Geothermal studies in Alaska: Conditions at Prudhoe Bay
The thermal regime in the Prudhoe Bay area on the coast of the Beaufort Sea was studied on the basis of temperature measurements through permafrost in the Prudhoe Bay oilfield. Analysis of these data, and of thermal conductivity measurements on samples of drill cuttings and frozen core indicate: (1) the heat flow from the Earth's interior is 1.3 + or - 0.2 heat-flow units (HFU) (55 + or - mW/sq sq m), a value typical of stable continental regions; (2) the permafrost on land near Prudhoe Bay extends to a depth of 630+ m, 50 to 100 percent deeper than permafrost in the Barrow area. This greater depth is caused by the high thermal conductivity of the coarse ice-rich siliceous sediment in the Prudhoe Bay area, (3) in the Prudhoe Bay area the nnual increase averages about 1.8 C (from -10.9 C to -9.1 of temperature C) and is associated with a net accumulation of 5 to 6 kcal/sq cm by the Earth's surface during this period, and (4) rising sea level and thawing seacliffs probably caused the shoreline to advance tens of kilometers in the past 20,000 years, so that a part of the Continental Shelf that is presently the target of intensive oil exploration was inundated. A simple heat-conduction model suggests that the warm seabed will cause the base of ice-rich permafrost to rise about 10 m (from 60 + or - m) during the first 2,000 years after inundation, and thereafter it will rise about 15 m per 1,000 years.
- Research Organization:
- Geological Survey, Alexandria, VA (USA)
- OSTI ID:
- 5852162
- Report Number(s):
- N-85-13290
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
580203* -- Geophysics-- Geophysical Survey Methods-- (1980-1989)
ALASKA
ARCTIC OCEAN
BAYS
BEAUFORT SEA
CONTINENTAL MARGIN
CONTINENTAL SHELF
FEDERAL REGION X
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
GEOPHYSICAL SURVEYS
GEOTHERMAL SYSTEMS
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
MINERAL RESOURCES
NORTH AMERICA
OIL FIELDS
PERMAFROST
PETROLEUM DEPOSITS
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
PRUDHOE BAY
RESOURCES
SEAS
SURFACE WATERS
SURVEYS
TEMPERATURE SURVEYS
THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY
THERMODYNAMIC PROPERTIES
USA