Assessment of Groundwater Quality and Geochemical Characteristics in the Desertic Zone of Banaskantha Region of Western India

Assessment of Groundwater Quality and Geochemical Characteristics in the Desertic Zone of Banaskantha Region of Western India | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Assessment of Groundwater Quality and Geochemical Characteristics in the Desertic Zone of Banaskantha Region of Western India Mukesh P. Chaudhari, Gh. Ali, Ruchi Nair, Pratik Chavda, Pranav S Shrivastav This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7534933/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 27 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Banaskantha's desert region, especially the talukas of Vav and Suigam, faces severe water scarcity and relies heavily on groundwater. This paper provides a detailed analysis of 59 groundwater samples to assess water quality, understand geochemical evolution, and identify the main factors influencing ionic composition and salinity. In addition to water quality indicators like the Weighted Arithmetic Water Quality Index (WAWQI) and irrigation suitability indices (SAR, RSC, PI, KR, PS), various physico-chemical parameters such as pH, EC, TDS, major cations, and anions were examined. Graphical tools like Piper, Durov, and Gibbs diagrams were used to categorize water types and determine key geochemical processes. The analysis shows that the most common water types are Na–Cl⁻ and Ca–Mg–Cl, with ion exchange and evaporation playing major roles in groundwater chemistry. Correlation analysis revealed meaningful ion relationships, including an inverse link between calcium/hardness and chloride, indicating active cation exchange mechanisms. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) identified six components that explained 68.27% of the total variance, highlighting processes such as mineral weathering, salinity increase, carbonate equilibria, and local anthropogenic impacts. Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) grouped samples based on chemical similarities, supporting these findings. This comprehensive hydrochemical assessment offers valuable insights into the spatial variation and drivers of groundwater quality in this arid region. It also provides a scientific foundation for designing tailored groundwater management strategies to ensure sustainable use in a highly water-stressed environment. Geochemistry Hydrogeology Groundwater Chemistry Water Quality Index Irrigation Principal component analysis Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files supplementarymaterial.xlsx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 03 Oct, 2025 Reviews received at journal 24 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 24 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 18 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 18 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 17 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 17 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 17 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 16 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 15 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 15 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 14 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 13 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 13 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 13 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 13 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 Sep, 2025 Reviews received at journal 12 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 Sep, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 12 Sep, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 12 Sep, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 09 Sep, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 09 Sep, 2025 First submitted to journal 04 Sep, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7534933","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":517241215,"identity":"e9e1635e-bbed-46f4-97aa-d6f49a689811","order_by":0,"name":"Mukesh P. 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