elango 2012) and

uranium (Brindha et al. 2011b; Brindha and Elango 2013c)

in groundwater has also been reported. Solute transport and

geochemical modelling of various ions in groundwater of

this area was studied by Elango et al. (2012) and Brindha

and Elango (2014). However, these studies have not re-

ported about the general groundwater quality for any in-

tended use. So, this study was carried with an aim to

ascertain the groundwater quality and its suitability for

domestic and irrigation purposes in a part of Nalgonda

district, Telangana, southern India.

Methodology

Description of the Study Area

The study area is of 724 km2 area and it is located at a

distance of 70 km south east of Hyderabad in Telangana

state, India (Fig. 1). South eastern part of this area is sur-

rounded by the Nagarjuna Sagar reservoir, the southern

side and a part of the northern boundary are bounded by

Pedda Vagu and Gudipalli Vagu rivers, respectively. This

area lies in the tropical region which is characterised by

arid to semi-arid climate. Summer period is typically from

April to June when temperature ranges from a maximum of

44 �C during day to a minimum of 28 �C at night. During

winter (December to February), the maximum day time

temperature is around 35 �C and the minimum temperature

is about 20 �C during the night. Average rainfall is around

600 mm/year, most of which occurs during southwest

monsoon (July–September). Agriculture is the main ac-

tivity which is practiced depending on the climatic

Fig. 1 Location and geology of the study area with monitoring wells

516 R. Rajesh et al.

123


conditions and availability of water. Rice is the principle

crop grown while other crops include sweet lime, castor,

cotton, grams and groundnut.

Geology and Hydrogeology

The topography of the area comprises an undulating terrain

with a maximum elevation of 360 m on northwestern side

and minimum elevation of 150 m amsl on the eastern side.

In general, the ground surface slopes towards south eastern

direction with intermittent hillocks. There are several such

small hillocks in this area with height ranging from 250 to

300 m amsl. The surface runoff has resulted into the de-

velopment of dendritic to sub-dendritic drainage pattern.

Maximum water level of the Nagarjuna Sagar reservoir at

the south western boundary is 180 m amsl.

This area lies in the northern part of the Cuddapah basin.

Initially the geology of the study area was derived from

Geological Survey of India (GSI) maps of 1:50,000 scale

(GSI 1995) and then was improved by the interpretation of

Indian Remote Sensing Satellite data followed by geolo-

gical field visits. This region is largely covered by gran-

ite/granitic gneiss, pink biotite granite, grey hornblende

biotite gneiss, migmatite granite and metabasalt which are

generally medium to coarse grained belonging to late

Archean (GSI 1995) (Fig. 1). Foliations in these rocks are

due to the alternate arrangements of minerals and the di-

mensional orientation of light minerals such as quartz and

feldspar. Granitic rocks are characterised by criss crossing

joints, and are the most commonly observed structural

feature in the area. The generalised stratigraphic sequence

of the area is shown in Table 1.

Hydrogeologically the subsurface of this region can be

characterised as a three distinct layer system with the soil

zone, weathered and massive rock layers. Thickness of soil

zone ranges from 0.6 to 12 m and is comparatively thicker

in the southern and northeastern boundary of the study area

due to influence of rivers. The thickness of the moderately

weathered granite ranges from 4 to 15 m. The pore spaces

are developed in the weathered portions to form potential

water-bearing zones. There are a number of wells in this

area which supply water with diameter ranging from 2 to

5 m and the depth of the dug wells from ground surface is

up to 20 m. Thus, most of the wells tap groundwater from

the weathered and fractured zone. The diameter of the dug

wells ranges from 2 to 5 m. The bore wells were generally

of 15 cm diameter and they were of depth greater than

20 m. Yield of the irrigation wells ranges between 100 and

150 m3/day, whereas in few places it is up to 200 m3/day

(CGWB 2007).

Sampling and Laboratory Methods

Groundwater samples were collected for 2 years from

March 2008 to January 2010 once every 2 months from 45

representative wells (Fig. 1). Electrical conductivity (EC)

and pH were measured using portable digital metres which

were calibrated with 84 and 1413 lS/cm conductivity so-

lution for EC and 4.01, 7 and 10.01 buffer solution for pH.

In open wells, water samples were collected 30 cm below

the water table using a depth sampler and in bore wells, the

sample was collected after pumping the water for sufficient

time in order to collect the formation water. Samples were

collected and stored in clean polyethylene bottles of

500 ml capacity. These bottles were rinsed two or three

times with the samples before collection. Samples were

filtered using 0.45 lm Millipore filter paper before carry-

ing out the chemical analysis. Major cations (calcium,

magnesium, sodium and potassium) and anions (chloride

and sulphate) in groundwater were determined using

Metrohm 861 advanced compact ion chromatograph.

