WORKSHOP

ON
GEOTHERMAL RESERVOIR ENGINEERING*
Paul Kruger and Henry J . Ramey, J r.
Stan ford Geo the rma 1 Program
Stanford Uni versi ty
Stanford, Cal i forni a
Workshop Report
December 1 5- 1 7, 1975
J;
Conducted under Grant No. NSF-AER-72-03490 sponsored by the RANN program
of the National Science Foundation.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Summary of the Workshop - P . Kruger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Rapporteur Reports
Reservoir Physics - P . A. Witherspoon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Well Testing - H. J . Ramey, J r. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
F i el d Development - G. Frye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Model ing - J . W. Mercer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Well Stimulation - M. Nathenson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Overv iews
A Programmatic View of Geothermal Reservoir Engineering - R. Coryell
16
The Bi rth of Geothermal Reservoir Engineering - H. J . Ramey, J r. . . 20
Reservoir Phvsics
Summary Description of Research Acti vi ti es - D. R. Kassoy . . . . . .
Heat and F l ui d Flow Experiments t o Measure Geothermal Reservoir
Physical Parameters - W. E. Brigham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
An Attempt t o Correlate Kh Di stri buti on wi th Geological Structure
23
26
of Larderello Geothermal F i el d - R. Cel ati , G. Neri, F . P erusini,
and P. Squarci . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
F l ui d Flow i n Geothermal Reservoirs - J . C. Martin . . . . . . . . . 42
Fracture Flow i n Geothermal Reservoirs - G. Bodvarsson . . . . . . . 45
Reservoir Factors Determining the Fraction of Stored Energy
Recoverable from Hydrothermal Convection Systems - M. Nathenson . 50
Uti l i z ati on o f Gravimetric Data f or Estimation of Hydrothermal
Reservoir Characteristics i n the East Mesa F i el d, I mperial Valley,
Cal i forni a - T, Meidav, R. J ames, and S. Sanyal . . . . . . . . 52
Effects o f Rei nj ecti on - C. F. Tsang and P . A. Witherspoon . . . 62
An I nvesti gati on of Screening Geothermal Production We11s from
Land Surface Subsidence Associated wi th Geothermal Energy
Production - S. K. Garg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Well Testing
Pressure and Temperature Buildup i n Geothermal Wells - M. S. Gul ati . 69
Well Log Analysis and Well Testing i n the Heber
Geothermal F i el d - L. Mann . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
I
Geot hermal Wel l Test i ng at Roosevel t KGRA, Beaver Count y, Ut ah -
D. C. Har ban . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Shel l ' s Act i vi t y i n The Geyser s Area - E. L. Fehl berg . . . . . . . . 84
Wat er Ent r y Bel ow St eamProduct i on:
The Geysers - G. Fr ye . . . . . . . . . . . . , . . . . . . . . . 89
An I nt erf erence Test i n Al f i na Geot hermal Fi el d ( Nort hern Lat i um,
I t al y) - A. Barel l i and G. Manet t i . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Horner Met hod Appl i ed to Bui l d- Up Test s on Tr aval e 22 Wel l
A. Bar el l i , R. Cel at i , G. Manet t i , and G. Neri . . . . . . . . . 101
St udy of a Geot hermal Fi el d i n the Asal Act i ve Vol cani c Ri f t Zone
( French Ter r i t or y of Af ar s and I ssas, East Af ri ca) -
A. C. Gri ngart en and L. St i el t j es . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
J . F. Kunze, L. G. Mi l l er , and R. C. St oker . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Pr oj ect , I daho - T. N. Narasi mhan and P. A. Wi t herspoon . . . . . 124
A Case Hi st ory at
-
Raf t Ri ver Geot hermal Reservoi r Engi neeri ng and Wel l St i mul at i on -
I ni t i al Resul t s of Reservoi r Pr oduct i on Test s, Raf t Ri ver Geot hermal
Fi el d Devel opment
An Approach to Geot hermal Devel opment - R. A. Woodi ng . . . . . . . . 126
Geopressured Geot hermal Reservoi r Engi neeri ng Research at the
Uni versi t y of Texas - R. M. Knapp, M. H. Dor f man, 0. F. I sokrari 130
SDGEE Pi oneeri ng Geot hermal Test Work i n t he I mperi al Val l ey of
Sout hern Cal i f orni a - G. L. Lombard and J . M. Nugent . . . . . . 135
Ni l and Reservoi r Moni t ori ng and Eval uat i on Operat i ng Program-
T. C. Hi nri chs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
East Mesa Reservoi r - T. L. Goul d . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
The PG&E Geysers Power Pl ant - A Ut i l i t y Company' s Vi ewpoi nt -
L. J . Woi t ke . . . . . . . . . . . . . I , . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Geot hermal Reservoi r Pr essur e Requi rement s f or Product i on -
J . T. Kuwada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
On t he Opti mal Rat e of Geot hermal Energy Ext ract i on - C. R. Scher er . 161
Economi c Model i ng for Geot hermal Reser voi r s and Power Pl ant s -
C. H. Bl oomst er . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
We1 1 St i mul at i on
Physi cal Model s of St i mul at ed Geot hermal Reser voi r s - P. Kruger . . . I 69
Hydr aul i c- Fract ure Geot hermal Reservoi r Engi neeri ng - H. D. Mur phy . 174
Model Experi ment s i n Hydr aul i c Fr act ur e - J . Dundur s . . . . . . . . 178
Anal yt i cal St udy of Crack Growt h and Shape by Hydraul i c Fract uri ng
of Rocks - T. Mur a, L. M. Keer, and H. Ab6 . . . . . . . . . . 180
Cont rol of Si l i ca Scal i ng - H. L. Barnes and J . D. Ri mst i dt . . . . . 185
Predi ct i ng Expl osi on- Generat ed Per meabi l i t y around
Geot hermal Wel l s - C. R. McKee and M. E. Hanson . . . . . . . . . 192
i i
Model ing
Summary of our Research i n Geothermal Reservoir Simulation -
C. R. Faust and J . W. Mercer - . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Princeton Geothermal Research Program - George Pinder . . . . . .
Numerical Calculation of Multiphase F l ui d and Heat Flow i n
Hydrothermal Reservoirs - J . W. P ri tchett . . . . . . . . . . . .
Methods of Solution of the Equations f or Convection i n Porous
Media, wi th Geothermal Applications - R. A. Wooding . . . . . . .
A Hele-Shaw Model of Heat Convection i n Porous Media under
Geothermal Conditions - H. W. Shen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Numerical and Anal yti cal Studies on Heat and Mass Transfer i n
Volcanic I sland Geothermal Reservoirs - Ping Cheng . . . . . . .
Research on Numerical Modeling of Li qui d Geothermal Systems -
blichael Sorey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
F i ni te Element Solution of Geothermal Energy Extraction -
Z. P. Ba?ant, S . Nemat-Nasser, and H. Ohtsubo . . . . . . . . . .
Numerical Model ing of Hydrothermal Reactions i n Geothermal
Reservoirs - C . G. Sammis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Progress Report on a Mathematical Model of a P arallelepiped Reservoir
wi th No P enetrating Wellbore and Mixed Boundary Conditions -
A. Barel l i , G. Manetti, R. Cel ati , and G. Neri . . . . . . . . .
Serge Bories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fracture and Pore P ermeability - P . W. Kasameyer and
R. C. Schroeder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fundamental Study of Changing of Phase i n Porous Materials -
Thermal Depletion of Liquid-Dominated Geothermal Reservoirs wi th
Geothermal Energy from a Borehole i n Hot Dry Rock - A P reliminary
The Use of General S ens i ti vi ty Theory t o Analyze the Geothermal
Study - D. Sharma and T. Maini . . , . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Reservoir Model's S ens i ti vi ty t o the P ermeability Functions -
R. W. Atherton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
198
199
201
2 06
213
219
225
232
240
242
247
249
2 58
2 67
iii
1 NTRODUCT I ON
Although geothermal energy was f i r s t converted to el ec tr i c i ty more
than 70 years ago, unti l recentl y l i t t l e publ i c demand for i t s widespread
use existed. Geothermal energy has been considered an attracti ve al ternate
source o f energy f or more than a decade i n many developed as wel l as un-
developed countries and the i nternati onal awareness of the growing def i c i t
o f f os s i l fuel s has sparked accelerated i nterest i n determining nati onal
resources and uti l i z ati on technologies. As o f 1976, the total world
generating capacity f or generating el ec tr i c i ty from geothermal resources
i s about 1100 MW (equal to that of one modern nuclear power pl ant) and
more than 3/4 o f it i s produced at onl y two si tes, The Geysers i n Cal i forni a
and the Tuscany fi el ds i n I tal y.
Many problems have been i denti fi ed which beset the rapid development
of geothermal resources, covering the enti re "fuel cycle" from expl orati on
through conversion and residuals control . The major problem i s the i n-
f l exi ty o f natural geothermal resources which occur i n a wide vari ety o f
hydrogeologic, thermal, and chemical qual i ti es . Uti l i z ati on must be
designed to fi t the speci fi c characteri sti cs of i ndi vi dual resources.
Since the thermal effi ci enci es f or conversion to el ectri c energy are very
low even for the two known highest qual i ty hydrothermal
resources, i n-
dustri al development awaits greater economies i n resource expl orati on and
evaluation, energy extracti on, and uti l i z ati on technologies. To compound
the problems, development i s occurri ng i n an era of increased publ i c aware-
ness about i ns ti tuti onal and environmental concerns. As a resul t, a
formidable array o f legal, soci al , and regulatory problems al so requires
resolution.
As the developnent of a geothermal industry proceeds, these many
problems are being evaluated generally by the sector o f the nati onal
economy that has had experience i n sol vi ng si mi l ar problems for other
resources. The expl orati on f or geothermal resources has been undertaken
l argel y by the energy resource companies that use subsurface geosciences
and the d r i l l r i g as thei r mode of operation. Conversion t o el ectr i ci ty,
presently the major uti l i z ati on o f geothermal resources, has been under-
taken by the pri vate and publ i c u t i l i t y industry. And the i ns ti tuti onal
problems are wi thi n the domain of the several l evel s o f publ i c admi ni strati on
ranging from the Federal government to county and township agencies.
I t can be assumed that as the publ i c demand f or energy to be supplied
by geothermal resources increases, accommodations between suppliers,
regulators, and the publ i c w i l l be achieved. I t can al so be assumed that
adequate technology w i l l be developed to ut i l i z e "commercial" resources for
both el ectri cal and di rect thermal appl i cati ons.
concern i n the accelerated development o f a geothermal industry i s the
def i ni ti on of what consti tutes a "commercial" resource.
poi nt of view, a "commercial" resource i s one from which a suffi ci ent amount
of geothermal resource can be extracted to s el l to a wi l l i ng buyer at a
profi tabl e pri ce over some reasonable peri od of time.
i ns ti tuti onal di f f i cul ti es , i s underway. Recent estimates by the U. S .
Thus, the major area for
From a pragmatic
Exploration for geothermal resources, i n s pi te o f the aforementioned
-1-
Geological Survey i ndi cate a l arge number of potenti al areas of geothermal
resources i n the U. S. alone. The assessment o f "commercial" vi abi l i ty of
these resources i s the di f f i c ul t task, due i n part to the small number of
exi s ti ng operational fi el ds , and al so i n part to the empirical hi s tory of
geothermal power pl ant development, wi th i ns tal l ati on of generating capacity
by one small uni t at a time. I t i s cl ear from the many published forecasts
o f the potenti al f or geothermal energy, ranging over orders o f magnitude,
that the actual resources (beyond the 1,000 to 2,000 MW probably exi sti ng
a t the one U. S . l ocati on) areessenti al l y unknown. For undeveloped fi el ds ,
uncertai nti es exi s t about the thermal qual i ty o f the resource, the heat
and f l ui d extracti on capabi l i ty, the probable time hi story of del i verabi l i ty
and longevity, and the systematics f or optimum development of the resource
should it prove t o be "commercial." A l l of the aspects may be considered
to f a l l under the category o f "Geothermal Reservoir Engineering," the topi c
of thi s Workshop.
Geothermal reservoi r engineering has been an adaptive branch of
engineering; much of the nomenclature and methodology have come f r om the
o i l and gas industry, from hydrology and hydrogeology, from the mineral
i ndustri es, and from the basic physical, chemical, and nuclear sciences.
I n addi ti on t o the extensive ef f or ts carri ed out by the operators i n under-
standing speci fi c reservoi r characterj sti cs, a nati onal focus has developed
on thi s important segment o f the geothermal "fuel cycle," i nvol vi ng uni versi ti es,
industry, and the Federal government.
of geothermal reservoi r engineering were supported by the National Science
Foundation and the U. S%. Geological Survey. The Survey's program has been
pri mari l y an in-house program di rected at describing what a geothermal
resource i s . Many contri buti ons have been made i n the cl as s i fi cati on and
modelling of hydrothermal convective and geopressured systems. The
National Science Foundation duri ng i t s tenure as lead Federal agency for
the accelerated development o f geothermal resources i ni ti ated a seri es of
grants to uni versi ti es and research corporations to bri ng various di sci pl i nes
together t o bui l d thi s branch of science and technology known as geothermal
reservoi r engineering.
Admi ni strati on has included such research i n i t s overal l program. Si mi l ar
efforts are underway i n other geothermal countries.
Earl y ef f orts t o develop the technologies
The newly-formed Energy Research and Development
The purpose of the Workshop convened here at Stanford thi s December,
1975, i s two-fold. F i rs t, the Workshop was designed to bri ng together
researchers acti ve i n the various physical and mathematical branches of
thi s newly-emerging f i el d so that the parti ci pants could learn about the
very many studies underway and share experiences through an exchange of
research resul ts. The second purpose was to prepare these Proceedings of
the Workshop so that the i ntegrated information could be disseminated to
the geothermal community responsible f or the development, uti l i z ati on,
and regul ati on aspects o f the i ndustry.
During the organi zati on of the Workshop some seventy to ei ghty re-
searchers acti ve i n the NSF program, the U. s . Geological Survey, and i n
uni versi ty, industry, and ERDA nati onal l aboratori es were i denti fi ed by
the Program Committee. I nvi tati ons to them and several i ndi vi dual s i n
nations acti ve i n thi s new f i el d were extended.
i n the program consisted o f reservoi r physics (studies to evaluate the
The major areas covered
- 2-
physical processes occurring
used i n speci fi c and generic
characteri sti cs o f a reservo
development of producing f i e
energy recovery from marg i na
i n geothermal systems), we1 1 testi ng (techniques
f i el ds t o determine the volumetric and extracti ve
r) , f i el d development (methods f or the optimum
ds) , we1 1 sti mul ati on (techniques f or improving
hydrothermal and dry geothermal resources) ,
and model 1 ing (mathematical methods t o study geothermal reservoi rs).
The Workshop resul ted i n, the presentation o f 50 technical papers,
summaries of which are included i n these Proceedings. We hope that these
summaries and the Rapporteur reports of the f i ve sessions w i l l prove valuable
to our colleagues i n industry, academic i nsti tuti ons, and espec
government agencies responsible f or an accelerated orderl y deve
our geothermal resources.
I wish t o acknowledge the assistance of the Program Commi
P. Kruger, M. Nathenson, H. Ramey, P . Witherspoon), the session
al l y t o the
opmen t o f
tee (R. Coryel l ,
Rapport eu rs
(P. Witherspoon, H. Ramey, G. Frye, M. Nathenson, J . Mercer), our colleagues
from France, I tal y, and New Zealand, whose parti ci pati on enriched our pro-
gram, the students i n our Stanford Geothermal Program (P. Atkinson, H. Chen,
A. Hunsbedt, and M. Kuo) who assisted i n the workshop execution, and the
National Science Foundation for i t s support and encouragement.
Paul Kruger
Stanford Uni versi ty
December 18, 1975
- 3-
RAPPORTEURS' REPORTS
SESSION 1 - RESERVOI R PHYSICS - Paul A. Witherspoon
Session I on Reservoir Physics included ni ne papers covering a wide
vari ety of topics.
underway at the Uni versi ty of Colorado, where attempts are being made t o
characterize and model the various processes that occur i n geothermal
systems. The importance of f aul ts i n control l i ng the convective motion
wi thi n geothermal systems i s being examined from a number of standpoints,
and the effect of a r eal i s ti c vari ati on i n vi scosi ty on convection i n porous
bodies has revealed that the convective motion i s unl i ke the symmetric
cl assi cal prof i l es that res ul t from a f l ui d of constant vi scosi ty.
able ef f ort i s being made t o develop a better understanding of the East Mesa
geothermal system i n the I mperial Valley.
Kassoy summarized the research acti vi ti es currentl y
A consider-
Brigham reviewed the laboratory i nvesti gati ons currentl y underway a t
Stanford Uni versi ty to develop a fundamental understanding of non-isothermal
boi l i ng two-phase fl ow i n porous media. One of the c r i ti c al problems i s how
the normally immobile l i qui d saturati ons vaporize wi th pressure reduction
under non-isothermal conditions.
rel ati ve
temperature dependent property of rocks. Laboratory measurements have
revealed that the temperature ef f ect on permeability depends on the nature
of the saturati ng f l ui d, whereas
b i l i t y seems t o be independent of the nature of the saturati ng f l ui d. The
obj ecti ve of thi s work has been t o simultaneously measure the ef f ect of
thermal and mechanical stresses on permeability. Brigham al so summarized
the advances that have been made i n several di recti ons i n modeling geothermal
f l ui d production.
Recent work on the ef f ect of temperature on
permeability suggested that absolute permeability was al so a
the effect of confi ni ng pressure on permea-
Manetti summarized some recent work that has been carri ed out i n I tal y
to correl ate the kh di s tri buti on wi th geological structure a t Larderello.
Data from about 50 wel l s i n di f f erent parts of Larderel l o were analyzed by
back-pressure and pressure build-up methods. Good agreement between the kh
values for any given wel l was onl y possible when the ski n- effect was taken
into account.
between areas of high transmi ssi vi ty and the various structural highs wi thi n
the Larderel l o f i el d. The permeability i s believed to reach i t s maximum
values along the crests because tectoni c ac ti vi ty has resulted i n a maximum
of fracturi ng and fi ssuri ng at such locations.
A correl ati on of these resul ts shows a good correspondence
Martin presented a review of an analysis that he has made on i nternal
steam dri ve i n geothermal reservoi rs that are produced by pressure depletion
wi th no water i nj ecti on. He compares the pressure-temperature behavior of
geothermal systems and shows how they di f f er depending on the i ni ti , al condi-
ti ons. He concludes that under certai n conditions onl y a rel ati vel y small
- 4-
amount of the heat i ni t i a l l y contained i n a geothermal reservoi r w i l l be
produced during pressure depletion.
and hot water occurs during depletion, more of the total heat can be produced
by completing wel l s hi gh i n the reservoi r t o enhance steam production and
suppress water production.
Where gravi ty segregation o f the steam
Bodvarsson reviewed the analysis that he has been making of the macro-
permeability that prevai l s i n igneous rocks because of fracture conditions.
From an anal yti cal expression f or fl ow t o a horizontal fracture i ntersecti ng
a borehole, he has analyzed the fl ow conditions that exi s t i n fractured
reservoirs. Thi s approach has been used i n I celand to develop methods f or
testi ng wells, estimating reservoi r permeability, and evaluating the resul ts
of wel l stimulation. Bodvarsson al so discussed how the isotope chemistry of
groundwaters i n iceland has been used to locate areas of recharge.
Natnenson sumarized i nvesti gati ons that he has made t o estimate the
fracti on of stored energy i n hydrothermal convection systems that i s recover-
able. He has analyzed two possible methods f or extracti ng energy: (a) boi l i ng
the water i n the system t o produce steam and (b) natural and a r t i f i c i a l
recharge of cold water to recover reservoi r heat by a sweep process. I t
appears that the res tri cted range of porosi ty, temperature, and recharge over
which the boi l i ng method w i l l work l i mi t s i t s appl i cati on to rather special
cases such as vapor-dominated systems. The f racti on of stored energy that
may be recovered i s c r i t i c al l y dependent on the average l i qui d saturati on.
I n using recharging cold water t o dri ve hot water to producing wel l s, conduc-
ti on can be analyzed to a f i r s t approximation by superposition onto the move-
ment of the temperature front. Another factor i s the rotati on of the i ni t i a l l y
verti cal i nterface between cold and hot water. These processes can be com-
bined qual i tati vel y t o yi el d an estimate of energy recovery.
Meidav presented a review of a method of using gravi metri c data t o
estimate hydrothermal reservoi r characteri sti cs at the East Mesa geothermal
f i el d i n Cal i forni a. Si x pos i ti ve gravi ty anomalies are associated wi th
abnormally high temperature gradients i n the I mperial Valley, and one o f
these anomalies i s a t East Mesa. The explanation f or these observed effects
i s densi fi cati on of the shallow sediments by deposition of temperature-
sensi ti ve minerals i n the upward ri s i ng plume of geothermal waters. An
excess mass of about 10 bi l l i o n tons of matter i s believed t o have been
deposited at East Mesa which would have required an upwelling of an estimated
2.5 t r i l l i o n tons of thermal water. Assuming a period of 50,000 years was
required leads t o the conclusion that the verti cal permeability ranges from
0.6 t o 60 mi l 1 idarcies. A1 though surf i ci al evidence of geothermal ac ti vi ty
i s absent at East Mesa, thi s analysis sheds l i ght on the very l arge underground
movements of thermal waters that are possible when hydrogeological conditions
do not favor outfl ow t o the surface.
Tsang summarized an analysis he has recentl y made on screening geo-
thermal production wel l s from the effects of rei nj ecti on. I n the normal
method of rei nj ecti ng col d water i nto a geothermal reservoi r, breakthrough
eventually occurs depending on several factors. I n the simplest case of a
doublet, one production and one i nj ecti on wel l , thi s breakthrough time can
be lengthened considerably by placing a screening well between the two wel l s
-5-
so as to intercept the shortest stream l i ne. By producing water from the
screening wel l , not only can breakthrough be delayed, but a s i gni f i cant
increase i n energy recovery can al so be achieved.
f eas i bi l i ty study of the ef f ects of screening has not yet been made.
A detai l ed econcmic
Garg reviewed the work that he and hi s colleagues are carryi ng out i n
an ef f or t to mathematically model land surface subsidence associated wi th
geothermal energy production. This i s potenti al l y a serious problem,
parti cul arl y for liquid-dominated geothermal systems. The theoreti cal model,
developed wi thi n the framework o f the Theory of I nteracti ng Continua,
describes the thermomechanical response of the rock and f l ui d composite
materi al i n terms of the i sol ated components. The stress- strai n equations
f or the rock matri x are coupled wi th the di f f us i on equations for the fl ui d.
The microscale detai l s of the pore/fracture network i n the rock are ignored,
but the f l ui d pressures and the stress f i el d i n the rock matri x are per-
mi tted to assume di s ti nct values wi thi n each computational region for the
composite. Although most of the required materi al properties can be
obtained from standard laboratory tests on cores, i t should be noted that
the reservoi r behavior i s frequentl y governed by fractures, formation
inhomogeneities, and other large scale features such as faul ts. It, there-
fore, becomes important t o supplement the laboratory measurements by sui tabl e
f i el d data.
subsidence problem was presented.
An example of some prel i mi nary resul ts i n modeling a hypothetical
SESSION 11 - WELL TESTING - Henry J . Ramey, J r.
Data from nine di f f erent f i el d tests were presented. This one fact
sets thi s session apart from a l l previous meetings or workshops.
cases considered ranged from vapor t o liquid-dominated reservoirs, and l i qui d-
dominated systems ranged from low t o high s al i ni ty systems. The types of
wel l tests included pressure buildup and drawdown, and interference testi ng.
As a resul t, it appears the state of development and appl i cati on of the tech-
nology i s good. Appl i cati on o f exi sti ng petroleum engineering and ground-
water hydrology theories were shown to reveal the need f or new solutions,
however. Problems i denti f i ed include:
The f i el d
1 . New solutions f or transi ent wel l testi ng (both interference and i ndi vi d-
ual wel l tests) i n hot aqui fers which contain a carbon di oxi de gas cap.
The solutions should consider ei ther production of hot water from down-
structure wells, and production of carbon di oxi de from upstructure or
gas-cap wel l s. What properti es are detected i n such tests?
2. New solutions are needed f or parti al l y- penetrati ng wel l s i n a t a l l
steam column supported by boi l i ng of a deep l i qui d interface. A l l
types of tests should be evaluated.
3 . Studies should be aimed at the resul ts o f fl ashi ng i n the reservoi r rock
and resul ti ng non-condensable gas evolution.
-6-
Another fi ndi ng was that there hasn't been much supported research i n
the area of wel l tes t analysis. Work to date has involved mostly a retreading
of exi sti ng information. Sme work has been underway as a j o i nt proj ect by
ENEL of I tal y and personnel of the Stanford Geothermal Program.
During the presentations, a plea f or f i el d data was made and several
parti ci pants responded (Roger Stoker of the Raft River P roj ect, and Al ai n
Gringarten concerning data from the Afars and lssas Terri tory).
Si gni fi cant fi ndi ngs were made as a resul t of the presentation of much
f i el d data. I t i s cl ear that geothermal reservoirs are f ul l y responsive t o
a l l perti nent laws of physics. A careful study of f i e l d performance resul ts
will often i ndi cate important factors which should be included i n computer
simulation models. F i el d data presented a t the workshop indicated: (1) there
are wel l testi ng equipment needs, and (2) there were important recent fi ndi ngs
as a resul t of appl i cati on of new instruments. One need for new equipment
concerned running pressure recorders i nto very high vel oci ty steam wel l s whi l e
producing. There i s a need f or pressure and temperature recorders which can
withstand both high vi brati on and high temperatures. F l ui d production rates
on the order o f one mi l l i on pounds per hour were ci ted i n several cases!
Very i nteresti ng earth ti de effects were ci ted as measured wi th high-
preci si on quartz crystal pressure recorders i n the Raft River proj ect.
Pressures were measured to 0.001 ps i . This high preci si on represents a major
step forward. However, the device i s l i mi ted to upper temperatures i n the
range of 300F to 3 5 O O F . The Hewlett-Packard system was used i n the Raft
River proj ect. However, the Sperry-Sun stai nl ess capi l l ary tube system has
been used a few times, and i t appears that a combination of the capi l l ary tube
wi th a quartz detector i n an insulated chamber a t the surface might have
immediate use i n some geothermal wel l s.
F i nal l y, several important observations from the Geysers F i el d were made.
Burmah ha5 observed water entry below a steam entry i n two separate wel l s.
Water samples were obtained, and it appears that the f i r s t s i gni fi cant i nfor-
mation on the deep l i qui d i nterface postulated by Ramey, Bruce, and White may
have been obtained. Another important observation was reported from the cur-
rent Shell wel l dr i l l i ng at the Geysers. Hydrogen s ul fi de concentrations as
high as 3000 ppm were observed. This part of the wel l was plugged and the
wel l sidetracked. Both the Burmah and Shell wel l s are i n the eastern porti on
of the Geysers F i el d.
Throughout the discussions of various f i el d well tests, i t became
obvious that most reporters considered presence of fractures common to geo-
thermal reservoirs. As a res ul t it appears that a "hol i sti c" approach vi a
wel l testi ng was usual l y necessary. Most f i el d tests were characterized by
a dearth of conventional el ectr i c l og and core data. Well tes t anal ysi s i s
an important technology that has l argel y been neglected to date. Because of
the potenti al importance of thi s technology, one major fi ndi ng of the work-
shop was i denti fi cati on of the need f or more work i n thi s area.
- 7-
SESSI ON 1 1 1 - FIELD DEVELOPMENT - G. A. Frye
The authors present a maturing approach t o f i el d development., As men-
tioned i n the opening session, the bi r th of geothermal reservoi r engineering
i s accomplished and thi s session ref l ects earl y childhood development. Many
authors express a cautious optimism about geothermal energy potenti al . Consi-
derations about optimal energy extracti on rather than concerns about economical
production ref l ect thi s optimism. Several times the authors express the need
f or engineering design data and improved correl ati ons from geophysics and wel l
testi ng. Even though the geothermal energy f i el d i s rel ati vel y young i n the
United States, comments such as " I would have done it di f f erentl y i f I had to
do i t over again," i ndi cate development of geothermal reservoir engineering.
S peci fi cal l y the discussion sessions af ter the presentations refl ected
the needed development of hi gh temperature, hi gh resol uti on tool s f or
greater confidence and shorter observation periods. Reinjection w i l l be
extremely dependent on ani sotropi c features of the reservoir found by these
tools. Hinrichs discussed Magma's ef f orts i n I mperial County t o obtai n data
for establ i shi ng optimum production and i nj ecti on techniques. He then i ntro-
duced Mr . J ames Nugent of San Diego Gas and E l ectri c Company (SDGEE:) who
presented the ef f or ts of SDGEE and now along wi th ERDA on the geothermal tes t
f ac i l i ty associated wi th the Magma wel l s. I n some cases the geophysical
analyses of economic f i el ds can be expanded to new prospects. Wooding, whi l e
recommending thi s approach, cautioned that the same geophysics don't neces-
s ar i l y yi el d the same wel l test. More correl ati on between wel l tes t data and
the geophysical data are required.
the Bureau of Reclamation has assigned t o lntercomp. The i ni t i al phase of
thi s assigment involves analysis of current geophysical data i n consideration
of f i ve wel l s on East Mesa operated by the Bureau of Reclamation.
phases of thi s study concern reserves, f i el d development and
i nj ecti on.
lntercomp i s al so working wi th Republic Geothermal on the north end of East
Mesa.
Gould presented the task TRW Systems and
Later
Another thrust of the discussion expressed concern about the length of
time and i ni t i al capi tal investment that characterize el ectri cal power produc-
ti on from geothermal energy.
Woitke discussed PGEE's rel ati onshi p wi th steam developers.
The Geysers development i s typi cal of Burmah's experience.
were two items now causing some concern or delay i n f i el d development at The
Geysers.
ti on, PGEE has made addi ti onal commitments to abate exi sti ng pl ants before
development i s expanded.
concern about certai n Federal leasing regulations. Unless these concerns are
resolved i n a ti mel y manner, power pl ant construction may be delayed.
ments such as the need to optimize the cost per kilowatt-hour and riot maximize
total energy recovery ref l ect thi s concern. Kuwada cautioned i n hi s presenta-
ti on that some optimal f i el d development f or energy may not minimize production
While not s peci f i cal l y f i el d development,
The schedule for
Also presented
The f i r s t was a status report on H2S abatement. Since thi s presenta-
The second item expressed an investor-owned ut i l i t y' s
Com-
- 8-
problems.
dissolved gases and sol i ds be considered. Scherer's approach to optimal
rate of energy extracti on appears to apply not only to geothermal
developers,
but al so to governmental agencies as a planning guide.
Speci fi cal l y there i s an earl y requirement that the effects of
Also expressed was the need for val i d data f or economic models and
reservoir stimulators. Dorfman expressed the need f or modeling of geo-
pressured prospects to know how t o best produce geopressured fl ui ds .
he pointed out there i s l i mi ted published data on flow characteri sti cs of
these f l ui ds f or model val i dati on. Some s ens i ti vi ty analysis and examination
of methodology i s required to obtai n assured forecasts from reservoi r stimu-
l ators. Knutsen of BPNL presented Bloomster's paper. P reliminary resul ts
indicated the most important variables that determine the cost of geothermal
energy.
However,
SESSION I V - WELL STIMULATION - Manuel Nathenson
The sti mul ati on of geothermal reservoirs involves techniques f or ar t i -
f i c i al l y creati ng higher permeability i n the r e ion near a wel l over a
practi ce involves hydraul i c pumping t o reopen producing horizons clogged
during dr i l l i ng, t o remove vei n deposits, and to fracture to a minor extent
the region very near t o the we1 1 (Thasson and Thorsteinsson, 1975).
Current research concerns massive hydraulic fractures and the creati on of
rubble chimneys and enhanced permeability zones using explosives.
i n the volume edi ted by Kruger and Otte (1973) gi ve an overview of several
types of sti mul ati on proposals.
about the schemes are: w i l l they work i n the idealized world of the computer
or laboratory model and w i l l they work i n the f i el d? Because of the expense
of f i el d experiments and the di f f i c ul ty of obtaining enough data to i nterpret
f i el d gxperiments, physical and mathematical models are important tool s for
research.
distance of a few centimetres t o an order of 10 3 m. Current geothermal
Arti cl es
The two major questions t o be answered
Several papers were given on hydraulic fractures and the extracti on of
energy from hot rock using water i nj ected i nto f l a t cracks. AbB, Mura and
Keer ( thi s volume) discuss the problem of how to solve the equations for the
shape of a crack under stress and pressure gradients along the crack.
plan to bui l d up a sol uti on by using di sl ocati on theory.
the coupled fl ui d- and solid-mechanical problem of crack growth were presented
and various approximations introduced that w i l l al l ow the problem to be
solved. Secor and P ol l ard (1975) have solved f or the shape of a crack under
the influence of a hydrostati c gradient i n the crack and a constant gradient
of l i thos tati c pressure f ar from the crack by superimposing a number of plane
s trai n el as ti ci ty sol uti ons. They apply thi s sol uti on to discuss at what
length the crack becomes unstable as a functi on of fracture toughness and
the difference i n gradient between l i thos tati c stress and hydrostati c pressure.
They
The equations for
- 9-
P ol l ard (1975) has al so investigdted the influence of the ground surface on
crack shape and s tabi l i ty and the deformation of the ground surface during
subsurface cracking. Dundurs ( thi s volume) i s modeling fractures by d r i l l i ng
f i ne holes i nto a block of epoxy resi n, cementing tubes i nto the holes and
supplying mercury under pressure t o form hydraulic fractures.
experiments was for a crack propagating paral l el t o an exi sti ng pressurized
crack a t a distance less than the si ze o f the f i r s t crack. The second crack
turned and j oi ned the f i r s t crack. The j o i nt was on the side (not ti p) of
the f i r s t crack and was of a very small si ze. Further pressuri zati on of the
second crack enlarged the f i r s t crack but the second crack di d not expand.
Byerlee, Lockner, and Weeks (1975) have studied hydraulic fractures i n sand-
stone a t confining pressures to 1000 bars and di f f erenti al stresses to 4000
bars. A t high i nj ecti on rates, hydraul i c tension fractures were formed, but
a t low i nj ecti on rates, shear fractures were formed.
One of the
Murphy ( thi s volume) i s analyzing the heat transfer t o a ci rcul ar crack
whose fracture gap wi dth vari es across the crack f or the l i mi ti ng case of no
mechanism for porosi ty generation, so that heat i s transferred to the crack
only by conduction. The crack i s assumed open so that the formula f or fl ow
resistance i n a thi n channel can be used and the conduction problem i s solved
to provide a kernel for the sol uti on of the f l ui d fl ow equation (i ncl udi ng
buoyancy) and energy equation i n the crack. McFarland (1975) has solved
several problems for heat transfer and f l ui d fl ow including buoyancy i n a
crack. The fl ow i n ci rcul ar cracks of el l i pti c al cross section i s !;alved for
cases i n which the crack i s ei ther partl y f i l l e d wi th porous material or i s
open. The crack may contract or retai n i t s shape. Baiant, Nemat-Nasser, and
Ohtsubo ( thi s volume) are using f i ni t e element methods t o solve f or the i ni ti a-
ti on and extension of fractures i n hot dry rock and f or the ci rcul ati on of
water and heat transfer i n the fractured zone. I n an example, they compare
anal yti cal and numerical sol uti ons f or the temperature di s tri buti on f or water
flowing i n a stream tube and gaining heat by conduction from the surrounding
rocks.
The progress of f i el d studies t o develop the extracti on of energy using
hydraul i c fractures has been recentl y described by Smith, Aamodt, P otter, and
Brown (1975). A wel l dr i l l ed to a depth of 2928 m has a bottom-hole tempera-
ture of 197C. Various fracturi ng experiments have been performed. For
example, wi th a packer set at 2917 m y a si ngl e hydraulic fracture was created
a t a surface pumping pressure of 120 bars wi th a calculated crack radius of
57 m.
temperature of 203OC (H. D. Murphy, Wri tten Commun., 1976; Aamodt, 1976).
These two wel l s have been connected by what i s thought t o be a system of
hydraul i c fractures.
A second well recentl y dr i l l ed t o a depth of 3060 m has a bottom-hole
The second sti mul ati on technique discussed a t the workshop was the
creati on of P ermeability by explosions.
1975) propose that the permeabi l i ty i n the fractur d zone beyond the cavi ty
where r i s distance from ttie shot point.,
colleagues are looking at various,aspects o f heat and mass transfer. relevant
McKee and Hanson ( thi s vollume and
should scale as l/r5 f or a spherical bl ast and l/r 5 f or a cyl i ndri cal bl as t
Kruger ( thi s volume) and Ihis
-10-
to stimulated reservoi rs.
tory model of a rubble chimney to study the processes of in-place boi l i ng,
moving fl ash fronts, and two-phase flow. The i ni t i al rock loading has a hi gh
porosi ty and permeability so that pressure gradients needed to dri ve the f l o w
are small. The system i s i ni t i a l l y f i l l e d wi th l i qui d water. As it i s pro-
duced from the top, ei ther no recharge or recharge of col d or hot water i s
added from the bottom. Plans are underway to scale these experiments to
fi el d- si ze systems.
measure heat and mass transfer rates from a sphere of porous materi al i n a
bath of ci rcul ati ng f l ui d t o check i f heat transfer rates are enhanced by
mass di ffusi on.
i s such a s l ow process that heat transfer rates are not affected.
Kruger, and Umana have been looking a t the properti es of radon as a di agnosti c
for reservoi r studies.
releasing radon i s proporti onal to the exposed surface area, i t may be possible
to rel ate radon measurements to the increase i n surface area caused by stimu-
l ati on. Since f i el d data are not avai l abl e for stimulated reservoi rs,
measurements are being made on production from natural systems to develop
i nterpreti ve techniques.
Hunsbedt, Kruger, and London have bui l t a labora-
Kuo, Brigham, and Kruger describe another experiment to
Results i ndi cate that mass transfer by molecular di f f us i on
Stoker,
Since the emanating power of a rock materi al f or
Barnes and Ri msti dt (thi s volume) are studying equi l ibriurn chemistry
of s i l i c a s ol ubi l i ty and ki neti cs of the dominant reactions. Data obtained
w i l l be useful f or suggesting ways to manipulate wel l s i n order to prevent
scale formation during the fl ow of hot water i n wel l s and pipes. Sammis
( thi s volume) discusses the modeling of chemical reactions i n geothermal
reservoirs. Natural f l ui ds i n hydrothermal convection systems have long
aqui fer residence times at hi gh temperatures so that they tend t o be i n
chemical equi l i bri um wi th thei r host rocks. The i nj ecti on of col d water i nto
a natural or stimulated geothermal reservoi r w i l l provide a f l ui d that i s not
i n equi l i bri um leading to pos s i bi l i ti es of deposition, sol uti on, and redeposi-
ti on depending upon the i ni t i a l dissolved-solids content o f the f l ui d and i t s
subsequent temperature hi story. Summers, Winkler, and Byerlee (1975) have
found s i gni fi cant permeabi l i ty reductions i n flowing water through grani te
at hi gh temperatures, and Charles and Valagna (1975) describe al terati on
products i n the f l o w of water through monzogranite at high temperature. The
resul ts of these and further studies must be integrated i nto models of fl ui d
i nj ecti on processes i n order t o assess potenti al di f f i c ul ti es .
REFERENCES
Aamodt, R. L., 1976, Hydraul i c fracturi ng i n and communication between two
adjacent wellbores: EOS Trans., Am. Geophys. Union, v. 57 ( i n press).
Byerlee, J ., Lockner, D. and Weeks, J ., 1975, Tension fractures and shear
fractures produced duri ng hydraul i c fracture: EOS Trans., Am. Geophys.
Union, v. 56, p. 1060.
Charles, R. W. and Balagna, J . P., 1975, Monzo-granite al terati on i n a hydro-
thermal system: EOS Trans., Am. Geophys. Union, v. 56, p. 913.
- 1 1-
Kruger, Paul and Otte, Carel, 1973, Geothermal energy-resources, production,
sti mul ati on: Stanford, CA., Stanford Univ. Press, 360 pp.
McFarland, R. D., 1975, Geothermal reservoi r models--crack plane moldel:
Los Alamos Sci. Lab. Report LA-5947-MS, 18 pp.
McKee, C. R. and Hanson, M.E., 1975, Explosively created permeability from
si ngl e charges: SOC. Petroleum Engineers SPE 5414, 7 pp.
P ol l ard, D. D., 1975, On the i nteracti on between the ground surface and
hydraul i c fractures: EOS Trans., Am. Geophys. Union, v. 56, p. 1060.
Secor, D. T., J r. and P ollard, D. D. , 1975, On the s tabi l i ty of 0pe.n hydraul i c
fractures i n the Earth's crust:
NO. 11, pp. 510-513.
Geophysical Research Letters, v. 2,
Smith, M. C., Aamodt, R. L., P otter, R. M., and Brown, D. W . , 1975, Man-made
geothermal reservoirs: United Nations Symposium on the Development and
Use of Geothermal Resources, 2nd, San Francisco, 1975, Proc.
( i n press).
f l ui d fl ow through hot grani te:
Summers, R., Winkler, K., and Byerlee, J ., 1975, P ermeability changes during
Tbmasson, J . and Thorsteinsson, T., 1975, Use of i nj ecti on packer for hydrother-
mal wel l sti mul ati on i n I celand [abs.]: U.N. Symp. on Development and Use
of Geothermal Resources, 2nd., San Francisco, abs. no. VI -45.
EOS Trans., Am. Geophys. Union, v. 56, 1060.
SESSI ON V - MODELLING - J ames W. Mercer
The goal of thi s report i s t o summarize the present status of: geothermal
The geothermal modelling ef f or t presented at thi s workshop i s
reservoi r modelling, and to i ndi cate the future goals of geothermal1 modelling
research.
categorized i n Fig. 1. The major subdivisions are modelling of natural geo-
thermal systems and modelling of producing geothermal systems. These two
subdivisions were chosen because,
i n general, they emphasize two di f f erent
viewpoints. Modelling of natural geothermal systems i s usually done i n the
verti cal cross-section and emphasis i s placed on examining free convection i n
order t o gain i nsi ght i nto the natural (pre- expl oi tati on) behavior and forma-
ti on of geothermal reservoirs. Modelling of producing geothermal systems i s
usual l y done i n the areal plane.
ti on effects i n order t o reproduce observed f i el d conditions, and hopefully
predi ct future f i el d conditions.
subdivided further as shown i n Fig. 1.
This approach emphasizes simulating expl oi ta-
Modelling associated wi th production can be
These di vi si ons w i l l be discussed l ater.
-12-
Geothermal Modelling
1
I
Modelling
I
Modelling
Natural Systems Producing Systems
I I I 1
Porous Fractured Subsidence Hydrothermal
Reservoir Re servo i r React ions
Performance Performance
Single-phase + Two-Phase
(Hot-Water) (Steam-Water)
Figure 1.--Status of Geothermal Modelling.
-13-
Researchers involved wi th the modelling of natural geothermal systems
include ( i n the order of thei r presentations):
P. Cheng and M. Sorey. Dr . Wooding considers anal yti cal and fi ni te- di fference
techniques applied to free convection. For reasons of economics, he generally
r es tr i cts hi s models t o two dimensions. To examine the three-dimensional
aspects of the problem, he i s col l aborati ng wi th Dr . Shen, who i s using phys-
i cal model 1 ing (Hele-Shaw cel l models) t o examine free convection. The physi-
cal models developed by Dr . Shen are al so being used t o veri f y the numerical
models. Dr. Cheng uses fi ni te- di fference techniques t o examine the f ree con-
vecti on associated wi th vol cani c islands, such as the Hawaiian I slands. He
has al so developed anal yti cal sol uti ons f or free convection caused by various
types of magmatic intrusions. Dr . Sorey examines the heat and mass transfer
associated wi th various hot spring geometries.
based on an integrated fi ni te- di fference scheme.
