Instabilities during liquid migration into superheated hydrothermal systems

Conference · Thu Jan 26 04:00:00 EST 1995

OSTI ID:889386

Fitzgerald, Shaun D; Woods, Andrew W

Hydrothermal systems typically consist of hot permeable rock which contains either liquid or liquid and saturated steam within the voids. These systems vent fluids at the surface through hot springs, fumaroles, mud pools, steaming ground and geysers. They are simultaneously recharged as meteoric water percolates through the surrounding rock or through the active injection of water at various geothermal reservoirs. In a number of geothermal reservoirs from which significant amounts of hot fluid have been extracted and passed through turbines, superheated regions of vapor have developed. As liquid migrates through a superheated region of a hydrothermal system, some of the liquid vaporizes at a migrating liquid-vapor interface. Using simple physical arguments, and analogue laboratory experiments we show that, under the influence of gravity, the liquid-vapor interface may become unstable and break up into fingers.

• Research Organization: Institute of Theoretical Geophysics, Departments of Applied Mathematics & Theoretical Physics, Cambridge, UK
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• OSTI ID: 889386
• Report Number(s): SGP-TR-150-25
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY
FINGERS
FUMAROLES
GEYSERS
GROUND WATER
Geothermal Legacy
HOT SPRINGS
HYDROTHERMAL SYSTEMS
RESERVOIR ENGINEERING
STEAM
TURBINES
WATER