Blanks and standards were run simultaneously during the

measurement for ensuring accuracy of the result. Concen-

trations of carbonate and bicarbonate were determined by

titrating against H2SO4 as per standard method (APHA

1995). Accuracy of the chemical analysis was verified by

calculating the ion balance error which was generally

within ±5 %. Total dissolved solids (TDS) of the

groundwater was calculated using the formula TDS (mg/

l) = EC (lS/cm) 9 0.64 and total hardness (TH) was

calculated using, TH mg/l = (2.5 9 Calcium in mg/

l) ? (4.1 9 Magnesium in mg/l). Hydrogeochemical fa-

cies of groundwater was determined by plotting the con-

centration of major ions in the Piper trilinear diagram

(Piper 1944).

Results and Discussion

Hydrogeochemistry

The pH values ranged between 6.1 and 9.3 with an average

of 7.5 which indicates that the groundwater of the study

area is acidic to alkaline. EC of groundwater ranges from

Table 1 Stratigraphic sequence of the study area

Age Supergroup Lithology Quartzite Shale quartzite intercalation Black siltstone/shale

Mesoproterozoic Cuddapah (Srisailam group)

Gritty pebbly quartzite ------------------------------------ Unconformity -------------------------------------- Archaen to proterozoic Peninsular gneissic complex II Dolerite

nievztrauQetinargetitoibednelbnrohyerG

etinargetitoibyerGetinargetitoibkniP

ssieng/etinargetitamgiMssiengetitoibyerG

Archaen Dharwar (Peddavuru group) Schist, Meta basalt

Groundwater Quality and its Hydrochemical Characteristics in a Shallow Weathered Rock… 517

123


144 to 5030 lS/cm with an average of 1030 lS/cm. The

highest value of EC was observed in the southeast of the

study area. The minimum, maximum and mean value of all

the parameters is given in the Table 2. Ca–HCO3, Na–Cl,

mixed Ca–Na–HCO3 and mixed Ca–Mg–Cl types of

groundwater were dominant in this region as indicated in

Fig. 2.

Drinking Water Quality

The quality of water used for drinking purpose depends on

the chemical, radiological and biological contents of the

water. In the present study the quality of water with respect

to major ions was estimated. The various parameters

analysed were compared with the standard guideline values

as suggested by the Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) for

drinking water quality (BIS 2012) and World Health Or-

ganisation (WHO 1993) (Table 3) to evaluate the suit-

ability of groundwater in the study area for human

consumption.

Total Dissolved Solids

TDS represents the hydrochemical properties of ground-

water and is used often to determine the suitability of

groundwater for drinking purpose (Catroll 1962; Freeze

and Cherry 1979). TDS ranges from 92 to 3219 mg/l with

an average of 659 mg/l. Groundwater with high TDS oc-

curs in the southwest of the study area. The graph (Fig. 3)

according to Freeze and Cherry (1979) classification shows

that 93 % of samples were fresh i.e. with less soluble salts

and hence groundwater in this area can be used for do-

mestic purposes without any major health hazard with re-

gard to TDS.

Total Hardness

TH based on calcium and magnesium concentration in

groundwater ranges from 102 to 3259 mg/l with an average

of 347 mg/l. The most desirable limit of TH in drinking

water is 200 mg/l and the maximum allowable limit is

600 mg/l according to BIS (2012). Groundwater exceeding

the TH limit of 300 mg/l is considered as very hard ac-

cording to Sawyer and McCarty (1967) classification.

Figure 4 shows that 2 % of groundwater samples were

moderately hard, 48 % were hard and 50 % of samples

were very hard. Groundwater is moderately hard to hard in

the central part and very hard in the southeastern part of the

study area as seen in Fig. 5.

Major Ions

Dominance of cations and anions in groundwater was

Na?[Ca2?[Mg2?[K? and HCO3-[Cl-[ SO4

-2,

respectively. The concentration of calcium in the study area

range from 12 to 1224 mg/l with an average of 83 mg/l.

