Current Science International Volume : 09 | Issue : 04| Oct.- Dec.

| 2020
EISSN:2706-7920 ISSN: 2077-4435 Pages: 633-640
DOI: 10.36632/csi/2020.9.4.56
Combined Application of Electrical Resistivity and GPR Techniques for Water
Seepage Detection at New Cairo City, Egypt

Shokry A. Soliman1, Hossam M. El-Sayed2, T.F. Shazley1 and Abdellatif Younis3

1
Egyptian Petroleum Research Institute, Cairo, Egypt.
2
National Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, NIOF, Egypt.
3
National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics, 11722 Helwan, Cairo, Egypt.
Received: 20 Sept. 2020 / Accepted 20 Nov. 2020 / Publication date: 30 Nov. 2020

ABSTRACT
New Cairo City represents the eastern extension of the Greater Cairo, Egypt. In the study site,
fracturing of the new residential buildings has been observed, in addition to the appearance of water
seepage on the ground surface, which form some swamps. Geophysical surveys were carried out
through two stages; electrical resistivity survey and GPR measurements. The interpretation results
reveal the occurrence of four subsurface geoelectrical layers. The upper most two layers consist
mainly of sands and clayey sands characterized by relatively low electrical resistivity values, with
thickness reaching collectively to 4.3 m. These layers are saturated by water and lying above a thick
clay layer, which acts as a barrier, preventing the water infiltration to percolate into the deeper layers
and leads to the formation of swamps on the ground surface. GPR profiles were performed above the
drinking, sewage and irrigation pipes. GPR results confirm the presence of a water-saturated layer;
especially around the pipelines. Water leakage from the sewage and irrigation pipes was proved to be
the main source of seepage water in the area, which is trapped above the impermeable clay layer,
forming the observed swamps. Further, the clay minerals are more sensitive to the swelling process,
which may cause cracks and fractures for buildings.

Keywords: GPR;VES; seepage water; environmental and engineering problems; Cairo-Suez district

Introduction
Geophysical methods play a major role in studying the engineering and environmental
problems safely, especially in the residential areas. Among these methods, the electrical resistivity
method and ground penetrating radar (GPR) are the most widely used techniques and can be used
effectively in the shallow subsurface investigation (Mohamaden, 2005; Abd El-Gawad, et al. 2018;
El-Sayed and Mohamaden, 2018 and Araffa et al. 2019), geotechnical investigation (Carisand Van
Asch, 1991; Pellerin, 2002; Adewuyi and Philips, 2018; Gemail, et al. 2020; and Alaminiokuma and
Chaanda 2020) and exploration of water seepage around artificial buildings (Sharafeldin, et al. 2017;
Prudhomme, et al. 2019; Salako, et al. 2019; and Abd El-Gawad, 2020). These geophysical methods
can reveal precise information about the shallow subsurface layers, lateral and vertical variations in
the surface soil characteristics and water saturation of the subsurface layers (Shaaban, et al., 2013).
The present work was conducted, in order to investigate the environmental and engineering
problems, that were observed in the study site at the New Cairo City, 2 km southeast of the Cairo-
Suez desert road and at 38 km east of Cairo City (Fig. 1a & b). This area is one of the new established
cities and represents an eastward extension of the Greater Cairo City. The study area consists of a
group of residential buildings, surrounded by green parts and numerous gardens. Recently, the study
area is suffering from a considerable amount of water seepage in the near surface section, which in
turn initiated some swamps, to manifest the low topography areas, causing environmental pollution
(Fig. 2). Also, engineering problems such as fracturing and tilting were detected in some buildings as
a result of this water seepage. The problem addressed acts as a danger for the buildings foundation
and needs scientific investigation and proper management plan. This work is a preliminary study to
give a general idea about the conditions of the shallow subsurface layers, through applying some
geophysical methods, such as electrical resistivity and GPR methods. Besides, some samples of
surface water were collected for chemical analysis, to find out their source.

Corresponding Author: Shokry A. Soliman, Egyptian Petroleum Research Institute, Cairo, Egypt.
Email: [email protected]
633
Curr. Sci. Int., 9(4): 633-640, 2020
EISSN: 2706-7920 ISSN: 2077-4435 DOI: 10.36632/csi/2020.9.4.56

Fig. 1: (a) General Key map of the study area; (b) the study area and its portions; (c) VES’s locations,
GPR profiles and water samples

Fig. 2: The uprising seepage water forming swamps area.

