The UK Geoenergy Observatory in Glasgow, Scotland: a New Facility for Mine Water Geothermal Research

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison Monaghan ◽  
Vanessa Starcher ◽  
Hugh Barron ◽  
Corinna Abesser ◽  
Brighid O Dochartaigh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Mine Water ◽  
Geothermal Energy ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
District Heating ◽  
Research Field ◽  
Geothermal Heat ◽  
British Geological Survey ◽  
Geothermal Resources ◽  
The Uk

<p>Mine water geothermal heat production and storage can provide a decarbonised source of energy for space heating and cooling, however the large resource potential has yet to be exploited widely. Besides economic, regulatory and licensing barriers, the geoscientific uncertainties remain significant. A lack of detailed understanding of thermal and hydrogeological subsurface conditions and processes, resource sustainability, and the potential impacts on the subsurface-to-surface environmental impacts have so far hampered a more widespread development of this resource.</p><p>The British Geological Survey (BGS) is in the final stages of constructing the Glasgow Geothermal Energy Research Field Site on behalf of the Natural Environment Research Council with UK Government funding. As one of the two new UK Geoenergy Observatories, the Glasgow site will facilitate collaborative research to improve our understanding of subsurface processes and change. It will provide scientific infrastructure for investigating the shallow, low-temperature coal mine water geothermal energy resources available in abandoned and flooded mine workings at depths of around 50-90 m below the eastern parts of the city.</p><p>The Glasgow site was chosen due to its commonalities with other parts of the UK and beyond in terms of its coal mining history, geology and legacy of industrial land use. Mine water geothermal resources in these settings could provide sufficient heat for community-scale district heating networks.</p><p>The research infrastructure comprises arrays of mine water and environmental baseline boreholes for characterisation and monitoring, and the boreholes are instrumented with permanent geophysical sensors. Here we report on interim results from drilling the environmental baseline and mine water boreholes, and opportunities for research and innovation.</p><p>Continuous monitoring and regular sampling data will be provided for the science community to examine a dynamic subsurface geo-, hydro- and bio-sphere. The facility will also provide opportunities for researchers to undertake their own experiments, with the aim of producing high-quality scientific evidence to reduce uncertainty on mine heat energy systems and understand their environmental impacts, for schemes across the UK and beyond.</p>

Mine water heat and heat storage research opportunities at the UK Geoenergy Observatory in Glasgow, UK

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison Monaghan ◽  
Vanessa Starcher ◽  
Hugh Barron ◽  
Fiona Fordyce ◽  
Helen Taylor-Curran ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mine Water ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Open Data ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Geothermal Heat ◽  
Resource Potential ◽  
Resource Sustainability ◽  
Heating And Cooling ◽  
The Uk ◽  
And Storage

<p>Mine water geothermal heat production and storage can provide a decarbonised source of energy for space heating and cooling, however the large resource potential has yet to be exploited widely. Besides economic, regulatory and licensing barriers, geoscientific uncertainties such as detailed understanding of thermal and hydrogeological subsurface processes, resource sustainability and potential environmental impacts remain.</p><p>The UK Geoenergy Observatory in Glasgow is a research infrastructure for investigating shallow, low-temperature coal mine water heat energy resources available in abandoned and flooded mine workings at depths of around 50-90 m. It is an at-scale ‘underground laboratory’ of 12 boreholes, surface monitoring equipment and open data. The Glasgow Observatory is accepting requests for researchers and innovators to undertake their own experiments, test sensors and methods to increase the scientific evidence base and reduce uncertainty for this shallow geothermal technology.</p>

scholarly journals The GRETA project: the contribution of near-surface geothermal energy for the energetic self-sufficiency of Alpine regions

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Casasso ◽  
Bruno Piga ◽  
Rajandrea Sethi ◽  
Joerg Prestor ◽  
Simona Pestotnik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Geothermal Energy ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Economic Activities ◽  
Geothermal Heat ◽  
Geothermal Resources ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Alpine Regions ◽  
Heating And Cooling ◽  
Geothermal Heat Pump ◽  
Alpine Space

