| Abstract |
Abandoned petroleum industry wells can be harmful to the environment by effects such as the leakage of oil, natural gas and brine into soil and drinking water (Will Downey, 2016). Despite the possibility of several dangerous effects they still have some potential to be useful. One of the potential uses is the extraction of geothermal energy from this kind of well. By using an abandoned hydrocarbon well to extract geothermal energy, besides saving the environment, it also can save the cost of drilling for the project. The project cost can be reduced by up to 60% (Toth et al, 2019). However, this utilization technique requires several conditions such as a good thermal gradient. In Hungary due to the thin crust, the heat flow makes it possible to make use of geothermal energy. In the study area, the temperature of the sediment can reach 60-70°C with the thermal gradient of approximately 6°C/100 m (Less Gyorgy, 2011). Thus, the temperature will increase with depth (Jordan Hanania, Kailyn Stenhouse, 2015). The well in the study area has 2,794 m MD and it has five good aquifer zones from 867 m to 1310 m. Based on the theory and the uniqueness of the area, this abandoned hydrocarbon well meets the conditions for having geothermal energy potential. Due to those factors, the utilization of geothermal energy from this well can be achieved by mining the hot water. Based on calculations, the well can give a maximum temperature of hot water of approximately 70°C. Thus, the abandoned hydrocarbon well in the study area can be a productive geothermal resource, especially hot water production. |