Double-Porosity Models for a Fissured Groundwater Reservoir With Fracture Skin

• Published in: Water resources research 1984-07, Vol.20 (7), p.831-846
• Main Author: Moench, Allen F.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0043-1397; 1944-7973
• DOI: 10.1029/WR020i007p00831

Theories of flow to a well in a double‐porosity groundwater reservoir are modified to incorporate effects of a thin layer of low‐permeability material or fracture skin that may be present at fracture‐block interfaces as a result of mineral deposition or alteration. The commonly used theory for flow in double‐ porosity formations that is based upon the assumption of pseudo–steady state block‐to‐fissure flow is shown to be a special case of the theory presented in this paper. The latter is based on the assumption of transient block‐to‐fissure flow with fracture skin. Under conditions where fracture skin has a hydraulic conductivity that is less than that of the matrix rock, it may be assumed to impede the interchange of fluid between the fissures and blocks. Resistance to flow at fracture‐block interfaces tends to reduce spatial variation of hydraulic head gradients within the blocks. This provides theoretical justification for neglecting the divergence of flow in the blocks as required by the pseudo–steady state flow model. Coupled boundary value problems for flow to a well discharging at a constant rate were solved in the Laplace domain. Both slab‐shaped and sphere‐shaped blocks were considered, as were effects of well bore storage and well bore skin. Results obtained by numerical inversion were used to construct dimensionless‐type curves that were applied to well test data, for a pumped well and for an observation well, from the fractured volcanic rock terrane of the Nevada Test Site.