| Title | Portability of deep geothermal closed coaxial wells |
|---|---|
| Authors | Harcouët-Menou V., Pogacnik J., Leontidis V., Barrail T., Souque C., Fiaschi D., Ungar P., Gigliotti F., Wojnarowski P., Paj?k L., Pham H., Liotta D., Brogi A., Zucchi M., Wheeler W., Vestavik O. |
| Year | 2026 |
| Conference | World Geothermal Congress |
| Keywords | |
| Abstract | The HOCLOOP EU project (“A circular by design environmentally friendly geothermal energy solution based on a HOrizontal Closed LOOP”) aims to verify a novel geothermal closed loop solution for the extraction of heat from deep formation rocks. To pave the way for future demonstration projects and to assess the forward portability of the HOCLOOP solution, in-depth simulations of the under-ground system (borehole and rocks) and the above-surface energy systems are carried out for a wide variety of geothermal cases ranging from green field exploration site to fully functional geothermal plants including district heating. In this framework, the project covers the investigation of potential EU pilot sites in Belgium, France, Italy, Germany and Poland. Each geothermal site presents different geological environment (heat flux, lithology, etc.) that eventually defines the borehole design (depth, horizontal length, etc.) and the selection of the surface equipment (heat pump, heat exchanger, turbine, etc.). Two main fluids are considered in the simulations as heat carrier fluid: water and supercritical carbon dioxide. In this work, the different cases are compared and the advantages of each fluid in relation to the geological setting and the energy objective (heat or electricity production) are presented. Based on the findings discussion is made on how the solution could be deployed at different geothermal plants. |