Contamination pattern in groundwater resulting from an underground source (Q1392592)

Steady distribution of oil pollutant within an aquifer, discharging from an underground source, is modeled by a two-dimensional nonlinear diffusion-convection equation. This equation describes oil transport in the immiscible zone, containing large oil blobs. This zone serves as a secondary source of contaminant in the dispersed zone, containing freely flowing oil drops. A self-similar solution is obtained for the steady saturation distribution in the immiscible zone, which is valid at distances greatly exceeding the source size across the water-flow direction.