The Alpine regions are deeply involved in the challenge set by climate change, which is a threat for their environment and for important economic activities such as tourism. The heating and cooling of buildings account for a major share of the total primary energy consumption in Europe, and hence the energy policies should focus on this sector to achieve the greenhouse gas reduction targets set by international agreements. Geothermal heat pump is one of the least carbon-intensive technologies for the heating and cooling of buildings. It exploits the heat stored within the ground, a local renewable energy source which is widely available across the Alpine territory. Nevertheless, it has been little considered by European policies and cooperation projects. GRETA (near-surface Geothermal REsources in the Territory of the Alpine space) is a cooperation project funded by the EU INTERREG-Alpine Space program, aiming at demonstrating the potential of shallow geothermal energy and to foster its integration into energy planning instruments. It started in December 2015 and will last three years, involving 12 partners from Italy, France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, and Slovenia. In this paper, the project is presented, along with the results of the first year of work.

scholarly journals Recent Status of Geothermal Energy Applications in Turkey

2005 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mustafa Balat
Keyword(s):  
Geothermal Energy ◽  
Electricity Generation ◽  
District Heating ◽  
Minor Role ◽  
Geothermal Heat ◽  
Heating Systems ◽  
Energy Applications ◽  
Geothermal Potential ◽  
A Minor ◽  
Installed Capacity

This article considers recently status of geothermal energy in Turkey. Turkey is the 7th richest country in the world in geothermal potential. The overall geothermal potential in Turkey is about 38,000 MW. But only 2% of its potential is used. Geothermal electricity generation has a minor role in Turkey's electricity capacity as low as 0.09% but the projections foresee an improvement to 0.32% by the year of 2020. Most of the geothermal sites for electricity generation are located in Aydin–Germencik (505 K), Denizli–Kizildere (515 K), Aydin–Salavatli (444 K), Canakkale–Tuzla (446 K) and Kutahya–Simav (435 K). Turkey has increased their installed capacity over the past five years from 140 MWt to 820 MWt, most for district heating systems. This supplies heat to 51,600 equivalent residences and engineering design to supply a further 150,000 residences with geothermal heat is complete.

scholarly journals Utilization of geothermal springs as a renewable energy source: Vranjska Banja case study

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (6 Part B) ◽  
pp. 4083-4093
Author(s):  
Stefan Denda ◽  
Jasna Micic ◽  
Ana Milanovic-Pesic ◽  
Jovana Brankov ◽  
Zeljko Bjeljac
Keyword(s):  
Geothermal Energy ◽  
District Heating ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Economic Assessment ◽  
Heating System ◽  
Energy Utilization ◽  
Geothermal Resources ◽  
Geothermal Heating ◽  
Public Facilities ◽  
Total Energy Balance

Despite the significant natural potential, geothermal energy in Serbia has traditionally been used in balneology and recreation, while its share in the country?s total energy balance is almost negligible (0.05%). The present paper deals with the City Municipality of Vranjska Banja as a pioneer in the territory of Serbia in using geothermal energy for heating. The concept and methodology of the present research are directly related to the utilization of geothermal resources for district heating in the Vranjska Banja area. The presented analysis includes: determining the available amount of energy, identifying the energy needs of selected public facilities, and the estimation of investment necessary for energy utilization. A survey, combined with field research, is focused on four public facilities connected to the heating system relying on geothermal sources, as well as on two facilities that should be connected to the system in the next phases. The results show economic, ecological, and technological advantages of using geothermal heating systems, as well as the acceptable price of equipment maintenance. An economic assessment of the transition of one facility from the existing heating system to a system relying on geothermal energy has also been made. The analysis confirms the cost-effectiveness of using geothermal energy and reveals numerous ecological advantages (safe heating, absence of CO2 emission) over other energy sources.

scholarly journals Utilizing renewable resources – converting geothermal energy to electricity

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miljan Vlahović ◽  
◽  
Milica Vlahović ◽  
Zoran Stević ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Resources ◽  
Geothermal Energy ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Hot Water ◽  
Geothermal Heat ◽  
Geothermal Resources ◽  
Binary Cycle ◽  
Flash Tank ◽  
Solid Soil ◽  
Geothermal Power

