Combined clogging of suspended particle and algae during the recharge with the Yellow River water in the Yufuhe River channel of North China Plain

ABSTRACT Managed aquifer recharge (MAR) is an effective measure for integrated water resources in the North China Plain (NCP). During the recharging, the combined clogging in the aquifer caused by algae and suspended solid (SS) is a problem that was easily ignored by researchers. In this research, a sand column model was designed to investigate the SS-algae combined clogging mechanism in the porous medium during the Yellow River water recharge in the Yufuhe River channel of NCP. The SS-algae combined plugging of the medium appeared earlier and the plugging degree was more serious compared with the SS-only clogging and the algae-only clogging during the infiltration. Meanwhile, the surface clogging degree of the medium is more serious, and the interior is smaller in comparison to the SS-only group and the algae-only group. The filter cake and algae mat are the signs of SS clogging and algae clogging, and the algae mat structure in the SS-algae group is more dense compared to the algae-only group. In the combined clogging experiment, the outflow concentration of SS and algae in the medium is less than the SS-only group and the algae-only group. In addition, algae and SS can limit each other's migration in the medium.