Analysis of Steady-State Flow To Multiscreened Wells Under Natural Vertical Flow Conditions

Water levels measured at multiscreened wells in unconfined aquifers may not coincide, in general, with the elevation of the water table. The presence of vertical gradients (as often is the case in recharge areas) or the existence of confining layers may cause the water levels to differ from local hydraulic heads in the aquifer. In these cases, a misinterpretation of water levels may lead to the erroneous conclusion that observed drawdowns are provoked by overpumping. In this paper, we analyze the effect that a natural vertical gradient has on water levels in wells screened over their entire saturated thickness. As one would expect, it is observed that, even without pumping, the water level in the wells lies below the water table. Type curves relating the steady-state drawdown to the vertical gradient and to the hydraulic conductivity anisotropy are presented. These curves were obtained using a groundwater flow numerical model (FREESURF: Neuman and Witherspoon, 1970). The theoretical results are checked with field data from deep wells in the detrital Madrid aquifer. In this particular aquifer, it is observed that the effect of vertical gradients is important both in terms of drawdowns and flow rates.