According to the official definition, approved by the European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC), geothermal energy is energy accumulated as heat below the surface of solid soil. Geothermal energy is thermal energy generated and stored in the Earth. It is generally defined as the part of geothermal heat that can be directly utilized as heat or converted into other types of energy. Geothermal resources vary by location and depth towards the Earth's core. Their use is possible for different purposes depending on their temperature. This paper presents the harnessing geothermal resources for electricity generation. There are three main types of geothermal power plants: dry steam plants, flash steam plants, and binary cycle plants. Dry steam plants pipe hot steam from underground into turbines, which powers the generator to provide electricity. Flash steam plants pump hot water from underground into a cooler flash tank. The formed steam powers the electricity generator. Binary cycle plants pump hot water from underground through a heat exchanger that heats a second liquid to transform it into steam, which powers the generator. In all mentioned systems the used fluids are recycled. It can be concluded that geothermal power plants work similarly to other power plants, but providing the steam for starting the turbine from the earth's interior. The fact that used fluids return to the ground makes geothermal energy resources renewable.

scholarly journals Discussion on ‘Borehole temperature log from the Glasgow Geothermal Energy Research Field Site: a record of past changes to ground surface temperature caused by urban development’ : Scottish Journal of Geology, 56, 134-152, https://doi.org/10.1144/sjg2019-033

2020 ◽  
pp. sjg2020-014
Author(s):  
Alison A. Monaghan ◽  
David A.C. Manning ◽  
Zoe K. Shipton
Keyword(s):  
Geothermal Energy ◽  
Ground Surface ◽  
Research Field ◽  
Site Location ◽  
Field Site ◽  
Multidisciplinary Research ◽  
Research Facility ◽  
Energy Research ◽  
Borehole Temperature ◽  
The Uk

In their analysis of temperature data, Watson and Westaway (2020) make substantial use of initial open information provided by the UK Geoenergy Observatory: Glasgow Geothermal Energy Research Field Site. They also offer criticisms on site location, heat resource size, design and costs, however these criticisms appear to be based on a misunderstanding of the purpose of the Glasgow Observatory. In order to mitigate misapprehensions for future Observatory users, we write in reply. The Glasgow Observatory has been developed as a multidisciplinary research facility; it is not a demonstrator of maximum mine water heat resource, which is by implication what Watson and Westaway (2020) would deem a success.

Characterisation of the Dogger and Trias deep ressources in Orléans Métropolis, Centre-Val de Loire region, France : 3D geomodel and first geothermal potential assessment

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virginie Hamm ◽  
Laure Capar ◽  
Perrine Mas ◽  
Philippe Calcagno ◽  
Séverine Caritg-Monnot
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Data ◽  
Geothermal Energy ◽  
District Heating ◽  
Geological Model ◽  
Paris Basin ◽  
Reservoir Properties ◽  
Geothermal Resources ◽  
Geothermal Well ◽  
Geothermal Potential ◽  
Heating Networks

<p>In Ile-de-France region, in the center of Paris Basin, geothermal energy contributes to a large extent to the supply of heating networks with about 50 of the 70 deep geothermal installations dedicated to district heating in France. Those installations mainly exploit the Dogger limestones between 1500-2000 m deep, which are present throughout the Paris Basin. In the case of Centre Val-de Loire region, south of Paris Basin, deep geothermal energy is very little developed, only one geothermal well is currently in operation and targeting the Triassic aquifer at Chateauroux on the southern edge of the basin. A former doublet had also targeted the Trias at Melleray (Orléans metropolis) in the 1980’s but was shut down after one year due to reinjection problem.</p><p>In 2019, Orléans metropolis, in collaboration with BRGM, has launched a program in order to investigate its deep geothermal resources like the Dogger and Trias aquifers between 900 m and 1500 m deep. This action is in line with Orléans métropolis Territorial Climate Air Energy Plan (PCAET) and master plan for the heating networks adopted which foresee 65 000 additional dwellings to be connected using geothermal energy based heating networks.</p><p>In order to reduce the risks of failure of deep geothermal drilling, one of the prerequisites is a better knowledge of the subsurface. This requires the development of an accurate 3D subsurface geomodel as well as the most reliable possible hydrodynamic and thermal parameters to assess the geothermal potential. The purpose of this work was to produce a 3D geological model of the Dogger and Triassic units, on the scale of Orléans Metropolis, based on hydrocarbon and geothermal well data as well as interpretation of 2D seismic data. Seismic data acquired in the 1960s and the 1980s were processed and interpreted. A particular attention was paid to the Sennely fault and its geometry. It crosses the study area and was interpreted as a relay fault segmented in three parts. The horizon picking points were then converted from two-way time to depth and integrated in the GeoModeller software for the development of the 3D geomodel. It was then used for first hydrothermal simulations in order to assess the theorical potential of the Dogger and Trias aquifers at Orléans metropolis.</p><p>The 3D geomodel and first geothermal potential assessment have allowed defining areas of interest for geothermal development into the Dogger or Trias. However an initial exploratory drilling well or additional exploration techniques will be necessary to confirm/specify the reservoir properties (useful thickness, porosity, permeability) and the connectivity of the reservoir(s) and the flow rates that can actually be exploited, which cannot be predicted by the current geological model.</p>

