Thermal Drawdown-Induced Flow Channeling in Fractured Geothermal Reservoirs

Fu, Pengcheng; Hao, Yue; Walsh, Stuart D. C.; Carrigan, Charles R.

doi:10.1007/s00603-015-0776-0

Title: Thermal Drawdown-Induced Flow Channeling in Fractured Geothermal Reservoirs

Journal Article · Tue Jun 30 00:00:00 EDT 2015 · Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-015-0776-0· OSTI ID:1366903

Fu, Pengcheng ^[1]; Hao, Yue ^[1]; Walsh, Stuart D. C. ^[1]; Carrigan, Charles R. ^[1]

Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States). Atmospheric, Earth, and Energy Division

In this paper, we investigate the flow-channeling phenomenon caused by thermal drawdown in fractured geothermal reservoirs. A discrete fracture network-based, fully coupled thermal–hydrological–mechanical simulator is used to study the interactions between fluid flow, temperature change, and the associated rock deformation. The responses of a number of randomly generated 2D fracture networks that represent a variety of reservoir characteristics are simulated with various injection-production well distances. We find that flow channeling, namely flow concentration in cooled zones, is the inevitable fate of all the scenarios evaluated. We also identify a secondary geomechanical mechanism caused by the anisotropy in thermal stress that counteracts the primary mechanism of flow channeling. This new mechanism tends, to some extent, to result in a more diffuse flow distribution, although it is generally not strong enough to completely reverse flow channeling. We find that fracture intensity substantially affects the overall hydraulic impedance of the reservoir but increasing fracture intensity generally does not improve heat production performance. Finally, increasing the injection-production well separation appears to be an effective means to prolong the production life of a reservoir.

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Research Organization:: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Geothermal Technologies Office; LLNL Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program

Grant/Contract Number:: AC52-07NA27344

OSTI ID:: 1366903

Report Number(s):: LLNL-JRNL-644453

Journal Information:: Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering, Vol. 49, Issue 3; ISSN 0723-2632

Publisher:: SpringerCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Cited by: 58 works

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Solute tracer test quantification of the effects of hot water injection into hydraulically stimulated crystalline rock Kittilä, Anniina; Jalali, Mohammadreza; Saar, Martin O. Geothermal Energy, Vol. 8, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1186/s40517-020-00172-x	journal	June 2020
Solute tracer test quantification of the effects of hot water injection into hydraulically stimulated crystalline rock Kittilä, Anniina; Jalali, Mohammadreza; Saar, Martin O. ETH Zurich https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000420224	text	January 2020

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