R. A. Wooding, H. W. Shen,
He uses a numerical method
I t i s i nteresti ng t o note that a l l of the above models consider si ngl e-
A l ogi cal extension of thi s work would be to include phase (hot-water) flow.
the vapor phase. Such a two-phase, cross-sectional model could ai d i n testi ng
the various hypotheses concerning vapor-dominated geothermal systems. Although
such a model was not presented at thi s workshop, Dr. T. Lasseter (who was
i nvi ted to the workshop but could not attend) has considered thi s problem
using a model based on integrated fi ni te- di fference techniques.
Researchers involved wi th the modelling of producing geothermal systems
include ( i n the order of thei r presentations): C. R. Faust, J . W. Mercer,
G . F. Pinder, W. G. Gray, J . W. P ri tchett, 2 . P. Bafant, S . Nemat-Nasser,
H. Ohtsubo, C. G. Sammis, A. Bar el l i , R. Cel ati , G. Manetti, G. Neri, S . Bories,
and T. Maini. Drs. Faust and Mercer have developed finite-element and f i ni te-
difference models f or simulating production of geothermal reservoirs. These
models can treat single- and two-phase (steam-water) flow, and are capable of
simulating the conversion of a compressed-water region t o a two-phase region.
Drs. Pinder and Gray have concentrated o? theoreti cal equation development
and computer code implementation (using finite-element techniques) for mul ti -
phase fl ow (steam-water), subsidence, and flow i n fracture media. Oi r . P ri tchett
has developed a fi ni te- di fference model f or multiphase fl ow and heat transport.
I t i s proposed that thi s model be coupled wi th a consolidation model developed
by S . K. Garg i n order t o simulate subsidence and induced seismic acti vi ty.
Drs. Bafant, Nemat-Nasser and Ohtsubo use finite-element techniques to examine
the formation of fractures (both hydraul i cal l y and thermally induced) and the
subsequent fl ow of water i n the fractures. Dr. Sammis examines rock-water
i nteracti ons using fi ni te- di fference and experimental techniques. He considers
di ssol uti on and preci pi tati on reacti on and al terati on reaction effects on:
(1) reacti on heat (chemical energy), ( 2) changes i n permeability and porosi ty,
and ( 3) changes i n the thermodynamic properti es of water. Drs. Barel 1 1 ,
Cel ati , Manetti and Neri examine anal yti cal l y the pressure hi story of a parti al
penetrating wel l i n a hot-water reservoi r. Dr . Bories i s attempting to deter-
mine experimentally the heat transfer coeffi ci ents between f l ui d and rock i n
a porous system undergoing conversion from si ngl e- t o two-phase flow. F i nal l y,
Dr . Maini uses anal yti cal sol uti ons to examine downhole heat exchange.
-14-
Another paper, which does not fi t di r ectl y i nto the scheme i n Fig. 1,
but which encompasses a l l of the modelling work, was given by R. Atherton on
general s ens i ti vi ty theory.
di f f erenti al equations, a s ens i ti vi ty analysis may be performed on both equa-
ti on parameters and boundary conditions t o determine i n which space domains
they are important.
By appropriately modifying a given set of parti al
Before discussing future goals of modelling, i t should be noted that
there were other papers which deal t i n part wi th modelling; however, they w i l l
be included i n the other rapporteurs' reports.
Returning to F i g. 1, it i s evident from the papers presented that model-
l i ng of porous reservoi r performance, both single- and two-phase, i s a t an
appl i cati on stage. However, modelling of fractured reservoi r performance,
subsidence and hydrothermal reactions needs further research and development
before f i el d appl i cati ons of thi s type are possible.
presented include: (1) incorporate a we1 l bore model and/or near-we1 lbore
model wi th a reservoi r model, (2) include the equation of state f or sal i ne
water, ( 3) couple the reservoi r model wi th a management model, (4) perform
further s ens i ti vi ty analysis, and (5) include more rock-water i nteracti on.
Extensions of the models
One of the most important poi nts made at thi s workshop i s the need f or
people i n modelling to work more cl osel y wi th people doing laboratory and
f i el d work, i n order t o determine what data are needed and what assumptions
are val i d. Some of the contri buti ons from laboratory work include: ( 1) thermal
effects on rel ati ve and absolute permeabil i ty, (2) thermal effects on disper-
sion, (3) chemical reacti on rates, (4) capi l l ary pressure effects, and (5) heat
transfer rates between f l ui d and rock. Contributions from f i el d work include:
(1) determination of permeabil i ti es and porosi ti es, (2) reservoi r boundaries
and thickness , (3) i n i t i al pressure and temperature/enthal py di stri buti ons,
and (4) reservoi r geology.
I t i s the opinion of thi s rapporteur that the most important goal for geo-
thermal modelling indicated a t thi s workshop, i s the need to make f i el d appl i -
cations, and i f these appl i cati ons are to be successful, i t i s essential to have
good communication between people doing modelling and people doing wel l testi ng
and f i el d work.
- 1 5-
A PROGRAMMATIC VI E W OF GEOTHERMAL
RESERVOI R ENGI NEERI NG
Ri tchi e B. Coryell
National Science Foundation
Washington, D. C. 20550
I w i l l make my remarks br i ef i n the i nterest of getti ng on wi t h the
s ci enti f i c subject of thi s workshop, which I l i ke t o regard as the !science
of geothermal reservoirs.
wi th the science or technology of how to fi nd and how to assess the energy
potenti al of these reservoirs ( al bei t impossible to make a clean separation
between the rel ated technologies); but rather our purpose i s to focus on
the behavior of reservoirs under the stimulus of production and commercial
extracti on of heat.
To be more speci fi c, we are not concerned here
A t NSF we feel thi s i s a hi ghl y opportune moment to convene such a group
as thi s . Many research and development ef f orts are now underway i n thi s
area, and many have reached that poi nt where si gni fi cant resul ts have been
achieved and where new data and new questions are being generated at a rapi d
pace.
ef f orts were i ni ti ated through the NSF Geothermal Program.)
( I n a moment I w i l l review the recent hi story of how many of these
Therefore, NSF i s pleased t o support Stanford Uni versi ty i n sponsoring
thi s workshop, and i n behalf o f the Foundation I want to welcome you here.
We have attempted to gather those who are currentl y acti ve i n geothermal
reservoi r engineering research and who are i n the forefront of new knowledge
and experience of thi s rapi dl y expanding f i el d.
I n thi s obj ecti ve, I thi nk Dr . Paul Kruger and hi s colleagues a t Stanford
have succeeded admirably. The response to workshop i nvi tati ons, I understand,
has been enthusi asti c and almost 100% i n acceptances. Some request!; to at-
tend had to be discouraged, not because the people are not smart enough and
not because they lack a l egi ti mate i nterest i n the subject area and findings
of the workshop.
si ze so as t o enable f r ui tf ul and spontaneous exchange of ideas among the
acti ve researchers i n the f i el d.
Rather, attendance had t o be constrained t o a manageable
Because there i s a wide community o f i nterest i n these matters:, 1 have
asked Stanford to prepare a report summarizing the papers, discussions and
findings o f these three days. They have agreed to do thi s , and the report
w i l l be made avai l abl e to a l l who are interested. Furthermore, I f ul l y
expect to see numerous conferences and symposia i n the coming year devoted
t o thi s and other areas o f geothermal science. These meetings, at which
many of you w i l l present papers, w i l l provide ample opportunity for the
di f f us i on of new and current knowledge t o the whole community of technical
and commercial i nterest.
I want t o extend a special welcome to the workshop parti ci pants who
have come here from other countries.
country to parti ci pate i n thi s workshop, but we look wi th anti ci pati on t o
You are not only welcome i n our
-16-
strengthen personal and professional relationships wi th you that w i l l be
of mutual benefi t i n our research efforts i n the future.
Now, it may i nterest you to know how some of the U. S. efforts were
started. The f i r s t proj ect t o be i ni ti ated by NSF was ri ght here at
Stanford. Paul Kruger i n Stanford's C i vi l Engineering Department had some
ideas about tapping steam out o f a rubble chimney created by an underground
explosion i n hot rock, and he wanted to explore the thermal and mass trans-
fer processes t o be expected i n such a si tuati on and t o f i nd ways to extract
the heat. Henry Ramey, over i n the Petroleum Engineering Department,
wanted answers t o questions of fundamental behavior of hot water and steam
that had arisen i n hi s consulting practi ce at The Geysers and out of hi s
extensive experience i n hot water fl oodi ng and other thermal sti mul ati on
methods i n o i l reservoirs. This proj ect was started i n J ul y 1972.
Take a look at Figure 1, and see how the funding has progressed a t
NSF i n thi s important area. Our funding i n reservoir engineering research
has peaked i n FY 1975 as i n every area of the NSF Geothermal Program, It
i s i nteresti ng t o note i n retrospect, that 20% of the $13.4 mi l l i on total
investment i n geothermal energy by NSF over a five-year period has been
devoted t o reservoi r engineering.
rate i n the earl y period than di d the program as a whole, but following
the formation o f ERDA i n FY 1975, It has become a larger fracti on of the
whole. This increased rel ati ve emphasis derives from our pol i cy t o focus,
not on the engineering applications, not on the uti l i z ati on technology and
the pi l ot plants and the demonstration plants, and not on the i ns ti tuti onal
and non-technical barri ers t o uti l i z ati on, but rather on the fundamental
science problems i nhi bi ti ng the f ul l es t development o f the resource,
Clearly, problems concerning reservoi r phenomena comprise a si gni fi cant
part o f thi s concern for new fundamental knowledge, and the NSF program i s
moving i n that di recti on.
The investment grew at a somewhat lesser
F i nal l y, f or a word on our currentl y acti ve projects, each of which
w i l l be reported a t thi s workshop, please look at fi gure 2. Here I have
l i s ted the grantee i nsti tuti ons, the research area of each proj ect, the
pri nci pal investigator, and the cumulative funding through FY 1975. The
status of the research represented on thi s l i s t w i l l unfold i n the three
days ahead o f us.
I t i s going t o be a very sti mul ati ng three days, as not only the NSF
research i s described but al so that of the U. S . Geological Survey, i n
the ERDA laboratories, i n the f i e l d and i n laboratories of pri vate U. S .
companies, and i n forei gn countries wi th acti ve geothermal programs and
who are represented here today.
-17-
1972 1973 1974
2 35
FY
1975
rl 29"
FY
1976
Figure 1. Reservoir Engineering Support i n
the Geothermal Energy Program of
The National Science Foundation.
-18-
Nat i onal Sci ence Foundat i on
GEOTHERMAL ENERGY PROGRAM
RESERVOI R ENGI NEERI NG PROJ ECTS
Pr i nci pal Fund i ng
I nst i t ut i on Res ear ch I nvest i gat or (5) t hr u FY75
St anf ord U.
Penn St at e U.
Pr i ncet on U.
Col or ado U.
Sys tems Sci ence
U. of Hawai i *
Nort hwest ern U.
l aborat ory exper i ment s i n
heat and mass t ransf er
l aborat ory exper i ment s i n
reservoi r chemi st ry
numer i ca 1 mode 1 i ng of
Wai rakei f i el d by f i ni t e
el ement met hod
numeri cal model i ng
probl ems by f i ni t e
di f f er ence met hods
numeri cal model i ng of
Sal t on Sea f i el d by
f i ni t e di f f er ence
met hods
numeri cal model i ng of
coast al aqui f er probl em
rock mechani cs probl ems
i n st i mul at i on of geo-
t hermal r eser voi r s
Henry Ramey, J r . $ 586,700
Paul Kruger
Hugh Barnes,
Wayne Bur nham
George Pi nder
Davi d Kassoy
J ohn Pri t chet t
Pi ng Cheng
Hans Weer t man
402 ) 000
249, 500
248, 300
378) 000
61, 100
213, 900
*
Transf erred to ERDA under Hawai i Geot hermal Proj ect
Fi gur e 2
- 1g-
THE BI RTH OF GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI R ENGI NEERI NG
Henry J . Ramey, J r .
Pet r ol eumEngi neeri ng Depar t ment
St anf or d Uni ver si t y
St anf or d, CA 94305
The t erm"reservoi r engi neeri ng' ' ar ose wi t hi n the f i el d of st udy of
t he devel opment of gas and oi l r eser voi r s. One def i ni t i on of reservoi r
engi neer i ng i s the appl i cat i on of sci ent i f i c pri nci pl es to t he dr ai nage
probl ems ari si ng dur i ng devel opment and product i on of oi l and gas r eser voi r s.
Al t hough many i mport ant physi cal l aws concer ni ng reservoi r mechani cs wer e
est abl i shed dur i ng the f i r st hal f of t hi s cent ur y, reservoi r engi neeri ng
has f l our i shed mai nl y si nce t he end of Wor l d War il. The Combi nat i on of
t he recogni t i on of i ncreasi ng energy r equi r ement s i n a r api dl y i ndust ri al -
i zi ng worl d and t he r el ease of t rai ned manpower f ol l owi ng Worl d War
I I
abet t ed the devel opment of t he f i el d of reservoi r engi neeri ng. I n t he
1940' s and 1950' s oi 1 recovery processes such as underground combust i on
of oi l and oi l recovery by st eamand hot wat er i nj ect i on recei ved gr eat
at t ent i on. The modern devel opment of geot hermal reservoi rs al so began
to accel er at e about t hat t i me. The pi oneeri ng geot hermal devel opment i n
Lar der el l o, I t al y, began t he massi ve j ob of rebui l di ng t he devast at i on of
Worl d War I I . New Zeal and began the i mpor t ant devel opment of geot hermal
power i n t he Wai rakei st eamf i el d, and t he Magma- Thermal Power Company
devel opment of the Geysers i n Cal i f or ni a, USA, f ol l owed t her eaf t er .
Never t hel ess, i t was not unt i l t he earl y 1960' s t hat pet rol eum
r eser voi r engi neeri ng pr i nci pl es wer e f i r st appl i ed to geot hermal r eser voi r
probl ems. I t appear s t hat t he f i rst such st udy was conduct ed by Whi t i ng
and Ramey i n t he mi d 960' s ( Whi t i ng and Ramey, 1969). As a resul t of
t hi s wor k, Cady began an exper i ment al st udy of the i mport ance of capi l l ar y
pressure on boi l i ng w t hi n porous medi a i n 1967 ( Cady, 1969), a l i ne of
st udy whi ch cont i nues to t hi s dat e,
of a geot hermal f i el d was present ed by Ramey i n 1968 concerni ng the Geyser s
Geot hermal Fi el d i n Cal i f or ni a.
A second reservoi r engi neeri ng st udy
Al t hough reservoi r engi neer i ng pri nci pl es wer e wi del y known f or 20
year s pri or t o appl i cat i on to geot hermal r eser voi r s, t he bi r t h of geot hermal
r eser voi r engi neeri ng appear s to dat e to t he earl y 1960' s.
say that geot hermal r eser voi r s wer e not subj ect to sci ent i f i c st udy cl osel y
rel at ed to modern reservoi r engi neer i ng.
i nvest i gat i on wer e more cl osel y al i gned to the f i el ds of geol ogy, geophysi cs,
hydr ol ogy, and geochemi st r y.
Thi s i s not to
I t appear s t hat t he t ypes of
The reason f or t hi s si t uat i on appear s to l i e i n a mi sunderst andi ng
concer ni ng pet rol eumreservoi rs.
geot hermal r esour ces, i t was remarked t hat because pet rol eumreservoi rs
wer e al ways cl osed pool s and geot hermal syst ems wer e al ways act i ve hydr o-
t hermal syst ems, t here was not hi ng appl i cabl e wi t hi n the f i el d of pet rol eum
r eser voi r engi neeri ng. The concl usi on t hat geot hermal syst ems wer e l arge
hydrot hermal syst ems subj ect to nat ur al "recharge" al so had an ef f ect .
I n one st at e publ i cat i on concer ni ng
I t
-20-
had been theorized that geothermal systems could be se
developed properly. I t was onl y necessary t o discover
rate (both heat and f l ui d) and produce a t that rate to
system which would never deplete. I t now appears that
systems can recharge at the phenomenal rates required
genera t ion.
f-regenerating i f
the natural recharge
have a steady-state
few i f any natural
or el ectr i c power
The remark that petroleum reservoirsswere always closed pools i s
i ncorrect as wel l .
to water recharge ( i nfl ux) was published i n 1930. The word "reservoir"
i s now used i n the same sense as a "thermodynamic system.'' I t i s possi bl e
to have transport i nto and out of the system, o f course. Let us then turn
to geothermal reservoi r engineering as a new f i el d of study.
The f i r s t study o f o i l reservoi r performance subject
Although many o f the pri nci pl es of reservoi r physics involved i n non-
isothermal o i l production by f l ui d i nj ecti on ( oi l production by underground
combustion and steam i nj ecti on) are reasonably wel l understood, i t i s not
surpri si ng that some problems appear to remain for geothermal reservoi r
physics. For thi s reason, Cady (1969) studied geothermal system behavior
wi th the physical model pr i or to 1969.
pressure might reduce the vapor pressure of l i qui d water to a substanti al
degree was responsible f or the Cady study. Although vapor pressure suppres-
si on was not noticed i n Cady's work wi th an unconsolidated sand core, he
di d make the surpri si ng observation that an isothermal dry steam zone could
develop wi thi n a few inches above a two-phase boi l i ng zone which followed
the vapor pressure curve f or water as pressure declined.
capi l l ary pressure effects upon boi l i ng continues at Stanford.
A speculation that capi l l ary
A search for
Unfortunately, it i s di f f i c ul t to scale a l l important physical
parameters between the f i el d and the laboratory. Many important physical
phenomena have been discovered by thorough analysis of f i el d performance
data. However, f i el d data f or geothermal systems are not readi l y avai l abl e.
I n reservoi r engineering i t appears that there i s no hope of ever physi cal l y
examining the reservoi r di rectl y. I t i s not l i kel y that we shal l mine or
exhume many reservoi rs. Thus, the responsi bi l i ty o f the reservoi r engineer
usual l y involves a two-step process: ( 1) to make and i nterpret i ndi rect
measurements of the quanti tati ve characteri sti cs of the reservoi r, and
( 2) to employ thi s information and basic physical pri nci pl es to forecast
the behavior of the reservoi r under any potenti al l y useful production
scheme. The second step assumes that a l l basic physical pri nci pl es are
known. Herein l i es the need f or much f i el d and laboratory experimental
work. Even i n the much ol der f i el d of petroleum reservoi r engineering,
i t i s cl ear that much remains to be discovered concerning basic physical
pri nci pl es.
(1962) and Ramey (1971).
-
See recent discussions o f reservoi r engineering by Wyll i e
Ramey pointed out that such important information as can be determined
by di rect measurement on reservoi r samples (cores) often leaves much to be
desired. The di f f i cul ty wi th core anal ysi s information l i es i n rel ati ng
i t to the reservoir. Indeed, as Wyl l i e has pointed out, why should we
assume that the reservoi r i s l i ke the minuscule volume o f rock samples
taken out of the reservoi r and discarded? Many important computations
-21 -
and decisions are reached, nevertheless, upon the basis of quanti tati ve
information derived from core samples.
By now, i nterpretati on o f information derived from cores should be
wel l established and standardized. I t i s not! There i s no consensus
of proper methods o f handling core data.
that the approach to reservoi r engineering be hol i s ti c (that the deter-
minations be made i n wholes, not i n parts- - for example, that "what
matters i s the rock uni t and not samples o f arbi trary si ze that may
have been taken from it"). He ci ted pressure buildup and drawdown
testi ng. Determining the characteri sti cs of the reservoi r by i n- s i tu
measurements using wel l s as the input and output fl ow faces of the
reservoi r "core" makes a great deal o f sense. Reservoir simulation by
di gi tal computer i s another hi ghl y popular technique that embodies the
hol i s ti c approach. We attempt to generate a detai l ed'descri pti on of a
reservoi r to match a l l known performance data. I f the matching i s suc-
cessful , we assume that a reasonably accurate model of the actual reservoi r
system i s avai l abl e and employ it to forecast behavior under various
operational schemes. To restate thi s si tuati on, performance matching
consi sts of developing an n-dimensional mathematical reservoi r mode.1
that responds t o model f l ui d production as the prototype responds t o
actual f l ui d production. The "response" involved usual l y means pressure
response.
include both f l ui d and energy, and response to include pressure, temperature,
enthalpy, qual i ty, and composition. The bi r t h of geothermal reservoi r
engineering i s accomplished, and we await the development of the chi l d.
Wyl l i e made an eloquent plea
I n the case o f geothermal systems, we generalize production t o
References
Cady, G. V . 1969. Model Studies of Geothermal F l ui d Production. Ph.D.
di ssertati on, Stanford Uni versi ty, Stanford, Cal i forni a.
Ramey, H. J ., J r. 1971. Reservoir Engineering i n the 70's and 80%.
J ournal of Petroleum Technology, p. 33.
Ramey, H. J ., J r. 1968. A Reservoir Engineering Study of the Geysers
Geothermal F i el d. Submitted as evidence, Reich and Reich, P eti ti oners
v. Commissioner of I nternal Revenue, 1969 Tax Court o f the U.S., 52.T.C.
No. 74, 1970.
Whiting, R. L., and H. J . Ramey, J r. 1969. Appl i cati on of Material and
Energy Balances t o Geothermal Steam Production. J ournal o f Petroleum
Technology, v. 21, pp. 893-900.
Wyl l i e, M. R. J . 1962. Reservoir Mechanics--Stylized Myth or P otenti al
Science? J ournal o f Petroleum Technology, pp. 583-588.
-22-
SUMMARY DESCRI P TI ON OF RESEARCH ACTI VI TI ES
D. R. Kassoy
Mechanical Engineering Department
Uni versi ty of Cclorado
Bou 1 der, Colorado 80302
The basic goal o f the Uni versi ty of Colorado Geothermal Research
Program has been to assess, characterize and model the myriad o f physical
processes occurring i n the geothermal environment. While developing an
understanding o f the fundamental nature of these phenomena we can construct
a comprehensive model of the structure of a given geothermal system. Such
a resul t should prove useful i n the i nterpretati on of surface geophysical
measurements and for the general development o f a geothermal f i el d. Our
studies spanning the range from heat and mass transfer process i n hydro-
thermal convection anomalies to the possible appearance of di l atancy due
to l arge rates of l i qui d withdrawal, are carri ed out by a diverse group of
engineers, geophysicists geologists , seismologists and experts i n computa-
ti on. Much of the ef f or t has been carri ed out wi th the cooperation of the
geothermal group at Systems, Science and Software, La J ol l a, Cal i forni a.
The fol l owi ng summary o f acti vi ti es provides an extremely bri ef
descri pti on of the ongoing research programs, thei r purpose and when
appropriate, the resul ts obtained.
Physical Characterization
Black") has carri ed out a subsurface study of the Mesa anomaly i n the
Imperial Valley. His studies have shown that:
There i s a cap o f low verti cal permeability composed of a l arge
fracti on of cl ay- l i ke materi al .
Below the cap are rel ati vel y compacted, sandy strata wi th
si gni fi cant permeability.
F racturi ng i n deeper rock layers, presumably associated wi th
seismic ac ti vi ty increases verti cal permeability.
I ntersecti ng f aul t zones near two wel l s have produced a chimney
of parti cul arl y hi gh verti cal permeability. Substantial upwelling
of hot water from depth occurs here as wel l as long the l i near
faul t zone to the southeast.
The ri s i ng hot water spreads l ateral l y, mostly to the southeast
as the f aul t zone i ntersects rel ati vel y permeable hori zontal
aquifers.
Reduced s al i ni ty of water a t depth compared to that i n upper l evel s
(0-800m) imp1 i es greater ci rcul ati on and less evaporites i n the
deeper zone.
-23-
R i neha rt (2) has considered the presence of faul ti ng i n geothermal
areas. He has concluded that:
(A) Almost a l l productive geothermal areas are associated wi th
faul ti ng. Many of these are patterns o f ri ng fractures
associated wi th calderas whi l e others are l i near features
associated wi th ri ft zones.
(B)
F aul t zones act as conduits for the fl ow o f heated f l ui d from
depth. They can af f ect the supply o f surface water to the
system at depth.
Mechanical Models
R i r~ehart' ~) has suggested a possi bl e physical mechanism for the
observed cycl i c vari ati on i n fl ow rates and water tabl e l evel associated
wi th saturated porous media subjected t o temporal al terati ons i n i n- s i tu
stress due t o tectoni c and ti dal forces. Making reasonable assumptions,
he argues that a s ol i d block supported by a saturated porous materi al could
move as much as several centimeters due to peri odi c mechanical loading.
This implies that the effecti ve permeabi l i ty of
al tered substanti al l y.
Archambeau(a) i s currentl y developing nonl
due to i rreversi bl e pore collapse. included i s
tural rock fai l ure (induced sei smi ci ty) due to d
hi gh l evel s of effecti ve stress as pore pressure
Heat and Mass Transfer
racture reservoi rs can be
near models o f suibs i dence
he pos s i bi l i ty of struc-
latancy resul ti ng f r om
i s reduced.
Kassoy and Zebib(4) examined the ef f ect o f a real i s t i c vi scoi j i ty
vari ati on on the onset o f convection i n a hori zontal porous slab.
'leigh
ti on. The r o l l patterns di spl ay rel ati vel y high vel oci ti es and lairge
temperature gradients at depth unl i ke the symmetric cl assi cal profi l es.
C r i ti cal Ray-
numbers are dras ti cal l y reduced w/ r to the constant property cal cul a-
K a s ~o y( ~) has considered convective f l o w i n a narrow verti cal saturated
porous s l ot as a model o f mass transfer i n a f aul t zone. The mass f l o w rates,
resul ti ng partl y from convection due to pre sure head and partl y from
natural convection, are o f t e agnitude 10 kg/day over an area 0.5 km
i2
when the permeability i s 10 -!I cm5!.
Garg e t al . (6) have computed the fl ow pattern and temperature vari a-
--
ti on i n a hori zontal aqui fer when f l ui d i s introduced from an i ntersecti ng
verti cal f aul t zone i n which there i s hot f l ui d r i s i ng from depth.
sol uti on shows the development o f a confined natural convection c el l i n the
aquifer. Hence, i n the model considered l ateral spi l l age from the f aul t
zone does not resul t i n simple through fl ow i n the aquifer.
The
-24-
i
j *
j
,
i
. I
I
Kassoy and Zebi b( b) have ext ended thei r work to t hr ee- di mensi onal
cont ai ner s more r epr esent at i ve of geot hermal areas i n hi ghl y f ract ured rock
of vol cani c or i gi n. The resul t s al so port ray l i near convect i on pat t erns i n
narrow vert i cal f aul t zones, and may be used to expl ai n the prese c of
peri odi cal l y spaced hot spr i ngs al ong 1 i near f aul t zones.
shown t hat nat ur al convect i on i nst abi l i t i es can enhance the vert i cal f aul t
zone f l owdescri bed above.
Kas ~oy~~' has
Kassoy ( d) has ext ended hi s anal ysi s to i ncl ude l at er al spi l l age i nto
i nt ersect i ng hori zont al aqui f er s. The pressure and t emperat ure di st r i bu-
t i ons ar e remi ni scent of t hose f ound i n t he Mesa geot hermal anomal y. Li near
i nst abi l i t y at cri t i cal a Rayl ei gh number l eads to superi mposed cl osed rol l s.
These mi ght be used to expl ai n the pai r of hot spot s at the Mesa anomal y.
Nayf eh( 7) et al . have exami ned t wo- t emper at ur e model s of f l ow i n
porous medi a. They concl ude t hat f or most geot hermal appl i cat i ons t he
f l ui d and sol i d ar e i n l ocal thermal equi l i br i um.
--
Ther e has been a maj or ef f ort to devel op usef ul descri bi ng equat i ons
f or t hermal l y act i ve def or mabl e porous medi a cont ai ni ng t wo phase f l ui ds
wi t h concent r at i on gr adi ent s. Thi s wor k i s summari zed i n Ref s. 6 and 8.
REFERENCES
1. H. T. Bl ack - A Subsur f ace St udy of t he Mesa Anomal y, I mperi al Val l ey,
Ca. CUMER* 75- 5.
2. J . S. Ri nehart - Faul t i ng i n Geot hermal Areas. CUMERa 75- 12.
3 . J . S. Ri nehart - Model f or Long Peri od Ear t h Ti dal Def or mat i ons.
To appear as a CUMER" report .
4. D. R. Kassoy, A. Zebi b - "Var i abl e Vi scosi t y Ef f ect s on t he Onset of Con-
vect i on i n Porous Medi a, " to appear i n The Physi cs of Fl ui ds, ._I & CUMER: ; 75- 4.
5. D. R. Kassoy - "Heat and Mass Tr ansf er i n Model s of Undevel oped Geot hermal
Fi el ds, " to appear i n Pr oceedi ngs of t he UN Geot hermal Symposi um, San
Fr anci sco, 1975 - al so CUMER 75- 7.
6. S. K. Gar g et al . - "Si mul at i on of Fl ui d- Rock I nt eract i ons i n a Geot hermal
Basi n, " S S S T - 7 6 - 4 7 3 4 Syst ems, Sci ence and Sof t war e, La J ol l a, Ca.
7 . A. H. Nayf eh -- et al . - "Heat Exchange i n a Fl ui d Percol at i ng Thr ough Porous
Medi a, ' l Pr oc. SO~. Eng. Sci . Meet i ng, Aust i n, Texas, Oct . 1975.
8. T. R. Bl ake, S. K. Gar g, "On the Speci es Transport Equat i on f or Fl ow i n
Porous Medi a, " submi t t ed to Wat er Resources Research (1975).
ACUMER ref ers to Mechani cal Engi neeri ng Repor t , Uni versi t y of Col or ado.
( a) - ( d) - Ongoi ng r esear ch act i vi t i es.
-25-
HEAT AND FLUID FLOW EXPERIMENTS TO MEASURE
GEOTHERMAL RESERVOIR PHYSICAL PARAMETERS
Wi l l i am E . Brigham
Stanford Uni versi ty
Stanford, CA 94305
BENCH-SCALE MODELS
The tes t objectives and apparatus involved i n the bench-scale models
were presented i n Progress Report No. 1 (Ref. 1). I n bri ef, these experi-
ments were designed to tes t fundamental concepts for nonisothermal boi l i ng
two-phase fl ow through porous media. This work i s aimed a t the enti re
reservoi r, whi l e the chimney model deals most di rectl y wi th the wellbore
and near-well reservoi r conditions. The combination should be broadly
useful i n the new f i el d o f geothermal reservoi r engineering.
The term "geothermal reservoi r engineering" i s an adaptation of ''petro-
leum reservoi r engineering," the branch of engineering which deals wi th
assessment, and planning, o f optimum development of petroleum reservoirs.
Fortunately, there i s much that i s useful for geothermal engineering i n the
l i terature of o i l recovery. O i l recovery by steam i nj ecti on (Ref. 2) and
underground combustion (Ref. 3) present some of the important features of
nonisothermal two phase fl ow which appear perti nent to geothermal reservoi rs.
I n addi ti on, there i s a considerable body of useful data on the properti es
of rocks and fl ui ds as a functi on of temperature and pressure.
these data are summarized i n Reference 4.
one speci fi c study of the fl ow of single-component (water) two-phase (thus
nonisothermal) flow i n porous media (Ref. 5). I n parti cul ar, there was no
information on the important phenomena involved when normally immobile l i qui d
saturations (practi cal i rreduci bl e water saturati on) vaporize wi th pressure
red uc t i on.
Many of
P ri or to thi s work there was onl y
The f i r s t bench-scale models use steady-state fl ow experiments i nvol v-
ing l i near flow ( i n the axi al di recti on) through cyl i ndri cal cores.
The Linear Flow Model
The l i near f l o w model i s described i n Progress Report No. 1 (Ref. 1)
and i n Reference 6.
ments through cy1 i ndri cal consolidated cores. Both natural (Berea) and
syntheti c cement consolidated sand cores were used. A schematic diagram
of the completed apparatus i s shown i n F i g. 1. Fondu calcium aluminate
cement, s i l i c a sand o f about 100 Tyl er mesh size, and water were used as
the materi al s t o make the syntheti c cores.
mold formed wi t h a pl as ti c tubing i n which a glass tubing for a l i qui d
content probe and a thermocouple tubing were held i n place. The l i qui d
saturati on probe was ori gi nal l y developed by Baker (Ref. 7) i n connection
wi th a study of o i l recovery by i nj ecti on of steam.
the difference i n di el ectri c constant between the l i qui d water and steam
present i n the pore space.
Equipment was constructed to perform l i near flow experi-
The mixture was poured i nto a
The instrument uses
-26-
It was decided to run a series of basic single-phase experiments pri or
to performing the boi l i ng two-phase, nonisothermal flow experiments. These
included: ( 1) measurement of absolute permeability to gas arid 1 i qui d water
at a range of temperatures, (2) i nj ecti on of hot water i nto a system contain-
ing water at a lower temperature, (3) col d water i nj ecti on i nto a system
containing hot water i ni t i al l y, and (4) i nj ecti on of steam i nto a system
containing l i qui d water at a lower temperature. Detailed resul ts are
presented i n Ref. 6.
As an example, Figure 2 presents temperature versus dis,tance along the
core f or i nj ecti on of hot water i nto a core i ni t i al l y at room temperature.
Much useful information can be extracted from data such as are shown i n
F i g. 2 . Basic information on single-phase nonisothermal flow, effecti ve
thermal conducti vi ti es i n the di recti on of flow, and heat loss radi al l y
from the core may be found. I n regard t o radi al heat loss, two determina-
ti ons can be of i nterest: (1) the thermal effi ci ency of the i nj ecti on, and
(2) the overal l heat transfer coeffi ci ent f or the core wi thi n the sleeve
t o the surroundings.
cessful l y.
i s i nj ected i nto a col d porous medium can be seen i n Figure 2;. The computed
resul ts compare rather wel l wi th the experimental results; however, improved
mathematical modeling can improve the computed match of these data.
Both types of evaluation have already been made suc-
An example of the heating transients that occur when hot f l ui d
An addi ti onal prel i mi nary series of experiments was run to determine
the in-place boi l i ng characteri sti cs of a flowing system. Figure 4 shows
a parti cul arl y i nteresti ng experiment wherein the ori gi nal f l ui d i n place
was hot water at high pressure. Notice that cooler water was i nj ected at
one end, causing a temperature transi ent wi th time, whi l e a t the other end,
a two-phase boi l i ng zone was set up which remained a t a fixed! temperature
wi th time. Further analysis of these data and other si mi l ar data w i l l be
forthcoming during thi s next year.
P ermeability Measurements
Recent work on the ef f ect of temperature on rel ati ve permeability
suggested that absolute permeability was al so a temperature dependent
property of rocks.
under conditions of elevated temperature and overburden pressure (Ref. 8).
Several f l ui ds were used to make these measurements, namely, di s ti l l ed
water, whi te mineral o i l , nitrogen, and helium.
Equipment was designed t o measure absolute permeability
Several conclusions can be drawn from the resul ts. F i rs t, the tempera-
ture effect on permeability depends on the nature of the saturati ng fl ui d.
I n the case of water-saturated cores, permeability decreased wi th increasing
temperature f or a l l the samples studied.
permeability reductions of up t o 65% were observed.
Over a temperature span of 70-32SoF,
-27-
For oi l - saturated samples, a s l i ght increase i n permeability was
observed wi t h increasing temperature i n the low temperature range, followed
by a decrease. However, thi s thermal s ens i ti vi ty barely exceeded the range
of experimental error.
On the other hand, absolute permeability to gas was found t o be inde-
pendent of temperature. S l i p phenomena are affected by temperature, and
a l i near rel ati onshi p between the Klinkenberg s l i p factor and temperature
was found and explained by analysis of theory. Also, i nerti al ('Iturbulence")
factors were determined and found t o be independent of,temperature.
One of the obj ecti ves of thi s work had been to simultaneously measure
I t
the effect of thermal stresses and mechanical stresses on permeability.
was found that regardless of the nature o f the saturati ng f l ui d, the l evel
of confining pressure affected permeabi l i ty i n the same manner, that i s ,
permeability decreased wi th increasing confi ni ng pressure. For the thermally
sensi ti ve, water-saturated cores, increasing the confining pressure had the
addi ti onal effect of i ntensi fyi ng the temperature dependence. This pressure-
temperature i nteracti on i s shown to a marked degree i n Figure 5.
I n the l i ght of the resul ts obtained, i t appears that the temperature
effect was not caused by changes in the physical properties of the fl ui ds ,
such as vi scosi ty or density, because f l ui ds wi th such a large vi scosi ty
and density contrast as o i l and gas essenti al l y yi el ded the same resul ts;
nor was the temperature effect caused by thermally induced mechanical
stresses acti ng alone, as no si gni fi cant permeability changes were found
for o i l or gas flow. Instead, the unique resul ts obtained for water f l ow
suggest that a combination o f rock- fl ui d i nteracti on, thermal stresses and
mechanical stresses was responsible f or the permeabi 1 i t y reductions observed,
the dominant factor being the surface effect.
Geothermal Reservoir Physical Model
-
Whiting and Ramey (Ref. 9) presented the appl i cati on of energy and
materi al balances t o geothermal reservoi rs. A1 though appl i ed t o a f i el d
case wi th success, l ater appl i cati ons indicated a need f or modification
(see Refs. 10, 11, and 12). The need f or actual data t o tes t conceptual
models has been apparent f or some time (Ref. 13). Previous works concerned
unconsolidated sand models, although a study by Strobe1 di d include a
consolidated sand.
of a si ngl e consolidated sandstone geothermal reservoi r model. This work
has been repeated wi th both natural and syntheti c sandstone cores wi th more
complete instrumentation. These data are not onl y important f or the deter-
mination o f proper materi al and energy balance procedures f or gravi ty-
dominated geothermal systems, but they are al so of great help i n determining
the vapor pressure changes that occur as the in-place l i qui d evaporates and
the l i qui d interfaces become hi ghl y curved.
lowering can be seen i n Figure 6 (Ref. 14).
Strobel 's study concerned cycl i c production and reheating
An example of vapor pressure
-28-
MATHEMATI CAL MODEL
Advances have been made i n t he model i ng of geot hermal f l ui ds product i on
i n f our mai n di r ect i ons. The f i rst di rect i on i s a general vi ew of t he many
compl ex t her mal , f l ui d dynami c, and ot her physi cal processes. The second
i s the f or mul at i on of a mat hemat i cal descri pt i on of a si mpl i f i ed syst emto
obt ai n a sol ut i on descr i bi ng t he behavi or of t hi s syst em.
mat chi ng t he bench- scal e experi ment al resul t s to si mul at e t he boi l i ng f l ow
of st eamand wat er at el evat ed t emper at ur es.
of one si mul at i on of a bench- scal e geot hermal reservoi r model exper i ment .
Fi gur e 7a present s t he comput ed pressure hi st or y, whi l e Fi g. 7b present s t he
comput ed l i qui d cont ent of t he syst em. Al t hough not shown, t he t emper at ur e
hi st ory of t he syst emwas al so comput ed.
model cont i nues.
The t hi r d i s
Fi gure 7 present s t he resul t s
Devel opment of a more sophi st i cat ed
The f ourt h maj or di r ect i on of mat hemat i cal devel opment
a gr aphi cal - anal yt i cal appr oach to sol ut i on of the heat - mass
The method of char act er i st i cs i s a wel l - known sol ut i on t echn
appears to be appl i cabl e to t hi s probl em. An anal ogy may be
t hi s and t he cl assi c probl emof wat er or gas di spl aci ng oi l
i s ai med t oward
f l owprobl em.
que wh i ch
drawn bet ween
n pet rol eum
reservoi r engi neeri ng ( i . e. , t he Buckl ey Leveret t equat i ons amd. t he Wel ge
equat i ons) . Sol ut i ons to t hese di spl acement s ar e si mpl e graphi cal const r uc-
t i ons. I t appear s l i kel y t hat si mi l ar t echni ques may be usedl i n t he f l ui d-
heat f l owsyst em, and wor k wi l l be cont i nui ng on t hi s concept dur i ng t he
comi ng year.
CONCLUDI NG REMARKS
Dur i ng 1975 t he mai n component s of the proj ect s i n t he St anf ord Geo-
t hermal Programwer e compl et ed and i ni ti al runs perf ormed successf ul l y.
Augment at i on of syst emi nst r ument at i on, compl et i on of i mprovement s i n desi gn,
and col l ect i on of experi ment al dat a ar e wel l under way. I t i s encouragi ng
t hat many of t he exper i ment al resul t s have been f ound amenabl e to t heoret i cal
anal ysi s, t hus t he syst ems behave reproduci bl y and l ogi cal l y.
As i n any research pr ogr am, i deas f or new experi ment al t echni ques
and new met hods of dat a eval uat i on have devel oped as the programproceeds.
These new i deas al so ar e bei ng act i vel y pursued.
-29-
REFERENCES
1. Kruger, P ., and Ramey, J .J ., J r. , Stimulation o f Geothermal Aquifers,
Progress Report No. 1 , t o Advanced Technology Dept., RANN, National
Science Foundation, Grant No. Gl-34925, March 1973.
2. Ramey, H.J ., J r., " A Current Review of O i l Recovery by Steam Ilnjection,"
Proceedings, 7th World Petroleum Congress, Mexico City, pp. 471-476,
Apri l 1967.
3 . Ramey, H.J ., J r., "I n- Situ Combustion,'' Proceedings, 8th World Petroleum
Congress, Panel No. 9, MOSCOW, U. S- S. R. , J une 13-19, 1971.
4. Ramey, H.J ., J r., Brigham, W.E., Chen, H. K . , Atkinson, P.G., and
Arihara, N., Thermodynamic and Hydrodynamic Properties of Hydrothermal
Systems, Stanford Geothermal Program, Report SGP-TR-6, Apri 1 20, 1974.
5 . Mi l l er, F. G. , "Steady Flow of Two-Phase Single-Component F luids
through Porous Media," Trans. AIME, Vol. 192, pp. 205-216, 1951.
6 . Arihara, N., A Study of Non-Isothermal Single and Two-Phase Flow -
through Consolidated Sandstones, Stanford Geothermal Program,
Report SGP-TR-2, November
7. Baker, P.E., "The Effect o f Pressure and Rate on Steam Zone Development
i n Steam Flooding," SPE 4141, presented a t the 47th Annual F al l Meeting
of SPE of AIME, San Antonio, Texas, October 8-11, 1972.
Casse, F.J ., The E ffect of Temperature and Confining Pressure on F l ui d
Report SGP-TR-3, November 1974.
8.
: Elow P roperties of Consolidated Rocks, Stanford Geothermal Program,
9. Whiting, R. L . , and Ramey, H.J ., J r., "Application of Material 'and
Energy Balances to Geothermal Steam Production," J . Pet. Tech. ,
PP. 893-900, May 1969.
10. Cady, G.V., "Model Studies of Geothermal F l ui d Production,'' Ph.D.
Dissertation, Stanford University, November 1369.
11. Cady, G.V., Bi l hartz, H.L., and Ramey, H.J ., J r., "Model Studies of
Geothermal Steam Production," AlChE Symposium Series "Water," 1972.