The main objectives of this study are: (1) to identify the lateral and vertical thickness variations
of the shallow subsurface layers, (2) to investigate the probable water leakage from water lines,
irrigation pipes and/or sewer pipes, that may not be evident, and (3) to find out the water source in the
area to find appropriate solutions. These goals are achieved, through the use of two complementary
electrical resistivity and GPR methods.
The ground-penetrating radar (GPR) technology, known as georadar, is one of the latest surface
geophysical survey techniques that have evolved over the past three decades, for shallow and highly
accurate exploration (Annan, et al., 1991). This technique relies on the transmission of
electromagnetic pulses through the GPR antenna (transmitter and receiver), with a specific frequency.
GPR is a sturdy tool in geological, environmental, engineering, and archaeological applications, as

634
Curr. Sci. Int., 9(4): 633-640, 2020
EISSN: 2706-7920 ISSN: 2077-4435 DOI: 10.36632/csi/2020.9.4.56

well as the detection of the locations of water leakage (Stampolidis, et al. , 2003; and Bimpas et al.
2010).GPR technique is used, in the present study, to identify parts, where water saturation increases,
due to the influencing role of water in increasing the electrical conductivity and then affecting the
spread of radar electromagnetic waves in the various soil components.

2. Geology of the Area

Generally, the study area is described by a gentle slope towards the northwest and low relief
topography, and its elevation ranges from 241 to 245 m above sea level. The study area is
characterized by hills and valleys, which are covered by loose sand, with small rounded flint pebbles,
calcareous boulders and gravels (Fig. 3). These sediments belong to the Miocene age. The area of
study is a part of the Cairo-Suez district and belongs to Greater Cairo City. Sedimentary rocks,
exposed in the Greater Cairo area, belong to the Eocene to Quaternary (El Shazly, et al. 1980), while
Said (1990) maintained that, the area lies in the Eastern Nile Delta province and is mainly occupied
by rocks referred to Tertiary and Quaternary periods and sediments with mid-Tertiary basaltic flows.
The main fault system, which controlling the Greater Cairo area is the NW–SE trend (Swedan,1991).

Fig.3: Geologic map of the Greater Cairo area (modified after El Shazly et al. and 1980; Williams
andSmall 1984).

Materials and Methods

1. Field Work
In a preliminary field visit to the study area, water seepage and numerous swamps have been
observed on the ground surface. This seepage is more dominant in low topography area at the
northwestern part of the area. Many engineering problems, such as fracturing of some buildings are
obvious; especially in the southeastern part. Based on the field visit, it was deduced that, there is a
water-saturated layer very close to the earth’s surface and lying above an impermeable layer acting as
a barrier that prevents water infiltration to the deeper layers. To validate this hypothesis, electrical
resistivity and GPR survey were recommended, to determine the shallow subsurface layers and to
detect the vertical and lateral extensions of the expected water saturated layer. On the other hand, four
water samples were collected (Fig. 1c) for chemical analysis, to define the source of this water.

2. Data Acquisition and Inversion

2.1. Vertical Electrical Sounding
The first stage includes measurements of four vertical electrical soundings (VES’s), to delineate
the lateral and vertical changes in the subsurface lithology, as well as to interpret the seepage in the
low topography area (Fig. 1c). The electrical resistivity data were collected by using the Syscal-R2
instrument with AB/2 ranging from 1 to 200 m.IX1D v.3 software was used to determine the

635
Curr. Sci. Int., 9(4): 633-640, 2020
EISSN: 2706-7920 ISSN: 2077-4435 DOI: 10.36632/csi/2020.9.4.56

subsurface layers parameters (resistivity and thickness).The output models were used to construct a
geoelectrical cross-section connecting VES’s No. 2, 1, 3and 4, respectively.

2.2. Ground Penetrating Radar

GPR tool is useful in different pavement materials, like asphalt, concrete pavements and block
pavements in most populated towns (Metwaly, 2015; Tosti et al. , 2018). The second stage includes
measurements of GPR data, to identify the main sources of water seepage from the infrastructure of
the study area. The GPR survey was carried out by the MALA RAMAC GPR System, with a Rough
Terrain Antenna (RTA) system of a central frequency of 500 MHz, to reach the depth of about 4 m.
Another antenna of 250 MHz frequency was used in the surveying over sewage pipes which are
located at depths of about 6 to 7 m in the western part of the GPR surveyed area (Fig. 1c). The data
processing was conducted, using the Reflex software ver. 8 (Sandmeier, 2012), several processing
steps were applied to each radar profile separately, such as zero-time shift, background removal,
band-pass filters (1- and 2-dimensional), median filter and automatic-gain control. Band-pass filtering
was applied to eliminate high-frequency components. The GPR signal velocity was estimated based
on the hyperbolic velocity matching from the response of the underground voids that it was 0.12 m
/nsec. (Araffa, et al. 2019).