Calcium ions in this granitic terrain derives from minerals

like feldspars, pyroxenes and amphiboles. Magnesium

varied from 10 to 249 mg/l with an average of 34 mg/l. The

concentration of sodium ion ranges from 24 to 470 mg/l

with an average of 109 mg/l. 10 % of samples exceed the

permissible limits for sodium (Table 3). High concentration

of sodium in the groundwater is attributed to cation ex-

change (Rajesh et al. 2012). The average concentration of

potassium in groundwater is 17 mg/l and 15 % of the

groundwater samples exceed the permissible limit of

12 mg/l (WHO 1993). Bicarbonate is the dominant anion in

the study area which ranges from 68 to 593 mg/l with an

average of 292 mg/l. Highest chloride concentration

Table 2 Minimum, maximum

and mean of hydrochemical

parameters of groundwater

Parameters Number of samples Unit Minimum Maximum Mean

pH 472 No unit 6.1 9.3 7.5

EC 488 lS/cm 144 5030 1030

TDS 488 mg/l 92.2 3219.2 659.1

Sodium 496 mg/l 23.7 469.9 108.4

Potassium 496 mg/l BDL 466.0 16.7

Calcium 496 mg/l 12.2 1223.9 82.0

Magnesium 496 mg/l 10.2 249.1 34.5

Chloride 496 mg/l 8.2 994.7 105.4

Sulphate 496 mg/l 4.8 512.9 56.0

Bicarbonate 496 mg/l 68.0 592.8 291.6

TH 496 mg/l 102 3258.7 346.9

Na% 496 % 12.5 88.8 41.5

SAR 496 No unit 0.7 17.4 2.7

RSC 496 meq/l -61.1 5.2 -2.2

PI 496 % 23.3 100.1 61


123


Fig. 3 Percentage of groundwater samples in different ranges of TDS

(mg/l)

Fig. 4 Percentage of groundwater samples in different ranges of TH

(mg/l)

Table 3 Suitability of groundwater for drinking

Parameters Unit Permissible limits BIS (2012),

WHO (1993)

Percentage of samples exceeding

permissible limits

pH No unit 6.5–8.5 7

TDS mg/l 2000 2

Sodium mg/l 200 10

Potassium mg/l 12 15

Calcium mg/l 200 4

Magnesium mg/l 100 1

Chloride mg/l 1000 Nil

Sulphate mg/l 400 1

Bicarbonate mg/l 600 Nil

TH mg/l 600 5

Fig. 2 Major hydrochemical

facies of groundwater


123


determined was 995 mg/l and the average in the study area

was 105 mg/l. Chloride in the groundwater of this area is

mainly due to erosion and weathering of crystalline rocks.

The concentration of sulphate ion ranges from 5 to 513 mg/l

with an average of 56 mg/l. Parameters such as chloride and

bicarbonate were within the permissible limits. TDS, TH,

pH, sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium and sulphate

exceeds the permissible limits at few locations at certain

times of the year (Table 3). The source of exceeding pa-

rameters of groundwater in the granitic terrain derives from

minerals like feldspars, pyroxene, amphiboles minerals in

rock and soils by water (Todd 1980; Rajesh et al. 2012).

Based on the overall assessment of groundwater quality for

drinking purpose, this area is good to moderate. However,

the groundwater is not suitable for drinking purpose at some

locations based on the concentration of fluoride as reported

by Brindha and Elango (2013b).

Irrigation Water Quality

Salinity and Alkalinity Hazard

Total amount of dissolved inorganic solid material of any

natural water is termed as its salinity. Salinization of water

Fig. 5 Spatial variation in TH

(mg/l) of groundwater


123


relates to the increase in TDS and overall chemical content

of water. Presence of excessive dissolved chemical ions

such as sodium, bicarbonate and carbonate in irrigation

water will affect the soil fertility and thus crop produc-

tivity. Classification of water for irrigation water quality

based on EC (Raghunath 1987) is given in Table 4 which

shows that 26 % of samples were good, 68 % were within

permissible limit and 5 % of samples exceeded the per-

missible limits. Spatial variation in EC of groundwater

(Fig. 6) indicates that the groundwater quality was good to

permissible in the central part of the study area while it is

unsuitable for irrigation in the southeastern parts.

Excessive salinity will also reduce the osmotic activity

of plants which will interfere with the adsorption of water

and nutrients by the plants from the soil (Saleh et al. 1999).

Sodium concentration plays a major role in evaluating the

Fig. 6 Spatial variation in EC

(lS/cm) of groundwater

Table 4 Irrigation water quality based on EC (lS/cm)

EC (lS/cm) Water class Percentage of samples

\250 Excellent NIL

250–750 Good 26

750–2000 Permissible 68

2000–3000 Doubtful 3

[3000 Unsuitable 2


123


groundwater quality for irrigation because sodium causes

an increase in the hardness of soil as well as a reduction in

its permeability (Tijani 1994). High sodium can cause

damage to the soil structure by making it compact and

impervious by replacing the adsorbed calcium and mag-

nesium. Sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) which determines

the sodium or alkali hazard in water used for irrigation is

calculated by (Richards 1954),

SAR ¼ Naþffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi

Ca2þþMg2þ

2

q ;

where the concentrations are represented in meq/l.

