Single-well tracer methods for hydrogeologic evaluation of target aquifers
Designing an efficient well field for an aquifer thermal energy storage (ATES) project requires measuring local groundwater flow parameters as well as estimating horizontal and vertical inhomogeneity. Effective porosity determines the volume of aquifer needed to store a given volume of heated or chilled water. Ground-water flow velocity governs the migration of the thermal plume, and dispersion and heat exchange along the flow path reduces the thermal intensity of the recovered plume. Stratigraphic variations in the aquifer will affect plume dispersion, may bias the apparent rate of migration of the plume, and can prevent efficient hydraulic communication between wells. Single-well tracer methods using a conservative flow tracer such as bromide, along with pumping tests and water-level measurements, provide a rapid and cost-effective means for estimating flow parameters. A drift-and-pumpback tracer test yields effective porosity and flow velocity. Point-dilution tracer testing, using new instrumentation for downhole tracer measurement and a new method for calibrating the point-dilution test itself, yields depth-discrete hydraulic conductivity as it is affected by stratigraphy, and can be used to estimate well transmissivity. Experience in conducting both drift-and-pumpback and point-dilution tests at three different test sites has yielded important information that highlights both the power and the limitations of the single-well tracer methods. These sites are the University of Alabama Student Recreation Center (UASRC) ATES well field and the VA Medical Center (VA) ATES well field, both located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and the Hanford bioremediation test site north of Richland, Washington.
- Research Organization:
- Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-76RL01830
- OSTI ID:
- 28235
- Report Number(s):
- PNL-SA-24847; CONF-9411190-2; ON: DE95007753; TRN: 95:008378
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: International symposium on aquifer thermal energy storage conference, Tuscaloosa, AL (United States), 14-16 Nov 1994; Other Information: PBD: Nov 1994
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
25 ENERGY STORAGE
05 NUCLEAR FUELS
AQUIFERS
SEASONAL THERMAL ENERGY STORAGE
HYDROLOGY
REMEDIAL ACTION
BOREHOLE LINKING
TRACER TECHNIQUES
HANFORD RESERVATION
ALABAMA
WELL SPACING
RESERVOIR ENGINEERING
MEASURING METHODS
LAND USE
GROUND WATER
LIQUID FLOW
STRATIGRAPHY
WATER TABLES
EXPERIMENTAL DATA