Theory 06/Peclet Number/Contaminant transport
Plume Shape Is a Peclet
The claim
The shape and length of a groundwater contaminant plume is set by the Peclet number, so the same mass produces a compact plume in one aquifer and a long dilute one in another.
01Mechanism
Advection stretches the plume while dispersion spreads it; the ratio determines which dominates the footprint.
02Prediction
Plume length should track the Peclet number.
03Refutation
Plume length tracking mass alone would remove dispersion.