Hydrogeochemical Assessment of Groundwater in the Precambrian Rocks, South Eastern Desert, Egypt

Abstract

This work refers to the characterization of the hydrochemistry of the southern part of the Eastern Desert in Egypt, on the basis of physico-chemical properties of groundwater occurring in the fractured Precambrian rocks inland and in sedimentary formations on the coastline of the Red Sea. Thirty-five groundwater samples have been collected from the study area for hydrochemical investigations to understand the sources of dissolved ions and assess the chemical quality of the groundwater. Several methods were used to interpret the hydrochemical data, i.e . graphical methods, principal components analysis, ions exchanges indices and saturation indices of various minerals. The results show that the major ionic relationships are Na + > Ca 2+ > Mg 2+ and Cl &#45 > > HCO 3 &#45 and that groundwater chemical characteristics are controlled by natural geochemical processes but also, to a lesser extent, by anthropogenic activities. Natural minerals dissolution, ion exchanges and evaporation play a prominent role in the ion enrichment of groundwater. A comparison of groundwater quality in relation to WHO water quality standards proved that most of the water samples are not totally suitable for drinking water purpose.