On the solutions of modeling a slug test performed in a two-zone confined aquifer

Abstract

The slug test is a popular field method for estimating aquifer parameters. As a finite-thickness skin is present at a wellbore, the result of test-data analysis may represent average hydraulic properties of the skin and formation zones. Moench and Hsieh (Int. Assoc. of Hydrogeology, The IAH 17th International Congress on Hydrology of Rocks of Low Permeability, Int. Assoc. of Hydrogeology. Tucson, Arizona, 7–12 January) provided the Laplace-domain solution for a confined aquifer with a finite-thickness skin that satisfies the governing equations, boundary conditions, and continuity requirements at the interface of the skin and formation zones. Two new formulae presented here relate the modified zero-order Bessel functions of the first and second kinds to their first and second derivatives. Their solution is evaluated using the modified Crump approach for the Laplace inversion. The numerical values obtained by the modified Crump approach are compared with others based on finite-element modeling. The results indicate that the values based on finite-element modeling exhibit poor accuracy, attributed to errors in the mass balance equation and interface condition in their mathematical model.