12. Strobel, C.J ., "Model Studies o f Geothermal F luids Production from
Consolidated Porous Media," Engineer's Thesis, Stanford University,
J uly 1973.
13. White, D. E. , Truesdell, A . , and Donaldson, I . , Personal Communication.
14. Chicoine, S.D., ''A Physical Model o f a Geothermal System--Its Design
and I t s Appl i cati on to Reservoir Engineering," Engineer's Thesis,
Stanford University, J une 1975.
-30-
17
? I 6
w
f 1s
$14
1:
E! I!
11
I I
I C
!
1
Fig. 1. Schematic di agram of the l i near
flow model apparatus
PASS RATE Of F L W 113.1 g d ml n
lNfCClloX TEnPEMNRE 16i f
r . . . . l . . . . I . . . I I * I f i .
5 10 IS 20 21.5
DISThtcCL fkO3 I t i i CT , I t Kl l ES
Fi g. 2. Tcmperature vs di stance for hot walcr i nj ccti on
- 31-
0 4 3
i r a
r J -
3. ' 3 U f l l VJ 3 d H 3 J.
- 33-
I I
v i
Ul
F4
0
tn
3 c N. 3
0
0
0
cn
0
co
0
&
F.
0
m
-34-
' 0 U .G (1
0
c-
0
VI
0
rr)
0
cv
-35-
/
Dimensionless Length, X/L
- 36-
AN ATTEMPT TO CORRELATE Kh DI STRI BUTI ON WITH GEOLOGI CAL
STRUCTURE OF LARDERELLO GEOTHERMAL FI ELD
R. Cel ati and P. Squarci
C. N. R. - l st i t ut o l nt ernazi onal e per l e Ri cerche Geot er mi che
Pi sa, ttal y
and
G. Neri and P. Perusi ni
ENEL - Gr uppo Mi nerari o Larderel l o
Larderel l o, I tal y
St eam roduct i on i n Lar der el l o f i el d i s obt ai ned f romf
havi ng a ver y l owmat r i x permeabi l i t y.
tured rocks
Fract ured zones are i rregul arl y di st ri but ed and t hei r l ocat i on i s one
of the mai n obj ect i ves of present geophysi cal research and one of t he
pri nci pal probl ems i n f i el d expl oi t at i on. Thi s probl emhas al so been
approached f r oma geol ogi cal poi nt of vi ew i n an at t empt at f i ndi ng the
rel at i onshi p bet ween secondar y permeabi l i t y and the l i t hol ogi cal and st r uc-
t ur al char act er i st i cs of t he reservoi r f ormat i ons.
The f i r st r esul t s, obt ai ned by Cat al di et al . (1963), f ound a hi gh
--
rat i o of pr oduct i ve/ unpr oduct i ve wel l s. al ong t he axes of t he posi t i ve
st r uct ur es.
The present st udy of t he Kh di st r i but i on i n Lar der el l o f i el ds shoul d
permi t a more det ai l ed anal ysi s of the di f f erent geol ogi cal f act or s af f ect -
i ng t he product i ve capaci t y of t he reservoi r f or mat i ons.
Kh Di st r i but i on
Kh val ues wer e obt ai ned f or about 50 wel l s i n Lar der el l o area f r om
pressure bui l d- up anal ysi s, usi ng both t he cl assi cal Horner i method and di f -
f er ent t ype- cur ve mat ches. Ot her met hods of anal ysi s f or f ract ured medi a
wer e al so consi der ed.
Al most the same number of val ues wer e obt ai ned f romthl e anal ysi s of
back- pr essur e cur ves. A compar i son, possi bl e f or several wel l , s, of t he Kh
val ues obt ai ned f r omboth met hods shows t hat a good agr eement exi st s onl y
i f ski n- ef f ect i s t aken i nt o account . I f not , the val ues gi ven by the
back- pr essur e cur ves ar e al most syst emat i cal l y hi gher (as mu' ch as 50 to
100%) t han t hose gi ven by t he bui l d- up curves.
The wel l s consi der ed have a sat i sf act or y di st r i but i on l over t he ent i r e
f i el d area.
unpr oduct i ve, due to l ack of per meabi l i t y, so t hat no t est s wer e perf ormed
on them.
I n some mar gi nal zones t he maj ori t y of themar e compl et el y
I n ot her zones wi t h unproduct i ve wel l s, despi t e t he f ai ct t hat t hese
have crossed per meabl e hor i zons, onl y a f ewdat a f romi nj ect i on t est s are
avai l abl e.
-37-
The Kh di st r i but i on i n t hese zones i s not we
The wel l s wi t h si mi l ar t r ansmi ssi vi t y val ues
t oget her , wi t h a f ew rare except i ons.
The cont our l i nes i n Fi gur e 1 ref er to Kh va
progressi on as t he cur ves ar e bet t er def i ned i n t h
1 def i ned.
ar e usual l y grouped
ues t aken i n a geomet r i cal
s way. The 1 i ne cor r es-
pondi ng to 1 Dar cy- met r e i s not report ed due to the l ack of dat a i n t he
ma r g i na 1 zones,
Compar i son wi t h Geol ogi cal St r uct ur es
Fi gure 2 shows t he el evat i on of t he top of t he f or mat i ons f or mi ng t he
pot en t i a 1 rese rvo i r .
Thi s map was obt ai ned by geornetrl cal i nt erpol at i on bet ween t he
el evat i ons observed i n t he wel l s: t he f aul t pl anes ar e not i ndi cat ed.
FromFi gures 1 and 2 t her e i s enough evi dence of a cor r espondence
bet ween t he hi gh t r ansmi ssi vi t y zones and t he st ruct ural hi ghs, t hus pr ovi ng
t hat t ect oni cs pl ays a very i mport ant part i n det ermi ni ng secondary per mea-
bi l i t y i n t he reservoi r f or mat i ons.
Ot her f act or s cont r i but e to thi s permeabi l i t y and they ar e t hought to
expl ai n t he observed anomal i es i n t r ansmi ssi vi t y di st r i but i on wher e t hi s i s
not at t r i but abl e to t he st r uct ur es.
Among t hese, l i t hol ogy, l i t host at i c and f
i nt o account .
Ot her i mport ant f act or s, such as di ssol ut
obj ect of geochemi cal st udi es.
ui d pressure
on and depos
must be t aken
t i on, ar e t he
Di scussi on
The sequence of t er r ai ns i n t he Lar der el l o zone ar e commonl y known to
be, as f ol l ows, f r omtop to bot t om:
a) the shal ey cap rock f or mat i on;
b) sandst ones t hat ar e i rregul arl y di st ri but ed i n t he
usual l y separat ed f romt he l ower f or mat i ons by an
sha 1 es ;
c ) Compet ent , st rat i f i ed and massi ve 1 i mest ones di st r
over t he product i ve ar ea;
pr oduct i ve ar eas and
rnperrneabl e l ayer of
buted i rregul arl y
d)
al t er nat i ons of dol omi t es and anhydr i t es, not al ways present i n t he
pr oduct i ve ar ea, qui t e pl ast i c i f t aken as a whol e;
-38-
e) a series o f terrai ns comprising incompetent sl ate layers and competent
quartzi tes.
The potenti al ' reservoi r i s considered t o be made up of c) , d) and e).
The contact between the di fferent formations i s generally tectoni c
and caused by mainly horizontal-type movements.
The contact zone, therefore, (and especi al l y that between the cap
rock formation and a l l the underlying ones) are characterized by i ntensi ve
fracturi ng and have a hi gh secondary permeability.
Furthermore, the whole region was subjected to compressive stress
during the l as t phases of orogenesis thus resul ti ng i n the fol di ng of the
layers forming the potenti al reservoir. The permeability i n the crest
zone of the anti cl i ne structures may be sai d t o have increased due t o
tension cracks and fissures.
due t o the di f f erenti al movements of t:he beds.
Cavities may al so have formed along the crests
These facts may have given the greatest contri buti on to fracturi ng
the upper parts o f the posi ti ve structures.
F u t u re Deve 1 opmen-t s
This research w i l l now be aimed a t studying the di s tri buti on of pl as ti c
and competent layers i nsi de formation e), the existence of overthrusts
wi thi n the formations described and especi al l y i n e), and the rol e of the
di rect f aul ts formed af ter fol di ng and thrust movements. A study w i l l al so
be made of f l ui d and l i thos tati c pressure.
REFERENCES
Cataldi, R.; Stefani, G.; Tongiorgi, M . : "Geo
(Tuscany). Contri buti on to the study of
Nuclear Geology on Geothermal Areas. Ed
Laboratorio di Geologia Nucleare, Pisa,
ogy of Larderel l o region
geothermal basins." I n:
: E. Tongiorlgi,
963, P. 235.
-39-
Monterotondo
0 1 2 k m
t-----L.
-40-
1 2 Itrn
-41 -
FLUID FLOW I N GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI RS
J . C. Marti n
Chevron O i l F i el d Research Company
La Habra, Cal i forni a 90631
A discussion i s presented o f the materi al contained i n Reference 1.
This reference presents the res ul ts of an i nvesti gati on o f the f l ui d flow
associated wi th pressure depl eti on i n those geothermal reservoi rs which are
s i mi l ar to o i l and gas reservoi rs. Geothermal reservoi rs are often cl assi -
fi ed as ei ther steam o r hot water according to state o f reservoi r bri ne.
These cl assi fi cati ons imply the presence o f onl y one phase; however, it i s
recognized that both l i qui d and vapor phases may be present i ni t i a l l y or
may develop as the pressure declines. This condi ti on may involve the simul-
taneous fl ow of steam and hot water.
For two phase fl ow of steam and hot water the assumptions o f small
temperature and pressure gradients wi thi n the reservoi r a1 low the simp1 ifi-
cati on of the equations of heat and f l ui d fl ow. ] This leads to a rel ati on
between the f l ui d pressure and the l i qui d saturation. Si mi l ar assumptions
f or si ngl e phase fl ow lead to an approximately constant reservoi r tempera-
ture wi th f l ui d pressure decl i ne.
The i ni t i al temperature and pressure i n a geothermal reservoi r deter-
The boi l i ng poi nt curve for pure water i s presented by the mine i t s type.2
dashed l i ne i n Figure 1 . Dissolved s al ts i n geothermal bri nes cause modifi-
cati on to thi s curve.3 Hot water reservoi rs are represented by poi nts to the
r i ght and below the curve as i l l us tr ated by i ni t i al poi nt on curve A. Steam
or si ngl e phase vapor reservoi rs are represented by poi nts to the l ef t of the
curve and poi nts above the c r i t i c al temperature, as i l l us trated by the
i ni t i a l poi nts on curves B and C.
The s ol i d l i nes i n Figure 1 i l l us tr ate the behavior of closed geo-
thermal reservoi rs produced by pressure depl eti on wi th no water i nj ecti on.
The behavior o f a hot water reservoi r i s i l l us trated by l i ne A . I ni t i a l l y
the hot water production causes rapi d pressure decl i ne since onl y l i qui d
expansion and rock pore volume compressi bi l i ty supply the dri vi ng energy.
This essenti al l y isothermal behavior continues unti l the boi l i ng curve i s
reached. A t thi s poi nt the i nternal steam dri ve begins and a steam phase
s tarts to bui l d up wi thi n the reservoi r. The temperature and pressure
decrease along the boi l i ng curve. When the steam saturati on reaches the
equi l briurn saturation, steam begins t o fl ow wi thi n the reservoi r and hot
water and steam are produced simultaneously. The steam saturati on continues
to bu I d up as production continues wi t h an ever-increasing steam-hot water
r ati o of the produced f l ui d. This process continues unti l the water satura-
ti on s reduced to the poi nt where the hot water becomes immobile arid hot
water production stops. The boi l i ng process continues wi th onl y saturati on
steam production unti l a l l the water i s boi l ed away. A t thi s poi nt the
temperature departs from the boi l i ng curve and remains essenti al l y constant
as the pressure continues to decl i ne, as i l l us trated by curve A i n Figure 1.
The produced steam becomes i ncreasi ngl y more superheated as the pressure
-42-
declines.
indicates that considerable heat remains i n the reservoir.
The rel ati vel y high temperature at the end of pressure depl eti on
Curve B represents a steam reservoi r which remains essenti al l y iso-
thermal wi th pressure decline. Only a small amount of heat i ni t i a l l y i n
thi s type of reservoi r i s produced. Curve C represents a steam reservoir
which i s i ni t i al l y above the c r i ti c al temperature and pressure. The tempera-
ture decline wi th pressure i s s l i ghtl y greater than reservoir B, but the
overal l temperature drop i s small and most of the i ni t i al heat remains i n
the reservoir a t pressure depletion.
The si mpl i fi ed equations of Ref. 1 do not s t r i c t l y apply t o conditions
of gravi ty segregation of the steam and hot water. However, the i nsi ght
obtained from the cal cul ated resul ts, coupled wi t h the experilence gained
from o i l and gas segregation i n petroleum reservoirs, suggests the following
behavior. Gravity segregation of the steam and hot water begins as soon as
the steam phase begins t o flow. Steam accumulation a t the toip of the reser-
voi r increases the amount of steam produced from wel l s completed high i n the
reservoi r. Correspondingly, wel l s completed low i n the reservoi r produce
more hot water and less steam. Since the produced steam contains more heat
than an equal mass of hot water completing wel l s high i n the reservoir tends
to increase the total heat produced under pressure depletion.
REFERENCES
1 . Martin, J . C. : "Analysis of I nternal Steam Drive i n Geothermal
Reservoirs." Presented a t the 45th Annual Cal i forni a Regional
Meeting, SOC. Pet. Engr., Ventura, CA., Apri l 1975. To be
published i n J our. Pet. Tech.
2. Whiting, R. L., and H. J . Ramey, J r.: "Application of Material and
Energy Balances to Geothermal Steam Production," J . Pet. Tech.
(J uly 1969), PP. 893-900.
3. Hass, J . L.: "The E ffect of S al i ni ty on the Maximum Thermal
Gradient o f a Hydrothermal System a t Hydrostatic Pressure,"
Econ. Geology, Vol. 66 (1971), pp. 940-946.
-43-
8
43
I I
1
1
\
\
m
I 4
0
0
(0
0
0
8 hl
0
FRACTURE FLOWI N GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI RS
Gunnar Bodvarsson
School of Oceanography
Or egon St at e Uni versi t y
Cor val l i s, OR 97331
The f ol l owi ng i s a very bri ef summary of research i n sane t opi cs of
geot hermal reservoi r engi neer i ng and rel at ed mat t ers whi ch has been carri ed
out by t he wri t er dur i ng t he past f ewyear s.
A number of f i el d dat a f rom
geot hermal r eser voi r s i n I cel and wi l l al so be report ed on.
Type of Reservoi r Fl ow
Geol ogi cal f or mat i ons exhi bi t mai nl y two t ypes of f l ui d conduct i vi t y
or per meabi l i t y, vi z. , (1) mi cr oper meabi l i t y due to very smal l i nt ergranul ar
openi ngs and (2) macropermeabi 1 i ty due to i ndi vi dual f r act ur es and ot her
maj or openi ngs. The f i r st t ype of permeabi l i t y i s associ at ed wi t h the Darcy
t ype of f l owwhi ch prevai l s i n unf ract ured porous cl ast i c sedi ment s. I t i s
charact eri zed by l ami nar f l ow i n the smal l openi ngs and hence a l i near
rel at i on ( Darcy' s l aw) bet ween the pressure gradi ent and t he speci f i c mass
f l ow.
l i mest ones and f ract ured sedi ment s and i s wel l known to be the most i mport ant
type of f l ow i n the maj or i t y of known geot hermal reservoi rs. A consi der abl e
l i t erat ure exi st s on the t heory of Darcy t ype of f l owwher eas much l ess
at t ent i on has been devot ed to f r act ur e f l ow.
Fr act ur e f l owdue to macr oper meabi l i t y prevai l s i n i gneous r ocks,
Borehol e Pr oduct i vi t y and Pr essur e Drawdown i n Fract ure Fl ow
Consi der the case of a vert i cal borehol e produci ng l i qui d phase f l ow
f roma hori zontal f r act ur e of const ant wi dt h whi ch i s assumed to be smal l
compared to the di amet er of the hol e.
ti on f or the pressure f i el d i n t he f r act ur e ar ound t he borehol e i s a si mpl e
t ask and gi ves t he f ol l owi ng resul t
The sol ut i on of the di f f erent i al equa-
hr
P(r) =Po
r > d/ 2
wher e
p(r) =pressure i n the f r act ur e at the di st ance r f romt: he borehol e axi s
p0 = undi st urbed f or mat i on pressure
q =mass f l owof t he borehol e
d =di amet er of t he borehol e
h =wi dt h of the f r act ur e
P
f = f r i ct i on coef f i ci ent ( di mensi onl ess) of the f r act ur e
=densi t y of t he l i qui d produced
-45-
At a gi ven bor ehol e pr essur e pb , equat i on (1) gi ves f or t he mass f l ow
Equat i ons (1) and (2) reveal two i mport ant f act s. Fi r st , t he pr essur e
dr awdown i s very l ocal .
vai l s at a di st ance l ess t han 2 met er s f romthe borehol e axi s.
f r act ur es of very smal l wi dt hs gi ve a hi gh product i vi t y.
hol e of
pr essur e di f f erent i al of
These dat a are based on the assumpt i on of t urbul ent f l ow.
can easi l y be ext ended to gas phase f l ows.
on t he basi s of si mi l ar met hods, but t her e i s great er uncert ai nt y as to t he
f r i ct i on coef f i ci ent f.
I n most cases, t he f ul l f ormat i on pressure po pr e-
Second,
For exampl e, a bor e-
d = 0.25 met er s cut t i ng a f r act ur e of h = 10 mi l l i met er s can at a
pomp), = 1 at mproduce about 100 kg/ sec of wat er .
The above r esul t s
Two- phase f l ows can be di scussed
Overal l Per meabi l i t y of Fr act ur e Fl ow For mat i ons
Fl ow i n f r act ur es i s l ami nar at suf f i ci ent l y smal l Reynol d numbers.
Sl ow l arge scal e f l owwi t hi n f ract ured reservoi rs wi t h a suf f i ci ent l y hi gh
f r act ur e densi t y can t her ef or e qui t e of t en be t reat ed on t he basi s of Darcy
f l owconcept s and met hods. Al t hough t he f l owwi l l gener al l y be t ur bul ent i n
t he product i on zones around bor ehol es, t hese devi at i ons are usual l y uni mpor -
t ant due to the smal l radi us of the pressure drawdown.
Ther e ar e some di f f i cul t i es encount er ed i n measuri ng or est i mat i ng t he
overal l Darcy t ype permeabi 1 i ty of f r act ur e f l ow reservoi rs.
usef ul est i mat es can of t en be obt ai ned i n the cases wher e bor ehol e pr oduct i on
i s suf f i ci ent l y var i abl e to cause measur abl e f l uct uat i ons i n t he dr awdown of
t he ground wat er sur f ace.
consi der the f ol l owi ng much si mpl i f i ed case.
Never t hel ess,
To i l l ust rat e the met hodol ogy i nvol ved, we wi l l
Gi ven a hal f - space of homogeneous and i sot ropi c Darcy t ype per meabi l i t y
k and porosi t y 4 , cont ai ni ng a st at i onar y f l ui d wi t h a hori zont al sur f ace and
const ant ki nemat i c vi scosi t y u. A vert i cal wel l i s dri l l ed i nto t he sol i d
and pumpi ng of t he f l ui d i s i ni t i at ed at t i me t=O f romthe dept h H.
total vol ume of f l ui d produced dur i ng a gi ven t i me i nterval be V , t he r esul t -
i ng dr awdown of the f l ui d sur f ace at the wel l be d and the total dr awdown
vol ume be D. Assumi ng t hat d i s very smal l compared wi t h H, si mpl e pot ent i al
t heoret i cal met hods gi ve t he f ol l owi ng est i mat e f or the porosi t y of the sol i d
Let t he
The permeabi l i ty can be est i mat ed by di scont i nui ng pumpi ng and obser vi ng
Let t he rat e of recovery or vel oci t y of upward movement of the f l ui d sur f ace.
t he recovery process st art wi t h a dr awdown d and an i ni ti a' l upward vel oci t y u
both measured at the wel l .
gi ve the f ol l owi ng est i mat es f or t he permeabi l i t y
Si mi l ar met hods as used to obt ai n equat i on ( 3)
k = uHv4/ 2gd (4)
-46-
A vari ant of the method indicated has been used to esti rmte the perne-
abi 1 i t y o f the reservoi r formations of the Reykjavik geothermal system i n
Iceland. The reservoi r there i s embedded i n flood-baoalts and has a base
temperature o f around 14OOC. Since pumping i s carri ed out i n a group of
f ai r l y widely spaced wel l s, the r i ght hand side of equation ( 3 ) cannot be
used to estimate the porosi ty.
data to estimate the total drawdown volume D di rectl y. However, the average
porosi ty o f the flood-basalts can be estimated by other means and values of
l ess than one % have been obtained. Using a value of 1/2% and the ground
water surface recovery data from a si ngl e wel l , an estimate of the permeabil-
i t y of 3.10-)2 m2 (MKS uni t) or three Darcy i s obtained. Thi!; i s an apparent
permeability which gi ves onl y an order o f magnitude o f the formation perme-
abi l i ty.
Unfortunately, there are i nsuffi ci ent we1 1
Well Stimulation
Equation (2) above shows that borehole production from fractured rock
can be stimulated by mainly two methods. F i rs t, by the lowering of the
wel l pressure pb which can be achieved by pumping. Second, by increasing
the production opening or fracture wi dth h at the wel l wi th tlie help of
various types of fracturi ng techniques. Equation (2) indicated that the
l atter method i s l i kel y to be effecti ve.
Both sti mul ati on methods have been used wi th considerable success by
the Reykjavik Di s tr i c t Heating System i n Iceland. P racti cal 1.y a l l producing
wel l s of the system are now pumped.
increases the wel l production by a factor of three to four.
I n many cases, hydraul i c fracturi ng
Reservoir Stirnulation
The producti vi ty of geothermal reservoi rs can be stimulated to a varying
degree by the i nj ecti on of water i nto the hot formations. Declining formation
pressure and producti vi ty o f artesi an reservoi rs can be par ti al l y restored
by a simple rel ati vel y low-pressure rei nj ecti on of effl uent thermal waters.
P arti al sti mul ati on of thi s type has the advantage of providing an effi ci ent
method of effl uent water disposal. Moreover, geoheat production can be
i ni ti ated from formations of low or negl i gi bl e permeability by the i nj ecti on
of water at sui tabl e l ocati ons, O f parti cul ar i nterest i s the i nj ecti on i nto
l ocal permeabil i ti es provided by natural fractures, formation contacts, faul t
zones and dikes. The water i s subsequently recovered by wel l s af ter having
been i n contact wi th a s uf f i ci entl y l arge surface area of hot formations.
Total l y forced geoheat production o f thi s type w i l l i n general requi re a more
advanced technology.
no such systems are now i n operation.
The economic f eas i bi l i ty has yet to be established and
From the theoreti cal poi nt of view, reservoi r stimulatimon, whether
par ti al or total , involves a number of processes which have mot been given
much attenti on. E l asti c, thermoelastic and convective effects are qui te
important but rather comp 1 ex,
-47-
The geoheat product i vi t y of f r act ur es i n f or mat i ons of a gi ven t emper a-
t ure can be est i mat ed by f ai r l y el ement ar y means.
of 10 to 20 year s and product i on t emper at ur es wi t hi n 10%to 20% of the f or ma-
t i on t emper at ur e, a total of 10 to 20 met r i c t ons of thermal wat er can be
produced per squar e met er f r act ur e ar ea.
Assumi ng oper at i on t i mes
Pat t er n of Subsur f ace Fl ow
A very compr ehensi ve sur vey of t he i sot ope chemi st r y of natural wat er s
i n i cel and has provi ded i nt erest i ng and i mport ant resul t s on the overal l
pat t ern of ground wat er f l ow i n the f l ood- basal t pl at eau of I cel and. The
r esul t s i ndi cat e the l ocat i on of the recharge ar eas of many geot hermal sys-
t ems i n the count ry and show t hat i sot ope chemi st r y can be a very bmport ant
tool i n geot hermal reservoi r mechani cs.
REFERENCES
Reser voi r mechani cs and rel at ed t opi cs:
Bodvar sson, G. , 1970, An est i mat e of the nat ural heat resources i n i3 t hermal
area i n I cel and. Uni t ed Nat i ons Symposi umon the Devel opment and Ut i l -
i zat i on of Geot hermal Resour ces, Pi sa, I tal y.
1970, Report on an i nvest i gat i on concer ni ng the subsur f ace di !j posal of
ef f l uent thermal wat er s f r oma 30 MWgeot hermal power pl ant a t Ahuanchapan,
El Sal vador. UN Devel opment Pr ogr amme Si i rvey of Geot hermal Resour ces i n
El Sal vador . Tech Report .
1972, Thermal probl ems i n the si t i ng of rei nj ect i on wel l s.
- 1 (2) :63-66.
gzot her mi cs
1974, Geot hermal r esour ce ener get i cs. Geot her mi c5 2_(3).
1974, Di kes as f l ui d conduct or s i n t he ext r act i on of t errest ri al heat .
Geot hermal Energy - 2(9):42-50.
Bodvar sson, G. and G. Rei st and, 1975, Economet r i c anal ysi s of f orced geoheat
recovery f or l ow- t emper at ur e uses i n t he Paci f i c Nor t hwest , Second U. N.
Symposi umon the Devel opment & Use of Geot hermal Resour ces, San
Fr anci sco, CA.
Bodvar sson, G. , 1975, Est i mat es of t he geot hermal resources of I cel and,
Second U. N. Symposi umon t he Devel opment & Use of Geot hermal Resour ces,
San Fr anci sco, CA.
1975, Ther moel ast i c phenomena i n geot hermal syst ems, Second U . N.
Symposi umon the Devel opment & Use of Geot hermal Rej our ces, San
Fr anci sco, CA.
Bodvar sson, G. and Axel Bj or nsson, 1975, Hydr oel ast i c cavi t y r esonat or s,
J okul l , 25.
-
-48-
Reykjavik geothermal system:
Bodvarsson, G., 1961, Physical characteri sti cs of natural heat resources i n
Iceland. UN Conf. on New Sources o f Energy, Rome, J okiull 11:29-38.
-_L -
Thorsteinsson, Thorsteinn, 1975, Development and explof t a t ion o f the Reykir
Hydrothermal System, Second UN Symposium on the Development and Use
of Geothermal Resources, San Francisco, CA.
Tomasson, J ens and T. Thorsteinsson,
1975, Use of i nj ecti on packer f or hydro-
thermal wel l sti mul ati on i n Iceland, Second UN Symposium on the Devel-
opment & Use of Geothermal Resources, San Francisco, Ci 4.
Isotope chemistry:
Arnason, B., 1975, Ground water systems i n Iceland traced by deuterium,
Science I nsti tute, Uni versi ty o f Iceland.
Bodvarsson, G., 1962, The use of isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen f or
hydrological purposes i n Iceland, J okul l , 12:49-54.
-
-49-
RESERVOI R FACTORS DETERMINING THE FRACTION OF STORED ENERGY
RECOVERABLE FROM HYDROTHERMAL CONVECTI ON SYSTEMS
Manuel Nathenson
U.S. Geological Survey
Menlo Park, Cal i forni a 94025
The recoverabi l i ty factors used to estimate resources o f hydrothermal
convection systems i n Nathenson and Muffl er (1975) are based 'on extracti ng
the stored heat from a volume of porous and permeable rock, neglecting
recharge of heat by ei ther conduction or movement of water (Nathenson,
1975) .
i t i s very small compared to expected rates of production from any volume
o f rock greater than a few cubic kilometers.
water systems o f the United States, the natural discharge o f thermal waters
i s low compared to reasonable production rates, and, accordingly, the potenti al
for heat recharge by upflow o f hot water t o most reservoirs
i s probably low
and can be neglected. The val i di ty of thi s assumption can be assessed onl y
after extensive production hi s tori es have been obtained for a reservoi r.
those systems i n which heat recharge by upflow of hot water i s shown to be
important, recoverabi l i ty factors w i l l have to be raised accordingly. Although
the recharge potenti al of heat i s neglected, the potenti al and, i n f'act, the
need f or col d water recharge are not.
The potenti al f or heat recharge by conduction i s neglected because
Likewise, for most of the hot-
I n
Two possible methods f or extracti ng energy from a l i qui d- f i l l ed volume
of porous and permeable rocks are analyzed. The f i r s t method assumes that
the porous, permeable volume i s vi r tual l y closed t o inflow of water and i s
produced by boi l i ng to steam by using the energy i n the rock. The second
method assumes that natural and a r t i f i c i a l recharge of col d water i s used
t o recover much of the heat from the reservoi r by means of a sweep process.
The f racti on of stored energy recovered i n the process of boi l i ng the
water i n a porous volume of rock depends on the amount and pressure of the
produced steam, which i n turn are determined by the porosi ty and the. i ni ti a1
temperature o f the system. The pressure of the produced steam must lie hi gh
enough to dri ve the steam through the porous medium and up the wel l a t a
si gni fi cant rate; a reasonable assumption i s that the pressure of the steam
must be a t l east 8 bars.
constrains the range o f porosi ty f or which boi l i ng i s a vi abl e recovery scheme.
A t 2OO0C, the upper l i m i t f or the porosi ty i s about 0.05, and the fracti on of
stored energy obtained i s about 0.2.
i t y i s about 0.12, and the f racti on of stored energy obtained i s about 0.4.
A t porosi ti es below thi s l i m i t the f racti on of stored energy obtained
decreases wi th decreasing porosi ty i n a nearly l i near fashion. This produc-
ti on scheme i s severely l i mi ted i f there i s s i gni f i cant recharge of water to
the reservoi r; recovery by boi l i ng i s then possible onl y if steam i n the
dri ed zone and water i n the recharge zone are produced simultaneously i n
order to keep the zone o f boi l i ng moving i nto new regions .of the reservoi r.
I n summary, the restri cted range of porosi ty, temperature, and recharge over
which the boi l i ng method w i l l work l i mi ts i t s appl i cati on t o rather special*
circumstances, i n parti cul ar to vapor-dominated systems (see below).
A t a given reservoi r temperature, thi s res tri cti on
A t 250C, the upper l i mi t for the poros-
- 50-
The second production scheme involves the use of natural and/or ar t i -
f i c i al recharge of col d water to dri ve hot water i n a reservoir to the
producing wells. As the water sweeps through the hot rock, i t s temperature
i s raised by removing energy from the rock. The influence o f heat conduction
on thi s process takes place on two length scales. On the microscale of pores
f i l l e d wi th water i n a rock matrix, conduction makes the temperature of the
rock and the pores come to equi l i bri um i n a matter of a few minutes. On the
scale of a volume of rock several hundred meters on a side having one zone of
cold water and rock and a second zone o f hot water and rock, conduction wi t h
no f l ui d movement spreads out an i ni t i al l y sharp change in temperature to a
smooth trans i ti on of onl y 60 m thickness i n a period of a decade. As cold
water sweeps i nto a hot reservoi r, conduction may be analyzed to a f i r s t
approximation by superposition onto the movement of the temperature front,
resul ti ng i n the premature breakthrough of cooler water i nto the hot zone.
Another factor i n the sweep process i s the rotati on of an i ni t i a l l y verti cal
interface between col d water and hot water i n a porous medium, owing to the
difference i n hydrostati c pressure on the two sides of the interface.
Although thi s rotati on i s retarded by the energy stored i n the rock, it al so
tends t o cause premature breakthrough of cold water i nto the hot zone.
processes can be combined qual i tati vel y to yi el d an estimate of energy that
can be recovered from a reservoi r of porous, permeable rock i n a hot-water
s ys t em.
These
Vapor-dominated reservoi rs are assumed to contain steam as the pressure-
control l i ng phase, wi th l i qui d water immobilized i n the pores by surface
forces (Truesdell and White, 1973). Production resul ts primairi l y from the
boi l i ng of thi s pore water to steam, although i n l ater stages there may be
some boi l i ng from an i nferred deep water table. Because the l i qui d fracti on
i n a vapor-dominated reservoi r i s smal 1 , the pressure and temperature of
steam produced i n the boi l i ng process are generally close enough to the
i ni t i al values f or the system that ample pressure remains to dri ve the steam
to and up the wel l . The fracti on of stored energy that may be recovered,
calculated by considering an energy balance for the boi l i ng process, i s
c r i t i c al l y dependent on the average l i qui d saturation.
REFERENCES
Nathenson, Manuel, "Physical factors determining the fracti on of stored energy
recoverable from hydrothermal convection systems and conduction
dominated areas," U.S. Geol. Survey open- fi l e report 75-525, 38 pp., 1975.
Nathenson, Manuel and L . J . P. Muffl er, "Geothermal resources i n hydrothermal
convection systems and conduction-dominated areas," i n (D. E. White
and D. L. Williams, eds.) Assessment of the Geothermal Resources of
of the United States--l975, U . S . Geol. Survey C i r . 726, pp. 104-121 1975.
Truesdell, A. H., and D. E. White, "Production of superheated steam from
vapor-dominated geothermal reservoirs," Geothermics, V. 2, pp. 145-
-51 -
64.
UTI LI ZATI ON OF GRAVI METRI C DATA FOR ESTI MATI ON
OF HYDROTHERMAL RESERVOI R CHARACTERI STI CS
I N THE EAST MESA FI ELD, I MPERI AL VALLEY, CALI FORNI A
1
Tsvi Mei dav, ' Russel l J ames, ' and Subi r Sanyal
Thi s paper pr esent s an at t empt at cor r el at i ng the observed phenomena
of smal l posi t i ve gr avi t y anomal i es and sel f - seal i ng i n some geot hermal
syst ems wi t h possi bl e geochemi cal , t hermal and f l ow pr oper t i es of Such
syst ems. I n par t i cul ar , t he East Mesa geot her mal area i n t he I mper i al
Val l ey, Cal i f or ni a shows up to 6 mi l l i gal posi t i ve resi dual gr avi t y anomal y.
Cal cul at i ons show t hat t he maxi mumdept h to t he cent er of gr avi t y of t he
anomal ous mass i s a f ew ki l omet er s, whi ch i s l ess t han the dept h to the
basement i n the ar ea. We hypot hesi ze t hat t he presence of t hi s gr avi t y
anomal y i n the mi dst of a r easonabl y regul ar al l uvi al basi n i s due to
deposi t i on of mi ner al s i n pore spaces of sedi ment s by upward ri si ng pl umes
of geot hermal wat er over geol ogi cal t i me.
Facca and Tonani (1967) have expl ai ned t he or i gi n of har d, i mper vi ous
caps i n some geot her mal syst ems, as bei ng the resul t of pr eci pi t at i on of
mi ner al s i n a wat er - convect i ve syst em. Bri ef l y r est at ed, t hermal wat er at
dept h has a cer t ai n di ssol vi ng power whi ch i s dependent upon t emper at ur e,
pr essur e, pH and t he nat ur e of t he rock.
the hot wat er whi ch f or ces i t t o f l owup, a convect i on syst emi s cr eat ed.
The t erm"convect i on" i s used l oosel y her e, to si gni f y heat t r ansf er by t hi s
movement and not necessar i l y mot i on around a l oop.
t i ons f avor ei t her a once- t hr ough f l owor a convect i ve f l owwhi ch has very
l arger hori zont al component s ( Fi gur e 1).
gr essi vel y col der and l ower - pr essur e st r at a, i t pr eci pi t at es par t of the i ons
whi ch ar e carri ed i n sol ut i ons.
and cal ci t e. Det ai l ed i nvest i gat i ons of t he Dunes Anomal y ( El der s, 1973) i n
t he same geol ogi cal basi n, show t hat a ser i es of quar t zi t e l ayer s occur s i n
t he cent ral par t of the Dunes geot her mal anomal y.
deposi t i on has been report ed i n t he East Mesa ar ea, t he subj ect of t hi s st udy.
However , t he l i t hol ogi c dat a gat her ed i n t he hol es i ndi cat e i ncreased cal ci t e
pr eci pi t at i on i n t he pore space (R. Four ni er , personal communi cat i on) .
Because of the reduced densi t y of
Gr avi t y dat a consi der a-
As t he wat er f l ows up t hrough pr o-
Such pr eci pi t at es consi st pri mari l y of si l i ca
No si gni f i cant si l i ca
Cl ear evi dence f or hydr ot her mal convect i on i n the East Mesa Fi el d i s
seen i n any of t he t emper at ur e- dept h pl ot s obt ai ned by the U. S. Bureau of
Recl amat i on i n the var i ous hol es whi ch wer e dri l l ed i n the East Mesa Fi el d
( Fi gur e 2) . The t emper at ur e gr adi ent gr aphs showa sudden f l at t eni ng at a
dept h of about 700 m. Thi s may be i nt erpret ed as i ndi cat i ng t he exi st ence
of a cap l ayer i nto t hat dept h. Above t he cap, the domi nant heat t r ansf er
mechani sm i s conduct i ve heat f l ow.
Thi s s i t uat i on i s i n concor dance wi t h t he model s of Facca and Tonan i (19671,
or Whi t e (1965).
Bel ow t hi s dept h, convect i on pr edomi nat es.
' Geonomi cs, I nc. , 3165 Adel i ne St r eet , Ber kel ey, .CA. 94703.
' Chemi st r y Di vi si on, Depar t ment of Sci ent i f i c and I ndust r i al Resear ch,
Taupo, New Zeal and.
-52-
A detai l ed gravi ty survey of the East Mesa Anomaly has been carri ed
out by Biehler (1971) from which a residual gravi ty map (Figure 3) has been
prepared. The gravi ty hi gh corresponds to the temperature gradient high i n
the same area (Figure 4).
Mass-excess Calculations from Gravity Data
Hammer (1945) has shown that it i s possible to cal cul ate from gravi ty
data the total anomalous mass gi vi ng ri s e t o the gravi ty anomaly, wi thout
regard t o the geometry or depth of the anomalous body, by peirforming a
surface i ntegrati on over the gravi ty anomaly area.
Performing that cal cul ati on wi th regard t o the residual ravi ty anomaly
at East Mesa, we estimate a net excess mass of about (10+2)x10 ! I metri c tons.
This excess mass o f about 10 bi l l i o n tons of matter i s believed to have been
deposited i n the al l uvi al strata di r ectl y as a res ul t of the cooling effect
of the shallower al l uvi um on the ri s i ng hot plumes of water. The basis for
thi s assertion comes from the gravi ty data i ts el f : t r i a l hal f- wi dth depth
determinations show that the center of gravi ty of the anomalous mass must be
wi thi n the sedimentary column. These determinations do not preclude however,
that a t l east part of the gravi ty anomaly i s due to basement upl i f t or due
t o density changes wi thi n the upper part of the basement rocks. Visual
comparison with an unpublished aeromagnetic map of the area :shows the absence
of a magnetic anomaly a t East Mesa. Such an anomaly would have been expected
had the cause f or the gravi ty anomaly been a basement upl i f t .
ute the absence o f a magnetic anomaly to hyper-Curie-point temperature i n the
basement.
that the gravi ty anomaly i s l argel y due t o hydrothermal mineral deposition
wi thi n the sedimentary column, due t o hydrothermal convection.
One can attr i b-
We consider such a pos s i bi l i ty as unl i kel y. Thus, we conclude
Assuming typi cal numbers f or average porosi ty (20%) i n the sedimentary
column and rock matri x densi ty ( 2. 65 g/cm3), we cal cul ate that the excess
mass has been deposited wi thi n a total volume of 19 km3 of s c adiments.
East Mesa anomaly has an areal extent of 200 sq. km. Thus, over thi s area,
the total thickness of the densi fi ed layers i s estimated to be 95 meters or
311 ft., which i s geol ogi cal l y reasonable.
The
Mass Convection of Water
Quartz sol ubi I i t y data i ndi cate that up to 0.44 gram per 1 i t er of
s i 1 ica could preci pi tate out of sol uti on when an ori gi nal l y : s i 1 ica-saturated
sol uti on preci pi tates the excess s i l i c a as it cools down from 250' t o 100C.
Likewise, a s i gni f i cant amount of carbonate could preci pi tate out of a
bicarbonate-rich sol uti on as i t decompresses. Assuming a mean of .4 gm/l i ter
preci pi tati on, a mass excess of 10 bi l l i o n tons of preci pi tate would have
required about 25 t r i l l i o n tons of thermal water to have ci rcul ated through
the system. The water fl ow must be pri mari l y verti cal , to account for the
observed residual gravi ty anomaly. As the ri s i ng plume of water encounters
an impermeable boundary, it i s deflected l ateral l y i n al l di recti ons. The
- 53-
upward flow of the geothermal water resul ts i n deposition o f minerals, ei ther
due to cooling ( s i l i ca) or t o decrease i n pressure (cal ci te). The zero
contour on the residual gravi ty anomaly i s an expression o f the outermost
possi bl e l i m i t of the l ateral extent of preci pi tati on. The actual l i mi ts
might be cl oser to the center of the ri s i ng plume.
A f l o w model of "once-through" i s preferred t o a model of toroi dal
ci rcul ati on. The "once-through model" i s based upon the assumption that hot
water, mobilized i n the igneous basement or i n the deeper part of the sedi-
mentary strata, moves through fractures and shear zones upward above the
hot spot, i n a heat-pump-like process. Having reached i t s apex, the water
flow i s di ssi pated l ater al l y i n a l l di recti ons. The toroi dal ci rcul ati on
model, on the other hand, may pose the problem of mass balance, which
theoreti cal l y at l east would minimize the si ze of any residual gravi ty
anomaly. This i s because i n such a model, the dissolved matter at the base
of the convecting c el l i s deposited above it, hence no mass i s gained or
l os t.
gravi tati onal attracti on, but Gauss' theorem shows that i f the i ntegrati on
of the surface i ntegral i s carri ed over the area of the source and the si nk,
the mass loss and deficiency would balance out. On the other hand, if the
source of the mass i s from a very l arge area, it would not af f ect Hammer's
surface i ntegral which i s carri ed out over a smaller area.
O f course, the shallow excess mass would gi ve r i s e t o a higher
Figure 5 shows the rate of water convection over the enti re E:ast Mesa
Anomaly f or di f f erent assumed ages of the system. The minimum upward flow
i s about 0.8 m3/sec. f or a one-mil 1 ion year ol d system, to 80m3/sec.. for a
10,000 year ol d geothermal system. I nvesti gati ons of other geothermal
systems suggest that the l i f e of a geothermal system l i es typi cal l y i n the
range of 10,000-50,000 years (White, 1965; E l 1 i s, 1970). For a 50,000 year
ol d system the verti cal convection rate had to be of the order of 8,600,000
barrels/day (1,400,000 tons/day).
order of magnitude error in overestimating the contri buti on of the sediments
to the total gravi ty anomaly, these numbers remain qui te impressive. These
numbers i ndi cate that verti cal permeabi l i ty i s a major factor i n the flow
regime of a geothermal system.
Even if we assumed that there i s an
If thi s verti cal f l ow had taken place over 50,000 years across the
enti r e hori zontal extent (200 square km) of the East Mesa anomaly, average
macroscopic vel oci ty should have been O.8xlO'5cm/sec.
of the verti cal permeabi l i ty can then be cal cul ated from Darcy's law as:
k = -
k =verti cal permeabil i t y (Darcy)
v =macrosopic vel oci ty = O.8xlO-5cm/sec.
p = vi scosi ty =0.2 centi poi se (a value typi cal f or the s al i ni ty,
An average value
(i n Darcy uni ts) , where
92
dz
temperature and pressure of the East Mesa format ion water)
*= verti cal pressure gradi ent due t o buoyancy of hot water sur-
dz
rounded by col d water = -0.0002 at dun (gradient caused by the
maximum temperature di fference o f 150C between hot and col d
water).
