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Measurement of Vertical Groundwater Velocity from Temperature Profiles in Wells
Author(s) -
Sorey Michael L.
Publication year - 1971
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/wr007i004p00963
Subject(s) - borehole , groundwater , geology , dimensionless quantity , curvature , groundwater flow , convection , instability , water well , fluid dynamics , thermal , flow velocity , mechanics , hydrology (agriculture) , flow (mathematics) , geotechnical engineering , meteorology , aquifer , geometry , physics , mathematics
Vertically moving groundwater transports heat by convection and causes curvature in the earth's thermal profile. Dimensionless plots of the temperature distribution in wells can be matched with published type curves to obtain solutions for vertical groundwater velocity, if the thermal conductivity of the solid‐fluid complex is known or can be estimated. Rates of upward movement through semiconfining beds determined from temperature studies in the San Luis valley of Colorado and the Roswell basin of New Mexico were in good agreement with rates computed from pumping tests and water budget methods. Limitations of the method result from instability in borehole fluids, measurement detail required, and magnitudes of flow that can be detected.