Results

1. Electrical Resistivity Interpretation

The geoelectrical cross-section (Fig. 4) indicates that, the shallow subsurface sequence of the
study area consists of four geoelectric units; interpreted as; the superficial layer consists of surface
alluvial deposits of sand, sandy clay to clay, with low electrical resistivity ranging between7.7and
10.5 Ohm.m and thickness reaching 0.85 m. The second geoelectrical layer consists of clayey sand
with moderate electrical resistivity values ranging from 13 to 31 Ohm.m. The variation of electrical
resistivity in this layer may be attributed to the percentage of sand. Its thickness ranges between 1.9
and 3.4m. The third geoelectrical layer consists of clay, with significant low electrical resistivity
values (3.7 - 5.1 Ohm.m.) and has a thickness ranging between 15.1 and 24.5 m, and overlaying the
fourth geoelectrical layer, that consists of calcareous sandstone intercalated with clay which is
characterized by moderate electrical resistivity values (14.5 – 16.5 Ohm.m).

Fig. 4: Geoelectrical cross-section comprising VES’s 2, 1, 3 & 4, respectively

636
Curr. Sci. Int., 9(4): 633-640, 2020
EISSN: 2706-7920 ISSN: 2077-4435 DOI: 10.36632/csi/2020.9.4.56

2. GPR Data Interpretation

The conductivity of materials affects the attenuation of the electromagnetic waves. Clays, silts and
seepage water represent the materials that have high attenuation of the electromagnetic waves, while
the materials that have low attenuation waves, such as dry sand, distilled water, and air. The
interpretation of GPR profiles refers that there are four stratigraphic units as shown in fig (5).

Fig. 5: 2D A GPR section shows the saturated soil with water along with profiles (A)1, (B)3, (C) 5
and (D)8.

637
Curr. Sci. Int., 9(4): 633-640, 2020
EISSN: 2706-7920 ISSN: 2077-4435 DOI: 10.36632/csi/2020.9.4.56

Also, the area of study is characterized by the presence of seepage of water results from the sewage
and other utilities in the study area. According to conductivity, the qualitative GPR data interpretation
reveals that, over the drinking water pipes, there is an evidence of four places in the southern border
of the area (main pipes) and one in the northwestern part (sub-pipes) indicating the saturation of the
soil with water at a depth ranging between 0.8 and 2.2 m (Fig. 5A.). It is worth mentioning that, the
presence of seepage water at this shallow depth may indicate that, the source is not the water pipes,
but a dispersion of surface water (mostly from the irrigation of gardens). The results of checking the
sewage pipes exhibit that, the evidence of presence of soil saturated with water on the tracks of the
sewage pipes, at a depth ranging from 2 to 4 m and concentrated only at the southern and southeastern
parts of the area (Fig. 5B).
As for the western side of the area, where the depth of the pipes reaches about 7 m, there is no
evidence of any leakage on this side. To the north of the area, there is some evidence of sub-tracks
inside the parking places, at a depth varying between 2 and 2.5 m. While, there are many confirming
evidences of waterlogged soil on the tracks of the irrigation pipeline at a depth ranging from 2 to 3 m,
which are mainly concentrated at the eastern and the northern borders of the area (Fig. 5D).