- 54-
This gives a value k =8 mi l l i darcy.
taken place across a f ar smaller cross-section than the enti re 200 sq. km.
Assuming that only one percent of the cross-section was involved i n convec-
ti ve flow, the average verti cal permeability i s calculated t o be 800 m i l l i -
darcy.
fractured conduit i s not inconceivable. If the estimated f l o w rate (Q) of
However, convective fl ow must have
A verti cal permeability of thi s magnitude through a faul ted or
Ib.Omj/sec takes place through a verti cal f aul t of
the required fracture width (h) along the f aul t i s
l ateral extent
given by:
For L = 1 kilometer, using consistent uni ts, we cal cul ate h =E 2.6
L, then
mm. Thus,
a one kilometer long verti cal f aul t along which an average fracture width
of 2.6 mi l l i meters could have been an adequate flow conduit.
No hot springs or other geothermal surface manifestations exi s t a t the
East Mesa Anomaly. It i s possible, however, that hot springs, have flowed t o
the surface i n the geologic past. We conclude from the foregoing discussion
that although geysers, hot springs and fumaroles may perhaps be a spectacular
demonstration of the great heat reservoirs which are located at a shallow
depth below the earths surface, the absence of these geothermal manifesta-
ti ons need not be taken as a sign of absence of tappable geot:hermal energy
at an economic depth of exploration. Very l arge thermal water flows, of the
same order of magnitude as the more spectacular geysers, may be ci rcul ati ng
at shallow depths below the earths surface, when hydrogeologiical conditions
do not favor outfl ow t o the surface.
Convective Heat Transfer
We can cal cul ate the amount of heat convectively transferred by the
above system.
of the excess mass a t the East Mesa Anomaly i s 150C, the total heat trans-
ferred convectively with the water since the bi r th of the East Mesa geo-
thermal ystem i s about 3.8~1021 cal ori es, taking the mass fl ow of water as
25 x 10 tons. This i s much greater than the value given by White (1965)
f or the heat stored to a depth of 3 km i n some t i cal hot springs systems,
Assuming that the temperature drop required far preci pi tati on
which he calculates t o be of the order of 2 x 10 $6 cal ori es.
The area of the East Mesa geothermal anomaly i s about 200 sq. km.
Hence, the convective heat transfer of the geothermal anomaly has been about
1 . 9 ~1 0 ~ cal/cm2 from the bi r th of the East Mesa geothermal system t o the
present.
Figure 5 contains al so a pl ot of heat fl ow (p cal/cm2/sec) versus
possible age for the East Mesa Anomaly.
for an assumed age of 50,000 years f or the East Mesa system, the convective
heat flow would be 1200 heat fl ow uni ts (HFU). This i s about 200 times the
estimated present conductive heat fl ow f or the anomaly.
It i s noted from thi s fi gure that
-55-
The report ed conduct i ve heat f l ows f or t he geot hermal anomal i es i n t he
I mperi al Val l ey vary bet ween 7-17 HFU ( Rex, 1966; Hel geson, 1968). For t he
East Mesa Anomal y, t he conduct i ve heat f l ow i s est i mat ed to be 4-6 HFU
( Combs, 1971). The di f f er ence bet ween t he l ower observed heat f l owand t he
est i mat ed hi gh convect i ve heat f l ow rat e may be due to t he possi bi l i t y t hat
as sel f - seal i ng pr ogr esses, t he vert i cal component of convect i ve wat er f l ow
becomes mi nor , whi l e l ateral di ssi pat i on of heat becomes mor e i mport ant .
Event ual l y heat may be t ot al l y di ssi pat ed l at eral l y i nto l arge aqui f er s at
gr eat dept h wi t hout subst ant i al l y i ncreasi ng observed heat f l ow rat e at t he
ground surf ace.
REFERENCES
Bi ehl er , S. , 1971. Gravi t y St udi es i n the I mperi al Val l ey, i n: Cooper at i ve
Geol ogi cal - Geophysi cal - Geochemi cal I nvest i gat i ons of Geot hermal
Resources i n t he I mperi al Val l ey Area of Cal i f or ni a, Uni versi t y of
Cal i f or ni a, Ri ver si de, J ul y 1.
Combs, J . , 1971. Heat Fl owand Geot hermal Resour ces Est i mat es f or t he
I mperi al Val l ey, i n: Cooper at i ve Geol ogi cal - Geophysi cal -
Geochemi cal I nvest i gat i on of Geot hermal Resources i n t he I mperi al
Val l ey Area of Cal i f or ni a, Uni versi t y of Cal i f or ni a, Ri ver si de, J ul y 1.
El der s, W . , 1973. Pet r ol ogy of t he Cor es, i n: Pr el i mi nar y Fi ndi ngs of an
I nvest i gat i on of the Dunes Anomal y, I mperi al Val l ey, Cal i f or ni a,
I nst i t ut e of Geophysi cs and Pl anet ar y Physi cs, U. C. Ri versi de.
El l i s, A. J . , 1970. Quant i t at i ve I nt er pr et at i on of Chemi cal Char act er i st i cs
of Hydrot hermal Syst ems, i n: Pr oceedi ngs of the Uni t ed St at es
Symposi umon t he Devel opment and Ut i l i zat i on of Geot hermal Resour ces,
Geot her mi cs Speci al I ssue, Vol . 2, Par t 1.
Facca, G. , and Tonani ,
Bul l . Vol canol og
Hammer , S . , 1945. Est
Geophysi cs, Vol.
F. , 1967. The Sel f - seal i ng Geot hermal Fi el d,
que, v. 30:271.
mat i ng Or e Masses i n Gravi t y Pr ospect i ng, i n:
10:50-62.
-56-
GRAVITY AND THERMAL
ANOMALIES
Groundwater FI o
. -
HEAT SOURCE
Fi gur e 1. Concei vabl e f l ow model f or a sel f - seal i ng hydr ot her mal
syst em, wi t h t he associ at ed gr avi t y and t her mal gr adi ent anomal i es.
-57-
TEMPERATURE - O F
C
IOOC
200c
300C
- .
I-
W
W
L L
- 4000
X
t-
5000
0000
7000
1000 I
I
a Ter nper c re [ 12 -12 - 72)
0 Pressure ( 12- 12 - 72)
Wo l e r L e v e l 4 7 3 ' Be l o w Gr o u n d Su r f ac e
. .
..
1
.- ... . .-
--
A
I
I
3500
so00
I500 2000 2500 :woo
0 500 too0
PRESSURE - PSI
TEMPERATURE & PRESSURE IN WATER COLUMN
MESA 6-1, IMPERIAL VALLEY, CALIFORNIA
Fi g . 2
R I 7
t
_i-
/
_ _ _ _
R 17
Fi gur e 3 . Resi dual gravi ty map of the Mesa area (Bi ehl er, 1971) .
Contour I nterval 0. 5 mgal . CJ = .5 mgal .
-59-
15 S
I 6 S
r HOLTVILLE OUTLYl NG FI ELD
0
Figure 4,
(Combs, i 971; based partially on data by Rex, 1970).
Temperature gradient map of the East Mesa anomaly
- 60-
c
0
6,
cg
.c1
CI
9-r
L
io5
- 1000
3
L L
r
h
6,
a
-cI
L
3
-100 0
10
__I
1 o6
Age, years.
Estimated water and convective heat
rates of East Mesa hydrogeothermal system
Fi gure 5.
-61-
AN INVESTIGATION OF SCREENING GEOTHERMAL PRODUCTION
WELLS FROM EFFECTS OF REINJ ECTION
C. F. Tsang and P . A. Witherspoon
Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory
Uni versi ty of Cal i forni a
Berkeley, Cal i forni a 94720
Reinjection of used geothermal l i qui ds i nto the producing reservoi r
has been proposed by several i nvesti gators as an effecti ve way to a,void
disposal problems and t o reduce the pos s i bi l i ty of land subsidence i n the
reservo i r area.
However, af ter a length of time, the reinjectoon water w i l l break
through at the production wel l , which w i l l no longer be able to maiintain
i t s ori gi nal temperature. Gringarten and Sautyl have developed a simple
steady-state model t o study such a system of many production and in,jection
wells, capable of cal cul ati ng the temperature decrease as functions of time.
The present paper describes a pos s i bi l i ty of retardi ng the breakthrough time
and reducing the temperature drop by means of screening wells.
The basic physical idea i s as fol l ows. Consider a doublet of one
production and one i nj ecti on wel l .
to the production wel l .
wel l w i l l correspond to those close to the strai ght l i ne leading from the
i nj ecti on to the production wel l . Now i f we have an extra screening wel l on
thi s l i ne i n between the two wel l s, which extracts f l ui d and puts i t back
i nto the i nj ecti on wel l , then these earl i es t streamlines w i l l be ''picked up''
by the screening wel l and prevented from arri vi ng a t the production wel l .
I n thi s way, not only i s the breakthrough time increased, but al so the rate
of temperature drop i s reduced. Besides the temperature difference of the
rei nj ected water and the reservoi r, two dimensionless parameters enter i nto
the problem, the rate of extracti on of the screening wel l rel ati ve to that
of the production wel l , y, and the posi ti on of the screening wel l , C Y , defined
as the distance of screening wel l from the production wel l divided by the
separation of the doublet. I t i s easy t o see that the screening effect w i l l '
increased wi th an increase of y and a decrease of a.
Streamlines w i l l go from the i nj ecti on
The earl i es t streamlines that reach the production
We have calculated the breakthrough time as a functi on of a and y,
wi t h CL ranging from 0.1 t o 0.9 and y from 0 t o 1.5, and we found that it i s
possible to increase the breakthrough time by as much as a factor of 2 i n
certai n cases. Hence, given a case of a doublet whose breakthrough time i s
20 years, it i s possible t o place a screening wel l of appropriate flow rate
such that the production temperature i s not affected at a i ? f or 40 years.
It i s easy to extend the problem to include effects of the nat:ural areal
flow i n the reservoi r.
i n which they looked at the pos s i bi l i ty of s i ti ng a doublet i n a heavily-
bui l t area for space heating and cooling.
We consider a case that Gringarten and Sauty studied,
There i s a strong areal fl ow and
-62-
by pl aci ng the i nj ect i on wel l downst r eam, they f ound t hat t here wi l l be no
i nt erf l ow ( i . e. , i nf i ni t e breakt hrough ti me) i f t he two wel l s ar e pl aced 965
met ers apar t . But the maxi mumpract i cal separat i on i s onl y 300 met er s i n
the di rect i on of areal f l ow.
However , by our cal cul at i ons wi t h a separat i on of 300 met er s, we f ound t hat
i t i s possi bl e to obt ai n zer o i nt erf l owwi t h the product i on wel l by pl aci ng
a screeni ng wel l 90 met er s f r omthe produci ng wel l wi t h a fl l ow rat e 1.4
t i mes the produci ng rat e.
Thus they have to empl oy ot her t echni ques.
Furt her cal cul at i ons are made on t he st eady- st at e f l owmodel of
Gri ngart en and Saut y t o st udy the t emper at ur e decr ease rat e f or syst ems
wi t h screeni ng wel l s.
thermal f r ont s, but t he t emper at ur es at the wel l s as a f unct i on of t i me are
cal cul at ed. Fi gur e 1 i l l ust rat es a si mpl e exampl e of a doubl et wi t h and
di t hout the screeni ng wel l . I t can be seen f romthe top hal f of t he f i gur e
t hat t he ef f ect of t he screeni ng wel l i s to i nt ercept t he st r eaml i nes, t hus
pul l i ng the thermal f r ont s toward i t . The l ower hal f of t he f i gur e i l l us-
t rat es the t emper at ur e cur ves. The energy ext ract ed i s proport i onal to t he
f l ow- r at e t i mes the area under t hese cur ves above a cert ai n gi ven t emper at ur e
bel owwhi ch t he wat er wi l l not be usef ul . To make a compar i son whi ch i s some-
what meani ngf ul , we t ake a case of a doubl et wi t hout screeni ng i n whi ch the
product i on and rei nj ect i on rat es ar e each 24, to be comparedl wi t h a case wi t h
screeni ng i n whi ch t he product i on and screeni ng wel l s are eal ch at a f l ow- r at e
Q and the i nj ect i on at 2Q. I t i s f ound t hat the accumul at i ve ext ract ed energy
of the syst emwi t h the scr eeni ng wel l ( f or y = 1 and a = 0.1) af t er 50, 100
and 80 years ar e respect i vel y 1. 6, 2. 0, and 4. 8 t i mes l arger t han t hat f or t he
unscreened syst em.
Not onl y are we abl e to cal cul at e t he st r eaml i nes and
We have al so made cal cul at i ons on the same model f or a syst emof many
product i on and rei nj ect i on wel l s wi t h screeni ng wel l s i n bet ween. A gai n
i n the energy ext ract ed i s al so obt ai ned, but the amount depends on the
di st ri but i on of wel l s i n each gi ven case.
I n concl usi on, we bel i eve t hat a ret ardat i on of breakt hrough t i me and
a reduct on of t he rat e of t emper at ur e dr op at the product i on wel l can be
obt ai ned by means of an ( ext ract i on) screeni ng wel l . I n our cal cul at i ons,
we f ound t hat a very si gni f i cant f act or i n energy gai ned can be real i zed.
However , we have not yet made a det ai l ed economi c f easi bi l i t y st udy t aki ng
i nto consi der at i on t he expenses of di ggi ng the ext ra screeni ng wel l .
di scussi ons i ndi cat e t hat wi t h cert ai n ar r angement s and par amet er s, such
screened syst ems may have si gni f i cant economi c advant ages.
I ni ti al
Ref e rence
A. C. Gr i ngar t en, J . T. Saut y, to be publ i shed i n t he J ournal of Geophysi cal
Research (1975).
1
-
-63-
I I
0
- w
0" o g
'I, b II
7
0
0
- a
-
I r I ' l o
0
0 E!
I", 2 (I! r! -
U 0 0 0
3 338930
0
Figure 1. The top hal f of the fi gure indicates the stream1 ines (dotted 1 ines)
. functi on of time i n three cas.es, (a) no screening wel l , (b) screening wel l
and the thermal fronts ( s ol i d l i nes) of the doublet system wi th and wi thout
screening. The 1,ower hal f shows the temperature at the production wel l as a
half-way between production and i nj ecti on wel l s at a f l o w rate equal to
'
production, and (c) same as (b) but wi th screening wel l at 1/10 the separa-
ti on distance from the production wel l .
-64-
LAND SURFACE SUBSIDENCE ASSOCIATED WITH
GEOTHERMAL ENERGY PRODUCTION
S. K. Garg
Systems, Science and Software
P. O. Box 1620
La J ol l a, Cal i forni a 92038
Land subsidence, sometimes observed during o i l f i el d production, i s
potenti al l y a serious problem i n geothermal energy production, parti cul arl y
of liquid-dominated hydrothermal and geopressured fi el ds. I n the I mperial
Valley--one of the most promising liquid-dominated geothermal regions i n
the United States--extensive subsidence could damage i rri gati on canals and
other surface structures. Even i f the subsidence i s confined to the produc-
ti on area, special measures may be necessary to protect the geothermal
extracti on and el ectri cal generating equipment. Subsidence i s , i n general,
caused by the compaction o f the semi-consolidated and unconsolidated strata
of the reservoi r as the effecti ve overburden stress i s increalsed due to f l ui d
withdrawal. I n some oi l f i el ds (e.g., the Wilmington o i l f i el d i n the Los
Angeles basin), i nj ecti on of water i nto the formation has been successfully
employed to reduce subsidence. Subsidence i s potenti al l y a more serious
threat i n geothermal production due to the much l arger volume of f l ui d
required to produce a given amount of energy.
undoubtedly useful , i s not a universal remedy to subsidence, for several
reasons. F i r s t , whi l e some of the compaction i s el as ti c and may be recovered,
it i s wel l known that i rreversi bl e pore collapse (permanent dleformation) al so
accompanies f l ui d withdrawal. Second, due to the nature of the el ectri cal
generating process, onl y a fracti on of the produced f l ui ds w i l l be avai l abl e
for rei nj ecti on; the rei nj ecti on f l ui d may, of course, be aug,mented by surface
water to make up the volume def i ci t. Third, rei nj ecti on (especi al l y of con-
centrated brines which are characteri sti c of some I mperial Valley geothermal
anomalies) may not always be practi cal at (or near) the same hori zontal and
verti cal l ocati on as production. Reinjection at a s uffi ci ent l ateral distance
from the producing wel l may res ul t i n uneven surface displacement.
more, subsurface f l ui d i nj ecti on may, by increasing pore pressures, tend to
increase l evel s of seismic acti vi ty. Many geothermal reservciirs (i ncl udi ng
those i n the I mperial Valley and the geopressured systems i n the Gulf Coast)
l i e i n regions o f extensive faulting--thus, the danger of earthquake
tri ggeri ng cannot be discounted.
F l ui d rei nj ecti on, whi l e
Further-
MATHEMATICAL MODEL
A l l of the geohydrological effects described above involve mechanical
i nteracti ons between the rock and f l ui d components. The theoreti cal model,
developed wi thi n the framework of the Theory of I nteracti ng Continua,
describes the thermomechanical response of the rock and f l ui d (water and/or
steam) composite materi al i n terms o f the i sol ated components. The stress-
-65-
st rai n equat i ons f or t he rock mat r i x are coupl ed wi t h the di f f usi on equat i ons
f or t he f l ui d. The mi cr oscal e det ai l s of the pore/ f ract ure net work i n t he
rock ar e i gnor ed, but the f l ui d pressures and t he st r ess f i el d i n the rock
mat ri x ar e permi t t ed to assume di st i nct val ues wi t hi n each comput at i onal
regi on f or t he composi t e. The f l ui d f l owequat i ons and t hei r sol ut i on i s
di scussed el sewher e ( Pr i t chet t , -- et al . , 1975).
conf i ne our at t ent i on to rock r esponse under a gi ven f l ui d pressure hi st ory.
I n t hi s paper , we shal l
Assumi ng t hat ( 1 ) t he rock mat r i x under goes onl y smal l def or mat i ons
and ( 2) t he reservoi r behaves i n a quasi - st at i c manner dur i ng product i on/
i nj ect i on, t he equat i on expr essi ng moment umbal ance f or the rock mat ri x can
be wr i t t en as f ol l ows:
wher e
3 =Accel erat i on due to gr avi t y
p = Fl ui d pressure
Ps = Sol i d pressure
S = Rel at i ve vapor vol ume [ =Vv/ ( Vv +V, ) ] .
2 = Devi at or i c st r ess t ensor f or porous rock.
V,(VR) = Vapor ( l i qui d) vol ume.
p i = Densi t y ( i =s, sol i d; i =L, l i qui d; i =v, vapor)
$ = Porosi t y
I t i s necessary to compl ement Eq. ( 1) wi t h sui t abl e const i t ut i ve rel at i ons
f or t he rock mat ri x.
The bul k st r ai n- r at e t ensor f or rock i i s gi ven by:
wher e 5 denot es the devi at or i c par t of t he st r ai n- r at e t ensor.
met ri c st rai n E i s rel at ed t o t he rock grai n ( or ef f ect i ve) vol umet r i c
st r ai n t hrough t he rel at i on:
Bul k vol u-
The rock gr ai n may be assumed to be a l i near t hermoel ast i c mat eri al over t he
range of t emperat ures and pr essur es encount ered i n geot hermal reservoi rs.
-66-
where Ks (TI ) denot es t he bul k modul us ( coef f i ci ent of 1 i neai - thermal expansi on)
f or the roc2 gr ai n. Addi t i onal l y, we wi l l post ul at e t hat the shear st r esses S
are l i nearl y rel at ed to shear st rai ns e t hrough Hookel s l aw: 'L
%
S =2 p p :
'L
(5)
wher e p i s t he shear modul us of t he porous rock.
P
Posori t y Q, depends i n a compl ex manner on the cur r ent st at e of st r ess
Consol i dat ed rocks (us, P), st r ess hi st or y, t emper at ur e and the rock t ype.
ggneral l y exhi bi t gr eat er compact i on at el evat ed t emperat ures t han they do at
l bwer t emper at ur es; t he ef f ect of t emper at ur e i s not , however , so si gni f i cant
i n l oose or unconsol i dat ed sands. Shear st r esses , dependi ng upon the rock
si gni f i cant ef f ect upon $.
depend on $; i n t hi s case porosi t y 4 depends on a cl ose approxi mat i on onl y
upon Pc - P ( Gar g and Nur , 1973):
t ype, may cont r i but e to compact i on, may l ead to di t at ancy, or may have no
Let us consi der t he case when 4 does not appreci abl y
0 = Q,o [ I +dP C - P)1 ( 6 )
wher e
1 1 -+()
CY, 3 c1 ( Pc- P) =- - - -
+C) 1; s 1
(7)
Here K(Pc - P) i s t he bul k modul us of the porous rock and has di f f er ent val ues
dur i ng l oadi ng ( i ncr ease i n ef f ect i ve pressure Pc - P) and unl oadi ng ( decr ease
i n ef f ect i ve pressure Pc - P).
empi ri cal l y det ermi ned i nput f unct i ons.
The t heoret i cal model di scussed above requi res K, p Ks and qs as
can be obt ai ned f r om st andard l aborat ory t est s on cor es, i t shoul d be not ed
that t he reservoi r behavi or i s f requent l y governed by f r act ur es, f or mat i on
i nhomogenei t i es, and ot her l arge scal e f eat ur es such as f au1t. s. I t , t her ef or e,
becomes i mport ant to suppl ement t he l aborat ory measur ement s tiy sui t abl e f i el d
dat a. I n par t i cul ar , t he bul k and shear modul i (K, p ) of reservoi r rocks
shoul d be obt ai ned f romsei smi c measur ement s.
Al t hough most of P' t hese propert i es
P
COMP
-
equ i
deve
sol v
non 1
mod u
matr
TER CODE AND APPLI CATI ONS
To sol ve the rock r esponse equat i ons (1-7), a f i ni t e el ement sol i d
i br i umcode, STAGR ( STat i c Anal ysi s of Geot hermal Reservoi rs) has been
oped.
ng t he probl emof a l oaded l i near el ast i c cont i nuum; however , mat er i al l y
Li ke any suchf i ni t eel ement code, i t i s basi cal l y a programf or
near prbbl ems may be sol ved by i t er at i on, usi ng ef f ect i ve
i ( "t angent " or "secant " modul i ) i n t he el ement s. Due t o
x di spl acement s expect ed i n geot hermal reservoi r cal cul at
el ast i c
the very sma
ons, onl y
1
-67-
mat eri al nonl i near i t y, and not geomet r i c nonl i near i t y, has been i ncl uded. I n
addi t i on to the usual f eat ur es f ound i n f i ni t e el ement cont i nuumcl odes, STAGR
can sol ve probl ems i nvol vi ng nonsymmet r i c st r ess- st r ai n rel at i ons ( necessary
f or pr obl ems i nvol vi ng i ncrement al l oadi ng of mat er i al s whi ch under go pl ast i c
def or mat i o n ) .
Furt her det ai l s of t he f i ni t e el ement code are gi ven el sewher e ( Pr i t chet t ,
-- et al . , 1975).
Thi s r equi r es t he use of a nonsymet r i c st i f f ness mat ri x.
The STAGR equi l i br i umcode has been used to perf orm2-0 cal cul at i ons
of t he rock response t o product i on of a hypot het i cal geot hermal reservoi r.
Detai 1s of t he reservoi r geomet r y and el ast i c pr oper t i es, and t he assumed
product i on st r at egy ar e gi ven i n Pr i t chet t , et al . (1975). We wi l l here
mer el y summar i ze t he si gni f i cant r esul t s.
I-
For t he present r eser voi r , t he pri nci pal st r ess di r ect i ons at t = 0
( i . e. , pri or to f l ui d product i on) wer e al most coi nci dent wi t h t he x ( hori zont al )
and Y ( vert i cal ) di r ect i ons. Changes i nduced i n ux, o and o by t he pr od-
ucti on of r eser voi r f l ui ds wer e moni t ored as a f unct i ox of ti i %.
f ound t hat both MAX IOU I and MAX IAa
Thus, as a resul t of f l ui d producti on: yo8 becomes much l ess compr essi ve
wher eas 0 i s essent i al l y unal t er ed. Tht s has i nt erest i ng i mp1 i cat i ons f or
Y
reservoi r stabi 1 i t y.
cor r espondi ng r educt i ons i n u
normal f aul t s.
reservoi r sl umpi ng, and i ncreased sei smi c act i vi t y.
It was
1 are much smal l et t han MAX / Aoxl .
Y
Large reduct i ons i n the magni t ude of ax wi t hout
can l ead to rock f ai l ur e and growt h of
Sur f ace mani f est at i on of t hese phenomena may be l ocal i zed
Sur f ace di spl acement cont our s show that the cent ral port i on of t he
reservoi r subsi des al most uni f orml y. El sewher e, the vert i cal mot i on i s accom-
pani ed by si gni f i cant hori zont al movement . Exper i ence f romoi l f i el l ds (e. g. ,
Wi l mi ngt on oi l f i el d i n Los Angel es basi n) i ndi cat es t hat hori zont al mot i on
may cause even mor e sever e damage to surf ace i nst al l at i ons ( e. g. , r oads,
br i dges, and bui l di ngs) t han t hat caused by vert i cal subsi dence. Thus, i n
or der t o assess t he possi bl e envi ronment al i mpact of f l ui d product l on f r om
geot hermal r eser voi r s, i t i s necessar y to t ake i nto account both hori zont al
and vert i cal mot i ons of t he ground surf ace.
REFER EN C E S
Gar g, S . K. and A . Nur , "Ef f ect i ve St ress Laws f or Fl ui d- Sat ur at ed Por ous
Rocks, " J our nal of Geophysi cal Resear ch, Vol . 78, p. 591 1, 1973.
Pr i t chet t , J. W. , S . K. Gar g, D. H. Br ownel l , J r . , and H. B . Levi ne,
"Geohydrol ogi cal Envi ronment al Ef f ect s of Geot hermal Power Pr oduct i on
- Phase I , " Syst ems, Sci ence and Sof t war e Report SSS- R- 75- 273' 3,
Sept ember 1975.
- 68-
PRESSURE AND TEMPERATURE BUILDUP I N GEOTHERMAL klELLS
M. S. Gulati
Union O i l Company of Cal i forni a
Brea, Ca. 92621
Two-phase fl ow and heat transfer influence the pressure-time response
of hot-water wells.
gas, and col d water reservoi rs are not completely applicable i n hot-water
reservo i r s .
'The methods developed for pressure buildup analyses i n o i l ,
Mathematical synthesis i s necessary to bui l d exi sti ng two-phase fl ow
theory, heat transfer theory and steam thermodynamics i nto ai system f or
analyzing hot-water wel l pressure transients that i s equivalent to methods
aGailable f or o i l and gas reservoirs.
HOT WATER FLASHING IN THE RESERVOI R CAUSES TEMPERATURE CHANGiES
c
When fl owi ng reservoi r pressure f al l s below the saturati on pressure
corresponding to the reservoi r temperature, hot water flashes i n the reservoi r.
As the hot water flashes, f l ui d temperature drops i n response to the prevai l -
ing pressure. Consider conditions prevai l i ng i n a hot-water wel l :
S tati c reservoi r temperature = 593T
S tati c reservoi r pressure = 1823 psia
Steam saturati on pressure
corresponding to 593'F = 1464 psia
Because the reservoi r pressure i s greater than the saturati on pressure,
there is no steam i n the s tati c reservoi r conditions.
Bottom-hole flowing pressure =450 psi a
therefore, as i t flows toward the wel l , part of the hot water flashes i nto
steam. From thermodynamic considerations, the temperature of the steam-water
mixture must correspond t o 450 psia.
The bottom-hole fl owi ng pressure i s less than the saturati on pressure;
Saturati on temperature
corresponding to 450 psia =456OF
Thus the f l ui d temperature has decl ined from 593OF to 456'F.
temperature was 593OF. The di fference i n the rock and the f l ui d temperature
causes the heat t o flow from the rock to the steam-water mixtures.
But the rock
RATE OF HEAT TRANSFER FROM TEMPERATURE BUILDUP
During pressure buildup measurement i n a hot-water wel l , temperature
usual l y i s measured along wi th the pressure.
ture buildup can gi ve us the rate of heat transfer i n the rock, by conduction,
toward the wellbore.
An i nterpretati on of the tempera-.
Fig. 1 shows temperature buildup graph i n a hot-water we1 1. The slope
on thi s graph i s given by the fol l owi ng rel ati on:
-69-
where q = rate of heat transfer, Btu/hr
k = thermal conducti vi ty o f the rock, Btu/hr-ft-OF
h = formation thickness, ft
m = slope on the semi-log paper, OF/cycle
The slope on Fig. 1 i s 480F/cycle. Using k =2 Btu/hr-ft-OF:
= (48) (4a) (2)/2.303
= 525 Btu/hr- ft.
This provides evidence of heat transfer. During the production period, thi s
heat i s avai l abl e to rai se the enthalpy o f the produced f l ui d.
The above cal cul ati on o f the heat transfer rate assumes heat transfer
to the wellbore by conduction only. I n fact, the heat i s transferred both
by conduction and by the f l ui d transport.
transferred by conduction alone w i l l be less than 525 Btu/hr-ft.
Thus the component of heat
FLASHING I N THE RESERVOI R GI VE S R I S E TO A REGI ON OF TWO-PHASE FLOW
The bottom-hole flowing pressure of thi s hot-water wel l i s (450 psi a
whereas the steam saturati on pressure corresponding to the s tati c reservoi r
temperature of 593OF i s 1464 psia. The reservoi r pressure increases away
from the wellbore from 450 psi a t o the ori gi nal pressure of 1823 psia.
some distance from the wellbore, the pressure w i l l exceed 1464 psi a and that
poi nt w i l l mark the boundary between two-phase and single-phase flow.
A t
FOR PRESSURE ANALYSIS, A STRAIGHT LINE CANNOT BE FOUND
Fig. 2 presents pressure transi ent data, measured a t the same time
as the temperature data, Fig. 1. Pressure, on Fig. 2, i s pl otted as a
function of l og [(t +At)/At] f or an o i l reservoi r Horner-type analysis. For
thi s analysis, a s trai ght- l i ne porti on of the graph i s selected; i t i s slope
i s inversely proportional to reservoi r permeability.
This buildup lasted 550 hours. But we see a curve rather than a
s trai ght l i ne. Unfortunately, there are gaps i n the observations. But
data gathering i s a part of the problem i n hot-water wells.
The buildup data presented i n Fig. 2 do not show wellbore fill up
or l i near flow effects on a log-log type curve match. This makes i t
di f f i c ul t to f i nd the onset o f radi al f l ow or, i n other words, the s tart of
a semi-log strai ght l i ne. One could draw more than one strai ght l i ne through
the data on Fig. 2. Although I have drawn a l i ne o f slope 121 psi/cycle, I
cannot f i nd sound j us ti f i c ati on f or thi s l i ne.
STEAM-WATER INTERFACE TENDS TO MASK THE END OF THE STRAIGHT LINE
Drainage areas i n hot-water wel l s generally have two boundaries. The
f i r s t boundary i s the steam-water i nterface which i s created as a res ul t of
the flowing reservoi r pressure f al l i ng below the saturati on pressure.
extent of the steam-water boundary i s controlled, among other factors, by the
The
-70-
flowing pressure, the i ni t i a l reservoi r pressure and temperature, and the
rate of heat transfer from the rock to the f l ui d. The second boundary i s
the drainage boundary of the system; it could be closed, held at a constant
pressure, or a mixed boundary.
Pressure buildup i s affected more by the steam-water i nterface than
by the drainage boundary. I f the steam-water i nterface i s nost f ar from the
wellbore, it w i l l probably i nterfere wi th the strai ght l i ne porti on of the
buildup. I thi nk that i s what i s happening i n the buildup presented i n Fig. 2.
HEAT TRANSFER INTERFERES WITH DRAINAGE BOUNDARY EFFECTS
Under flowing conditions, the f l ui d temperature i s less than the reser-
voi r temperature. The resul ti ng heat transfer causes temperature gradients
i n the rock. As the wel l i s shut in, we have the phe'nomenon o f temperature
buildup i n the rock along wi th the pressure buildup i n the fl ui d. After some
time, when the temperature and pressure have stabi l i zed, the f l ui d i n the
wellbore boi l s. The boi l i ng causes the temperature to drop, which, i n turn
w i l l gi ve r i s e to a new boi l i ng cycl e when the temperature has stabi l i zed.
The pressure fl uctuati ons caused by boi l i ng i nterfere wi th the
drainage boundary effects.
effects can be observed wi th certai nty i f the boi l i ng di d not occur. I
thi nk steam-water boundary effects w i l l dominate any drainage boundary effects.
This does not mean that the drainage boundary
HOT-WATER BUILDUPS DIFFER FROM GAS/OIL BUILDUPS
There are s i gni f i cant differences between the buildups in hot-water
and gas/oi l wells. These are some of the differences:
1. Gas/oil systems generally are porous and have well-defined upper
and lower boundaries. Most of the wel l s have cornplete penetration.
On the other hand, hot water generally flows through fractures.
Wells have parti al penetration. We have two phaljes flowing near
the wellbore and only si ngl e phase flowing some distance away
from the wellbore. After shut-in, the two phaselj tend t o become
si ngl e phase a l l over.
2. I n hot-water reservoirs, heat transfer i nteracts with the
reservoi r pressures and saturations. I t i s of no consequence
i n the oil/gas reservoirs.
3. Boi l i ng tends to mask the boundary effects i n hot-water wells.
FURTHER WORK I S NEEDED
We need t o have an i nterpretati ve method f or use i n hot-water wells.
Anal yti cal solutions t o the f l ui d and heat di f f us i vi ty equations are not
l i kel y to answer a l l the questions. We probably w i l l need the help of a
two-dimensional radius-height computer model to develop required information.
0
0
CD
0
co
ln
0
CD
ln
0
v
ln
0
(u
In
0
0
In
0
0
0
r 4
a , @
0 .-
r i l - ,
E
8
l-
c
a,
L
3
cn
LL
.-
-72-
0
0
u
r-4
0
0
v
r l
0
0
N
ri
0
0
0
ri
C3
C>
00
0
0
0
4
0
0
4
0
4
4
a
f
I
3
ul
v)
a,
L
P
r-4
a,
L
3
cn
LL
.-
-73-
WELL LOG ANALYSI S AND WELL TESTI NG
I N THE HEBER GEOTHERMAL FI ELD
Ll oyd Mann
Chevr on Oi l Company
San Fr anci sco, CA. 94105
Det ai l ed st udi es of t he r eser voi r per f or mance and oper at i ng condi t i ons
of t he Heber geot hermal f i el d have been compl et ed. These st udi es i ndi cat e
t hat a mi ni mum devel opment at t he Heber si t e woul d be 200 MWut i l i zi ng a t wo-
st age f l ash pr ocess. Thi s paper summar i zes par t of t he i nvest i gat i ons whi ch
have occurred wi t h at t ent i on gi ven to l og anal ysi s and wel l per f or mance.
Geol ogy
Ni ne wel l s have been dri l l ed t o dat e. The deepest wel l s penet r at e to
6, 000 f eet and have encount er ed a1 t ernat i ng sand- shal e sequences.
mar ker s have not been encount er ed t hus f ar .
ret ri eved f romseven to t he ni ne wel l s dr i l l ed. Por osi t y f romcor e anal ysi s
has been correl at ed wi t h avai l abl e densi t y l ogs.
anal ysi s and l ogs has permi t t ed t he assi gnment of bot h porosi t y and per meabi l -
i t y to each f oot of sand whi ch was dr i l l ed.
St ruct ural
Repr esent at i ve cor e has been
The combi nat i on of cor e
I ndi vi dual sand member s had per meabi l i t y changes bet ween one and t wo
or der s of magni t ude as sands wer e t raced f romwel l to wel l . A vert i cal l ayer -
i ng appr oach was used to cal cul at e an aver age permeabi l i t y over 4, 000 f eet
of sect i on.
The l og cor r el at i ons showed t hat per meabi l i t y det er i or at ed wi t h dept h
( char act er i st i c of i ncreasi ng overburden) , but t hat t he reservoi r sti l l had
f avor abl e porosi t y and per meabi l i t y at a dept h of 6, 000 f eet .
Wel l Test s
A total of 19 dr i l l st emt est s, t wo 48- hour t est s and t hree 90- day t est s
wer e conduct ed to eval uat e r eser voi r per f or mance. The dr i l l st emt est s wer e
perf ormed over a net sand i nterval whi ch vari ed f rom48 f eet to 156 f eet . .
Al l t he dr i l l st emt est s ar e char act er i zed by essent i al l y i nst ant aneous bui l d-
up af t er shut - i n. Ther ef or e, per meabi l i t i es coul d not be cal cul at ed by bui l d-
up anal ysi s.
pr essur e and l owdr awdowns suggest a reservoi r of very hi gh qual i t y.
Froma qual i t at i ve st andpoi nt , t he r api d bui l dup to f i nal
The t wo wel l s whi ch wer e t est ed f or 48 hours achi eved hi gh f l ow rat es.
The bui l dup was compl et e f or both t hese wel l s wi t hi n 45 seconds of shut - i n
and di d not permi t a cal cul at i on to be made.
Thr ee wel l s wer e t est ed f or a mi ni mum of 90 days. Two of t hese wel l s
wer e pr oducer s, wi t h t he t hi r d wel l operat i ng as an i nj ect or f or f l ui d f r om
the t wo producers.
I nj ect i on wel l per meabi l i t y was cal cul at ed f roma f al l of f curve. A
densi t y l og was not avai l abl e f or t hi s wel l , so no compar i son can be made.
However , t he composi t e l ayered geol ogi c model gave cl ose agr eement to t he
f al l of f t est over t he same i nt erval .
-74-
Two bui l dup t est s wer e anal yzed f or one of t he producers. Cal cul at ed
permeabi l i t i es compar ed f avor abl y wi t h i ndi cated permeabi l i t i es f romdensi t y
l ogs. Cal cul at i ons on t hi s wel l suggest ed si gni f i cant wel l bor e damage.
Per meabi l i t i es det ermi ned usi ng mul t i pl e rat e t est s on t he t hi r d wel l
wer e compared wi t h l og cal cul at ed val ues and st eady st at e f l ow rat e dat a.
The l ong- t ermpr essur e hi st ory of the t hree wel l s f ol l owed t he pressure
cal cul at ed t heor et i cal l y by assumi ng an i nf i ni t e aqui f er wi t h no i nf l ux at
the out er boundary. I t i s possi bl e t hat t he real dat a mi ght f i t an aqui f er
of some f i ni t e si ze wi t h a const ant pressure boundary.
Al l the bui l dup dat a was charact eri zed by a si ngl e st r ai ght l i ne. Thi s
woul d suggest t hat boundar i es wer e not encount ered by t he pressure t ransi ent s
and cor r obor at es t he produci ng pressure hi st ory.
The i nj ect i on wel l was compl et ed i n a l ower i nterval than t he t wo pro-
ducers. The produci ng and i nj ect i ng wel l s ( separat ed by one mi l e) wer e i so-
l ated f r omeach ot her by cont i nuous shal es ( conj ecture) . The l ong- t erm
pressure hi st ory cor r obor at es t hi s pi ct ure as i nj ect i on di d not i nf l uence
the produci ng wel l pressure. The t wo producers wer e compl et ed i n t he same
i nterval and wer e al so one mi l e apar t .
shows some mi nor sl ope var i at i ons whi ch occur when rat es ar e changed, but
t hese ar e onl y qual i t at i ve i ndi cat i ons of wel l i nt erf erence. Rat e changes
wer e made f r equent l y at both wel l s, and t hese tend to mask any i nt erf erence
ef f ect s whi ch may have occur r ed.
The pressure hi story at the producers
Dur i ng t he wel l t est i ng, wel l head t emper at ur es wer e recorded. For al l
f l owrat es whi ch wer e encount er ed at t he produci ng wel l s, f l owwas si ngl e
phase wat er f romappr oxi mat el y 3, 000 f eet deep.
t emperat ures approached equi l i br i umvery qui ckl y. At f l ow rat es bet ween
5, 000 and 10, 000 B/ D, wel l head t emper at ur es wer e wi t hi n 7 O F of t he aver age
bottomhol e t emper at ur e af t er onl y 7 days.
sur f ace t emper at ur es wer e onl y 2OF bel ow bottomhol e condi t i ons af t er 5 days,
and 1F af t er 25 days. I t can be concl uded t hat heat l oss i n the wel l bor e
i n si ngl e phase f l owwi l l be negl i gi bl e dur i ng act ual product i on oper at i ons.
Geot hermal wel l product i on rat es are expect ed to be gener al l y i n excess of
30, 000 B/D.
I t was observed t hat wel l head
At f l ow rat es above 15, 000 B/D,
Concl usi on
The geol ogy and i nf ormat i on gai ned f r omwel l t est i ng was used as t he
f oundat i on f or a reservoi r si mul at i on to predi ct reservoi r perf ormance. The
rat i onal i zat i on of i nf or mat i on gai ned f romt hese two sources pl ays a very
i mport ant rol e i n gi vi ng rel i abi l i t y to perf ormance predi ct i ons. I n the case
of the Heber f i el d, t he log dat a, cor e dat a and wel l t est dat a cor r el at e sat i s-
f act or i l y. The r eser voi r per f or mance predi ct i on of 200 MW i s t her ef or e
real i st i c.
The obser vat i on of negl i gi bl e heat l oss i n t he wel l bor e dur i ng norma
product i on oper at i ons i n wat er syst ems i s si gni f i cant . Wel l s may be di rec
t i onal l y dri l l ed such t hat a l arger per cent age of t he total f l owpath i s
covered i n the wel l bor e, rat her t han i n sur f ace f l ow l i nes.
-75-
I t i s worth noti ng that the overal l analysis used f or thi s geothermal
reservoi r was si mi l ar i n nature to that used to predi ct o i l reservoi r
response. The data gathering procedure, analysis and overal l method of
approach used for many years i n evaluating o i l reservoirs have di rect applica-
bi 1 i t y to geothermal reservoirs.
- 76-
GEOTHERMAL WELL TESTING AT
ROOSEVELT KGRA, BEAVER COUNTY, UTAH
D. C. Harban
P hi l l i ps Petroleum Company
Bartl esvi 1 l e, OK 74002
This paper describes testi ng procedures used by P hi l l i ps Petroleum
Company at the Roosevelt KGRA prospect.
herein are not a l l ori gi nal or new ideas but represent a combination of el e-
ments chosen af ter an i ntensi ve review of the state of the a r t . Special
acknowledgment should be given to J erry J ones of Union O i l Company and Dick
Bolton of the New Zealand Mi ni stry of Works f or thei r cooperation and advice.
During the spring of 1975, P hi l l i ps Petroleum engaged L.offland Brothers
The equipment and techniques described
t o d r i l l several geothermal expl orati on wel l s on the Roosevelt KGRA prospect
i n Beaver County, Utah. I n May we encountered geothermal hot water i n our
KGRA 3-1 wel l . A three-hour fl ow from thi s wel l through an open pipe i ndi -
cated flows i n excess of 600,000 pounds per hour of f l ui d at wellhead pressures
approaching 400 psig.
Russell J ames f or measuring fl ow discharging at the speed of sound to the
atm0sphere.l
conditions are wel l outside the l i mi ts described by J ames) arid the prudence
of continued testi ng wi th our crude testi ng f ac i l i ti es led us t o seek a safer
and more accurate means of fl ow testi ng the wel l .