scholarly journals A WebGIS portal for exploration of deep geothermal energy based on geological and geophysical data

2016 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 23-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henrik Vosgerau ◽  
Anders Mathiesen ◽  
Morten Sparre Andersen ◽  
Lars Ole Boldreel ◽  
Morten Leth Hjuler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Geothermal Energy ◽  
District Heating ◽  
Geophysical Data ◽  
Heat Extraction ◽  
Depth Interval ◽  
Field Energy ◽  
Geothermal Resources ◽  
Geothermal Reservoirs ◽  
Geological Conditions ◽  
Deep Geothermal Energy

The Danish subsurface contains deep geothermal resources which may contribute for hundreds of years to the mixed Danish energy supply (Mathiesen et al. 2009). At present only a limited fraction of these resources are utilised in three existing geothermal power plants in Thisted, Margretheholm and Sønderborg (Fig. 1) where warm formation water is pumped to the surface from a production well and, after heat extraction, returned to the subsurface in injection wells (Fig. 2). Deep geothermal energy has the advantage of being a sustainable and environmentally friendly energy source which is furthermore independent of climate and seasonal variations, in contrast to wind and solar energy. The implementation of deep geothermal energy for district heating replacing conventional energy sources, especially coal and oil, may thus lead to a considerable reduction in the emission of greenhouse gases. There are therefore good reasons to include geothermal energy as a central component in Denmark’s future supply of energy for district heating. Furthermore, heat-demanding industries may consider the possibility to integrate geothermal energy and energy storage in their production process. In order to facilitate the use of geothermal energy, a broad majority in the Danish parliament has granted financial support for initiatives within the geothermal field (Energy policy agreement of March 22, 2012). The present paper deals with one of the outcomes of this agreement, namely a WebGIS portal with an overview of existing and interpreted geological and geophysical data. This will be relevant for all stakeholders in the exploration of deep geothermal resources in the Danish subsurface. The portal focuses on geothermal reservoirs within the 800–3000 m depth interval and provides an overview of the amount and quality of existing geodata, the geological composition of the subsurface, and interpreted thematic products such as geological maps of potential geothermal reservoirs. A comprehensive map from the portal showing onshore and nearoffshore locations where the geological conditions are potentially suitable for extraction of deep geothermal energy in Denmark is shown in Fig. 1. Many of the thematic maps are outcomes of the project The geothermal energy potential in Denmark – reservoir properties, temperature distribution and models for utilization under the programme Sustainable Energy and Environment funded by the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation.

Towards a geothermal exploration well in the Gassum Formation in Copenhagen

1969 ◽  
pp. 29-32
Author(s):  
Henrik Vosgerau ◽  
Ulrik Gregersen ◽  
Lars Kristensen ◽  
Sofie Lindström ◽  
Anders Mathiesen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Geothermal Energy ◽  
Energy Supply ◽  
District Heating ◽  
Green Energy ◽  
Central Component ◽  
Deep Subsurface ◽  
Geothermal Resources ◽  
Geothermal Exploration ◽  
Production Processes ◽  
Exploration Well

Geothermal resources in the deep subsurface in many parts of Denmark have the potential to form a central component in the future Danish energy supply for district heating. Geothermal energy is sustainable and environmentally friendly and independent of climatic and seasonal variations, in contrast to solar and wind energy. Furthermore, geothermal plants may be integrated with other green energy supplies. The sandstone reservoirs from which the warm geothermal water is extracted may also act as temporary storage for excess heat e.g. from industrial production processes or from solar-heated water in summer periods when the demand for heating is low.

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