SAR values were at a minimum, mean and maximum of

1, 3 and 17, respectively. SAR values can indicate the

extent to which water tends to enter into cation exchange

reaction in soil (Raju 2007). Only one sample fall in the

doubtful range whereas most of the groundwater samples

were of low to medium sodium class (S1, S2) which im-

plies that there is no alkali hazard to the crops of this study

area (Fig. 7). SAR plotted against the EC on the US sali-

nity diagram (Richards 1954) is shown in Fig. 7. Most of

the groundwater samples fall in C2S1 and C3S1 indicating

the low sodium content and medium to high salinity nature

of groundwater. This water can be used for irrigation on all

soil types, however, it may result in minor problem relating

to exchangeable sodium. Few groundwater samples falling

under C4S1 and C3S2 type indicated high salinity and low

alkali hazard which is suitable only for crops with good salt

tolerance (Rajesh 2012). Overall the groundwater of this

study area falls under good to moderate category for irri-

gation purpose based on SAR.

Sodium percentage (Na%) of groundwater samples was

calculated by (Raghunath 1987),

Na% ¼ Naþ þ Kþð Þ � 100

ðCa2þ þ Mg2þ þ Naþ þ KþÞ;

where all the concentrations are expressed in meq/l.

Fig. 7 Suitability of groundwater for irrigation based on sodium and

salinity hazard

Table 5 Suitability of groundwater for irrigation based on Na%

Na% Water class Percentage of samples

\20 Excellent 3

20–40 Good 47

40–60 Permissible 40

60–80 Doubtful 10

[80 Unsuitable Nil

Table 6 Quality of groundwater for irrigation based on RSC

RSC (meq/l) Water class Percentage of samples

\1.25 Good 90

1.25–2.5 Doubtful 6

[2.5 Unsuitable 3

Fig. 8 Suitability of groundwater for irrigation based on Na%


123


In 47 and 40 % of groundwater samples, Na% is in the

good to permissible class, respectively, and 10 % of sam-

ples falls under doubtful range (Table 5). Na% plotted

against the total concentration of ions represented by

Wilcox (1955) diagram (Fig. 8) indicate that most of the

groundwater samples were good to permissible. Few

groundwater samples were doubtful and unsuitable for ir-

rigation (Fig. 8).

Residual Sodium Carbonate (RSC)

Occurrence of higher concentration of carbonate and bi-

carbonate than the concentration of calcium and magne-

sium determines its suitability for irrigation. This is

denoted by RSC, which is calculated as given by Raghu-

nath (1987).

RSC ¼ HCO3 þ CO3ð Þ � Ca þ Mgð Þ;

where the concentration as represented as meq/l.

Table 6 shows the classification of groundwater of this

area for irrigation purpose based on RSC. Though 3 % of

the groundwater samples fall under unsuitable category for

irrigation, 90 % of samples were good and 10 % were

doubtful for irrigation.

Permeability Index (PI)

Permeability of soil is affected by the long term use of water

and is influenced by, calcium, magnesium, sodium and bi-

carbonate concentration in the water. PI is calculated as,

PI ¼ðNaþ þ

ffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffiffi

HCO�3

p

� 100

ðCa2þ þ Mg2þ þ NaþÞ;

where the concentrations are represented as meq/l.

PI plotted against total salt concentration (Doneen 1964)

is used to classify the suitability of irrigation water (Fig. 9).

Most of the groundwater samples of the study area fall in

class I type which indicates that it is suitable for irrigation

purpose and few in class II which is permissible.

Conclusion

The groundwater quality assessed in a part of Nalgonda

district, Telangana, India was fresh and hard to very hard in

nature. The abundance of major ions was in the order of

Na?[Ca2?[Mg2?[K? = HCO3-[Cl-[ SO4

-2 and

the hydrochemical facies of groundwater was mainly Ca-

HCO3, Na–Cl, mixed Ca–Na–HCO3 and mixed Ca–Mg–Cl

types. Concentration of chloride and bicarbonate were

within the permissible limits of BIS for drinking. TDS, TH,

pH, sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium and sulphate

exceeds the limits in few locations. Salinity hazard of the

study area is medium to high and low alkalinity hazard is

experienced. RSC indicates 90 % of the area is suitable

while PI and SAR values suggest that all groundwater

samples are usable for irrigation. Based on this study,

groundwater quality of the study area is suitable for

drinking as well as irrigational uses in most of the region

except for very few locations.

Acknowledgments Authors thank the Board of Research in Nuclear

Sciences, Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India (Grant

No. 2007/36/35) for their financial support. The Department of Sci-

ence and Technology’s Funds for Improvement in Science and

Technology scheme (Grant No. SR/FST/ESI-106/2010) and Univer-

sity Grants Commission’s Special Assistance Programme (Grant No.

UGC DRS II F.550/10/DRS/2007(SAP-1)) are also acknowledged as

the analytical facilities created from these funds were used to carry

out part of this work.

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Groundwater quality and its hydrochemical characteristics in a shallow weathered rock aquifer of southern India