The fl ow was measured using the technique described by
Concern about the accuracy of thi s type of measurement (fl ow
After reviewing the technology avai l abl e f or measuring two-phase steam/
water flow, i t was decided that the most accurate method would probably be t o
separate the steam and water phases and measure them separately. A survey of
current practi ce revealed that the Bottom Outl et Cyclone was the most popular
design i n current use, and f or that reason we chose t o use it: for our geo-
thermal testi ng. Conversations wi th Dick Bolton of the Mi ni stry of Works and
Development, New Zealand, led us t o a paper by P . Bangma on the development
and performance of a steam-water separator f or use on geothermal bores. I n
it he detai l ed the development of the steam separator used at Wairakei which
incorporates a s pi ral i nl et (as opposed to a tangential i nl et) to permit a
substantial increase i n i nl et vel oci ty without a corresponding increase i n
l i qui d carri ed over i nto the steam phase.
led us t o bel i eve that the spi ral entry would indeed permit 11s to nearl y
double the i nl et vel oci ty allowable i n the conventional tangential design.
A s a resul t of thi s research we settl ed on the fol l owi ng design parameters:
Our discussions wi th Dick Bolton
Maximum working pressure
Design steam fl ow @ 200 psi g
Design water fl ow @ 200 psig
Design temperature
550 psig
6 0 0 ~ ~
200,000 #/hr.
800,000 #/hr.
These parameters res ul t i n a 154 ft/sec superfi ci al i nl et ve'locity for a 36"
I . D. separator wi th a 12" diameter i nl et. (Superfi ci al i nl et vel oci ty i s the
'Measurement of Steam-Water Mixtures Discharging at the Speed of Sound t o the
Atmosphere, Russell J ames, New Zealand Engineering, 21 (10) :1+37-31 (Oct. 1966).
-77-
vel oci ty calculated considering onl y the vapor phase i n the i nl et mixture.)
I t i s important t o remember when sel ecti ng a separator that increasing fl ow
rates and decreasing fl owi ng pressure each increase the required separator
size, i.e., whi l e the vessel must be designed f or the maximum expected work-
ing pressure it must be sized f or the minimum expected flowing pressure. The
separator, fabri cated by WKM-Brewster, includes an i ntegral water drum separ-
ated i nternal l y from the separator section. The drum was included t o tr y t o
minimize fl ashi ng of water i n the water metering l i ne.
The pi pi ng scheme shown f or the wel l testi ng f ac i l i t y (Figs. 1 & 2) was
designed to be simple t o erect, abl e t o accommodate anti ci pated thermal expan-
sion safely, and resi stant t o erosion a t the pipe turns. To accommodate
thermal expansion, the system i s designed to include a l arge hori zontal loop
supported i n the verti cal di recti on and free to move i n the hori zontal plane.
I n addi ti on, the separator base i s free t o s l i de and a WKM-Brewster i nternal
expanding wellhead i s used t o absorb the expansion of the wellbore casing.
After the i ni t i a l operation of the f a c i l i t y we added several guy wires
to support the vessel and pi pi ng. These restrai nts are kept slack unti l the
system i s hot and are then tightened er,mgh to snub any vi brati on which may
occur i n the course of operation. Even wi th the special wellhead design,
the wellhead rose about 4 inches when the wel l got hot and i n the i ni t i al
test appeared t o place an undesirable s trai n on the pi pi ng. The use of a
one and one-half ton hydraul i c j ack under the f i r s t pipe support o f f the wel l -
head appeared t o al l evi ate the problem. As a safety precaution, thi s was
veri f i ed by pipe stress cal cul ati ons using pi pi ng displacements actual l y meas-
ured during i ni t i a l tests. These cal cul ati ons show that the use of a hydraul i c
support can provide a safe, inexpensive and rel i abl e means of compensating for
pipe displacement due to expansion. Selecting an appropriate si ze j ack f or
the j ob allows an operator t o support the pi pi ng during wel l tests wi th a
control l ed amount of thrust and l i t t l e fear of overcompensating f or thermal
expansion.
I n s pi te of our sati sfactory operation of thi s f ac i l i t y as designed,
operators considering testi ng wel l s at rates i n excess of one mi l l i on pounds
per hour would be wel l advised t o consider r i gi dl y anchoring a l l major pieces
of the f ac i l i ty and using some form of expansion j oi nt.
Aeroquip Corporation has a seri es o f bal l - type j oi nts f or steam servi ce that
might be sui ted f or thi s type of service. A l l changes of di recti on i n the -
pi pi ng except those immediately upstream of the separator and the meter runs
are accomplished using tees wi t h the run end enclosed wi th a pl ate. This pro-
vides a hydraul i c cushion a t each turn and it i s believed that thi s w i l l mi ni -
mize the erosion normally associated wi t h elbows used i n thi s type of system.
Barco Di vi si on o f
System Controls
The system i s control l ed by regul ati ng the pressure with a pressure con-
tr ol valve on the steam l i ne and by regul ati ng the l evel i n the separator wi th
a l evel control operating a diaphragm-actuated valve i n the water l i ne. I n
si zi ng the water control valve, one has t o be careful to si ze the valve for
flashing l i qui d across the valve.
type 657ED wi th an equal percentage, 3" travel cage has provided very sati s-
factory service and appears t o of f er a reasonable margin f or capacity i n excess
of design.
I n our appl i cati on, the use of an 8" Fisher
-78-
F 1 ow Measurement
The f ac i l i ty includes equipment to measure pressures and temperatures at
the wellhead, the steam meter l i ne and the water meter l i ne. I n addi ti on,
pressures are measured at the separator and downstream of the steam and water
control valves (measure back pressure of muffl er). Steam and water flows are
measured using standard or i f i c e pl ates i n the meter runs and recorded on
American Meter Recorders.
using a thr ottl i ng calorimeter as described i n the ASME Power Test Code PTC
19:ll-1940.
total fl ow and downstream from the separator f or the separated steam and water.
The qual i ty of the separated stearri i s measured
Connections for taking samples are provided a t the wellhead f or
Flow Discharge
. Steam and water i n
shown i n Fig. 3. Design
Caldera and does an exce
total open area of the s
feeding it. I t i s espec
pipe onl y and to arrange
the system are discharged to a p i t through the muffl er
i s based upon mufflers used by Union O i l at Valles
l ent j ob of si l enci ng and di ssi pati ng the flow. The
ots i s approximately four times the area of the pipes
a l l y important t o place the sl ots on the sides of the
them so that the thrusts are balanced during use.
F aci l i ty Operations
I n operation thus far, the f ac i l i t y has provided us wi th accurate meas-
urements and rel i abl e service. One area which i s s t i l l not providing us wi th
total l y sati sfactory information, however, i s the measurement of water flow.
The small pressure drop experienced between the separator and the meter and
the pressure drop across the meter i s s uf f i ci ent to cause fl ashi ng of small
amounts of water i nto steam i n the system. This fl ashi ng causes a 10 to 20
percent error i n the separated water measurement. At the present time we are
producing wi th a rel ati vel y constant enthalpy up the wellbore so an accurate
cal cul ati on of the total fl ow can be made from our separated !steam flow meas-
urement. I n the future, however, i t may become necessary t o lower the eleva-
ti on of the water meter pi pi ng rel ati ve t o the separator t o el i mi nate t hi s
flashing. I n tests run t o date the f ac i l i t y has provided sati sfactory opera-
ti on over the fol l owi ng range of conditions:
Wellhead pressure 385 psig 294 psig
Pressure drop wellhead to separator outl et 20 psi 35 psi
Total fl ow rate 720,000 #/hr 925,000 #/hr
Separated steam qual i ty 100% 99%
Muffl er back pressure 25 psi
Measuring Reservoir Pressure
A l l fl ow testi ng using thi s f ac i l i t y has been performed on Well 54-3 i n
the Roosevelt KGRA prospect.
when 3-1 was judged t o be unsuitable f or fl ow testi ng due to c:asing problems.
KGRA 3-1 was used as an observation wel l f or these fl ow tests and provided us
wi th information concerning the reservoi r. This wel l was instrumented wi th a
Sperry-Sun Permagauge recording system.
This wel l was dr i l l ed adjacent to the 3-1 wel l
The Permagauge surface recorder was
-79-
connected to a downhole system consisting of a Permagauge concentric expand-
able chamber suspended to the well bottom by a .020" 1.D x .094" OD stainless
steel capillary tube. This tube and chamber were filled with nitrogen and
the Permagauge recorder measures the surface pressure of this column and
calculates the corresponding bottom hole (reservoir) pressure. This test
resulted in agreement between a wellhead monitor and the recorder tied to
the downhole system within a range of less than . 2 psi. The data we were
able to gather using this system were of excellent quality and provided plots
for the various solutions of reservoir calculations which required virtually
no adjustments to the measured data. The system is capable of providing the
quality of data needed to perform accurate reservoir calculations but not
without some difficulties:
1. The elements of the system are not entirely reliable. Leaks
in the gas column and calibration problems brought on by the
harsh environment are the major factors causing unreliable
operation.
2 . The system requires extensive attention prior to, during and
after the test to provide continuous operation.
3. Some means of protecting the surface elements of the system
from the environment must be provided.
4. The system requires an external power source to sustain opera-
tion during the measuring period.
In conclusion, the facility used by Phillips at the Roosevelt KGRA has
demonstrated the capability of providing accurate data in a safe fashion in
the testing done to date. Further testing will no doubt result in refinement
of the equipment and methods used.
considered in designing and operating such a facility must be the safety of
the people involved in the testing.
the integrity and safety of the system.
The most important single factor to be
Every effort should be made to insure
-80-
3 2 1 .
,
Y
c a
\/c
r
' . 0
P
B
I. ;
3
J
-
r.
. _ _ . .-
I
a:
e
II .,
I
n
-81 -
-
I)
1 .. .,I ,
. --
\
, ! i
i
I
- n
I
b
-82-
m$
SHELL'S ACTIVITY IN THE GEYSERS AREA
E. L. Fehlberg
Shell O i l Company
Houston, Texas 77001
Shell has dr i l l ed one dry hole and one comnercial discovery i n The
The dry hole was hot ( 2 447F) but Geysers area of northern Cal i forni a.
fai l ed t o encounter fractures necessary f or commercial steam recovery. The
discovery producer, located one and one-half miles south of The Geysers
fi el d, encountered dry steam flowing at rates of about 200,000 lb/hr.
confirmation wel l i s currentl y being dri l l ed.
A
Temperature gradients range from 2-4"F/100 ft. above 3,000 ft. and
from 6-8"F/100 ft. from 3,000 ft. to the steam reservoir. The reservoir
temperature (+465"F) and pressure (2500 psia) are typi cal o f The Geysers
area. Local concentrations of hydrogen s ul fi de i n excess of 3,000 ppmwere
encountered i n one wel l .
Shell started acquiring acreage i n 1971, and now holds 15,000 acres
(Fig. 1) . Two Federal leases, U. S. One (2477 acres) and U. S. Two (1600
acres) were acquired i n J anuary 1974 i n the f i r s t Federal geothermal competi-
ti ve lease sale.
U.S. Geothermal Two-1 was dr i l l ed t o explore f or fractured reservoi r
conditions i n the obj ecti ve Franciscan graywacke i nterval below serpentine
sealing rocks. Two serpentine beds were encountered a t depths of 2,300 ft.
and 4,000 ft. i n the ori gi nal hole. Graywacke and interbedded volcanic
rocks were penetrated below these beds. Several steam shows were noted below
4,000 ft. and a s tati c temperature of 325F was calculated from a wi re l i ne
survey at 4,070 ft.
true verti cal depth of 6770 ft.*
However, stuck pipe forced abandonment of the hole at a
The wel l was then redri l l ed from 2,770 ft. to 8125 ft. Several non-
commercial steam shows were encountered i n the redri l l ed hole below a serpen-
ti ne bed at 4170 ft. A wi re l i ne survey indicated a formation temperature of
447F at 6,150 ft. (Fig. 2). The average s tati c temperature gradient i n the
i nterval from 3,000 ft. to 6,150 ft. i s 5.8"F/100 ft. The well was plugged,
and abandoned at 8120 ft. and no temperatures were obtained below 6,150 ft. *
Geologic and temperature conditions encountered i n thi s hole i ndi cate commer-
ci al steam reserves should be present on thi s U. S. Geothermal leasehold.
Our discovery wel l , U. S. Geothermal One-1, spudded i n J une 1975 and
encountered commercial steam on J ul y 10, 1975, at 4920 ft. i n the fractured
Franciscan graywacke (Fig. 3 ) . Bad hole conditions prevented our obtaining
s tati c temperature data from the wel l . However, nine separate readings were
taken wi th maximum reading thermometers.
8.l0F/1O0 ft. i n the i nterval from 3000 ft. to 3870 ft. (Fig. 2). This wel l
has a low geothermal gradient (2.3"/lOO ft.) above 3000 feet which may be
the resul ts of shallow groundwater movement.
This data shows a gradient of about
* A l l depths are true verti cal depths.
-84-
Shell-U.S. Geothermal One-1 was fl ow tested using three di f f erent
or i f i ce plates. Average fl ow data are as follows:
Ori f i ce Size Pressure Tempera t u re Rate Qual i ty
(in. ) (psia) ("0 MLB/HR
6 149 353
7 1/ 2 96 320
8 3/4 75 306
183 .96
191 .99
195 1.00
Flow test and calorimeter data indicate the wel l has an absolute open
flow potenti al of approximately 200,000 lbs/hr dry steam. However, the range
of or i f i c e pl ate sizes was too narrow t o accurately determine the maximum
rate or AOFP coeffi ci ent and exponent. A fl ow stream sample had the fol l owi ng
composition:
Mol e
Constituent Gas Per Cent PARTIAL GEOCHEMICAL ANAILYSI S (Water)
Hydrogen
N i t rogen
Oxygen
Carbon Dioxide
Hydrogen S ul fi de
Carbon Monox i de
Oxides of Nitrogen
Methane
Ethane
Benzene
To1 uene
Xy1 ene
Water
2.292
9.712
0.012
48.783
0.000
0.000
0.000
28.598
0.020
0.015
0.017
0.008
10.543
Sulfate, mg/l 10
Chloride, mg/l 14
B i carbonate , mg/ 1 88
Borate, mg/l 26
Organic Acids, mg/l 110
Speci fi c Gravity 1.003 I@ 60F.
Resi sti vi ty 5,150 Ohm Cm @ 75F.
pH Value 7.20
Our confirmation wel l , Shell-U.S. Geothermal One-2 was spudded 7/31/75
and dr i l l ed t o 7680 ft.
3.8"F/100 ft. above 3000 ft. and 8.1"~/100 ft. i n the i nterval from 3000 ft.
to 4490 ft.
of 6780 ft.
This bore was plugged back from7680 ft. and sidetracked from4560 ft.
Another small steam fl ow of 12,000 lbs/hr. was encountered i n the r edr i l l at
4840 ft. Hydrogen s ul f i de content exceeded 3000 ppm so the r edr i l l borehole
was plugged at 5250 ft. and a second r edr i l l commenced at 2080 ft. We are
currentl y dr i l l i ng below 6000 ft.
The temperature gradient (Fig. 2) i n thi s well was
A small steam fl ow of 50,000 lbs/hr was encountered at a depth
The fl ow stream contained approximately 80 ppm hydrogen sulfide.
-85-
Li
c
0
w
55
a
5
-1
x 2
5 $ g ?
........
..............
.............
........
-86-
FI GURE 1
1,
f-
/
7"--
0 0
0 0
0 0
CYI *
K
I
P
i": e
t9
P B Lo
('Id) Hld3Q
FI GURE 2
-87-
3
3
n
0
0
rf
0
0
M L g
u,
0
u
3
I-
Q
U
W
e
E
W
-
a
e
N
O
2
0
SHELL OlL COMPANY
U.S. GEQFHERMAL ONE #I
ELEV. 3204 FT.
OPHlOLiTE
(PERIDOTITE & SERPENTINE)
GRAY WAC KE
GREENSTONE
r
FRACTURED GRAYWACKE
(STEAM ZONE)
SURFACE
13 '3/8"
9
1070 FT.
2365
2620
31 50
9 518"
3925 FT.
4600
I
T.D. 4925 FT.
SEQUENCE OF ROCK TYPES
-88-
FIGURE 3
WATER ENTRY BELOW STEAM PRODUCTION:
A CASE HISTORY AT THE GEYSERS
George Frye
Burmah O i l and Gas Company
Santa Rosa, CA. 95406
Burmah O i l and Gas Company has dr i l l ed over twenty holes i n the south-
east porti on of The Geysers steam f i el d; to date only one has proved non-
productive. This report documents a case hi story unique to E3urmah of a
water entry below steam production.
Hi story
A 12-1/4" hole was dr i l l ed to 3000' and 9-5/8" OD casing was cemented
to the surface. Burmah then di recti onal l y dr i l l ed an 8-3/4" hole wi th a i r
and encountered minor steam entri es a t 5120', 6335', and 645;7', as shown on
Fig. 1. No addi ti onal steam entri es were found below these depths. Total
steam fl ow measured less than 20,000 pounds per hour.
A t 7580' an increase of a i r pressure on the stand pipe from 420 psig t o
580 psig was noted. The wel l started making 128 barrel s per hour of water
having a temperature of 188-190F measured a t the surface.
chemical analysis o f thi s water i s l i s ted on Fig. 2, Column 11. A i r dr i l l i ng
continued t o 7665' wi th no decrease i n water production. Dr i i 11 pipe was
pul l ed out of the hole t o 4363' and a i r ci rcul ated f or four hours. The well
produced onl y steam, no water. No temperature or pressure survey was run.
The lack of water a t 4363' indicates a water pressure of les:; than 1355 psig.
The parti al
Since the hole produced a sub-commercial rate of steam, Burmah decided
to plug the hole and di recti onal l y r edr i l l the hole i n a more westerly loca-
ti on. Steam entri es were encountered at 4259', 4362', 5480', 5660', 5943',
6731', 6858', and 6980'. F ig. 1 shows the l ocati on of these steam entri es.
The hole produced approximately 120,000 pounds of steam per hour af ter the
l ast steam entry. Again the hole produced water, but at a lower rate of approx-
imately 80 barrel s an hour. The analysis of thi s water i s shown on Column 2
on Fig. 2. The water entry indicated by the increase of standpipe a i r pressure
was at 7138'. The hole was plugged
wi th 43 sacks of cement. The d r i l l pipe stuck whi l e pul l i ng out of the hole.
The best estimate of the top of the plug i s 6830' measured by the free poi nt
i ndi cator on the stuck pipe. The stuck d r i l l pipe was par ti al l y recovered to
6062'.
No pressure or temperature survey was run.
Further recovery attempts proved unsuccessful.
After the dr i l l i ng r i g was released, the surface wel l head pressure
A s tati c pressure and temperature survey stopped stabi l i zed a t 484 psig.
at 3515'. The survey indicated essenti al l y saturated steam. A t a l ater date
the wel l , when f i r s t opened f or a fl ow test, produced water along wi th steam.
Column 3 of Fig. 2 l i s t s the parti al chemical analysis. Subsequent flows a t
higher rates produced saturated steam wi th no entrained water. The iso-
chronal testi ng indicated a fl ow rate o f 86,000 pounds of steam per hour.
An analysis of the steam condensate produced at thi s fl ow rate i s shown i n
Column 4 of Fig. 2 .
-89-
Discussion
The chemical analyses of the two water entri es are s i mi l a r but not
i denti cal even given allowances f or sampling and testi ng errors. The samples
are di ssi mi l ar enough to preclude the posi ti ve conclusion that they are the
same water. I t i s pl ausi bl e that the two waters, though sharing a common
ori gi n, are located i n separate fracture systems. Both water entri es are
i n s i 1 icious argi 1 1 i tes.
The water produced on the f i r s t tes t (Column 3) indicates contamination
from cement (pH and chl ori de) and al so some evaporation of the deep water as
i nferred from the increased boron concentration.
condensate i s typi cal of steam condensate analyses of wel l s i n the surround-
ing area. A physical chemistry analysis has not been attempted to determine
i f the chemical consti tutents of the water and steam are i n equi l i bri a.
The analysis of the steam
A review of the wel l s i n the surrounding area shows thi s wel l to be
bounded by commercial production 2100' t o the north, 4000' to the west, 1100'
to the south and 3700' t o the east. None of these wel l s showed any i ndi cati on
of deep water entri es. I t should be noted, however, that none of these wel l s
reached the equivalent verti cal depth of the water entri es i n the ori gi nal
hole or r edr i l l of the subject wel l . Other wel l s at greater distances always
have been dr i l l ed t o at l east 700 verti cal feet below the deepest water entry.
The verti cal and hori zontal di fference between the two water entri es of 407'
and 540', respectively, i ndi cates a possible structural rather than an hydro-
l ogi cal control of the water i n thi s l ocal i zed area. Because temperature and
pressure surveys were not conducted whi l e the holes were producing water,
conclusions about steam-water communication and equi l i bri um are di f f i c ul t.
Due t o the physical condi ti on of the hole (apparent sharp dog leg and
pipe l ef t i n the hole), it i s not possible t o pos i ti vel y demonstrate by
temperature and pressure surveys that the water has been shut of f by the
cement plug. However, it i s certai nl y i nferred i ndi rectl y by the qual i ty
of the steam produced duri ng the wel l test. The loss of steam flow rate
indicates al so that a t l east the bottom two steam entri es were ef f ecti vel y
p 1 ugged .
-90-
R E DR I L L
6467',!!,
6651'V.D
6830' TOP OF PLUG
6378' V.D.
ORI GI NAL HOLE 72&lo
4
\
SCALE: I"= lOd
\
\
5 6 60' 5 6 0 4' V. D.
4
5 4 80' s 542 7'V. D.
\
b
I
v D.
LEGEND
A STEAM ENTRY
0 WATER " TRY
0 SURVEY POfNT
--
FI GURE 1
-91-
CHEMI CAL ANALYSES
PH
Spec i f i c Conductance
pmhos/ cm @ 25OC
Cal ci um, mg / 1
Magnesi um, mg/ l
Ammoni a, mg / 1
Sodi um, mg/ l
I ron, mg/ l
Boron, mg/ l
Potassi um, mg/ l
Al umi num, mg/ l
Mercury, pg/ l
Sul fate, mg/ l
Chl ori de, mg/ l
Fl uori de, mg/ l
Bi carbonate, mg/ l
Ni trate, mg/l
Silica, mg/l
Sul fi de, mg/ l
2
5.3 5.1
-
1
-
650.0 1000.0
<10.0 10.0
37.0
43.1
146.0 117.0
82.8 24.1
110.0 86.0
< .02
54.0
414.0
41.0 10.0
8.0
12.2
2.2
400.0
3
-
8.4
142.0
1.5
26.0
1.
2. Water entry of redri l l .
3.
4.
Water entry of ori gi nal hole.
Water produced on initial wel l flow.
Steam condensate at 85,000 pounds per hour flow rate.
4
5.7
-
<.1
.005
25.2
C . 1
1.0
2.4
<.01
c . 1
2.4
10.0
2.0
c. 01
80.0
15. 5
1.2
100.0
FIGURE 2
-92-
AN INTERFERENCE TEST I N ALFINA GEOTHERMAL FIELD
(NORTHERN LATIUM, ITALY)
A
I t s geo
a
Antonio Barel l i and Graziano Manetti
ENEL; Centro di Ricerca Geotermica
Piazza B. da Sassoferrato, 14 Pisa, I tal y
f i na f i el d i s si tuated i n central I tal y near the Lake of
ogi cal - strati graphi cal sequence i s as fol l ows:
A thi ck (>500 m) Cretaceous-Eocene sedimentary seri es
faci es comprising mainly clays and marls.
the cap rock;
This fl ys ch
BOI sena. 1
n fl ysch
seri es forms
b. A Mesozoic sedimentary series, strati graphi cal l y qui te regular, of
more than 400 m thickness, comprising mainly carbonates ( 1 imestones,
marly limestones and cal careni tes). This seri es forms the geo-
thermal aqui fer, having a high permeability as a res ul t of the
presence of fractured zones.
Fig. 1 shows the l ocati on of the wel l s. Fig. 2 gives a cross-section
of the reservoi r along the A-A l i ne shown i n Fig. 1, using the geological data
from wel l s 13, 1 B I S , 2 and 4 which l i e almost on a strai ght l i ne on the
cross-section.
The f i el d produces C02 i n the highest part of the reservoi r (wel l s ALF 1,
ALF 1 B I S , ALF 13) whi l e it produces water where the cap rock i s lower (wel l s
ALFZ, ALF 4, ALF 5--Fig. 3) . This fact, toget
level measurement from a l l the wel l s, which wi
to the schematic cross-section shown i n Fig. 2
table.
The temperatures found i n the formations
i n the cap rock down to the top o f the reservo
er wi th the various pressure and
1 be discussed l ater, have led ,
a gas cap l yi ng over a water-
have a gradient of about 0.2"C/m
r; f or about 400 m below that,
the temperature increases slowiy from 130 to 150C.
ALF 1 B I S wel l produced C02 from the time of i t s explosion on 20 May
1974 to 8 September 1974 when it began carryi ng water. During thi s period
the wel l was shut- i n on various occasions to check the pressure behavior i n
the reservoi r. A t the same time the water l evel was recorded i n ALF 2 wel l ,
which, although s teri l e, i s i n contact wi th the reservoi r.
Pressure and Water Level Analysis
The graph shown i n Fig. 4 gives the water-level versus time for ALF 2.
We can see that each si ngl e production phase causes the l evel to decrease.
The constant l evel seen i n the control wel l (ALF 2) at the end of each produc-
ti on phase i ndi cates that the system may be considered as a closed one a t
l east for periods of some years. I f a raph i s drawn of the l evel decrease
as a function of the quanti ty produced Fig. 5), then a proporti onal rel ati on-
ship appears.
-93-
By uti l i z i ng the pressure data i n the gas cap and at a given depth
beneath the water tabl e i n s tati c conditions we can determine the l ocati on of
the gas-water interface. I t i s i ni t i a l l y 120 ? 5 m from the reservoi r top.
The system i s made up of water, rock and C02 i n the gas phase and
dissolved i n water.
During production ALF 1 BI S produces gas, the gas and water pressures
decrease, part of the C02 dissolved i n water passes i nto the gas phase, the
gas, water and rock expand as a consequence of the pressure decrease and the
gas-water i nterface ri ses.
The r i s e i n the i nterface was deduced from the fact that the gas
pressure decrease was greater than that of the water.
A t thi s poi nt we might consider the vari ati ons i n volume of the system
as a res ul t of the pressure decreases which, i n thei r turn, are a resul t of
the gas extracti on.
The volume of gas extracted i n average reservoi r conditions can be
expressed as
Ve = - APWVW(CW +Cf) -ApgVg(cg +Cf) -APg VJ (1)
where cw, cf and c
respecti vel y (atm 4 - 1).
are the compressi bi l i ty values of water, rock and gas
VW and Vg are the volumes in reservoi r conditions f or the water and gas
contents of our system (m3).
Ve i s the gas volume extracted i n reservoi r conditions (m3).
Apw, Apg are the pressure vari ati ons of the l i qui d and gas phases (atm).
i s the volume of the gas dissolved i n water per uni t of water volume (both A
i n reservoi r conditions) for a uni t pressure r i s e (atm'l ! ~ @ c o , ~ )
m3H20
I ntroducing the experimental values equation 1 becomes
a Vw +bVg = Ve
where both Vw and V are the unknown quanti ti es.
9
We can f i nd onl y a range of vari ati ons f or the unknown gas and water
volumes.
The maximum value f or Vw i s obtained for Vg = 0.
V&he
The maximum gas value can be estimated l etti ng V, = 0.
-94-
The dr i l l i ng data for ALF 2 wel l and an estimation of the area
permeated by water and gas have l ed us t o suppose that
b I
Vw 6 Vg and from (2) Vw 2 ' 6- a +b 'e "g 2- "e
Combining a l l the preceding i nequal i ti es we can define a possible range f or
Vw and V as:
9
1
O < 'g2- 'e
6 . 1
GTE "e L 'wJL - a- "e
The r ati o between minimum and maximum values obtained for Vw i s less than 2.
Ttansient Analysis
The l evel transi ents i n ALF 2 caused by two production periods from
ALF 1 BIS were studied.
F i r s t of al l , i t must be noted that the common transi ent analysis
assumptions were not Val id.
1. Our reservoi r i s not homogeneous nor i sotropi c but fractured wi th an
unknwn permeability and porosi ty di stri buti on.
2. Two completely separate phases are present: one phase i s produced, but
the pressure i s control led i n the other. Reservoir cmpr-essi bi 1 i ty and
vi scos i t y are unknown factors.
3. The producing wel l does not penetrate the reservoir and the flow pattern
i s almost certai nl y not radi al .
4. The bottom and l ateral boundaries are not known.
However, we tr i ed transi ent analysis methods f or homogeneous, i sotropi c
medium and si ngl e phase f l ui d2 as a f i r s t step and we hope that further dis-
cussion w i l l help us t o f i nd more appropriate models.
A f i r s t glance shows that an earl y transi ent period was' followed by
typi cal pseudo steady-state.
The l i ne source sol uti on seems appropriate i n the earl y period (=SO hours)
whi l e the pseudo steady-state conditions are apparent af ter 100 hours, showing
evidence of a closed boundary.
Dimensionless pressure p~ versus dimensionless time tDA were generated
for a rectangular reservoi r wi th impermeable walls.
A good match (Fig. 6) was obtained for the rectangle shlown i n the map
(Fig. 7) for the f i r s t production period.
-95-
The data for the second production peri od are not i n agreement wi th
Therefore a good match i s not possible wi th those frm the f i r s t period.
the same type curve.
A ri s e i n the water tabl e may be responsible for thi s discrepancy.
The matchpoint gives the fol l owi ng values:
- = hk 3500 darcy-meter/cp
u
Ref e ren ces
1. R. Cataldi, M. Rendina, 1973, "Recent discovery of a new geothermal
f i el d i n I tal y: Alfina." Geothermics, Vol. 2, No. 3-4, pp. 106-116.
2. C. S . Matthews, D. G. Russel, "Pressure build-up and flow tests i n
wells." Society o f P etroleun Engineers of AI ME, 1967.
-96-
Nmenc 1 at u re
A = vol ume of t he gas di ssol ved i n wat er per uni t of wat er vol ume
i n reservoi r condi t i ons) f or a uni t gas pressure ri se ( at m- l )
a =di mensi onl ess const ant
b = di mensi onl ess const ant
c =compressi bi 1 i t y ( at m- 1)
both
cf = ef f ect i ve compr essi bi l i t y of the f or mat i on. Rel at i ve change i n
pore vol ume per uni t change i n pressure ( at m- 1)
cg = gas compr essi bi l i t y ( at m- 1)
cw=wat er compressi bi 1 i t y ( at m- )
h = f or mat i on t hi ckness (m)
k = permeabi l i t y ( darcy)
p~ = di mensi onl ess pressure drop
Apg = change i n gas pressure due to gas ext ract i on ( at m)
Apw = change i n wat er pressure at a cert ai n dept h due to gas ext r act i on ( at m)
t DA = ar ea- based di mensi onl ess t i me
Ve =gas vol ume ext ract ed measured i n reservoi r condi t i ons ( m3)
Vg = gas vol ume i n the reservoi r ( m3) i n reservoi r condi t i ons
Vw =wat er vol ume i n t he reservoi r ( m3) i n reservoi r condi t i ons
$ = porosi t y
I J = vi scosi t y (cp)
-97-
f i q . 1 - L OCATI OH OF THE WEL L S 14 ALf I M i l EGl ON
-98-
4
r .
CASTEL GIORGIO
~~
F i g 3 - CCYTOUR LlfiES OF THE RC,SEfiVCIA TO?
I
2co 3co 4dO
-99-
.-
l o
I
10
10
10
-----I-- '
/ WELL Po' HT
Fig.6 Typz c u r v e nat r h l or th: cl osed r mangl e c o n s i d e r d
N
, .
f
CASrEL C l oarti ~i
#
f I G.7- CEO! AETAIC SHJPL CC:ISiDEREO FOR THk RESEUO1S
- 100-
HORNER METHOD APPLIED TO BUILDUP TESTS ON TRAVALE 22 WELL
A. Barel l i , R. Cel ati , G. Manetti, and G. Neri2
Over a peri od of two years several Horner curves wi th di fferent produc-
ti on times obtained from Travale 22 wel l were studied wi th a view to i nvesti -
gati ng the ki nd of boundary conditions exi sti ng i n the reservoi r.
Due to technical problems production hi story has often been very far
from i deal , thus resul ti ng i n di f f i c ul ti es i n analysis.
a, we
t
A t fi xed 1 +n , pD increases wi th an increase i n tDA, as expected f or
near imeermea6le boundaries, but a l l PD approach zer o when At-.
A contri buti on to pressure buildup from the boi l i ng o f a l i qui d phase
cannot be excluded.
Travale 22 wel l was dr i l l ed i n 1972 i n Travale area, Tuscany, I tal y,
a few kilometers away from an area where some non-commercial wel l s had
already been i n existence for several years (Burgassi et al . , 1975).
- -.
This therefore was the f i r s t wel l to be dr i l l ed i n the new area. During
1972 and 1973 there were several al ternati ng periods of production and shut-
in. Changes i n production were often the res ul t of technical problems and
i ns tal l ati on and maintenance operations so that the buildup (data had to be
gathered i n non-ideal conditions.
Appl i cati on o f superposition pri nci pl e
Several buildups are avai l abl e from thi s period, wi t h di f f erent produc-
ti on times, so that Horner pl ots
t+A t
with di fferent t can be drawrr.
A comparison between these curves and those taken from the avai l abl e
l i terature for many theoreti cal models (Figs. 1 , 2, 3, 4, 5) can hel p towards
an understanding of the nature, geometry and boundary conditiions of the
actual reservoi r.
There i s one di f f i c ul t y when drawing these Horner pl ots f or T22 wel l :
pi i s not cl earl y determined i n a l l the buildups, except f or the f i r s t one.
Every production period after thi s one began before shut- i n pressure had
stabi l i zed so that the superposition pri nci pl e must be applied.
;A. Barel l i and G. Manetti, ENEL, Centro di Ricerca Geotermica, Pisa, I tal y.
R. Cel ati , C.N.R., l s ti tuto lnternazionale per l e Ricerche Geotermiche, Pisa.
G. Neri,.ENEL, Gruppo Mi nerari o Larderello, I tal y.
-101-
Let us assume the existence of a functi on PD (t) that remains
throughout expl oi tati on. So we can wri te (F i g. 8)
n
j
where Aql = 41, A42 = 92-41, .... , Aqj = qj - qj - l , and IC
i s the moment when the fl ow rate changes t o q
j *
I f a logarithmic approximation f or P D is adequate,
( 1 ) becomes
and a cl assi cal semilogarithmic graph i s obtained by pl otti ng
h
unchanged
(4
For our system the val i di ty of the logarithmic approximation was doubtful
f or the whole shut-in peri od (Figs. 6 & 7).
As we wanted t o compare our T.22 Horner graphs wi th those avai l abl e f or
theoreti cal cases, we tr i ed a di f f erent approach.
Let us consider, as i n Fig. 8, two consecutive shut-ins and l et Pext(T)
be the value assumed by the pressure i f the f i r s t shut-in were to continue
t o time T.
I n thi s case we have
and
Combi ni ng these two equations we obtain
j =h- t
or, i f q i s the l ast f l ow rate
wi t h t and A t defined i n Fi g. 8. For gas wel l s, eq 5 becomes
The theoreti cal Horner pl ot gives P D( t +A t) - PD( A t) vs log(-- t +A t
A t
I f we are abl e to extrapol ate the previous bui l dup curve so that a suf f i -
ci entl y approximate value is obtained for pext(T), we can use the l ef t hand
side of eq. (6) to construct Horner pl ots from f i el d data. These can then
be compared wi th the avai l abl e Horner pl ots of theoreti cal cases to obtain
information on t he most sui tabl e model f or t he real si tuati on.
Horner Pl ots for Travale 22 Well
The curves shown i n F i g. 9 were pl otted according to the above proce-
dure.
i ng rel i abl e values for Pext( T ) ; f or thi s same reason some other curves were
shortened i n thei r fi nal part although further shut-in pressure data were
avai l abl e.
Some bui l dup curves were excluded there being no possi bi l i ty of obtai n-
Production time t is reported as a parameter instead of tDA as the
hydraulic di ffusi vi ty and reservoi r area are not known.
- 103-
Tt-IKMW 2 2
The kh value used t o cal cul ate -
G ~ Z R T (Pext - pws
was obtained by conventional Horner pl ots and type-curve matching (Bare1 1 i
et al . , 1975).
--
Some very short del i very during
long shut-ins and very short shut-ins
during long production periods have been ignored.
From Fig. 9 we can observe that:
-- there i s a regul ar displacement of the curves changing t;
thi s displacement i s such thtt,t& dimensionless Ap2 i s an increasing
functi on o f t f or any given
-- (Pext - PWS) -f 0 when t +-.
at
This is not so cl ear i n Fig. 9 as some curves are not complete, due to the
di f f i c ul t y i n extrapol ati ng the previous curve.
The trend to recovery of i ni t i a l pressure i s evident i n F i g. 7 which
represents a very long bui ldup occurring about nine months af ter we1 1 blow-out.
Si mi l ar resul ts were found by Cel ati and Galardi (1975) wi th a si mpl i -
f i ed analysis, assuming for pi a constant value or the maximum value reached
i n the l as t long buildup.
From a comparison o f T 22 curves wi th the theoreti cal cases given i n
Figs. 1 to 5, we see that downward displacement i s general l y obtained as the
ef f ect of impermeable boundaries as i n Fig. 1 and+ f or a l i mi ted range of tDA
i n Fig. 3. The same ki nd of t-dependence of the curve posi ti on i s obtained
for an i nf i ni te reservoi r wi th l i near or radi al di sconti nui ty when the wel l
i s placed i n the hi gher mobi l i ty zone. The l i mi ti ng hypothesis o f constant
di ffusi vi tY .throughout the reSerV0i r-was formed for these cases,
i n Figs. 4 and 4 are the most s i mi l ar to those of T 22, as they al so have
s i mi l ar trends for At-. I n the case of a closed reservoi r the asymptotic
values f or A t - are posi ti ve, increasing wi th an increase i n t and, i n the
case of recharge through a l i mi ted section i n the boundary, the curves i nter-
sect one another i n the f i nal part o f the buildup.
The curves
However, the l atter ef f ect i s much less evident f or smaller values o f t,
and i n our case i t could be masked by experimental errors and the fact that
the curves are not general l y extended to very long A t values.
Disc
-
res u
high
ssion and Conclusion
Some hypotheses can be drawn from these observations, although the
t s are i ns uf f i ci ent to draw def i ni te conclusions.
From the geological poi nt of view, Travale 22 i s located i n a structural
of the reservoi r formation connected wi th the recharge area to the west
and bounded on i t s N, E, S sides by faul ts; the l atter lower than the reser-
voi r formation and putti ng the upper part of the structure i n l ateral
contact
wi th impermeable formations.
- 104-
Geological hydrological and chemical data, obtained from other wel l s i n
the zone, have shown:
-- an interference between the vapor-dominated system feeding T 22 and
the water-dominated system i n the ol d wel l s area,
-- sudden decreases i n permeabi 1 i t y outside T 22 area,
-- a l i mi ted connection between the structural hi gh and the deeper
surrounding reservoi r (Burgassi e t al., 1975).
--
The hypothesis of a high permeability zone surrounded by lower permeabil-
it'y zones agrees both wi th the geological information avai l abl e and the si mi l -
ar i ty between the curves o f T 22 wel l and those of Figs. 4 and 5.
theoreti cal case considers a 1 inear o r radi al di sconti nui ty, i n mobi 1 i ty and
a uniform di f f us i vi ty, whereas the actual si tuati on, although not completely
known, may certai nl y be considered rather more complex.
may be responsible for the shape o f the buildup curves.
i t very l i kel y that a contri buti on t o the pressure buildup comes from the boi l -
ing of l i qui d water both on the boundary of, and inside, the vapor dominated
zone.
The
The. complex geometry
However, we consider
The reduction i n pressure can favor the i nf i l tr ati on of l i qui d water
from the rel ati vel y col d boundaries toward the warmer parts of the reservoir.
These observations are based on two-dimensional models. As there are
the val i di ty o f purely radi al flow models, a three-dimensional
being constructed.
doubts as t o
model i s now
For a
we are going
A match obta
sui tabl e fam
uanti tati ve comparison of the various models wi th the f i el d data
t o use log-log instead o f conventional semi log Horner graphs.
ned wi th verti cal displacement onl y w i l l l et us choose the most
l y of curves and determine kh and tDA.
-105-
Nmencl at ur e
a = di st ance f romwe
A = r eser voi r area
c = compressi bi 1 i t y
Fs = st or age capaci t y
1 to t he l i near di scont i nui t y
r at i o
G = mass pr oduct i on rat e
h = r eser voi r t hi ckness
k = permeabi 1 i t y
M =mobi l i t y rat i o
Mw =mol ecul ar wei ght
p = pr essur e
PD = di mensi onl ess pr essur e
=ext r apol at ed shut - i n pressure
Pex t
p i = i ni ti al pressure
= shut - i n pr essur e
pws
q = vol ume product i on rate ( r eser voi r condi t i on)
R =gas l ow const ant
t = product i on t i me
= di mensi onl ess ti me
T = absol ut e t emper at ur e
z = compr essi bi l i t y f act or
t ~ ' t ~~
*P = Pi'P,,
At = shut - i n t i me
@ = porosi t y
1-I = vi scosi t y
T = ti me
- 106-
Ref e ren ce s
Bare1 1 i, A., R. Cel ati , G. Manetti, G. Neri, "Bui ld-up and back-pressure
tests on 1 tal i an geothermal wells." Second Symposium on Development
and Uti l i z ati on o f Geothermal Resources, San Francisco, CA., May 1975.
Bi xel , H. C . , B. K. Larkin, and H. K. van Poollen, "Effect of Linear
Di sconti nui ti es on Pressure Bui ld-up and Drawdown Behavior.''
J . Pet. Tech. (Aug., 1963)- 885-895.
Bi xel , H. C. and H. K. van Poollen, "Pressure Drawdown and buildup i n the
Presence o f Radial Discontinuities. " Paper SPE 1516 presented at 41st
Annual SPE F al l Meeting, Dallas, Texas (Oct. 2-5, 1966).
Burgassi, P. D., R. Cataldi, A. Rossi, P. Squarci, G. Stefani, and L. T af f i ,
"Recent developments of geothermal expl orati on i n Travale-Radicondol i
area.'' Second Syinposium on Development and U t i 1 i zati on o f Geothermal
Resources, San Francisco, CA., May 1975.
Cel ati , R. , and L. Galardi, "Applicazione del metodo di Horrier al l e curve
di r i s al i ta del pozzo Travale 22." Unpublished report, l s ti tuto
lnternazionale per l e Ricerche Geotermiche, Pisa, 1975.
Ramey, H. J .,,J r., and W. M. Cobb, " A general pressure buildup theory f or a
wel l i n a square drainage area.'' J . Pet. Tech. (Dic. 1971), 1493-1505.
Ramey, H. J ., J r., A. Kumar, M. S . Gul ati , "Gas wel l tes t analysis under
water-drive conditions." American Gas Association, Arlington, Va.
(1973), 312 pp.
-107-
1 10
lo3 r + A r 104
Fig. 1
- Horner plot for a xel l i n the centre of a closed square.
Kt
. (Ramey et al., 1971).
