| Title | Estimates of Sustainable Pumping in Hot Sedimentary Aquifers: Theoretical Considerations, Numerical Simulations and Their Application to Resource Mapping |
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| Authors | J. F. Wellmann, F. G. Horowitz, L. P. Ricard, K. Regenauer-Lieb |
| Year | 2010 |
| Conference | Australian Geothermal Energy Conference |
| Keywords | Hot Sedimentary Aquifer (HSA); Resource Analysis; Sustainable Pumping Rates; Geothermal Simulation; Geological Modelling |
| Abstract | A method for a spatial analysis of potential sustainability for the early stage of exploration in Hot Sedimentary Aquifers (HSA) is presented here. Our analyses are based on well established estimations for the thermal breakthrough in a doublet well setting. We consider two significantly different scenarios: the placement of a well doublet in an aquifer without significant natural flow, and the case where a natural groundwater flow exists. We integrate these two analytical estimations into one workflow with geological modelling and geothermal simulation. As a result, we obtain spatial analyses of theoretical sustainable pumping rates for a whole resource area. These maps are specifically suitable for the early stage of exploration where a potential target area has to be determined based on limited information. We present the application of our method to a geothermal resource area in the North Perth Basin, from geological modelling, to the simulation of fluid and heat flow, and finally to map the analysis of sustainable pumping rates for one aquifer. The results contain a high degree of uncertainty, but indicate the distribution of future prospective areas. These maps can be combined with other spatial datasets, e.g. infrastructure. Also, as they are integrated into one workflow, an update of the analyses is directly possible when new data become available. |