Discussion

From the field observations in the study area, there is seepage water in the low topography area
causing damages to some buildings.GPR and electrical resistivity surveys in the study area provided
valuable information that contributes to the explanation of the engineering problem and seepage water
observed at the site. The obtained results of the VISE's data reveal that, the subsurface sequence
consists of four geoelectric layers where the most upper two layers are mainly of alluvial deposits
saturated with water. These layers consist mainly of sand and clayey sand, and are characterized by
relatively low resistivity values. The thickness of this water-saturated zone reaches 4.3 m. These
layers are followed by a clay layer, with a thickness ranging between 15.1 and 24.5 m. The
impermeable character of this clay layer makes it a good barrier and prevents the infiltration of the
leaked water to the deeper layers, which explains the considerable amount of water seepage along the
surface and the observed swamps across the study area.
The GPR results show an evidence for the presence of water-saturated soil on the tracks of the
sewage pipes, at a depth ranging from 2.5 to 4.3m, as concentrated only at the southern and
southeastern parts of the GPR surveyed area. No evidence of water seepage at the western side of the
area, where the depth of the pipes reaches about 7m. Many confirmed waterlogged soil is present on
the tracks of the irrigation pipelines at a depth ranging from 2.5 to 3.3 m, and are mainly concentrated
at the eastern and the northern boundaries of the GPR survey area. The results of the leakage
examination from the drinking water pipes, exhibit that, there is an evidence at four places in the
southern border of the area (Fig. 6) and one at the northwestern part indicating the saturation of the
soil with water at a depth ranged between 0.8 and 2.2 m, which is highly concordant with the
electrical resistivity survey results.
Additionally, the results of the chemical analysis of the four collected water samples (Table 1)
show a significant increase in the total dissolved solids and ammonia concentration of the water
samples collected from the eastern border of the area which confirms the leakage of sewage pipes at
the southeastern part (APHA, 1992). These results confirmed the detected seepage from sewage pipes
at the southern and southeastern parts.

Table 1:Chemical characteristics of the water samples

TDS Ammonia Nitrate
Sample No.
mg/L mg/L meq/L mg/L meq/L
1 3470 4.7 0.261 5.43 0.088
2 2950 0.02 0.001 28.8 0.465
3 1086 0.08 0.005 0.47 0.008
4 1222 3.67 0.203 14.53 0.234

638
Curr. Sci. Int., 9(4): 633-640, 2020
EISSN: 2706-7920 ISSN: 2077-4435 DOI: 10.36632/csi/2020.9.4.56

Fig. 6: Locations of the detected water leakage areas

Based on all these results, it is recommended to drill some boreholes that penetrate the
impermeable clay layer. These boreholes will provide suitable pathways for the surface water to
infiltrate to the deeper layers, which in turn eliminate the surface swamps and water seepage, in
addition to the treatment of the detected water leakage from the pipes in the area.

Conclusions
The integration between electrical resistivity and GPR methods strongly contributed to the
investigation of the observed water seepage problem in the New Cairo City. It provided valuable tools
for interpreting the hypothesis assumed, based on the field visit and observations. The leakage of
sewage pipes in addition to the excess surface irrigation plays a major role in recharging the
subsurface layers with a considerable amount of water, which is unfortunately, cannot pass through
the subsurface layers, due to the presence of the impermeable clay layer at shallow depths.

Conflict of interest
On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

References

Abd El-Gawad, A. 2020. Water Seepage Source at the Extension of Tourah Clay Quarry,
Southeastern Cairo Based on Geological and Geoelectrical Resistivity Measurements. Earth
Sci., 9(3):108.
Abd El-Gawad, A.M.S., A.S. Helaly, and M.S.E. Abd El-Latif, 2018. Application of geoelectrical
measurements for detecting the ground-water seepage in clay quarry at Helwan, southeastern
Cairo, Egypt. Nriag J Astron. Geoph., 7(2):377-389.
Adewuyi, O.I., and O.F. Philips, 2018. Integrated Geophysical and Geotechnical Methods for Pre-
Foundation Investigations. J. Geol Geophys.,7: 453.doi: 10.4172/2381-8719.1000453
Alaminiokuma, G.I., and M.S. Chaanda, 2020. Geophysical Investigation of Structural Failures Using
Electrical Resistivity Tomography: A Case Study of Buildings in FUPRE, Nigeria. J Earth Sci
Geotech Eng., 10(5):15-33.