= Gx c A
* /
0
1
61t
Q
3 I- i
-I _-
I I .1
1 10 lo2 lo4
A t
Fig. 2 - Horner plot for 8 wei! i n the zei-itre of a constant pressure
square tPp,= - K t (Raniey et al., 1973).
d si;?
L I
-108-
0
2
4
GI3
r\c
8
IO
12
I I
1
- t,,=0.01 I
- ct osed
-_ _ _ _ const ar i t pr essur e
-.5
I I I
1 10 lo2 IO3 t+dt i o4
--
dt
Fi g. 3 - FIorner plot for a were in 8 I? : 1 rectangle with one short side
at constant pressure (wel l position: see fi g., \,-= Y t 1
+ y = A
(Ramey et al , a 1973!.
0
15
a =3048 cm
r w= 7.62 crn
7, =q2 =1000 Icgs,l
I I I
1 10 . lo2
lo3 t +nt lo4
A t
Fig. 4 - Homer plot i'or l i near 6iscc)ntinuity case (Bixel et al ., 19F3)
\
; --
).
( Kf;4 12
K-I t
d --
(b- 6 ' ! i LLi,3,2 1
( i i / L L f i 1
- 1 og-
- 1 10-
_-
1 10
I
I
1 I
I
I I I
I I I
I
I
I I I
I
I
I
I Pc
I
I
I
x t
I
--- ---T--- -r------- 1-----r---r---i
m v in \3 b a
r3 M N
-112-
.-
STUDY OF A GEOTHERMAL FIELD I N THE ASAL ACTI VE VOLCANIC RI F T ZONE
(FRENCH TERRI TORY OF AFARS AND I SSAS, EAST AFRI CA)
A. C. Gringarten and L. S ti el tj es
Bureau de Recherches Geologiques et Minieres
Orleans, France
The Asal ri ft, located 80 km west of Dj i bouti , i s one of the acti ve
"r i f ts - i n- r i f t" structures o f the Afar depression, a transi ti on between the
Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea ridges (Fig. 1 ) .
Attenti on was drawn to thi s zone because of the presence of a graben
structure, and of geochemical parti cul ari ti es of various hot springs. Two
wells were dr i l l ed on the S-W margin of the ri ft, at locations chosen mainly
from geological considerations. The f i r s t hole reached a hot water geo-
thermal reservoir, the second, one kilometer away, was dry.
Both wel l s found, from top t o bottom, a recent basal ti c series, then a
thi ck r hyol i ti c volcanic series, and f i nal l y an ol d tectonic, ti l ted, basal ti c
series, where the reservoi r i s located. The f i r s t wel l was dr i l l ed to a
depth of 1130 m, where heavy mud losses occurred, whi l e the second wel l
reached 1550 m. An important normal f aul t appears t o separate the two wells.
The f i r s t wel l , which had t o be induced i nto production by a i r - l i f t ,
was used f or extensive well testing.
P ermeability information was obtained pri or to production by i nj ecti on
Although the bottom hole pressure was perturbated by thermal of cold water.
effects from mixing wi thi n the tubing of i nj ecti on and reservoir water,
analysis could be performed wi th the serni-log strai ght l i ne method, and yi el d
a kh value of 2 darcymeters. Buildup and drawdown tests were al so performed,
but provided unusual pressure responses (Fig. 2). Although the reservoir was
expected t o be fractured, no fracture ef f ect was apparent on a log-log pl ot.
Pressure at the bottom of the well stabi l i zed rather abruptly wi thi n 10 min-
utes after the beginning of ei ther a buildup or drawdown test, which might
indicate the existence of a recharge boundary nearby.
Numerous temperature and pressure logs were run i n the wel l , before and
during roduction (Fig. 3). These indicated i ni t i al conditions of 253C and
77kg/cm
recorder. Pressure and temperature logs during production cl earl y showed
the existence of a fl ashi ng f ront wi thi n the wellbore.
3
at 1050 m, which was the maximum depth reached wi th the Kuster
The well production rate was varied by means of pipes of di f f erent diam-
eters at the wellhead. Sampling of the geothermal f l ui d at the wellhead
fai l ed t o provide reasonable values of flow rate and enthalpy.
obtained by comparison wi th theoreti cal resul ts from a numerical model pro-
vided by M. Nathenson (Fig. 4). Although the flow system at the Asal f i el d
seemed t o be di f f erent from that considered i n the model, agreement between
measured and computed values was very good. I t was concluded that the maximum
These were
-113-
product i on of t he wel l was of t he or der of 135 t / hr , wi t h 20% st eamat the
wel l head. Thi s, wi t h a wel l head t emper at ur e of 170C coul d provi de 1 or 2 MW
of el ect r i c power.
Chemi cal anal yses of the geot hermal f l ui d i ndi cat ed very hi gh sal t
cont ent , of t he or der of 190 g/ l , whi ch was al so f ound to i ncrease wi t h
product i on t i me. Thi s, and ot her evi dences, mi ght i ndi cat e the exi st ence
of an act i ve convect i on cel l .
i nt erpret at i on of t he var i ous dat a col l ect ed on t he f i el d i s cont i nui ng,
and resul t s wi l l be made avai l abl e i n t he near f ut ure.
Ref e rence
M. Nat henson, "Fl ashi ng f l ow i n hot wat er geot hermal wel l s. " J our . Res.
U. S. Geol ogi cal Sur vey, Vol. 2, No. 6, Nov- Dec. 1974, p. 743.
-114-
-1 15-
Y
mi-- .-----I
i w I w .+:
-
%' k'
i
.
4
*
. 4
A
.
.
.
.
A
0. 00.00 m.00
-1 16-
RAFT R I VER GEOTHERMAL RESERVO I R ENG I NEERI NG AND WELL STI WULATI ON
J ay F. Kunze, L.owe11 G. Mi l l er, and Roger C . Stoker
Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL)
Idaho Fal l s, Idaho 83401
I n 1973 the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) was funded by
the Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA) t o pursue a program
o f research and development i nto the geothermal potenti al of the Raft River
Valley, Cassia County, Idaho. A cooperative ef f or t was then undertaken
involving Aerojet Nuclear Company, U.S. Geological Survey, State of Idaho,
and the Raft River Rural E l ectri c Cooperative.
The basic geological investigations (pri nci pal l y the USGS) were com-
pl etzd i n l ate 1974. A meeting was then hel d t o present a l l avai l abl e data
and sel ect a dr i l l i ng s i te f or RRGE-1. The s i te was f i nal l y located i n the
middle of Section 23, ~ 2 6 ~ , 115s. The second si te, RRGE-2, was located i n
the extreme northeast corner of Section 23.
G eo 1 og i c S t r uc t u re
The Raft River Valley i s a typi cal downfaulted north-trending basin
l yi ng i n the northern porti on of the Basin and Range province. The basin i s
terminated on the north by the Snake River P l ai n of the Columbia River Plateau
province. The major local structural control consists of the Narrows struc-
ture (NE-SW) and the Bridge Fault (N-S) as depicted i n Fig. 1.
RRGE-1 and RRGE-2 Wells
The Raft River Valley i s composed of young alluvium derived from the
surrounding mountain ranges, tuffaceous s i l t and clay of the Raft Formation;
tuffaceous s i l t and sandstone of the S al t Lake Formation and quartzi te and
quartz monzonite of the Pre-Cambrian basement complex. Cross-sectional views
of RRGE- 1 and RRGE-2 are shown i n Figs. 2 and 3.
The essential information pertai ni ng t o both wel l s i s l i s ted below
RRGE- 1 RRGE-2
1. D r i l l s tart date 1-4-75
2. D r i l l completion date 3-31 -75
3. Average fl ow 650 gpm
4. Maximum bottom temperature 294F ( 146" C)
5. Total depth 4989 ft.
6. Main production 43SO-4900 ft
7. "Hot" shut- in pressure si1 atm
4-27-75
6 - 2 7- 75 >k
800 gpm
297F ( 1 47C)
5988 ft*
4300-5000 ft
%IO atm
*RRGE-2 may be deepened by 500 feet i n an attempt t o further enhance
natural artesian production.
Reservoir Engineerinq
1 . Downhole Logg i ng
Several standard and special wel l logs were run i n both wel l s and include
the fo.1 lowing:
-1 17-
2. Cor
Sev
temperature, cal iper, natural gamma, Compensated neutron-formation
density, dual induction-laterolog, spontaneous-potential, dipmeter,
compensated gamma density, sonic, televiewer, and flowmeter.
ng-Sample Testing
ral cores were taken at di f f erent depths i n both wells. P ermeability
varies from 0.002 mi l l i darci es f or ti ght caprock t o 5-10 mi l l i darci es f or
sane producing tuffaceous sediments as measured under "i n si tu" condition.
Further pressure testi ng o f the aqui fer have included fracture permeabil-
i ty and i ndi cate much higher aqui fer permeabi 1 i ty.
3. F l ow Testing
Both RRGE-1 and RRGE-2 have undergone extensive flow testi ng over extended
periods o f time (5 weeks a t 200-400 gpm). RRGE-2 discharges approximately
800 gpm j us t pr i or to reaching the fl ash poi nt at the surface, s tarti ng
from a subcooled condition. Once fl ashi ng begins, the back pressure
generated i s a resul t o f the discharge nozzle configuration and deter-
mines the total mass flow. For instance: wi th 275F outl et temperature
at the wellhead, the maximum natural flow i s only about 400 gpm wi th the
present pi pi ng and f 1 asher-separator equipment.
The water qual i ty remained very constant during the extended fl ow testi ng
averaging 2,000 ppm s ol i d content.
A downhole temperature recorder was run i n RRGE-2 several times under flow
and s tati c shuti n conditions. Under s tati c conditions, the temperature
was 250F at the bottom of the casing (4230 ft) and 297OF at the bottom
of the wel l (5988 ft). P ri or information had indicated very l i t t l e produc-
ti on from below 4800 ft. Such a temperature gradient represents an unusual
s i tuati on f or a non-producing zone. The gradient of 7"F/1758 fr i s much
less than even a normal gradient of 2'F/100 ft that one would expect.
This anomaly may be the re- cl l t o f a "hot platel' effect near the bottom of
the wel l , wi th ci rcul ati on above that i s apparently not entering the wel l
t o any great extent below 4800 ft.
4. USGS Data Correlation
The coring, logging, and dr i l l i ng information provided the data necessary
t o make a correl ati on between the wel l l i thol ogy and the USGS geophysical
data acquired i n the area. The wel l information agreed total l y wi th the
i nterpreted geophysical data except f or the basement rock type. i t was
l ogi cal l y inferred, from geophysical data, that the basement rock would
be Paleozoic sediments. However, the Paleozoic rock sequence, as wel l as
Mesozoic, are apparently missing wi thi n the basin.
5. We1 1- Ki 1 1 ing Technique
RRGE-1 was dr i l l ed i nto the production zone before the production casing
(13-3/8 in.) was emplaced.
from the well i n order t o i ns tal l the casing.
Cold water i nj ecti on i nto
the wel l proved unsuccessful i n stemming the flow.
wi th 881 ft of sand and a cement plug (120 ft) i nstal l ed which allowed
casing t o be set.
This necessitated "ki l l i ng" the artesian flow
The wel l was f i l l e d
-118-
Reservoir Model 1 ing
From the l i mi ted data, i t would appear that the maj ori ty of geothermal
water ori gi nates i n the Almo Basin (next val l ey west o f Raft River) and
feeds a large reservoi r i n the Raft River Valley. Only about 22% of the
annual preci pi tati on i n the Almo Basin can be accounted f or by surface
runoff. Further i nvesti gati on i s continuing to af f i rm thi s model.
Power P lant Development
Geothermal power pl ants operating from medium temperature (about 150C)
water can be expected t o generate 1 MW (net el ectri c) f or every 250,000
lb/hr of geothermal water (the best of we1 Is can be expected to produce
1 mi 11 ion lb/hr. o r 2000 gal/min. o r 120 1 iters/sec).
w i l l di ctate that a power pl ant feeding from a 4 t o 10 square mi l e area
of reservoi r might generate typi cal l y 50 MW(e).
w i l l pul l from a s t i l l l arger area, needing longer pi pel i nes, and offset-
ti ng any cost advantage of lower uni t cost o f the power pl ant equipment.
Thus, i t appears that 50 MW i s the nominal optimum size. Such a pl ant
w i l l be rej ecti ng 300 t o 400 MW of waste condenser heat; and the question
i s how t o best accomplish thi s rej ecti on of heat. Once-through condenser
cooling from the near surface col d water aqui fer seems a l i kel y method.
The net effect would then be transfer of heat from the geothermal aquifer
t o the near surface aquifer, except f or 10 t o 15% converted t o el ectri ci ty.
The effi ci ency of the power pl ant would be s i gni f i cantl y improved as the
condenser operated at 20C instead of 35 t o 45C as wi th cool ing towers.
Reservoir engineering of the withdrawal and rei nj ecti on from the cold water
aqui fer has received as much attenti on i n the Raft River Program as the
reservoi r engineering from the geothermal aquifer. Fortunately, nature
usually provides more and l arger cold water aquifers than geothermal aqui-
fers, so solving the condenser cooling requirements should not be as di f -
f i c ul t as supplying the heat input t o the plant. I t should be noted that
such once-through condenser cooling i s only perti nent for small power
pl ant modules (approximately 50 MW). For instance, a 2000 MW(th) heat
rej ecti on requirement such as that of a large nuclear pl ant would need
to draw and rei nj ect from too large an area t o make pi pi ng the water an
economic practi cal i ty i n most si tuati ons.
Well pmping tests have been conducted over the l as t year, fromwhich
transmi ssi vi ty and storage coeffi ci ent have been determined. Appl i cati on
o f these to a di gi tal computer reservoi r model show that the cooling
requirements f or a 50 MW power pl ant can be supplied wi th a wel l pattern
that has drawdowns and "drawups" (from rei nj ecti on) o f less than an atriios-
pheri c equivalent pressure head over many years o f operation.
Normal we1 1 spacing
A l arger pl ant module
We1 1 Stimulation
1. Water Dr i l l i ng - dr i l l i ng wi th water through the production zone i n both
wel l s has proven hi ghl y successful.
sib,le sealing o f the production zone by mudcake.
This method has eliminated the pos-
-119-
2. Hydrofracturing - RRGE-I was subjected to l i mi ted hydrofracturing
employing the dr i l l i ng r i g mud punps at 550 gpm and 1400 spi for short
periods (up to 3 hours). No noticeable ef f ect was observed i n increased
product i on.
3. D r i l l Stem Testing - a d r i l l stem test was conducted on RRGE-2 at the
bottom of the hole (4247 ft) before production casing was i nstal l ed.
The tes t showed no fl ow from the bottom 90 ft of the hole.
conducted using mud t o thi s depth. Immediately upon dr i l l i ng deeper
wi t h water, flow was encountered.
Dr i l l i ng was
4. Side-Track Dr i l l i ng - i nvesti gati on i s being conducted a t present t o
evaluate the potenti al production benefi ts to be derived fromdr i l l i ng
two and three holes o f f the main hole.
-1 20-
m
m
0
1
z
t-
V
W
tn
I
W
a
cx
n:
(?,
0'
-121-
170 psi Hol Shut - in
550 Collons / mi n.
0 f t -
500 -
1500
2000 -
2500
3ooo
3500
4500
t o o o -
I2.q - 4989 I t
C
i i l . hYL' 1
and
Sand
---
Sandstone
Sands tonc
1 l ght
gr wn
tuf f
Sands tonc
S I 1 tr tone
Sand 5 t o rl c
1 n t c r ti rJ J f.4
turr and
rlltstonc
_I
- _-
__ ._._
--
1 I ght
grcrn
t u f f
FIGURE 2.
-122-
RRGE NO, 2
150 PSI HOT SHUT-IF4
4035' A ~ O V E ~
~
SEA LEVEL
1000 11
PERFORATIOIJ AND
SQUEEZE 1530' TO 870'
I
2000 f t
3000 f t
13-3/8" CASING -
4000 f I
290 O F
MAJOR PRODUCTION
500011
MINOR PRODUCTION
6000f t
a- CORE #1
Et- CORE #2
Q- CORE # 3
0- CORE #4
e- CORE #5
\12-1/4" OPEN HOLE
MIN
SAND
i
GRAVEL
-
TUFFACEOUS
SILT a CL AY
SAND 0 Gf i AVE L
TUFFACEOUS
S I LTR CLAY
SA tJ D 8 GRAL'EL
SILT 8. S Ati D
-. ._
-__
SILT
S AND
TUF FAC EOU S
SILT
SAND a SI L T
TU F FACE0 US
SILT
S A N D
a
GRAVE L
C A LC AREOUS
TUFF
QURTZI TE &
MINOR S CI i l S T
--
QUARTZ
MONZONITE
FIGURE 3 .
-123-
INITIAL RESULTS OF RESERVOI R PRODUCTION TESTS,
RAFT R I VE R GEOTHERMAL PROJ ECT, I DAH0
T. N. Narasimhan and P. A. Witherspoon
Lawrence Be rke 1 ey Laboratory
Berkeley, CA. 94704
Two geothermal tes t wel l s were dr i l l ed and completed i n Raft River
Valley, Southern Idaho by the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory between
J anuary and August, 1975. Subsequently, hydraul i c tests were conducted on
these we1 Is to make prel i mi nary estimates o f the geothermal reservoi r
parameters and reservoi r geometry. The purpose o f thi s presentation i s to
discuss the data obtained from these tests.
Geological Setting_
down faul ted basin, f i l l e d wi th tufaceous sandstone, si l tstone, coarse-
grained sandstone and shale (the S a l t Lake formation of Mio-P1 iocene age).
I n the vi c i ni ty o f the tes t wel l s, the S al t Lake formation overl i es a quartz-
monzonite bed rock of Precambrian age. I n both tes t wel l s [RRGE #1, 4989
feet deep and RRGE #2, 5988 feet deep] hot water at approximately 294F
(146C) was tapped at the base o f the S al t Lake formation.
wel l s wi th shut- i n well-head pressures of about 150 psi . The bottom hole
pressures a t a depth o f 5000' were about 2200 psi .
phere, each wel l can fl ow freel y up t o 800 gpm. The distance between the
two wel l s i s approximately 4000 feet.
The R af t River geothermal area l i es i n a north-trending, warped and
Both are artesi an
I f opened t o the atmos-
The Hydraulic Tests
The hydraul i c tests conducted on these wel l s extended between mid-
September and earl y November.
ei ther of the wel l s at control l ed rates and observing pressure changes ei ther
i n the flowing wel l i t s e l f or i n the non-flowing wel l . A key piece o f equip-
ment i n these tests was a sensi ti ve quartz pressure gauge capable of an accur-
acy of . OO1 psi . A summary o f the tests conducted i s contained i n Table 1.
The tests pri nci pal l y consisted of flowing
dur
the
Howard Ol i ver of the U.S.G.S. at Menlo Park f or the peri od
dicated a maximum earth tide-induced perturbati on o f about
voi r pressure whi l e the maximum change i n gravi ty over the
about 0.25 m gal .
appropriate corrections had t o be made f or the earth ti de-
tions. A quick way t o el i mi nate such perturbations was t o
pressure measurements corresponding to the times at which
zero magn i tude.
I n order t o use the data f or reservoi r
An important feature of the pressure transi ent data col l ected, especi al l y
ing tests 2 and 3 , was the remarkable response of the reservoi r pressure t o
gravi tati onal changes induced by the passage o f the moon. Comparison of
the observed pressure changes wi th the earth ti de computations made by Dr.
o f observation i n-
0.2 psi i n reser-
same peri od was
n te rpretat ion
nduced perturba-
consider onl y those
he earth- ti des had
The long duration interference tes t (test 2) indicated that between
Careful study o f the earl y pressure
the two tes t wel l s the reservoir has an overal l kH = 2.28 x l o5 md feet and
an overal l (pCH of 1.2 x 10-3 ft/ psi .
buildup data f ai l ed t o i ndi cate the presence of unit slope or half-slope
l i ne segments on the log-log paper, suggesting the absence of ei ther wel l -
bore storage effects or the effects due t o prominent fractures.
appears t o behave, i n a bul k sense, as a homogeneous reservoir.
The system
Test 1 indicated that there possibly exi s t one or two barri er boun-
Test 2 indicated the possible presence
With only two test wel l s i t has not been possible
daries close t o wel l No. RRGE #2.
of one barri er boundary.
to locate these barri er boundaries.
The resul ts of the hydraul i c tests conducted so f ar suggest that the
geothermal reservoi r i n Raft River Valley i s f ai r l y large and permeable
and i s of considerable practi cal i nterest.
TABLE 1
TEST DATA FOR RRGE WELLS
Test No. Description Duration RRGE Flow Rate Max. Pressure Depth,
(hours) Well No. (gpm) D - (feet)
1 Short Term 17 2 210 39 5200
Test
2 Long Term 615.5 2 400 3.6 1000
Test
3 Short Term 30 1 26 1. 1 4700
Test
-1 25-
AN APPROACH TO GEOTHERMAL DEVELOPMENT
R. A. Wooding"
Applied Mathematics Di vi si on
Dept. o f S ci enti f i c E I ndustri al Research
Wellington, New Zealand
After about twenty years of geothermal energy development i n New
Zealand, progress i s s t i l l hampered by incomplete knowledge. I n sane cases,
thi s has l ed t o unnecessary capi tal expenditure. Lack of accessi bi l i ty of
the medium and i t s complexity are major obstacles t o achieving a better
understanding, and the i nterpretati on of f i e l d geophysical surveys i s often
tedious and may be open t o ambiguity.
logged dri l l - hol e, wi th backup studies on the geology and geochemistry
encountered, but exploratory dr i l l i ng i s expensive and often di f f i c ul t t o
j us t i f y to an industry geared t o "production psychology."
There i s no substi tute f or a properly
Most of the advances made i n New Zealand have been achieved by com-
promise. Boreholes intended f or production have been used as research holes
during the dr i l l i ng phase. Since production holes may be si ted i n qui te
dense cl usters, a very detai l ed pi cture can be established wi thi n a geo-
thermal f i el d. O f course, the drawback t o thi s approach i s that few, i f any,
holes are avai l abl e f or study outside the f i el d. This i s an important gap
i n the geothermal information at the present time; i t does not seem possible
t o determine preci sel y the volume of hot-water resource avai l abl e without
knowing the verti cal temperature gradients at depth between the obviously
acti ve geothermal fi el ds.
Where groundwater i s abundant, wi th high water tables, geothermal acti v-
i t y i s generally manifest a t the surface.
resource may not be the main problem. I t i s necessary to map the resource
and t o determine how much energy i s genuinely recoverable. Here the use of
models can be o f value, I t has been found i n New Zealand that the se of
the experience gained i n the detai l ed study o f one f i el d (Wairakei) can assi st
i n modelling the performance of other f: el ds i n earl y stages o f exp oi tati on.
Since a l l of these fi el ds are wi thi n the same volcanic zone, it can be expected
that thei r properties are reasonably s i mi l ar.
Thus the i ni t i a l l ocati on of a
However, the approach i s not without pi tf al l s . Recently i t was dis-
covered that the Broadlands geothermal f i el d, which appeared on r es i s ti vi ty
studies t o have a potenti al close t o that of Wai rakei, could perhaps be only
par ti al l y exploited. During proving tests, the pressure drop encountered was
found t o correspond t o a resource only about one- fi fth the si ze o f Wairakei
(Grant, 1975). Two possible explanations f or thi s have been considered.
F i rs t, carbon dioxide l evel s at Broadlands are much higher than at Wairakei.
When the pressure drops around a producing bore, it i s possible that carbon
dioxide canes out of sol uti on t o form a two-phase mixture wi th very poor
transmi ssi bi l i ty t o water.
productive part o f the f i e l d i s not si gni fi cantl y faul ted or fi ssured so that
the bores are located i n low-permeability media.
were val i d, there would be some prospect f or remedial action.
The second possible explanation i s that the poorly
I f the l atter explanation
*NSF Foreign Energy Research Scholar a t Colorado State University, F ort
Col l i ns, Colo., 1975-76.
-126-
I n another example, the pri vatel y owned Kawerau geothermal f i el d, which
was thought t o be o f f ai r l y minor si gni fi cance, has now been shown to be
hi ghl y productive from hydrothermal ly-a1 tered graywacke below the surface
volcanics. I f thi s proves to be production from deeper horizons than were
previously known, then the Kawerau resource could be upgraded substanti al l y.
Geothermal research involves several di s ci pl ines; i t can be peri lous
t o neglect the contri buti on fromany one of these. I n Fig. 1, an attempt i s
made to i ndi cate the i nter- rel ati onshi ps between the fi el ds which appear to
have relevance i n New Zealand geothermal research. Each heading i s intended
t o be applicable both on the large (regional) scale and the l ocal (geothermal
f i el d) scale.
GI jOLOCY < > GEOPHY SI CS
PETROLOGY
GEOCHEMI STR
STRUCTURE
/ MODELS
HYDROLOGY
7
TECTON
.Y
I C s
Fi gure 1. Aspects R e l a t i n g t o Geothermal Development
The large-scale geology and geophysics and associated tectonics are
useful i n describing the background under which high heat flows occur. J ust
what mechanisms are involved may have t o be i nferred from the petrology and
geochemistry. This includes extensive use o f isotope chemistry and dating
methods. The term "hydrology"--here intended 'to embrace a1 1 aspects of f l ui d
flow including hydrothermal convection--may be i nferred from a knowledge of
the f i el d structure, including observed temperature di stri buti ons, permeabi 1-
i ti es , and chemistry. Models are parti cul arl y useful i n supplementing the
avai l abl e f i el d knowledge, f i l l i ng i n the gaps by means of hypotheses, and
leading t o predi cti ons which may be tested. I f a model passes such tests,
i t may become a practi cal predi cti on tool . Many of the above aspects ai d i n
the expl oi tati on o f a f i el d, and the knowledge gained during expl oi tati on
provides essenti al feedback.
Models of Hydrothermal Systems
Res i s ti vi ty mapping to a depth of about one-half kilometer has now been
carri ed out by G. F. Risk and W. J . P. Macdonald o f New Zealand's Department
of S ci enti f i c and I ndustri al Research f or a substanti al part of the Taupo
Volcanic Zone. Ample backup studies i ndi cate that temperature maps would
exhi bi t s i mi l ar major features.
- 127-
Unfortunately, detai l ed resul ts of
three dimensions using presentl y avai lab
o f models research i s aimed at resolving
convection problem and establ i shi ng real
o f geothermal fi el ds.
thi s qual i ty are not obtainable i n
e geophysical methods. One l i ne
the mechanisms of the groundwater
s t i c values f or physical parameters
J ust one aspect of thi s ef f o r t has been to determine meaningful values
o f f i el d permeability. I t i s f ai r l y cl ear that the l arge scale permeability
of the f i el d, which control s the major groundwater movement, i s very low--
probably a l i t t l e less than 10 mi l l i darci es for verti cal permeability. Some
estimates for hori zontal permeabi l i ty have been s i gni f i cantl y higher, but
the value obtained from f i el d draw-off studies i s about the same as that i n
the verti cal (McNabb, Grant and Robinson, 1975).
Model 1 ing o f f i el d behavior under expl oi tati on i s o f major importance.
A successful fit has been achieved i n the case o f the Wairakei data using
the formula
q = a +bp + c dp/dt
( 1)
where q i s the rate o f draw-off, p i s the pressure, t i s time and
a, b and c are coeffi ci ents which may be determined from the data. Fig. 2
i l l us trates a model (due t o M. A. Grant) from which Equation (1) may be j us-
ti f i ed on theoreti cal grounds.
4
Col d water
r
I
Figure 2 . Model o f Drawdown i n a Hot-Water Geotherma
(McNabb, Grant and Robinson, 1975)
F i el d
I n Equation ( l ) , the term bp represents i nfl ow from the sides, i.e., con-
tracti on of the hot zone, whi l e c dp/dt ari ses from drawdown of the water
surface. The coeffi ci ent b depends upon the radius of the f i el d. Since
thi s contracts, b decreases slowly wi th time, but b may be treated as
constant f or small times.
i s a rapi d decay of f i el d pressure, which asymptotes to an intermediate value.
F urther pressure decay i s very stow, and i s due mainly to contraction.
This indicates that, after draw-off begins, there
-1 28-
Equation ( 1) has been used, i n parti cul ar, by Donaldson (1975), McNabb
(1975), and it has been used f or predi cti on o f performance i n the Broad-
lands geothermal f i el d (Grant, 1975).
References
Donaldson, I. G. , 1975, P.E.L. Rep. 104/7/1.
Grant, M. A . , 1975, Response t o expl oi tati on o f the Ohaki region o f t he
6 road 1 an ds f i e 1 d , G eo the rma 1 C i rcu 1 a r , MAG , 1 .
McNabb, A., M. A. Grant and J . L. Robinson, 1975, P ermeability estimates,
AMD Tech. Rep. 34.
McNabb, A., 1975, Unpubl ished report.
-1 29-
GEOPRESSURED GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI R ENGl NEERl NG RESEARCH
AT THE UNI VERSI TY OF TEXAS
R. M. Knapp, M. H. Dorfman, and 0. F. l sokrari
P etrol eum Engineering Department
The Uni versi ty o f Texas at Austin
Austin, Texas 78712
To date, our research has consisted of designing reservoir simulators
capable o f modeling the behavior of geopressured geothermal reservoirs. The
only model we currentl y have operational i s a si ngl e phase (water) mul ti -
dimensional simulator of such reservoirs. The model i s a f i ni t e di fference
sol uti on of the momentum transport equation f or water. The model i s two-
dimensional, and ei ther areal o r cross-sectional studies can be run. The
model allows f or heterogeneous, ani sotropi c porous media. The effects of
pore pressure reduction on f l ui d properties and reservoi r parameters are
included. Reservoir parameters include porosity, permeability, and formation
thickness. Even though the presence of dissolved gas i s not included i n thi s
model, i t s effects on momentum transport can be approximated by modifying the
f l ui d compressibility.
We plan t o use the model t o examine the effects of rock compression and
shale water i nf l ux on the performance of a wel l completed i n a representative
Gulf Coast geopressured geothermal reservoir. This w i l l be done to ai d i n
planning wel l design and production tests f or an expected pi l ot wel l dr i l l ed
i nto such a reservoir.
A t thi s t irne, we vi sual i ze that a geopressured geothermal reservoi r
might appear l i ke Fig. 1. A massive undercompacted sandstone body i s bounded
on the landward side by a growth faul t. Seaward the formation grades i nto an
undercompacted shale. A t the top, the sandstone i s bounded by a shale that
allows no verti cal movement of fl ui d. Below the sandstone there i s an under-
compacted shale. The f l ui d contained wi thi n the reservoi r i s a rel ati vel y
fresh water. Hopefully, i t i s contaminate-d wi th natural gas i n sol uti on.
The sandstone body tends t o be elongated i n the di recti on paral l el t o
The body w i l l be an ancient sandbar or del ta made up the ancient seacoast.
of sediments deposited by the ancient ri vers.
We feel the fol l owi ng phenomena w i l l be important considerations i n the
development o f reservoi r simulators for the geopressured geothermal reservoirs:
Because o f the depositional conditions, the reservoirs are hetero-
geneous. There i s considerable evidence that shale water i nf l ux has played
a rol e i n the maintenance of reservoi r pressures i n gas wel l s completed i n
geopressured formations. The f i r s t attempts to examine shale water i nfl ux
w i l l be done by extending the modelled reservoi r volume t o include the of f -
shore shales. Both the shales and the sandstones w i l l probably be aniso-
tropi c as wel l as heterogeneous.
Since the formations are undercompacted, as f l ui d i s removed the reset--
I t w i l l
voi r w i l l compact as the rock matri x assumes the overburden load. This com-
paction w i l l provide a source of depletion energy f or the reservoir.
al so reduce the cross-sectional area avai l abl e f or f l ui d movement and decrease
the porosi ty and permeability of the formation.
-1 30-
The primary reservoi r f l ui d i s , of course, water. The temperature i s
Therefore,
expected t o range from 300 t o 400" F (150 to 200" C).
be at about 14,000 feet (4,200 meters) i n the Texas Gulf Coast.
hydrostati c conditions w i l l be s uf f i ci ent t o keep the formation water i n the
l i qui d state during production.
The formations w i l l
The dissolved gas i s an i nteresti ng complication. The mass o f di s-
solved gas per uni t mass of water i s qui te small at f ul l saturation even at
the elevated pressures and temperatures associated wi th geopressured reser-
voirs. I f the formation water i s f ul l y saturated wi th natural gas, as soon
as production begins thi s gas w i l l evolve from the water. I t i s cl ear that
total removal of the gas i n sol uti on w i l l not resul t i n a large gas satura-
tion. The mobi l i ty o f thi s gas coming out of sol uti on i s not known. For
the purposes of reservoi r simulation, the prudent approach appears to be t o
provide f or the transport of the natural gas specie as ei ther sol uti on gas
or as "free" gas.
If the reservoirs were simply t o be depleted, the sol uti on of the di f -
ferenti al equations describing momentum transport f or the formation f l ui ds
would be s uf f i ci ent to model the behavior of geopressured geothermal reser-
voirs. However, i t i s certai n that one of the expl oi tati on schemes consi-
dered for such reservoirs w i l l be the re- i nj ecti on of the produced water i nto
the reservoi r after i t has been "cooled" and "stripped" of the natural gas
by the surface i nstal l ati on.
The re- i nj ecti on of the "cooled" water makes i t necessary t o include
the effects of thermal energy transport i n the reservoir. We assume that the
reservoi r f l ui ds and the rock matri x w i l l be i n thermal equilibrium. With
reservoi r temperature as a variable, f l ui d and rock properties w i l l exhi bi t
complex behavior.
The di f f erenti al equations we feel describe the behavior of geopres-
sured geothermal reservoirs are given as Appendix A at the end of thi s paper.
The boundary condi ti ons f or these equations deserve some commen t. They
w i l l , of course, depend on the modeling study performed and the choice o f the
system t o be represented.
A t the top o f the reservoi r the verti cal permeability of the shales
w i l l be extremely small. Over the productive l i f e of the reservoir, f l ui d
movement i n or out of the reservoir can be neglected at thi s boundary. A t
the bottom of the reservoi r there may be shale water i nfl ux.
handled i n one of two ways.
extend the reservoi r system f ar enough i nto the shales that a speci fi ed poten-
t i a l or no-flow boundary might be specified. This w i l l require a large com-
puti ng gri d. To reduce computer storage, i t may be desirable t o confine the
computing gr i d t o the sand body i ts el f . I n thi s case, the poi nt source terms
i n the di fferenti al equations can be used t o represent f l ui d i nfl ux. A t the
offshore boundary s i mi l ar conditions can be applied. Along the growth faul t,
we expect that the boundary w i l l be sealed. I f production seems t o i ndi cate
otherwise, we feel we can use the source terms t o represent water i nfl ux.
We anti ci pate handling the energy equation boundary conditions i n a si mi l ar
f ash ion.
This can be
The most strai ghtforward scheme would be t o
-131-
APPENDI X A
DI FFERENTI AL EQUATIONS OF FLOW IN GEOPRESSURED GEOTHERMAL RESERVOIRS
Moment um Cons er vat i on
a
at
+ Q g = - ( 1
Energy Balance
Variable Definitions
krw) krg
= rel ati ve permeability to i th phase.
i = g (gas), i - w (water), i - r (rock)
- -
K
= local rock permeability tensor
PW Pg = f l ui d density
= fl ui d viscosity
9
PW u
pw, pg = pressure
-1 32-
9 = gravitational acceleration
h = local elevation above a reference datum
= poi nt source
QW, Qg
sw, sg
Rs
Hw' Hg
a
0 = porosity
= fraction o f pore volume occupied by phase
= gas i n solution per unit mass of water
= internal energy o f i th phase
= superficial (Darcy) velocity
= rock-fluid mixture thermal conductivity
- -
uw, "g
T rock-fl ui d temperature
- 133-
Figure 1 Cross-section and Pl an
View of Geopressured
Res er v oi r
-134-
.-
SDGEE PI ONEERI NG GEOTHERMAL TEST WORK
I N THE IMPERIAL VALLEY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
G. L. Lombard and J . M. Nugent
San Diego Gas E E l ectri c Company
San Diego, CA.
The San Diego Gas E E l ectri c Company (SDGEE) i s acti vel y engaged i n
testi ng t o develop methods t o ut i l i z e geothermal resources at Niland and
Heber i n Cal i forni a' s imperial Valley.
This paper describes San Diego's test program at the Niland area
which i s characterized by high temperature brines of high s al i ni ty.
San Diego's f i r s t testi ng began i n Apri l 1972. One production wel l
was flowed at the Niland s i te for about ten days.
pumping. Brine temperature and pressure at the production wellhead averaged
375F and 150 psig. The geothermal brines which were produced were i nj ected
back i nto the reservoi r through a 2,400 ft. deep well located about 4 mi l e
away.
The wel l flowed without
The production of the well was, on the average, 400,000 l bs/hr. total
mass flow.
(16%), and 12,000 lbs/hr of noncondensable gases (3%). The we1 lhead tempera-
ture and pressure remained stabl e at 375F and 1.50 psig. The total dissolved
sol i ds averaged 225,000 parts per mi l l i on and the indicated bottomhole tem-
perature was 510F at a depth of 2,250 feet.
This was 324,000 lbs/hr of l i qui d (81%), 64,000 lbs/hr of steam
Based on these tests, San Diego proceeded wi th a preliminary design
of a Geothermal Test F aci l i ty.
because of the rel ati vel y high volume of noncondensable gases.
A di rect steam turbi ne cycl e was rejected
F i el d tests were careful l y designed t o simulate the phase separation
and heat transfer conditions which would exi s t i n the f ul l - s cal e Geothermal
Test F aci l i ty. The separator and heat exchangers used i n these f i el d tests
were 1/20th scale versions of the proposed test f ac i l i t y equipment.
I n the 1973 f i el d tes t program, production of geothermal f l ui ds from
the well was held to a tes t fl ow of 20,000 lbs/hr. Brine, steam and non-
condensable gases exi ted at the top of the separator and passed through the
shel l side of the steam heat exchanger. Brine, leaving the bottom of the
separator, flowed through the tube side of the bri ne heat exchanger. The
temperature o f both the steam and the bri ne was 375F.
used f or the heat exchange fl ui d. The dissolved sol i ds i n the geothermal
bri ne flowing through the bri ne heat exchanger ranged from 200,000 to
245,000 parts per m i l l ion.
the tes t separator were 40,000 to 80,000 parts per mi l 1 ion.
heat exchanger and bri ne heat exchanger heat transfer
to unacceptable l i mi ts i n about 100 hours of operation.
Di s ti l l ed water was
Dissolved sol i ds i n the steam a t the exi t of
Both the steam
performance declined
-1 35-
inspection of the bri ne heat exchanger tubes and header showed a
scale buildup which averaged 0.060 inch thi ck.
tube end were considerably thi cker. The major constituents were s i l i c a
(Si02 38%), i ron s ul f i de (FeS3 23%), and lead s ul f i de (PbS 11%).
A layer
of scale approximately .045 inch thi ck i n the steam heat exchangers was
attri buted to the high carryover which was due to an undersized separator
design and a
Amorphous deposits near the
l ack of a scrubber downstream of the separator.
Scaling wi thi n pi pel i nes which handled bri ne was another troubl e
area. A scale buildup one inch thi ck was observed i n a pipe spool removed
after s i x months o f continuous bri ne handling service.
to a i r i n the i nj ecti on pump sump pri or t o pumping back i nto the reservoi r.
The bri ne process pipe was above ground and was not insulated t o reduce
heat loss.
The bri ne was exposed
Neither the mi l d carbon steel process pi pi ng nor the ti tani um heat
exchanger tubing showed signs of corrosion during or af ter these tests.
These findings were determined by metalographic inspection of the contain-
ment materi al s and chemical analysis of the scale.
We tested two methods of cleaning scale from heat exchanger tubes.
Caustic sol uti on cleaning proved t o be more ef f ecti ve and faster than the
hydroj etti ng method.
i n March 1974, San Diego resumed f i e l d tes t work at the Niland
geothermal f i el d using scale models of a new design. The fl ow diagram for
the tes t hardware is shown i n Fig. 1. The fl ow of geothermal f l ui d from the
producing wel l was control l ed at a rate ranging from 50,000 to 100,000 lbs/hr
a t various times during the tes t program to map the separator performance.
The geothermal f l ui ds from the producing wel l entered the f i r s t stage separa-
tor a t 150 psi g and 370F for thi s fl ow range. Approximately 5,000 to
12,000 I bs/hr of steam flowed out of the f i r s t stage separator t o a scrubber
where it was cleaned and then di rected through the shel l of the steam heat
exchanger.
separator to the second stage separator which was operated a t 50 psig. An
average of 2,300 t o 6,000 lbs/hr of steam flowed from the top of the second
stage separator t o the second scrubber where it was cleaned and then flowed
through the tubes of the second stage heat exchanger.
The remaining bri ne flowed from the bottom of the f i r s t stage
Fig. 2 i s a cutaway view of one of the separators showing the simple
i nteri or of the vessel. Both the f i r s t stage and second stage separators
used i n thi s tes t had the same confi gurati on. Well f l ui d enters the separa-
tor a t the port located i n the bottom and impinges on the vessel end dome
where a wearplate provides for protecti on o f the vessel wal l .
the vessel through the upper port.
vessel and flows t o the second stage separator.
Steam leaves
Brine col l ects a t the bottom of the
The tes t determined that a maximum l i qui d l evel of one quarter t o
one thi r d of the separator diameter produced the most ef f ecti ve separation.
The parameters found to be associated wi th thi s l i qui d l evel range are an
i nl et mass vel oci ty not exceeding 50 feet per second, a steam vel oci ty of
no more than 5 feet per second and a separator length equal to approximately
-1 36-
four vessel diameters. Test resul ts indicated approximately 100 t o 200 parts
per mi l l i on o f dissolved sol i ds remained i n the steam leaving both the f i r s t
stage and second stage separators.
Fig. 3 shows the i nternal s of the steam scrubbers used for the 1974
tes t program. Steam from the separator enters the scrubber through the
lower port. I t flows up through f i ve trays which hold pure water obtained
from the steam condensate a t a poi nt downstream from the heat exchangers.
The water contacting the steam scrubs the sol i ds entrained i n the steam.
Clean steam exi ts at the top, and the washwater, which i s continuously added
to the scrubber at a rate of 0.2 gallons per hour, enters at the top of the
vessel. I t cascades from tray t o tray t o the drai n at the bottom and after
leaving the scrubber i s recombined wi th the bri ne stream and rei nj ected i nto
the reservoi r.
During the 1974 tests, the sol i ds i n the steam leaving the scrubbers
were reduced to the l evel of 10 to 20 ppm, which i s acceptable for steam
heat exchanger operation.
The graphs i n F i g. 4 show the resul ts of the 1974 heat exchanger
The l i nes pl ot overal l heat transfer coeffi ci ent f or the f i r s t stage tests.
and second stage heat exchangers as a functi on of time of operation.
1974 tests accumulated total operating time f or the f i r s t stage heat
exchangers of 398 hours. While the f i r s t stage heat exchanger was under
test, an upset o f operation i n the scrubber occurred which resulted i n a
high carryover of dissolved sol i ds from the scrubber i nto the f i r s t stage
heat exchanger. This carryover was i n excess of 3,000 ppm f or a period of
approximately 37 hours during the i ni t i al tes t operation. An extrapol ati on
of the data indicates that, including the upset, the f i r s t stage heat
exchangers would operate f or about 3,200 hours before reaching design con-
di ti ons requi ri ng cleanup. Without the upset it i s estimated thi s heat
exchanger could operate up to a year before requi ri ng cleaning.
