In order to properly evaluate the spatio-temporal variations of groundwater flow, the data obtained in field experiments should be corroborated into numerical simulations. Particle tracking method is a simple simulation tool often employed in groundwater simulation to predict groundwater flow paths or solute transport paths. Particle tracking simulations visually show overall the particle flow path along the entire aquifer, but no previous simulation studies has yet described the parameter values at grid nodes around the particle path. Therefore, in this study, a new technical approach was proposed that enables acquisition of parameters associated with particle transport in grid nodes distributed in the center of the particle path in groundwater. Since the particle tracking path is commonly referred to as streamline, the algorithm and codes developed in this works designated streamline analysis method. The streamline analysis method can be applied in two-dimensional and three-dimensional finite element or finite difference grid networks, and can be utilized not only in the groundwater field but also in all fields that perform numerical modeling.

Keywords: groundwater modeling, particle tracking, streamline, streamline analysis method