639
Curr. Sci. Int., 9(4): 633-640, 2020
EISSN: 2706-7920 ISSN: 2077-4435 DOI: 10.36632/csi/2020.9.4.56

Annan, A.P., S.W. Cosway, and J.D. Redman, 1991. Water table detection with ground-penetrating
radar. In: Soc. Explor. Geophys. (Annual International Meeting Program with Abstracts). 494–
497.
APHA., 1992. Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater. 18th ed. American
Public Health Association, Washington, DC.
Araffa, S.A., M.I. Mohamadin, H. Sabet, and M.S. Takey 2019.Geophysical interpretation for
groundwater exploration around Hurghada area, Egypt. NRIAG J. Astr Geophys., 8(1):171-
179.
Araffa, S.A., S.A. Soliman, A. El Khafif, A. Younis, and T.F. Shazley, 2019. Environmental
investigation using geophysical data at East Sadat City, Egypt. Egyptian Journal of Petroleum
28: 117–125.
Bimpas, M., A. Amditis, and N. Uzunoglu, 2010. Detection of water leaks in supply pipes using
continuous wave sensor operating at 2.45GHz. J. App Geophys., 70:226-236.
Caris, J.P.T., and T.W. Van Asch, 1991. Geophysical, geotechnical and hydrological investigations of
a small landslide in the French Alps. Eng Geol., 31(3-4):249-276.
El Shazly, E.M., M.A. El Ghawaby, A.B. Salman, S.M. Khawask, H. El Amin, M.M. El Rakaiby, I.E.
El Aassy, A.A. Abd El Megid, and S.I. Mansour, 1980. Geological Map of Egypt. Remote
Sensing Center, Academy of Scientific Research and Technology, Cairo, Egypt.
El-Sayed, H.M., and M.I.I. Mohamaden, 2018. Application of Resistivity Method for Groundwater
Exploration in Barrani - Salum Sector, Northwestern Coast, Egypt. EGS J. 15(1):159-170
Gemail K.S., S. Shebl, M. Attwa, S.A. Soliman, A. Azab, and M.H. Farag 2020. Geotechnical
assessment of fractured limestone bedrock using DC resistivity method: a case study at New
Minia City, Egypt. Nriag J Astron Geophys., 9(1):272-279.
Metwaly, M. 2015. Application of GPR technique for subsurface utility mapping: a case study from
urban area of Holy Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Measurement. 60: 139–145.
Mohamaden, M.I.I., 2005. Electric resistivity investigation at NuweibaHarbour Gulf of Aqaba, South
Sinai, Egypt. Egy. J. Aq. Res., 31(1):58-67.
Pellerin, L., 2002.Applications of electrical and electromagnetic methods for environmental and
geotechnical investigations. Surv Geophys., 23(2-3):101-132.
Prudhomme, K.D., M.A. Khalil, G.D. Shaw, M.A. Speece, K.R. Zodrow, and T.M. Malloy, 2019.
Integrated geophysical methods to characterize urban subsidence in Butte, Montana, USA. J.
App Geophys., 164:87-105.
Said, R., 1990.The Geology of Egypt. Amsterdam, El-Sevier Publications, Co.
Salako, A.O., A.G. Osotuyi, and A.A. Adepelumi, 2019. Seepage investigations of heterogeneous
soils beneath some buildings using geophysical approaches: example from southwestern
Nigeria. Int. J. Geo-Eng., 10(1):11.
Sandmeier, K.J., 2012. The 2D processing and 2D/3D interpretation software for GPR, reflection
Seismic and refraction seismic. Software Catalogue 2012, Karlsruhe, Germany.
Shaaban, F., A. Ismail, U. Massoud, H. Mesbah, A. Lethy, and A.M. Abbas 2013. Geotechnical
assessment of ground conditions around a tilted building in Cairo, Egypt using geophysical
approaches. Ar J Geosci., 6(12):4961-4972.
Sharafeldin, M., K.S. Essa, N. Sayıl, M.A.S. Youssef, Z.E. Diab, and H. Karslı 2017. Geophysical
Investigation Of Ground Water Hazards In Giza Pyramids And Sphinx Using Electrical
Resistivity Tomography And Ground Penetrating Radar: A Case Study. In 9th Congress of the
Balkan Geophysical Society 2017(1):1-5. Euro AssocGeosci Eng.
Stampolidis, A., P. Soupios, F. Vallianatos, and G.N. Tsokas, 2003. Detection of leaks in Buried
plastic water distribution pipes in urban places-a case study, in: Proceedings of the 2nd
International Workshop on Advanced Ground Penetrating Radar:120-124.
Swedan, A.H.,1991. A note on the geology of Greater Cairo area Egyptian mineral resources
authority. Ann Geol. Surv. Egy., 17:239–251.
Tosti, F., L.B. Ciampoli, F. D’Amico, A.M. Alani, and A. Benedetto, 2018. An experimental-based
model for the assessment of the mechanical properties of road pavements using ground-
penetrating radar. Const Build Mat. 165:966–974.
Williams, G.A., and J.O. Small 1984. A study of the Oligo-Miocene basalt in the Western Desert. In:
Proc Petrol Explo Seminar, EGPC, Cairo: 252–268.

640