The
A comparable analysis of the second stage steam heat exchangers
indicates that they w i l l operate f or 10,000 hours before reaching design
heat exchange conditions.
heat exchangers was 587 hours.
Total actual operating time for the second stage
The 1974 f i el d tests at the Niland geothermal f i el d demonstrated
It al so gave a good i ndi cati on that a
that the technology could be developed to handle the Niland brines for pur-
poses of ef f ecti ve heat exchange.
successful rei nj ecti on program can be accomplished a t the Niland geothermal
reservoir. A t the s tar t of the 1974 tests, the i nj ected geothermal bri ne
flow averaged 90,000 lbs/hr. at an average temperature of 165F. I ni t i al l y
the i nj ecti on pump discharge pressure required was nearly 400 psig, but
af ter 16 hours o f continuous pumping, the i nj ecti on pressure dropped and
bri ne flowed i nto the i nj ecti on wel l by gravi ty. During the 6-month tes t
program, i nj ecti on by gravi ty fl ow could be maintained an average of s i x
days before i nj ecti on pressure gradually rose requi ri ng another short period
of pumping. The fl ow was varied between 60,000 and 120,000 lbs/hr. Tempera-
ture was maintained i n a range between 150F and 180F by adding 10% i rri ga-
ti on water to cool the hot spent bri ne to prevent cavi tati on i n the i nj ecti on
Pump
-137-
SDGGE di rected the Ben Hol t Company of Pasadena t o proceed wi th
engineering f or a Geothermal Test F aci l i ty uti l i z i ng the multi-stage steam
f l as h process wi th steam scrubbing and steam heat exchanger.
i s the thermal loop porti on o f a 10 Mw bi nary el ectr i c generation plant.
The isobutane turbi ne and associated generator set are simulated by an
expansion valve i n the isobutane loop. Fig. 5 i s a fl ow diagram of the
f ac i l i ty. This process does not make use of the bri ne i n heat exchangers,
but instead flashes the bri ne to steam i n four stages to extract maximum
heat.
the remaining bri ne and the f l ui ds rei nj ected to the reservoi r through two
we1 1 s .
This f ac i l i ty
The condensate from the steam heat exchangers w i l l be recombined wi th
I n 1975 the U.S. Energy Research and Development Administration
(ERDA) entered i nto a j oi nt proj ect agreement wi t h San Diego Gas E E l ectri c
Co. for construction and operation of the 10 MWe sized geothermal loop
experimental f ac i l i t y at Niland i n the I mperial Valley. Under the agreement,
costs w i l l be shared 50-50 by SDGEE and ERDA.
i t y and experimental programs i s approximately $8 mi l l i on.
Estimated cost f or the f aci l -
SDGEE and ERDA plan f or the completion of thi s f a c i l i t y i n Apri l
1976. Using two production and two i nj ecti on wells, the operation of the
Geothermal Test F aci l i ty should obtai n essential data to confirm the design
of the binary power cycl e and to provide a f i r s t step i n the determination
of the Niland geothermal reservoi r characteri sti cs. SDGEE, ERDA, and others
w i l l continue t o develop and tes t equipment as wel l as t o establ i sh required
reservoi r operating parameters and procedures. The goal of thi s program i s
t o achieve the conversion of geothermal energy i n the I mperial Valley to
commercial el ectr i c energy.
-1 38-
t
I ) I(
..............*.,..........._...................
tj
C T !
- 2 CT-
a -
t
...
c
-1 39-
C.
FIGURE 2 .
I - - STEAM
, --E-- ----..
B EN HOLT
STEA
1974
OUT
X t W A S H
WA TER
I N
F I G U R E 3 .
- 140-
!
i
:
E
E
3
I
s
t
-
-141-
L n
-142-
NI LAND RESERVOI R MONITORING AND EVALUATION OPERATING PROGRAM
Thomas C. Hinrichs
Escondido, CA. 92025
I mpe r i a 1 Magma Company
S i x wel l s w i l l be uti l i z ed during operations to monitor reservoir
parameters.
Elmore # 3 w i l l be used f or production. Magmainax #2 and #3 w i l l be used
f or i nj ecti on and Magmamax f4 and Elmore # 3 , i ni t i al l y, w i l l be used f or
ob se rva t i on.
Magmamax #1, Woolsey 81 and possibly l ater i n the program
I . Acti vi ti es to be carri ed out pr i or to actual start- up of thermal test loop.
A. A l l wel l s w i l l have temperature and pressure surveys taken.
B. Magmamax #3 w i l l be flowed i nto a Baker tank t o obtain baseline chem-
i s tr y associated wi th the reservoi r being produced fromMagmamax 153.
This information w i l l not be an accurate determination of actual
reservoir conditions i n Magmamax # 3 because considerable i nj ected
f l ui d has been put i nto Magmamax f 3 i n the various small scale test-
ing operations carri ed on i n the past; however, a baseline of exi st-
ing bri ne chemistry i n the vi ci ni ty of the reservoir which i s pene-
trated by Magmamax # 3 w i l l be desirable for monitoring future i nj ec-
ti on ope rat i ons .
C. Magmamax #2 w i l l be flowed i nto a Baker tank at the minimum rate
possible t o clean the wel l out and obtain an accurate sample of the
produced waters t o establ i sh a baseline pri or t o i nj ecti on operations
on bri ne chemistry. The anti ci pated duration w i l l be one to two
hours depending on flow capabi l i ti es and the tank holding capacity.
Since Magmamax 2 has not been previously used f or i nj ecti on purposes
a good sample of actual reservoir conditions should occur rather
rapi dl y.
D. Magmamax #1 w i l l be produced through the by-pass t o the bri ne p i t
unti l evidence i s shown that the wel l i s producing at a stabi l i zed
rate. I t may be necessary t o shut down the wel l and pump the bri ne
p i t to Magmamax #3 several times before s tabi l i z ati on occurs.
E. Woolsey #1 wi 11 be produced on the same basis as Magmamax #1 unti 1
s tabi l i z ati on has occurred.
I I . I ni t i a l operations associated wi th the thermal tes t loop.
A. During the f i r s t three weeks Woolsey #1 and Magmamax #2 W i l l be l ef t
i n the shutin condition and production i nto the thermal test loop
w i l l occur from Magmamax #1 at f u l l production capable from that wel l
and i nj ecti on w i l l be made i nto Magmamax #3.
time pressure monitoring w i l l be done on a continuance basis as
During thi s period of
- 7 43-
rapi dl y as the pressure monitoring device can be moved from well to
wel l incorporating a l l s i x wel l s i n the program. Pressure resul ts
w i l l be logged and pl otted dai l y to determine if any si gni fi cant
trends are established from thi s operation.
B. A second three-week period w i l l be carri ed out wi th Magmamax 1
shutin and Woolsey #1 producing i nto the thermal test uni t and
Magmamax 3 continuing as the i nj ecti on wel l . The same program as
f ar as observations go would be carri ed out for thi s mode.
C. An analysis of the f i r s t s i x weeks of observation operations w i l l
be made t o determine if both wel l s producing i nto the uni t can be
accommodated by i nj ecti on i nto Magmamax #3. I f thi s appears to be
feasi bl e then the continuing operating program would be to produce
Woolsey kcl and Magmamax #1 i nto the thermal test loop and ut i l i z e
Magmamax #3 f or the total i nj ecti on. During the i ni t i al s i x weeks
of operation Schlumberger spinner surveys w i l l be run i n the injec-
ti on wel l weekly and al so i f possible i n the producing wel l . Anal-
ysis of the resul ts of these surveys w i l l determine the period for
spinner surveys during the ongoing operation phase.
1 1 1 . Ongoing operational phase.
A. Observations of downhole pressures w i l l be made every four hours
during the ongoing operational phase. Spinner surveys and pressure
buildup determinations w i l l be made peri odi cal l y based on the
resul ts found during the i ni t i al operational phase.
B. Operational data w i l l be transmitted to DeGolyer & MacNaughton
weekly f or analysis and i nterpretati on and feedback from them w i l l
come forward wi th any suggestions as to addi ti onal operational
requirements.
C. When operational changes such as fl ow rates or pressures occur the
monitoring of downhole pressures w i l l be maintained at the most
rapi d rate possible unti l s tabi l i zati on has occurred, and then
the monitoring w i l l go back t o the four-hour peri odi c i nterval .
I V . General considerations.
A. Much of the data accumulated rel ati ve to the bri ne chemistry and
characteri sti cs w i l l be perti nent to both the SDGEE thermal test
loop monitoring and the reservoi r operations.
and steam i n various locations of the thermal tes t loop would be
taken peri odi cal l y and analysis made to determine i f there are any
trends indicated i n changes associated wi th the bri ne character-
i s ti cs . Another feature which would be of prime importance i s the
monitoring of the quanti ti es of noncondensable gases being produced
throughout the duration o f the testi ng operations. There i s some
evidence that the carbon di oxi de may not be completely i n sol uti on
wi th the brines i n the reservoi r and we may f i nd a dropoff i n carbon
di oxi de content af ter a certai n amount of production. This w i l l be
monitored peri odi cal l y t o determine trends associated wi th carbon
di oxi de quanti ti es being produced.
Samples of the bri ne
- 144-
B. Fr omexper i ence associ at ed wi t h the previ ous smal l scal e t est i ng at
Ni l and and ot her l ocat i ons such as Heber , Mammot h and Br ady Hot
Spr i ngs, t here has been evi dence i ndi cat i ng t hat t he si l i ca deposi -
ti on occur s more r api dl y as t emper at ur e l evel s ar e l owered. I n order
to acqui r e det ai l ed i nf ormat i on i n regard to t hi s, i t wi l l be desi r -
abl e to st ar t t he i ni t i al oper at i ons wi t h as hi gh a t emperat ure
di schar ge to t he i nj ect i on syst emas possi bl e whi ch can be accommo-
dat ed by t he t hermal test l oop. Wi t h t he desi gn of the thermal test
l oop i t i s ant i ci pat ed t hat si l i ca deposi t i on wi l l l i kel y occur i n
the bri ne port i on of t he f l ash vessel s or i n the i nj ect i on pi pi ng
or even i nto the i nj ect i on wel l or t he i nj ected f or mat i on. Ther e-
f or e i t wi l l be desi r abl e to st ar t wi t h as hi gh an i nj ecti on t empera-
t ure as possi bl e and oper at e cont i nuousl y f or several days at t hat
t emper at ur e, and af t er i nspect i on oper at e wi t h progressi vel y l ower
t emper at ur es on a peri odi c basi s to gai n i nf ormat i on rel at i ve to the
char act er i st i cs of t he si l i ca deposi t i on probl em. Pr essur e drops
i n t he i nj ect i on pi pel i ne syst emand t he i nj ect i on wel l i tsel f wi l l
be moni t ored to est abl i sh t rends whi ch can be i ndi cat i ons of deposi -
t i on i n vari ous l ocat i ons i n t he i nj ect i on syst em.
C. Downhol e pressure obser vat i ons wi l l be ut i 1 i zed to det ermi ne r eser -
voi r char act er i st i cs to est abl i sh pot ent i al barri ers i n the produc-
t i on zones of Magmamax 1 and Wool sey 1 and the i nj ect i on zones
associ at ed wi t h Magmamax #2 and Magmamax #3. Thi s i nf ormat i on wi l l
be cont i nuousl y pl ot t ed wi t h cumul at ed f l ui d product i on or i nj ect i on
as the absci ssa and pressure as the ordi nat e. The i nf ormat i on wi l l
be t ransmi t t ed to DeGol yer & MacNaught on f or anal ysi s to est abl i sh
reservoi r char act er i st i cs. Magmamax f 4 i s compl et ed above an i dent i -
f i abl e shal e i n t he reservoi r and the i nj ected f l ui d f romMagmar nax 3
wi l l be goi ng i nto t he reservoi r bel ow t hi s shal e. Cont i nui ng
pressure moni t ori ng of Magmamax 4 wi l l provi de i nsi ght i nto the
vert i cal permeabi l i t y of the reservoi r. Observat i ons i n Magmamax #4
may be al so i nf l uence by product i on f romMagmamax 1 and Wool sey #1
si nce t he product i on zones of t hose t wo wel l s i s i n the same hori zon
as t he open area i nto t he reservoi r perf orat ed i n Magmamax #4.
Pr essur e obser vat i ons wi l l al so be moni t ored i n El more #3 to provi de
i nsi ght r el at i ve to ef f ect s on t he reservoi r associ at ed wi t h t he
product i on and i nj ect i on oper at i ons, i f any, at t hat l ocat i on,
Pr essur e shut i n t est wi l l be made peri odi cal l y as di rect ed by
DeGol yer & MacNaught on.
-145-
EAST MESA RESERVOI R
Thomas L. Gould
Houston, Texas 77027
INTERCOMP Resource Development E Engineering, Inc.
INTERCOMP Resource Development and Engineering i s currentl y working
on contract to TRW Systems and the Bureau of Reclamation to provide petro-
physical and reservoi r engineering analysis of the East Mesa geothermal
f i el d. The twelve-month proj ect was di vi ded i nto three phases which
consi st of:
1. Analysis of current data and reservoi r evaluation.
2. Design and execution of a long term fl ow tes t program.
3 . Analysis of resul ts and design of f ul l scale reservoi r development.
The f i r s t phase of the proj ect i s underway and porti ons o f the work have been
completed.
There are currentl y f i ve wel l s dr i l l ed i n the porti on of the KGRA
operated by the Bureau of Reclamation: 5-1, 6-1, 6-2, 8-1, 31-1. Each of
these wells has a complete set of geophysical logs run and a SARABAND analysis
by Schlumberger i s avai l abl e on a 1 ft. increment. I n addi ti on, core analysis
was obtained from the 5-1 wel l i n s uf f i ci ent quanti ty t o develop preliminary
petrophysical transforms. Using the transforms developed i n 5-1, INTERCOMP
has performed a petrophysical analysis of the other wel l s t o determine aver-
age reservoi r properti es over 250 ft. i nterval s.
mined $, h, kv and kh averages f or each i nterval .
no geologic correl ati on established between any of the wel l s, so that property
averaging by i ndi vi dual sand groups would not be meaningful.
I n parti cul ar, we deter-
To date there has been
This data w i l l be used by TRW Systems t o develop a geologic i nter-
pretati on of areal l y di stri buted reservoi r properties.
then be used t o compute the heat and mass i n place wi thi n a selected areal
contour for each i nterval . This w i l l onl y gi ve a refi ned estimate of the
magnitude of the resource wi thi n the KGRA since actual data control i s
l i mi ted t o the region near the wells.
not had deep wel l s dr i l l ed to date.
These properties w i l l
A substantial porti on of the KGRA has
A l l o f the fl ow tes t data taken t o date i s al so being analyzed.
INTERCOMP's 3- D Geothermal Wellbore-Reservoir model i s being used t o estab
l i s h the ef f ecti ve fl ow properti es o f the system surrounding each wel l .
Drawdown and/or buildup data i s avai l abl e on each wel l and shows that the
reservoi r exhbi ts complex fl ow behavior.
i ti es that the fl ow can be represented as a dual porosi ty, fractured, or
damaged system.
We are i nvesti gati ng the possibi
A 2-D model of the reservoi r has al so been developed using a 1000 ft.
gr i d wi thi n the current dr i l l ed area. Using estimated properties, a sensi-
t i vi t y analysis i s being performed i n order t o design an ef f ecti ve interference
-146-
test f or the reservoi r. We plan t o develop a testi ng program that can be
feasi bl y executed by the Bureau of Reclamation and that w i l l yi el d suffi ci ent
data to determine effecti ve reservoi r performance characteri sti cs between
wells.
Fig. 1 shows a schematic of the KGRA wi th the heat f l ux contours and
The pl ot
test gri d. Fig. 2 shows a sample pressure map af ter 45 days of production
from 6-1 at 600,000 l b/hr and rei nj ecti ng at the same rate i n 5-1.
scale runs from 2400 to 2800 psia over the pl ot symbol range 0 through 10.
I n thi s case an aqui fer of i nf i ni te extent has been attached to a l l edges
of the gri d. By varying rates, locations, and reservoi r properti es the
s ens i ti vi ty of reservoi r to di f f erent testi ng plans can be determined.
The reservoi r model w i l l be cal i brated to match the interference
test data obtained from the f i el d and an engineering design w i l l be performed
i n the l as t phase of thi s proj ect. I n parti cul ar we w i l l develop estimates
f or 1) resource l i feti me, 2) well design and spacing, and 3) i nj ecti on pumping
requirements i n accordance wi th operating characteri sti cs and demands of sur-
face f ac i l i ti es . TRW and INTERCOMP w i l l be working wi th the Bureau of
Reclamation to develop the operating plans on which each of these estimates
w i l l be based.
Reservoir Li feti me Estimate
The def i ni ti on of reservoir l i feti me i s open to i nterpretati on.
However, the basic c r i ter i a used i n thi s study w i l l be a minimum allowable
flowing wellhead temperature of 30OOF.
i n which the wel l s are produced by:
We w i l l consider two basic cases
1 .
2. Free fl ow i n which the f l ui d w i l l -Flash at some poi nt i n the
Submersible pumps which maintain single-phase fl ow i n the wells.
wellbore. Two-phase fl ow i n the wellbore w i l l be accounted
f or above the fl ash poi nt.
The cal ibrated reservoir-we1 lbore model w i l l be used to predi ct the 1 i f et
under the fol l owi ng del i very schedules:
1. Total fl ow of 10,000 lbm/min
2. Total fl ow o f 100,000 lbm/min
3. Total flow of 1,000,000 lbm/min
There w i l l be di f f erent l i f eti me estimates f or each of these cases depend
upon the spacing of production wells and l ocati on of rei nj ecti on wells.
Well Design and Spacing
From a reservoi r engineering standpoint wi th water rei nj ecti on at
the edge of the thermal area, thi s process i s characterized as a uni t mobil-
i t y waterflood. Under ideal conditions, the f i r s t cool water breakthrough
w i l l occur after roughly 708 of the ori gi nal water i s produced. Af ter thi s
P oint, surface temperatures w i l l gradually decline unti l the 30O O F l i mi t i s
reached.
wells and therefore the total volume swept.
The total energy recovery depends upon the location of rei nl ecti on
- 147
Maximizing energy recovery would at f i r s t appear to di ctate rei nj ec-
ti on as f a r from the thermal area as possible i n order t o sweep maximum
water volume. However, the hi story match permeability di s tri buti on w i l l
di ctate the allowable distance from the producing area i n order t o maintain
pressure. Without adequate water recharge, the reservoi r l i f eti me w i l l be
very short and di ctated solely by reservoi r pressure.
Si mi l arl y, dr i l l i ng wel l s di recti onal l y from a si ngl e l ocati on for
production would appear t o minimize heat losses i n the system. However, thi s
usual l y resul ts i n a reduced wel l spacing. Under these conditions, the inner
wel l s could i nterf ere severely wi th the outer producing wel l s and therefore
would be "starved." Again, the hi story match w i l l determine the minimum
allowable spacing f or each of the proposed production schedules considering
the environmental des i rabi l i ty dr i l l i ng. The numerical model w i l l be used
i n a t r i a l and error fashion to establ i sh thi s spacing.
I nj ecti on Well Pumping Requirements
For l arge scale developments the produced water must be rei nj ected
i nto the producing zones i n order t o maintain reservoi r pressure. This
process, i f designed properly, w i l l al so minimize any possible subsidence.
The producti on- i nj ecti on operation w i l l set up a pressure gradient through
the reservoi r which w i l l cause some subsidence wi thi n the producing area.
I f a l l of the produced water i s recharged by rei nj ecti on the subsidence w i l l
be l ocal i zed and small i n magnitude.
The i nj ecti on pumping requirements are s t r i c t l y a functi on of the
operating plans under consideration.
which must be considered i n order t o evaluate the pumping requirements:
For each plan there are three parameters
1. Location of rei nj ecti on wells,
2. Volumes rei nj ected per wel l ,
3. P roducti vi ty index ( P I ) of each wel l .
The volume that must be rei nj ected i s dependent upon the operating plan.
The l ocati on of rei nj ecti on wel l s w i l l be based upon the hi story match as
discussed above. The producti vi ty index can be estimated based on permeabil-
i ty, porosi ty and thickness at each parti cul ar rei nj ecti on location.
I n addi ti on to the above work at East Mesa, we are working wi th
Republic Geothermal on thei r wel l s i n the north end of the KGRA. We are
assi sti ng them i n the evaluation o f test resul ts and the design of a test-
ing program f or the northern end. The resul ts of thi s work are confi denti al
and cannot be presented at thi s time.
GEOPRESSURED SYSTEMS
INTERCOMP i s acti vel y engaged i n f eas i bi l i ty and geologic studies of
geopressured geothermal systems. These systems contain substantial amounts
of dissolved natural gas i n addi ti on to thermal energy.
as much as 60 scf/Bbl of natural gas may be dissolved i n these aquifers.
resource i s generally located along the Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast a t depths
of 12,000 to 15,000 feet.
Fig. 3 shows that
The
-148-
The devel opment of t hi s resource i s dependent on many f act or s, but
t he t hree most i mport ant are:
1 .
2. Are the aqui f ers prol i f i c enough?
3 .
I s the f l ui d economi cal l y accessi bl e?
I s t he f l ui d t echnol ogi cal l y accessi bl e?
We ar e current l y conduct i ng prospect eval uat i on and si t e sel ect i on
st udi es
quest i ons. However , det ai l s of thi s work ar e conf i dent i al at t hi s t i me.
i n or der to devel op pi l ot proj ect s t hat wi l l hel p answer t hese
NUMERI CAL MODELI NG
I NTERCOMP has devel oped numeri cal model s t hat are used i n the engi n-
eeri ng eval uat i on of geot hermal syst ems.
cal cul at i on.
and t wo- phase f l ow i n porous medi a wi t h the wel l bor e model coupl ed i n at
the sand f ace.
One model i s a t wo- phase wel l bor e
A second model consi st s of a 3-D reservoi r model
f or si ngl e
Det ai l s on t he f i r st model have been publ i shed by Goul d, "Vert i cal
Two- Phase St eam- Wat er Fl ow i n Geot hermal Wells,'l J PT ( Aug. 1974). Det ai l s
on the second model wer e present ed by Coat s et al . , "Three- Di mensi onal
Si mul at i on of St eamf l oodi ng, " SPE 4500 ( Oct ober , 1973).
engaged i n upgr adi ng t he f l exi bi l i t i es and engi neer i ng f eat ur es of t hese
model s i n or der to meet cur r ent desi gn r equi r ement s.
-
--
We ar e cur r ent l y
-
-1 49-
Fi gure 1
.-
Fi gur e 2
- PQFSSi I P F PAC,F 1 East Eksa Test Case at 45 days
5 5 555 55 5 5 5 5 555
__- 6666666 7
555555555555 6 h h 6 (i 6 7777777777
0 5 5 5 5 5 s5!35 6fihhrJ 77777 77779
55555555 6666 77 88 7 _ - -
55555555 6666 77 88 888
5555555 6666 777 8 @3 @El*
0
_-_____ 4444444 --- --.- 5555555 6,663 7- 68 834
44C64444444444444
555555 6666 777 8 7
-. * 44444444444444444444Lb44 ~_ . _ - - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - 5555555 6666 777777777"
-
G44444444444444444444444444 555554 66666 7777
- L4444444444444 ---L 44G44444 55545 64666
-- 444L4444
GL4L444444 444444 55555 6666666666669
444444 . 33333333 44444 . 55555 6666666666
6 66666656 66 6 ----
4044G -----L____ 55555 -
~ 3333333333333 __ ~ _ _ _ 4444 - 55555 .._____._I_- 6 6 - 6 h,.L6----
44a14
--- ..
44444 333333 33333 G444 55555s u
444a 333333 22222 33 44444 5555555
b444 33333 22 1 22 333 - 44444 5555555 '
--*!+5 3333 0 2 11011 22 333 44444 55s5555555 it
404 33333 22 1 22 3333 44444 55555555555
444 - --_ 333333 222222 _____ 333 44444 - 5555_55555Cj555555----
C46 333333 3333 44444 55555555555555*
44LLi 3333333 33333 444L44 55555555555555
44144 33333333333333 4444444 55555555555555
-151-
LABORATORY MEASUREMENT OF 98.7%
METHANE GAS SOLUTION IN DISTILLED WATER
71
61
5(
4(
3c
2c
'4
0
(Cul berson and McKet t a, 1951)
I I
R
2000 3000 5000 10.000
1000
BUBBLE POINT PRESSURE, PSIA
Fi gure 3 .
-1 52-
THE PGandE GEYSERS POWER PLANT--A UTILITY COMPANY'S VIEWPOINT
Laraine J . Woitke
P aci fi c Gas and E l ectri c Company
San Francisco, CA. 94106
The exi sti ng generating capacity of The Geysers Power P lant consti -
tutes about 5% of the total el ectri c generating capacity of the PGandE
system. The Geysers geothermal resource has and w i l l continue to play an
important rol e in our overal l planning f or generation additions. By 1979,
four more uni ts, Units 12 to 15, ranging i n capacity from 55,000 kW t o
135,000 kW, are planned to be i n operation, ailmost doubling the capacity
o f The Geysers Power P lant t o 908,000 kW.
Some PGandE Considerations as They Relate
to the Steam Reservoir
Attached i s our conceptual schedule of the time required for geo-
Geothermal steam as an energy resource i s an economic al ternati ve
thermal development, from the expl orati on phase through the power production
phase.
when compared wi th other forms of energy such as f os s i l and nuclear. PGandE
continues to view geothermal development favorably; however, many of the
issues and problems, etc. , inherent i n geothermal development af f ect the end-
user of steam as wel l as the developer of the resource.
PGandE, as a u t i l i t y that i s regulated by the CPUC, the new ERCGDC,
FPC and others, i s somewhat di fferent from a steam developer. PGandE i s
responsible f or taking reasonable steps to provide adequate f i r m el ectri c
power to i t s customers a t reasonable rates.
bi l i t y, the Company must o f course act wi thi n a l l the applicable environ-
mental, economic, and legal restrai nts that exi s t f or ut i l i t i e s i n Cal i forni a
today. Because the steam developers are wi l l i ng and abl e to produce adequate
quanti ti es of steam, and market it a t reasonable rates, PGandEhas not parti ci -
pated i n expl orati on and development of the steam resources.
I n discharging thi s responsi-
I n accordance wi th current ratemaking, and operating experience,
PGandE amortizes i t s investment i n a generating uni t and i n rel ated el ectri c
transmission f ac i l i t i es over about a 30 to 35-year period.
voi r information i s required pr i or to the commitment of major expenditures
for a power pl ant i n order t o assure that the reservoi r w i l l supply steam
over the l i f e o f the using f aci l i ty.
Adequate reser-
PGandE presentl y has steam supply contracts wi th Union O i l Company-
Magma Power Company-Thermal Power Company, P aci f i c Energy Corporation, and
Burmah O i l and Gas Company. An important feature of a l l our steam supply
contracts i s that PGandE and the suppliers agree to accept reservoir
engineering data as a basis f or estimating the abi l i t y of The Geysers steam
f i el d to del i ver steam over a long period of time. Many of you are no doubt
aware that PGandE has been and continues to be grateful f or the assistance
of the reservoi r engineering di sci pl i ne, especi al l y here at Stanford Univer-
s i ty, i n the development of guide1 ines and procedures that are used i n evalu-
ati ng the geothermal reservoir.
-1 53-
Our contracts al so provide that as addi ti onal steam reserves are
The addi-
proved, PGandE w i l l i ns tal l addi ti onal generating uni ts. Our present
resource program cal l s f or approximately 100,000 kW per year.
ti onal reserves are proved by both successful stepout dr i l l i ng and study of
production hi story of exi sti ng wells.
ut i l i z e any or a l l o f f i rml y avai l abl e geothermal steam that can be proved
by steam developers i n The Geysers area i n the foreseeable future.
We anti ci pate that we can benefi ci al l y
Status of H2S Abatement a t The Geysers
Anyone even remotely fami l i ar wi th The Geysers development must be
aware that H2S emissions have been one of the major factors causing
the
current reduced rate of development. Because some of you are associated
wi th companies which may get i nto geothermal development at The Geysers,
l e t me take a minute or so to br i ef l y describe the status of the H2S abate-
ment efforts now underway.
The hydrogen sul fi de i n the geothermal steam i s presently released
from the power pl ant i n two ways. The larger porti on of it dissolves i n the
cooling water i n the di rect contact condenser and i s then stripped out i n
the cooling tower. The remainder i s removed along wi th other noncondensable
gases by the condenser off-gas removal equipment, and i s discharged i nto
the atmosphere.
method,
both t h
process
i ron su
ti on of
s t rated
however
One abatement system PGandE developed i s the catal yti c i ron oxi dati on
now i n operation a t Uni t 1 1 .
works to reduce releases from the cool i ng tower by addi ti on of an
fate catal yst t o the cooling waters.
hydrogen sul fi de t o elemental sul fur. The process has been demon-
to work very wel l i n removing H2S f r o m the cooling tower emissions;
thi s method appears to cause accelerated corrosion of uni t comDon-
I t ef f ecti vel y reduces emissions from
condenser vent gases and cooling tower emission sources. This
This catal yst causes the oxida-
ents which i n turn can.reduce uni t r el i abi l i t y and thus the amount of skeam
we can accept from the producers.
sludge that i s not saleable or reclaimable, and must be disposed of i n a
specially-approved land fi l l si te.
Al s o , thi s process produces a sul fur
Another system, which we cal l the "burner scrubber" technique, i s
under tes t a t Uni t 4.
and hydrogen i n addi ti on t o hydrogen sul fi de t o be combustible, are burned.
This resul ts i n sul fur di oxi de which i s scrubbed i n the cooling waters.
The condenser off-gases, which contain enough methane
For future uni ts (starti ng wi th Uni t 12), we plan to use the Stretford
system i n conjunction wi th a surface condenser. This i s a chemical system
which reduces the H2S t o elemental sul fur.
PGandE's Concern wi th Certain Federal Leasing Regulations
As a user o f geothermal steam f or el ectri c generation, PGandE i s
concerned over several elements of the federal Geothermal Leasing Regula-
tions. One concern i s the requirement that certai n terms of federal leases
-1 54-
be renegotiated 10 years after the f i r s t commercial steam i s produced.
Since capi tal investment i n geothermal generating f ac i l i ti es i s amortized
over a 30- to 35-year period, thi s provi si on i n the leasing regulations
places some doubt upon the wisdom of investing large capi tal sums i n bui l d-
ing such f ac i l i t i es when the steam supply i s not assured over a comparable
period o f time.
Another element of concern i s the provi si on that a lease "super-
vi sor'' i s given the authori ty to close down, without gi vi ng noti ce or hear-
ing, an enti re geothermal operation which he considers to be unsafe or which
could cause pol l uti qn. This uni l ateral authori ty given to one i ndi vi dual
al so places doubt upon the wisdom of making large capi tal investments i n
these f aci l i ti es .
A thi rd concern i s about the uncertai nti es that are raised by the
gratui ti ous i nserti on i n the federal leases of a provision, not required by
the leasing regulations, reserving t o the government the ri ght to issue
orders necessary to "insure the sale of the production from the leased
lands at reasonable prices, t o prevent monopoly, and t o safeguard the publ i c
interest. "
assurance of the ri ght to operate, del i ver, and use a geothermal resource
i s unknown.
What thi s reservation does f or securi ty of tenure and long-term
Concl us ion
To sum up, PGandE believes that exi sti ng and future geothermal
development a t The Geysers has and w i l l make an important contri buti on as
as source o f el ectri c energy.
of both a technical and i ns ti tuti onal nature that we thi nk can be sati s-
f actor i l y resolved i f al l of us i n the geothermal industry continue to
apply the necessary combination o f creati vi ty and ef f ort. The reservoi r
engineering aspects of the proj ect havz played a si gni fi cant rol e i n the
development o f thi s important resource and we look forward to the continua-
ti on of the work being described by the parti ci pants o f thi s workshop to
enhance our understanding of the resource so that i t s development can
advance i n a manner that produces benefi ts f or the developers, users and
society a t large.
I have br i ef l y described some problem areas
-155-
I
1 i
I ;
I ,
I . . i . . / _ . .
I
3
- L -
53111Af i 3V
833flaQifd wv31s
1 I
I 1
I - 1
I I
i j V I - I
-1 66-
GEOTHERMAL RESERVOIR PRESSURE REQUIREMENTS FOR PRODUCTION
J . T. Kuwada
Rogers Engineering Company
San francisco, CA. 94111
Rogers i s an engineering company, and as such our interest i n reser-
voi r engineering i s concerned wi t h the production aspect. Reservoir testi ng
and production management techniques practiced today are l argel y rul e- of-
thumb. We are hoping to learn from you such parameters as proper well
spacing and wellbore si zi ng for a given reservoir which w i l l provide optimum
production and l i f e of the reservoir. We cannot contribute much i n thi s area
other than perhaps to ask the questions which may stimulate research and to
rel ate some of our observations as to what we fi nd i s required to sati sfy
our needs. For example, i n making reservoir modeling studies we feel it i s
very important that the chemistry of the system be considered, parti cul arl y
where i t i s indicated that production w i l l be affected by flashing i n the
reservoir.
There have been instances where well production has been l i mi ted by
reservoir permeability rather than by wellbore diameter.
are produced to thei r maximum capacity, the pressure drawdown i n the reser-
voi r exceeds the gas evolution pressure, and Flashing occurs i n the reservoir.
If the reservoirs are i n shale or limestone (carbonate) formations, cal ci te
preci pi tati ons can occur at the poi nt of flashing.
enti rel y due to loss i n permeability. This siituation has occurred i n some
of the wells dr i l l ed i n Casa Diablo. Flashing i n the formation could have
been prevented by operating the wells a t a higher back pressure, but thi s
would have reduced the well flow to uneconomic production rates.
When such wells
Well flow may cease
The wells i n Kizildere, Turkey, have high fracture permeability, so
they can be produced at high rates without flashing i n the reservoir. Flash-
ing occurs i n the wellbore, and cal ci te preci pi tati on and plugging occur
there and i n the surface equipment.
By i ns tal l i ng a pump i n the well, the poi nt of flashing can be moved
downstream of the wellbore and even the surface equipment, e.g.,
the heat
exchangers of a binary cycle plant, but I do not thi nk i t possible to pre-
vent flashing enti rel y because of the noncondensable gases dissolved i n the
geothermal water. The amount of noncondensable gases dissolved i n geothermal
brines varies from well to wel l , but most brines contain enough gases such
that they w i l l fl ash o f f even i f the brines are cooled to below the atmos-
pheric saturation pressure. Taking the KD-14 well f or example, the discharge
pressure of the pump would have to be high enough to hold 520 psig through
the heat exchangers i n order to hold the noncondensable gases i n solution,
while it would only take 230 psig t o prevent steam flashing.
The pressure downstream of the 520 psig back pressure valve would
be determined by the rei nj ecti on well pressure i n a total l y enclosed system.
Reinjection well pressure requirements have been shown to be qui te nominal
i n those si tuati ons i n which it has been tri ed, so there would be a s i gni fi -
cant pressure drop across the back pressure valve. The noncondensable gases
-1 57-
woul d evol ve, and i f they wer e not vent ed, t he rei nj ect i on wel l woul d
become "gas- bound. " Ther ef or e, I bel i eve i t wi l l be an except i onal case
i f a bi nar y cycl e pl ant can be oper at ed t ot al l y encl osed.
mental pol l ut i on advant ages cl ai med f or t he cl osed bi nary cycl e pl ant
t her ef or e wi l l not be real i zed.
The envi r on-
The concept of usi ng downhol e pumps to prevent f l ashi ng by mai n-
t ai ni ng total requi red pr essur e on t he syst emi s an expensi ve one, not onl y
i n t erms of t he compl ex mechani cal pump whi ch must oper at e i n a hot cor r osi ve
envi r onment , but al so f romt he hi gher pressures f or whi ch t he power pl ant
exchanger s woul d have to desi gned.
We have t aken anot her appr oach to the probl emwhi ch we bel i eve wi l l
be mor e r el i abl e and l ess expensi ve to oper at e. Our syst em permi t s the
wel l to produce f l ui ds by st eamf l ashi ng i n t he wel l bor e, but we prevent
cal ci t e pr eci pi t at i on by recycl i ng car bon di oxi de gas down t he wel l bor e i n
suf f i ci ent quant i t y to mai nt ai n t he carbon di oxi de parti al pressure i n t he
syst emand mai nt ai n the car bonat es i n the sol ubl e bi carbonat e f orm.
-
2 HCOY CQ, + H20 + C02+
+
++
Ca
-+
CaCO +
3
The adapt at i on of t he recycl e C02 syst emto t he bi nary cycl e i s shown i n
Sket ch No. 3. The capi t al and oper at i ng cost s f or t hi s syst emar e l ess t han
t hose f or a pumpi ng syst emut i l i zi ng l ong shaf t wel l pumps. Mai nt enance
cost s shoul d al so be l ess because t her e ar e no movi ng, mechani cal part s i n
the hot , cor r osi ve envi r onment of t he wel l bore.
Whet her by pump or by t he CO2 recycl e syst em, t he cont rol of cal ci t e
pr eci pi t at i on, we bel i eve, wi 1 1 al so cont rol t he si 1 i ca l aydown probl em.
We have r un l i mi ted f i el d t est s whi ch suggest that preci pi t at ed si l i ca i s
cement ed t oget her by t he preci pi t at i on of cal ci umcar bonat e.
-1 58-
-1 59-
FIGURE 2.
E" EC-r
WELL
E I NJ ECT
WEL L
' I O N
FIGURE 3.
- 1 60-
ener
t he
ON THE OPTIMAL RATE OF GEOTHERMAL ENERGY EXTRACTION
Charles R. Scherer
Uni versi ty of Cal i forni a
Los Angeles, CA. 90024
School of Engineering and Applied Science
horizon. An important consideration i n
iioptimal" rate a t which the energy stock
l a r geothermal anomaly. This i s pri mari
any meaningful conclusions on an optimal
based on a speci fi c model of the physica
I n the geothermal aqui fer. Accordingly,
out1 ine some economic models for optimal
parti cul ar hydrothermal model.
A geothermal reservoi r i s, among other things, a stock of heat
'gy of a given "qual i ty, " stored i n an aqui fer system. I n thi s study,
stock i s considered f i ni t e and exhaustible over the relevant economic
xpl oi ti ng thi s resource i s the
should be extracted from a parti cu-
y an "economic" quest ion, a1 though
extracti on pol i cy must surel y be
hydrothermal processes that occur
the purpose of thi s paper i s to
extracti on, i n the context of a
The discussion focuses on one anomaly. The rate of hydraul i c pump-
jng i s the major deci si on variable, and the anal ysi s trades of f discounted
' i val w" of energy from the anomaly against the rate of deteri orati on of the
qual i ty (temperature) of the heat stock. A l l extracted f l ui d i s recycled,
and no divergence between pri vate and social benefi ts and costs i s assumed.
Secondary or i ndi rect regional benefi ts and costs associated wi th develop-
ment are not considered.
Two economic models are developed. The f i r s t i s "quasi-steady-state,''
i n that the fl ow rate, Q, of f l ui d extracti on i s constant over a l l relevant
time, although the temperature, To, of the extracted f l ui d varies wi th time.
The second is completely "non-steady-state," assuming both Q and To vary wi th
time. A major obj ecti ve of these notes i s t o state, as cl earl y as possible,
t he major assumption o f these economic models, so the appropriateness of
hydrothermal model sel ecti on can be evaluated by physical model researchers.
The Hydrothermal Model
The hydrothermal model adopted f or thi s discussion was developed by
Gringarten and Sauty. I t assumes a pumped production wel l for a si ngl e phase
(hot water) geothermal anomaly wi th a recharge well as shown i n Fig. 1
(actual l y each wel l could represent a cl uster of wel l s).
F l ui d i s withdrawn a t the rate Q (cfs) and recharged a t the same rate.
The temperature of extracted f l ui d at time t i s T; , and recharged f l ui d enters
the ground at temperature T i i n period t. T i i s the temperature of condensed
exhausted steam (on the cool side of the turbine).
turbi ne design and does not vary wi th time,
aquifer matri x has dropped t o Ti , no more energy may be extracted.
It i s determined by
When the temperature of the
-1 61 -
The r eci r cul at ed f l ui d i s heat ed by t he aqui f er mat r i x f r omTi to To. t
For t he f i r st T year s, (0 < t < T), Th =TZ, wher e TZ i s t he i ni ti al equi l i -
br i um t emper at ur e of t he unexpl oi t ed anomal y.
pr opor t i onal t o Q:
- -
The magni t ude of T i s i nversel y
T = f (l / Q).
The symbol T denot es t i me unt i l
reduced f l ui d t emper at ur e "br eaks t hrough"
to t he pr oduct i on wel l .
Af t er t he T~~ year , To t dr ops exponent i al l y t oward Ti at a
r at e g(Q), as
shown i n Fi g. 2.
I n gener al , T : can be wr i t t en:
Tt =
0
1 I
T
t
Fi gur e 2
The f unct i ons f and g ar e der i ved usi ng r esul t s of t he hydrot hermal model .
-1 62-
The system i s assumed base loaded i nto a l ocal power gri d. The base
load energy, E(kwhr), avai l abl e from the process i s proportional to the
product o f Q and (Tk - Ti)':
The value o f E i s determined by the "long-run" value to the gri d of a kwhr of
Et = h(Q(Ti - Ti)')
base load energy (''long-run" imp1 ies gr i d power system capacity as we1 1
as operating costs). This value i s the pri ce the power company i s j us t
wi l l i ng t o pay f or marginal uni ts of baseload power.
value as a functi on of time, p( t) , we have:
I f we denote thi s
where
po =pri ce at t = 0.
r = rate o f increase of baseload power system costs rel ati ve to
general pri ce l evel ( i n other words, we are dealing i n "real"
dol l ars throughout a1 1 time).
The costs associated wi th extracti on depend on Q, TE and Ti. Capacity
(investment) costs w i l l be incurred f or dr i l l i ng, l i ni ng of both holes,
pi pi ng, pumps, and turbine-generator equipment. After L years, salvage
costs are zero, where L equals l i f e of equipment. Operatin costs w i l l
Rate Q w i l l
determine pump capacity and turbi ne costs, whi l e pressure w i l l affect pumping
energy requirements. Let C ( Q, To, Ti ) be present worth of a l l capacity costs
(which are incurred a t t = 0) - an8 operating costs. The discount rate w i l l be
i, and we say a (real ) dol l ar a t time t = j has present worth of e'" at time
t = 0.
depend on Q and an downhole pressure, which i s rel ated t o T,. 9
The "Quasi-Steady-State" Model
The "Quasi-steady-statet' model assumes Q i s constant over a f i ni t e
horizon, N, where N i s an integer mul ti pl e, k, of L, the l i f e of turbi ne-
generator equipment. For the case where k = l , nl(Q), the total discounted
net revenue from the system over the f i r s t L years, when pumping occurs a t
rate Q, may be wri tten as:
-1 63-
When t he i nt egr al s ar e eval uat ed, t he r esul t i ng f unct i on can be opt i mi zed
over t he per t i nent range of Q:
s. t . Q 0.
I n gener al , we can repeat t hi s opt i mi zat i on f or k=2, 3, ...., obt ai ni ng
* * * * *
712(42), T ~( Q ~) , et c.
Then f or some k ,
and N* + ( k*) L i s t he opt i mal hor i zon.
Al t hough t hi s "quasi - st eady- st at e" appr oach consi der s hor i zons of
i ndef i ni t e l engt h, i t i s somewhat r est r i ct ed, i n t hat Q i s assumed const ant
f or al l t i me. A mor e f l exi bl e appr oach woul d al l owQ to vary f r omyear t o year .
The Non- St eady- St at e Model
I f t he r est r i ct i on on const ant Q i s r el axed, an i nvest ment t i mi ng
di mensi on i s added to t he economi c model .
def i ned i n t er ms of a vect or of pumpi ng r at es:
An ext r act i on pol i cy i s then
-
Q = {Ql , Q2, * * * * , QNl 9
*
wher e Qt i s t he pumpi ng rat e i n t he t t h year. An opt i mal pol i cy, a , i s a
pol i cy t hat maxi mi zes t he per t i nent obj ect i ve f unct i on, namel y, di scount ed
net r evenues. We ar e now consi der i ng t he opt i mal "st aged" devel opment of
an anomal y.
The same hydr ot her mal model i s assumed. However , t he bi g di f f er ence
i s t hat t he f l ui d pumpi ng r at e, Q, can be i ncreased i n any year ( at some
i ncrement al i nvest ment and oper at i ng cost ) . The goal now i s to f i nd not
one Q, but a set of Q's, an i nvest ment - pumpi ng pol i cy t hat maxi mi zes
di scount ed net r evenues.
N
To do t hi s we def i ne syst emst at e var i abl es, QN and To.
Let :
Q, = f l ui d pumpi ng rat e f romext r act i on wel l j ust bef or e begi nni ng
To = t emper at ur e of ext r act ed f l ui d j ust bef or e begi nni ng of peri od N.
of peri od N.
N
* N N
VN( QN, To) =The opt i mal "val ue" of bei ng i n st at e ( QN, To) at begi nni ng of
peri od N. Thi s i s t he pr esent wor t h ( as of begi nni ng of peri od
N) of sumof net r evenues i n peri od N, N+1, N+2 ,.. . . , assumi ng
an opt i mumpol i cy i s f ol l owed; t hat i s, t he sume of t hese get
r evenues di scount ed to begi nni ng of peri od N i s equal to VN( QNyTo) .
N
-1 64-
Now suppose that N = 100 and thg discount rate i s large enough so that the
present worth i n year zero of Vi+,(QN+l, TN+) i s zero.
mount to saying V N+l (Q, , , , To) z 0.
time t =0 of value of energy from thi s anomaly af ter N years, i s zero
Then thi s i s tanta-
This implies that the present worth a t
0
it N
regardless of the value of QN+l and T! .
of economic relevance.
This ef f ecti vel y defines a horizon
Let:
RN(QN +AQN, T: = revenues i n year N from pumping (and s el l ing power)
at rate QN +AQN and temperature T!.
Then we have:
= capi tal investment i n year N to increase pumping rate
by AQN, assuming temperature during that period i s To. N
Of course it i s not l i kel y that an optimal pol i cy would
include a capacity investment i n the l as t year. Never-
theless, thi s opti on i s avai l abl e i n thi s year, as i n a l l
the other N-1 years. This investment cost would al so
cover incremental power transmission costs.
N
= operating cost during year N associated wi th producing
at rate Q, +AQN and temperature T: .
N
= +(QN+ AQN, To), where $( *, *) i s a functi onal expression
AQN and To to T F . This ttransfer func-
N
rel ati ng Q
ti on refl ects the parameters of a non-steady-state
hydrothermal model. Perhaps Professor Witherspoons
hydraul i cal l y steady state hydrothermal model could be
used t o estimate perti nent values of Q( *, *) .

where:
a = 1/ (l+i)
However, si nce V (Q TN+l) f 0,
N+1 N+1 o
Basi cal l y, thi s says the best value of the system i n state (s, To) N a t the
beginning of peri od N, can be found by maximizing the expression inAbraces
over a l l values o f AQ The value o f A Q that maximizes w i l l be AQ
Most l i kel y AQ w i l l be zero f or thi s l as t period.
N N N
N
and then move back
TO
We f i nd AQ? for each perti nent value of QN,
N
t o the beginning of period N-1, wri ti ng:
J-
This i s the typi cal two-stage opti mi zati on problem.
some pos i ti ve value, we trade-off value of energy extracted i n peri od N wi th
that removed i n period N-1, as various val u 2 o f AQN-l are considered. This
i s done for a l l perti nent values of Q
peri od N-2 and repeat the two-stage opti mi zati on again.
ti on from thi s anomaly i s a t a l l economically feasi bl e, at l east one of the
AQ w i l l be posi ti ve.
Assuming V i ( * , *) has
R 1 and then we move back t o
N - I To
I f energy extrac-
t
This backward stepping recursi ve al gori thm i s then used i terati vel y
unti 1 we compute V*(Qo, T:), where
Q = O
= i ni t i a l , equi l i bri um temperature of the aquifer.
-1.
0
We can then move forward through thi s set of equations and fi nd , the
optimal pumping pol i cy vector.
Proposed Uork
The next step i n developing these economic models i s to quanti fy the
functions L, g, h and 4 , and obtai n sol uti ons t o the models outl i ned above.
Perhaps the most important part o f these resul ts would be a s ens i ti vi ty
anal ysi s i ndi cati ng the rel ati ve importance of the above functions and such
parameters as the discount rate.
A l ogi cal extension would be to i nvesti gate various geometries and
spacine ( i n pl an view) o f production and recharge wel l s wi th these economic
models. This extension would consider mul ti pl e wel l cl usters for a si ngl e
anomaly. A more comprehensive extension would i ncl ude development of
mul ti pl e, hydraulically-independent anomalies.
-1 66-
ECONOMI C MODELING FOR GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI RS AND POWERPLANTS
C. H. Bloomster
Battelle-Northwest
Richland, Washington 99352
Our work on reservoi r modeling i s mainly from a cost accounting
standpoint. Our i nterest has been concerned wi th the economic aspects of
reservoi r exploration, development, and operation and the impact of these
acti vi ti es on the ul ti mate cost of geothermal energy.
above ground aspects of del i veri ng energy from geothermal wells, but we
have treated the below ground fl ow as a black box which yi el ds a f l ui d o f
speci fi ed characteri sti cs a t the wellhead.
simulation model of geothermal reservoi rs i n our economic model sometime i n
the future.
for geothermal cost analysis, cal l ed GEOCOST.
We have modeled the
We hope t o include a physical
We have developed, under ERDA sponsorship, an economic model
The GEOCOST computer program i s a simulation model which calculates
the cost o f generating el ec tr i c i ty from geothermal energy. GEOCOST w i l l
simulate the production of el ec tr i c i ty from most types of geothermal resources.
I t i s composed o f two pri nci pal parts: a reservoi r model which simulates the
exploration, development, and operation o f a geothermal reservoir, and a
powerplant model which simulates the design, construction, and operation of
the powerplant. Five di f f erent powerplant types can be simulated: flashed
steam, binary f l ui d cycle, a hybri d combined flashed steam-binary f l ui d
cycle, total flow, and geopressured reservoirs.
S ens i ti vi ty analysis can be performed, using the reservoi r and
powerplant models, t o determine the rel ati ve ef f ect of di fferent economic
parameters, assumptions, and uncertai nti es on the cost of generating elec-
t r i c i t y. The GEOCOST program can be used to:
determine the economic incentives f or speci fi c geothermal
research and development programs and projects.
determine potenti al economic impacts o f uncertai nti es i n technology.
i denti fy major cost components of geothermal energy, and
provide a systematic method f or assessing the economic potenti al
for each type of geothermal resource and power cycle.
Combined wi th resource assessment information, GEOCOST can be used
to define the potenti al supply curve (pri ce/quanti ty rel ati onshi p) for geo-
thermal energy. This supply curve forms the basis for: 1) assessing the
potenti al rol e o f geothermal energy i n competition wi th other sources of
energy, and 2) estimating potenti al economic incentives for new research
and development programs.
-1 67-
GEOCOST can simulate nearl y any fi nanci al and tax structure through
varying the rates of return on equi ty and debt, the debt-equity rati os, and
tax rates. The reservoi r model and the powerplant model may have the same
or separate fi nanci al structures and costs of capi tal . The pl ant and
reservoi r l i f e can be vari ed over a long period, currentl y up to 50 years.
The GEOCOST program cal cul ates the cost of energy based on the pri n-
ci pl e that the present worth of the revenues w i l l be equal to the present
worth of the expenses including investment return over the economic l i f e
of the pl ant and/or reservoi r. The present worth f actor i s determined by
the capi tal structure and rates of return on invested capi tal f or the
enterprise.
The resul ts of analyses using the GEOCOST model have shown that the
reservoi r characteri sti cs, i n parti cul ar the f l ui d temperature, wel l flow
rate, and wel l dr i l l i ng and f l ui d extracti on costs, are the most important
vari abl es which w i l l determine the cost of geothermal energy.
PHYSICAL MODELS OF STIMULATED GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI RS
Paul Kruger
Ci vi 1 Engineering Department
Stanford Un i vers i ty
Stanford, CA 94305
As part of the geothermal energy program at Stanford Uni versi ty,
physical models have been developed to evaluate optimum performance of
fracture- sti mul ated geothermal reservoirs. Three such efforts reported
i n thi s summary are: laboratory si mul ati on of an explosion-produced
rubble chimney to obtai n experimental data on the extractabi l i ty of heat
from hot rock by in-place boi l i ng; heat and mass transfer transients wi th
i ndi vi dual porous rock fragments to compare thei r rel ati ve importance i n
sti mul ated systems; and measurement of radon emanation from geothermal
reservoi rs as a tracer f or reservoi r engineering studies. Def i ni ti ve
progress has been achieved wi th each of these physical models.
Hunsbedt, Kruger, and London (19 Sa) reported the progress on the
constructi on and operation o f a 19-ft.3 l aboratory model of an explosion-
produced rubble chimney (shown i n the production mode i n F i g. 1.5) to study
the processes of in-place boi l i ng, moving f l as h fronts, and two-phase flow
i n porous and fractured hydrothermal reservoirs,
Kruger, and Raghavan (1973) that a1 though considerable energy i s avai l abl e
from hydrothermal resources, most of thi s energy i s stored i n the aqui fer
host rock. Production by some nonisothermal process, such as in-place boi l -
ing or colder f l ui d reci rcul ati on, might be valuable for increasing heat
extracti on from natural or sti mul ated hydrothermal or hot rock geothermal
resources.
It had been noted by Ramey,
Recent resul ts by Hunsbedt, Kruger, and London (1975b) show that heat
extracti on obtained by pressure reduction which allows boi l i ng to occur i n
the rubble chimney resulted i n rock energy extracti on fractions i n excess of
0.75 under various experimental conditions. The degree of rock energy
extracted depended on such parameters as height o f l i qui d l evel , extent of
condensed steam refl ux, rate and temperature of cooler-water recharge, and
rock to steam temperature di fference which i n turn depends on rock parti cl e
si ze and cooldown rate. I n thi s high-permeability fractured rock system,
recovery of avai l abl e thermal energy ranged from 1.25 to 2.58 times the
energy extractabl e by fl ashi ng the i ni t i a l in-place f l ui d alone. Parameters
noted to af f ect the extent of heat recovery included the external heat trans-
fer parameter, rock porosi ty, i ni t i a l reservoi r condi ti ons and enthalpy of the
recharge f l ui d. P redi cti ve models were developed f or the laboratory model
system based on mass-energy balance f or comparison wi t h the experimental
data.
wi th cool water which produced non-uniformity i n the axi al temperature
di s tri buti on. Evaluation of the resul ts from the laboratory model are
underway to scale the parameters t o real - si ze stimulated reservoirs.
Agreement was sati sfactory f or these experiments, other than recharge
A second physical model was developed t o examine microscale processes
of mass and heat transfer i n fracture sti mul ated reservoirs, based on two
types o f void space: macropores, defined as void volume between rock
-169-
f r agment s; and mi cr opor es, def i ned as pore space i nsi de i ndi vi dual rock
f r agment s. The i mpor t ance of mass t r ansf er bet ween hot geof l ui d i n mi cr o-
pores and col der ci r cul at i ng f l ui ds i n macr opor es on heat ext r act i on rat es
f r omf r act ur ed geot her mal r eser voi r s was i nvest i gat ed. I n t he physi cal
model , bot h mass t r ansf er , usi ng HTO as a t r acer f or t he mi cr opor e wat er ,
and heat t r ansf er , usi ng a sensi t i ve quar t z t her momet er , f r omar t i f i ci al
porous spher es wer e measur ed under si mi l ar exper i ment al condi t i ons.
Kuo, Br i gham, and Kr uger (1975) compar ed t he mol ecul ar di f f usi vi t y
associ at ed wi t h mass t r ansf er as a f unct i on of por osi t y wi t h t he t her mal
di f f usi vi t y associ at ed wi t h heat t r ansf er as a f unct i on of mi xi ng rat e.
They not ed t hat t he r at i o of t he ef f ect i ve mol ecul ar di f f usi on and t hermal
di f f usi on coef f i ci ent s was about 3x10- 4, i ndi cat i ng t hat even f or very
por ous f r agment s heat t r ansf er i s a much mor e r api d pr ocess t han mass t r ans-
f er . Anal yt i cal model s f or t he heat and mass t r ansf er t r ansi ent s f or
spheri cal rocks agr ee wi t h t hese i ndi cat i ons, but suggest t hat a f i l m
coef f i ci ent i n t he model i s desi r abl e. Ef f or t s ar e under way to i nvest i gat e
heat t r ansf er t r ansi ent s f or i rregul ar shaped r ocks.
Radon has been shown by St oker and Kr uger (1975) and Kruger and Umana
(1975) to have pot ent i al as an i nt ernal t r acer f or r eser voi r engi neer i ng
st udi es because of a uni que combi nat i on of nucl ear , chemi cal , and physi cal
pr oper t i es, i ts emanat i ng power i n geot her mal r eser voi r s, and i ts t r anspor t
char act er i st i cs i n hydr ot her mal f l ui ds. I nt er est i n radon i n geot hermal
r eser voi r s devel oped as a pot ent i al means to eval uat e t he cr eat i on of new
sur f ace area by r eser voi r st i mul at i on t echni ques, such as hydraul i c, t her mal -
st r ess, and expl osi ve f r act ur i ng, and concer n about t he envi r onment al r el ease
of radon and i t s shor t - 1 i ved r adi oact i ve pr oduct s. However , si nce st i mul at ed
r eser voi r s ar e not avai l abl e f or t est i ng, st udi es wer e concent r at ed on t he
emanat i on pr oper t i es of r adon i n exi st i ng pr oduct i on geot her mal we1 s as
a f unct i on of st eady- st at e and t r ansi ent f l ow rat e.
Radon concent r at i on i n geot her mal f l ui ds i s not ed t o vary not onl y by
r esour ce t ype but al so wi thi n i ndi vi dual wel l s i n a gi ven geot her ma f i el d.
Tempor al var i at i ons at st eady f l ow rat e ar e wi t hi n usef ul l i mi t s. Model s
have been i ni t i at ed to exami ne t he dependence of radon concent r at i on on f l ow
r at e, wi t h a ver t i cal l y l i near model f or vapor domi nat ed syst ems and a
hori zont al r adi al model f or l i qui d domi nat ed syst ems. An i ni t i al t est at
t he Geyser s st eamf i el d, Shawn i n Fi gur e 2, i ndi cat es a t r ansi ent reduct i on
i n radon concent r at i on t o about hal f val ue over t he t hr ee- week peri od f ol l owi ng
an i nst ant aneous r educt i on i n f l ow rat e to hal f val ue. An excur si on i n r adon
concent r at i on was not ed dur i ng t he onset of a peri od of sei smi c act i vi t y i n
t he r egi on. Addi t i onal t est s at t hi s f i el d and si mi l ar t est s at ot her st eam
f i el ds and some hot wat er f i el ds ar e bei ng pl anned t o eval uat e t he r el at i on-
shi p of radon concent r at i on under r eser voi r t r ansi ent condi t i ons.
-1 70-
REFERENCES
Hunsbedt, A . , Kruger, P., and London, A.L., "Laboratory Studies of
Stimulated Geothermal Reservoirs," Proceedings, Second United
Nations Symposium on the Development and Use o f Geothermal
Resources, May 19-29, 1975, San Francisco, CA, i n Press. (See
al so Stanford Geothermal Program Technical Report No. SGP-TR-7,
1975a,)
Hunsbedt, A., Kruger, P., and London, A.L., "Laboratory Studies of
Stimulated Geothermal Reservoirs," Stanford Geothermal Program
Technical Report No. SGP-TR-11, 1975b.
Kruger, P., and Umana, A., "Radon i n Geothermal Reservoir Engineering,"
Proceedings, Appl i cati on of Nuclear Techniques to Geothermal Studies,
I nternati onal Atomic Energy Agency, Pisa, I tal y, September, 1975,
i n Press.
Kuo, M.C.T., Brigham, W.E., and Kruger, P., "Heat and Mass Transfer i n
Porous Rock Fragments," Stanford Geothermal Program Technical
Report No. SGP-TR-IO, 1975.
Ramey, H.J ., J r., Kruger, P., and Raghavan, R., I1Explosive Stimulation
of Hydrothermal Reservoirs,'' Chapter 13 i n Geothermal Energy,
Eds., Paul Kruger and Care1 Otte, Stanford Uni versi ty Press, 1973.
Stoker, A., and Kruger, P., "Radon i n Geothermal Reservoirs," Proceedings,
Second United Nations Symposium on the Development and Use o f
Geothermal Resources, May 19-29, 1975, San Francisco, CA , i n Press.
(See a1 so Stanford Geothermal Program Technical Report No. SGP-TR-4,
1975.)
-1 71 -
-Accumk(or
1
Fi gure 1.a Diagram of Chimney Model System -
Heating Mode Operation
Fi gure 1.b Diagram of Chimney Model System -
Fluid Production Mode Operation
-1 72-
25
.4
Y
Y
20
0
i=
U
LT
W
0
Z
15
10
z
Q
a 5
-Flowrate =-100,000 kglhr -v Flowrate =- 50,000 kg/hr
-
0
Magnitude of Regional Earthquake Activity
T T -
0 1 I I T T I T T T T T I I I
40 4'5
1
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
TIME AFTER START OF EXPERI MENT ( days 1
Figure 2 Radon concentration as a functi on of flow rate. Solid l i nes
Broken l i nes are the mean values over the flow rate period.
represent one standard deviation.
of regional earthquake acti vi ty on the Richter scale.
Also shown i s the magnitude
-1 73-
HYDRAULIC-FRACTURE GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI R ENGINEERING
H. D. Murphy
Los Alamos S ci enti f i c Laboratory
Uni versi ty of Cal i forni a
Los Alamos, New Mexico 87544
The Dry Hot Rock Geothermal Energy Program being conducted by the
Basi cal l y we have proposed that man-made geothermal energy
Los Alamos S ci enti f i c Laboratory has been described i n detai l by Smith
et a1. l
reservoi rs can be created by dr i l l i ng i nto rel ati vel y impermeable rock
to a depth where the temperature i s high enough to be useful; creati ng
a large hydraul i c fracture; and then completing the ci rcul ati on loop by
dr i l l i ng a second hol e to i ntercept the hydraul i c fracture.
Thermal power i s extracted from thi s system by i nj ecti ng cold water
down the f i r s t hole, forci ng the water t o sweep by the freshl y exposed
hot rock surface i n the reservoi r/ fracture system, and then returni ng
the hot water to the surface where the energy i s removed from the water
by the appropriate power producing equipment.
maintained such that only one phase, l i qui d water, i s present i n the
reservoi r and the dr i l l ed holes.
System pressures are
I n the discussion t o fol l ow, the benefi ci al effects of thermal stress
cracking, anti ci pated because of the cool i ng and thermal contracti on of
the rock, w i l l be ignored. Instead, it w i l l be assumed that the f l ui d
flow i s enti rel y confined to the gap between the impermeable rock sur-
faces and that heat i s transferred t o thi s f l ui d only by means of thermal
conduction through the s ol i d rock.
RESERVOI R FEATURES AND EXPECTED PERFORMANCE
Based upon the theory of el as ti ci ty and b r i t t l e material fracture
mechanics
2
, we i deal i ze the fracture as being ci rcul ar wi th a fracture
gap width, w, which vari es el 1 i pti cal l y wi th radius.
wi dth i s extremely small compared to the maximum fracture radius, R; a
typi cal value being 3 mm (1/8 in.) f or a radius o f 500 m (1640 f t) .
Furthermore, since the di recti on of the least pri nci pal earth stress i s
expected to be hori zontal , we anti ci pate that the fracture plane w i l l be
verti cal l y ori ented, i ndi cati ng that f l ui d buoyancy effects may be i m-
portant.
The maximum fracture
The maximum thermal power that can be extracted from the rock
surface occurs when the enti re rock surface i s suddenly and uniformly
lowered i n temperature from i t s i ni t i a l value, Tr , t o the cold water
i nj ecti on temperature, T.. This power, E, i s given as a function of
time, t, by3
I
-174-
where A , p s , and cs are the thermal conducti vi ty, density, and speci fi c
heat capacity o f the rock. Because the thermal conducti vi ty of the rock
i s small, i t can be shown that rather l arge fracture radi i are required
to produce si gni fi cant amounts o f power f or reasonable periods of time.
For example, i f the temperature di fference, Tr-Ti, i s 200K, a 500 m
fracture i s required if one wishes to be abl e t o produce a t least 25 HW(t)
continuously f or 10 years.
that even after 10 years the i ni t i a l rock temperature i s diminished less
than 5% for distances of 40 m or more away from the fracture surface.
Thus, i t i s seen that heat i s being removed from the rock onl y i n a
rel ati vel y narrow zone immediately adjacent t o the fracture, and we
conclude that even f or more complicated examples, where the surface
temperature i s not uniform, the conduction i n the rock w i l l be essenti al l y
one dimensional; perpendicular to the plane o f the crack.
To continue thi s same example, it can be shown3
A simple heat balance shows that the minimum water fl ow rate, Q,
required t o produce the power i s given by
where p and c are the density and speci fi c heat capacity of water.
Using typi cal values it can be shown that our 25 MW(t) example w i l l
requi re a minimum fl ow rate of 0.03 m3/sec ( 1 ft3/ sec or 500 gpm).
Since thi s fl ow i s confined wi thi n the very narrow fracture, the
water vel oci ti es w i l l be of the order of 0.02 m/sec (0.07 ft/sec);
qui te hi gh compared to, say, the usual fl ow vel oci ti es through porous
media, and we conclude that heat transport due to f l ui d conduction i s
negl i gi bl e compared t o f l ui d convection.
RESERVOI R SIMULATION MODELS
F l ui d fl ow and f l ui d heat transport are i deal i zed as being two
dimensional, i n the plane of the fracture. The hori zontal coordinate
i s taken as x, the verti cal coordinate as y . S ol i d rock conduction
takes place along the z-coordinate, perpendicular to the x-y plane.
Using Darcy's law wi th a permeability for an open fracture of w2 ,
-
the x and y di recti on vel oci ti es become 12
-1 75-
where the extra term i n the equation for v represents the effects of
buoyancy.
of mass and energy i n the flowing water are
Making the Boussinesq approximation the equations of conservation
2 e = O .
pcwu - + pcwv - -
aT aT
ax aY
F i nal l y the rock conduction equation i s
subject to the i ni t i a l and boundary condi ti ons
(4)
The addi ti onal nomenclature i s as follows:
w = fracture wi dth
P = pressure
1-1 = vi scosi ty
p
T = reference temperature
T = temperature of the f l ui d
g =accel erati on of gravi ty
B = volumetric expansion coeffi ci ent of water
8 = temperature of the rock
e
= reference water densi ty (evaluated at To)
0
= the f l ux of energy del i vered to the water by one rock
ae
az
surface; evaluated as e( t) = X-(x,y,z=O,t).
Equations ( 3) through (8) represent a considerable simp1 i f i cati on
of the equations f i r s t proposed i n the pioneering work of Harlow and Pracht4
and continued by M~F ar l and. ~ These wri ters had at thei r disposal very
-1?6-
powerf ul numeri cal met hod~l ogi es ~, ~ whi ch made i t conveni ent to i ncl ude
advect i on as wel l as t r ansi ent t erms i n Eq. (3), and conduct i on and
t r ansi ent t er ms i n Eq. (4). By f or mal nondi mensi onal i zat i on and r at i onal -
i zat i on of t he compl et e equat i ons i t can be shown* t hat t hese addi t i onal
t er ms ar e negl i gi bl e f or cal cul at i ons of pract i cal i nt erest .
At present t he sol ut i on pr ocedur e consi st s of f i r st sol vi ng t he
rock conduct i on Eq. (5), wi t h Eqs. (6) t hr ough (8>, vi a Duhamel Is super -
posi t i on i nt egral ,9 and t hen di f f er ent i at i ng t he resul t to eval uat e e.
Thus
0
Thi s sol ut i on f or e i s subst i t ut ed i nto Eq. (4). One t hen has a
set of t wo coupl ed, nonl i near , t i me var yi ng, i nt egr o- di f f er ent i al equat i ons
f or T and P. Thi s set of equat i ons i s t hen sol ved numer i cal l y vi a f i ni t e
di f f er ence anal ogues t o t he real equat i ons. 8
REFERENCES
1. M. C. Smi t h, R. L. Aamodt , R. M. Pot t er , and D. W. Br own,
"Man- Made Geot her mal Reser voi r s, " Second Uni t ed St at es
Geot hermal Energy Symposi um, San Fr anci sco, CA, May 19- 29, 1975.
2. T. K. Per ki ns and L. R. Ker n, "Wi dt hs of Hydr aul i c Fr act ur es, "
J . Pet . Tech, 937- 949 ( Sept ember 1961).
3. H. S . Car sl awand J . C. J aeger , Conduct i on of Heat i n Sol i ds
( Oxf ord Uni ver si t y Pr ess, 2nd Edi t i on, 19591, pp. 58- 62.
4. F. H. Har l ow and W. E. Pr acht , "A Theor et i cal St udy of Geot hermal
Energy Ext r act i on , I ' J . Geophys . Res. 77 ( 1972) .
-
5. R. D. McFar l and, "Geot hermal Reser voi r Model s- - Cr ack Pl ane Model , "
Los Al amos Sci ent i f i c Labor at or y report LA- 5947- MS ( Apr i 1 1975).
6. A. A. Amsden and F. H. Har l ow, "The SMAC Met hod: A Numeri cal Techni que
f or Cal cul at i ng I ncompr essi bl e Fl ui d Fl ow, " Los Al amos Sci ent i f i c
Labor at or y report LA- 4370 (1970).
7. A. D. Gosman and W. M. Pun, " KASE Pr obl ems f or t he Teach Comput er
Pr ogr ams, ' ' I mperi al Col l ege of Sci ence and Technol ogy, London, U. K.
report HTS/ 74/ 3 ( J anuary 1973).
8. H. D. Mur phy, Los Al amos Sci ent i f i c Labor at or y, unpubl i shed dat a, 1975.
9. H. S . Car sl awand J . C. J aeger , Conduct i on of Heat i n Sol i ds ( Oxf ord
Uni ver si t y Pr ess, 2nd Edi t i on, 19591, p. 30.
-1 77-
MODEL EXPERIMENTS IN HYDRAULIC FRACTURE
J . Dundurs
C i vi l Engineering Department
Northwestern Uni versi ty
Evanston, I l l i no i s 60201
Hydraulic fracturi ng o f rock cannot be seen i n s i tu, and the end
res ul t must mostly be judged on basis of roundabout evidence. As there
i s no question about the des i rabi l i ty of vi sual observations and di rect
measurements, the onl y way out of the dilemma seems to l i e i n experimental
models. This part o f the work carri ed out a t Northwestern Uni versi ty i s
therefore di rected toward the development of sui tabl e experimental
techniques and transparent laboratory models that could be used to simulate
the various problems associated wi th dr i l l i ng i nto hard impermeable rock
and fracturi ng it f or energy extracti on.
The materi al selected f or the transparent models i s epoxy resi n
(Epon 828 resi n wi th phthal i c anhydrate hardener). This materi al i s
commonly used for three-dimensional photoel asti c experiments which employ
the stress freezi ng technique. The pri nci pal reason f or using thi s materi al ,
a t l east f or the present, i n studies of hydraul i c fracture i s that it can
be cast i nto l arge blocks wi th rel ati ve ease i n the laboratory. The onl y
equipment needed f or thi s purpose i s a curi ng oven wi th accurate temperature
control .
The model consists o f a bl ock of the transparent epoxy resi n. A
hol e i s dr i l l ed i nto the block, and stai nl ess steel tubing i s cemented
i nto the hole. The tube terminates a t about two diameters from the bottom
of the hole. The stai nl ess steel tubing used i s 0.063 in. OD, 0.018 i n.
wal l and i s capable o f withstanding pressures up t o 36000 ps i . The hol e
i s dr i l l ed and reamed so that there i s about 0.002 in. radi al clearance
between the bl ock materi al and the tube. The dr i l l i ng of accurate holes
i n the epoxy resi n i s a tedious operation because o f the l arge length, say
4 in., i n comparison to the diameter.
A special technique had to be developed for cementing the stai nl ess
steel tubing i nto the model block. F i r s t a pool o f the cement i s placed
on the surface o f the block around the tube. Then a f i xtur e i n the form
of a cup i s attached t o the surface of the block. The f i xture seals
against surface of the block, but connects the end cf the tube t o the
atmosphere. Next the space between the surface o f the block and the cup-
l i ke f i xtur e i s pressurized t o about 40 psi . This drives the cement from
the pool i nto the clearance between the hol e and the tube. The flow i s
rather slow because o f the high vi scosi ty of the cement and the small
clearance, and i t can be observed vi s ual l y from the change i n contrast.
F i nal l y, the pressure i s removed before the cement has a chance t o f l ow
i nto the tube and plug it.
I n cijse the i ni t i a l ori entati on of the hydraul i c fracture must be
control l ed, as i n experiments intended to study the i nteracti on between
two hydraul i c fractures, a small penny-shape crack i s introduced a t the
-178-
bottom of the hol e before cementing the tubing i nto the hole, The best
means of prefracturi ng was found t o be pressing a rod that f i t s i nto the
hol e and i s sharpened t o a wedge against the bottom of the hole.
The f l ui d used i n the fracture experiments i s mercury. There are
two reasons f or choosing mercury: F i rs t, i t s high bul k modulus minimizes
the energy stored behind the fracture as i t i s i ni ti ated, and thus avoids
catastrophic growth i n the i ni t i a l stages. Second. the fractures f i l l e d
wi th mercury are perfectl y vi s i bl e.
Several experiments have been done on the i nteracti on and j oi ni ng of
two hydraul i cal l y induced fractures. The observed i nteracti on and the
subsequent behavior o f such cracks af ter j oi ni ng i s qui te fasci nati ng. For
instance, the i nteracti on was seen t o be very strong f or cracks i n paral l e
planes. Such cracks were observed t o have the tendency t o j oi n and curve
sharply toward each other. The growth af ter j oi ni ng led to very i ntri cate
three-dimensional shapes. I t was al so seen that, if one crack i s kept at
constant volume and the second made t o expand, the shape of the f i r s t crack
changes as the second fracture approaches it. I n fact, i t was observed
that under these circumstances the f i r s t fracture may even close over part
of i t s extent.
-1 79-
ANALYTICAL STUDY OF CRACK GROWTH AND SHAPE BY
HYDRAUL I C FRACTURI NG OF ROCKS
T. Mura, L. M. Keer, and H. Ab6
Department of C i vi l Engineering
Northwestern Uni versi ty
Evanston, I 1 1 i noi s 60201
Crack shape, ori entati on, si ze and growth due t o hydraul i c fracturi ng
w i l l be investigated as a problem i n three dimensional el as ti ci ty theory.
Since the opening of the crack by hydraul i c fracture, the pressurizing of
the treatment f l ui d, the teaking off of the f l ui d, and the thermal cracking
are simultaneous events, the theory o f el as ti c i ty w i l l be coupled wi th f l ui d
mechanics and the theory of heat conduction. The resul ts, which include the
coupling o f el as ti c i ty and f l ui d inclusion, w i l l be obtained by anal yti cal
techniques so that they can be presented wi th anal yti cal formulae when pos-
si bl e.
Stress i ntensi ty factors f or an e l l i pt i c crack. By using the con-
tinuous di sl ocati on method developed by Mura (1963) and Wi l l i s (1968), the
stress component 033, which i s the most important component, along an
el l i pt i c al crack (Figure 1) under a l i nearl y changing applied stress
~- 103~ =A .f Bxl +Cx2 has been obtained as follows:
2- ($ +E +--
Rxl 3E2 cx2)
- a 2 (.:/at 4- x2/a4)4
__
1
033
(xl /al 2 2 +x2/a2 2 2 - I)+
where
n/2
0
k 2 =( a1 2 - a2,)/ at 2' >0
2 2 2 %
E,, = f cos cp(1 - k si n (p)
L J
0
On the crack surface the boundary condi ti on
- 1 80-
i s sati sfi ed. For the crack as shown i n Fig. 1
and therefore, A = - pogh + p - S, B = p g cose, C = 0, where p i s the
pressure necessary f or crack opening,
the depth o f the crack, S , tectoni c stress and 0 i s the ori entati on of
the crack surface rel ati ve to the surface o f the earth (Fig. I ) .
0
the density of the rock, h,
,
Ground
////////
Surface
/ // / / / / /
h
\
\
\ I I
Fig, 1
The maximum wi dth o f the crack al so has been obtained as
a2 2( 1 - v )
w =(1 - xl / al 2 2 - x2/a2)' A
2 2 PE
( 4 )
where v i s Poisson's rati o, l~ i s the shear modulus, and E i s defined i n
Eq. (2).
- - - * \ , ,
2 2 2 2
The stress i ntensi ty factor i s the coef f i ci ent of (x /a
1 1 2 2
+x /a - 1 ) '
i n Eq. ( 1 ) . The stress i ntensi ty factor i s not constant along the crack
edge.
i ntensi ty factor at the crack ti ps of the major and minor pri nci pal axes
o f the crack. Thus, 0 can be obtained as
However, certai n angles 0 of crack i ncl i nati on gi ve equal stress
Axisymmetrical crack growth i n hydraul i c fracturi ng. I t i s found
that the growth rate of a penny-shaped crack can be predi cted as a con-
tinuous functi on of time, w
hydraul i c pressure.
The fundamental equat
en the crack i s fractured by water under
ons are
= o
where p i s the f l ui d pressure i n the crack and q i s the rate o f mass flow
defined by
q = p w u
(7)
where u i s the average radi al f l ui d vel oci ty.
E l l i o t t (1946), we have f or the wi dth of the crack and the stress i ntensi ty
According to Sneddon and
factor:
8(1 - \ j 2 ) jR 1 dr 1 j 1 x ( p - S) dx
w =
r I 2 2 o I - 2
17E
J1 -
.J 1 - x
where R i s the crack radius, Ro, i s the rellbore
modulus for the crack; S i s the tectoni c stress.
diu , and E i s Youngs
Since w = 0 at r = R and (6) has the inverse cube si ngul ari ty for
where R1 < R and indicates the radius o f the wetted domain.
w, we assume that the second equation i n (6) holds f or the domain,
Ro 5 rz R
I t follows that
1
dR-
1
u(R1) =-
-
dt
- 182-
I nvesti gati on o f order of magnitude of the terms i n (6) leads t o the con-
cl usi on that the l as t two terms i n the right-hand si de can be neglected.
The fol l owi ng global equation o f the conservation of mass i s al so employed
p rw ar =
0
0
R
where qo i s the fl ow rate a t
Results obtained by so
and 3, where
2 2
t = 38EqOt/8(1 - v )pSRo,
D
q R at
0 0
the we1 1 bore.
ving (6) t o (9) and ( 11) are g ven i n Figs. 2
-
2
w = TEw(R )/8(1 - v )RoS, ApD = (p - S ) / S
D 0
and
the e l l i pt i c i ntegral i n w which ari ses from (8) and the ef f ect o f the term
a(pw)/at i n (6) are shown i n F i g. 2 by putti ng subscripts (1) and (2),
respecti vel y. I t is found that the former ef f ect i s small f or l arge
values o f R/R whi l e the l atter one i s si gni fi cant. Results, which are
val i d f or a wyde range o f R/R are shown i n Fig. 3. The ef f ect of the
stress i ntens i ty factor of thgrock i s found t o be si gni fi cant even for
l arge values o f R/Ro.
i s the average pressure, The sol uti ons by neglecting the effect o f
- 183-
E
e,
3
U
e,
P
.rl
U
d
l4
0)
k
Q)
U
cd
M
.n
d
W
U
G
cd
U
m
?I
5
0
.d
3
- 0 .o
h a a
4 Li . .
w r n
r r l .A
.ri
u
ai
e,
0
.I4
P
%
3
e,
-",
C
.I+
Q)
u
W
0
v)
U
w
w
rl
u -
rn
J J O
cup n - 184-
t.
CONTROL OF SI LI CA SCALI NG
H. L. Barnes and J . D. Ri mst i dt
Depar t ment of Geosci ences
Pennsyl vani a St at e Uni ver si t y
Uni ver si t y Par k, PA 16802
Bot h t he equi l i br i umchemi st r y of si l i ca sol ubi l i t y and ki net i cs
of t he domi nant r eact i ons suggest met hods of prevent i ng scal e f or mat i on
i n t he devel opment of hot wat er - domi nat ed geot hermal r esour ces.
At equi l i br i um, t he domi nant sol ubi l i t y- f i xi ng react i on i s
Si 02(s) +2H20 .+4H4Si 04( aq. )
f or pH' s l ess t han 9 , - t he usual condi t i on.
sol ut i on of a speci f i c si l i ca concent r at i on, pr eci pi t at i on may be i ni t i at ed
by decr easi ng t emper at ur e ( Fi g. 1) or wat er pur i t y ( Fi g. 2).
st oi chi omet r y of t hi s r eact i on shows t hat t he sol ubi l i t y i s a f unct i on of
St art i ng wi t h a geot hermal
The
I l l 1 1 1 , 1 1 1 1 1
20 60 1M) 140 180 220 260 3CO 340 380
Temper at ur e, "C
Fi g. 1 . Sol ubi l i t y of si l i ca phases i n wat er . ( Dat a f r om
r ef er ences 1, 2, 3 , 4, 5 , 6, 8, 9, and 11. )
- 185-
/ QUARTZ SOLUBI LI TY
Concentration, ppm Si 02
Fig. 2. Quartz s ol ubi l i ty at various temperatures and
acti vi ti es of water.
vari es wi th s al t concentrations typi cal l y as
f ol lows:
The ac ti vi ty of water
Concentrations
a NaC 1
- H2 m %
CaC12
m %
0.90 2. 8 14 1.6 15
0.75 6.2 27 (sat. a t 2 5 O C ) -
0.70 3 . 4 22
-
0.50 - 5.0 36
-
0.30 (sat. at 25OC) 7.2 44
0
These values are exact for temperatures near 25 C
and approximately correct t o 350C.
water acti vi ty, a2
Fig. 3, so that an increase i n i oni c strength, due t o evaporation (flashing)
or t o di ssol vi ng of sal ts, greatl y reduces s ol ubi l i ty.
equi l i bri um rel ati ons show that preci pi tati on can be delayed by:
tai ni ng the temperature of the sol uti on close to that of the geothermal
reservoi r f or as long as possible pr i or t o heat extracti on, and (2) by
di l uti on.
as demonstrated by the l i near i ty of the curve on
Consequently,
"20
(1) main-
I n appropriate circumstances, favorable di l uti on can be
t-
4.0 1 I I 1 I I t
-7.5 -7.0 b S -60 -5.5 -5 0
-8 0
log Kc
Fig. 3. The complete equi l i bri um constant for quartz
s ol ubi l i ty where K =
a H4S i 04
C a Si02 (H20,g/CC) '
( S ol ubi l i ty data from references 1 , 4, 5, 6,
8, 9, and 11. )
real i zed by mixing the output from one wel l wi t h that from a second wi th
ei ther lower s al i ni ty or s i l i c a content.
i s to use a steam-driven, downhole pump.
rel ati vel y pure compared to the residual sol uti on, if thi s steam i s i n-
j ected t o power the pump, the effl uent al so ef f ecti vel y di l utes both the
i ni t i a l s i l i c a content and the s al i ni ty, a dual bonus.
s i l i c a deposition.
Another process causing di l uti on
Because flashed steam i s always
Ki neti c effects are a t l east equal l y promising for control l i ng
The rate o f preci pi tati on a t temperature, T, i s
[ ":lo2]T
= Kp(H4SiO4) ( S/ V)
where Kp i s the rate constant and ( S/ V) i s the surface area on which
deposition i s taki ng place per uni t volume of sol uti onl o.
surface area (and roughness) i n geothermal systems should be minimized
t o slow rates of deposition.
i nevi tabl e, s i l i c a can be scrubbed from the sol uti on by countercurrent
Clearly, the
Al ternati vel y where supersaturation i s
- 187-
f l o w o f fine-grained, i nert sol i ds (wi th hi gh surface area) t o nucleate
and remove the excess s i l i ca.
Because K i s exponentially dependent on temperature, the sol uti on
should not be aylowed to cool sl owl y from hi gh temperatures (Fig, 4). If
saturati on i s reached at hi gh temperatures, preci pi tati on i s fast due to
the hi gh rate of reaction. However, i f the sol uti on i s cooled abruptly,
the s i l i c a i s quenched i nto sol uti on and can onl y preci pi tate very slowly
a t low temperature. Consequently, single-stage heat extracti on minimizes
scale formation.
to quanti fy thi s method, unfortunately.
S uffi ci ent rate data have not as yet been accumulated
S i l i ca polymerization seems not to be important to the ki neti cs of
geothermal systems. Rates are probably si gni fi cant on1 at hi gh al kal i ni ti es
analyses of geothermal f l ui ds by the monomer-detecting molybdate technique
a t hi gh temperatures and at pH 8-10 a t low temperatures J . Furthermore,
gi ve rel i abl e values f or the total s i l i c a con a 1 so appears t o
present.
The sever
s al i ni ty. High
readi l y deposit
P ri eto, may not
t y o f scale formation apparently al so depends
y sal i ne solutions, such as those from the Sa
massive scale whi l e less sal i ne solutions, as
preci pi tate more than minor amounts before re
ent r at i on
i n part on
ton Sea KGRA,
a t Cerro
ect i on
Sal ton Sea 320 3. 1 155,000 400
Cerro P ri eto 350 0.2 10,000 500
As suggested by several authors, thi s effect may be caused by catal ysi s
of preci pi tati on reactions by chl ori de concentrations above roughly
0.01 ml o . A t higher C1 concentrations, there i s al so the untested POS-
s i bi 1
espec
lower
sol ub
creas
t y that s i 1 i ca- chl ori de complexes-form.
a l l y effecti ve i n retardi ng scale deposition. I n addi ti on t o
ng the i ni t i a l s i l i c a concentration and rai s i ng the ul ti mate
l i t y by increasing a
ng the concentration of thi s catal yst. Again, considerable data
Di l uti on o f such brines i s
the rate of deposition i s lowered by de-
H20
are needed t o determine the exact concentration ranges where cata
and complexing become important. These values are being obtained
functions of time, temperature, and chl ori de concentrations using
experimental system shown on Fig. 5 .
ysi s
as
the
- 188-
u)
3
0
I
L
1
\\ 1 I
1 I
-
QUARTZ +SOLUTION
,100years
.IOyean
-1 yeor
- 1month
- 1 day
- f hour
P R EClP I TAT I NG
(200- 110% supersaturated)
/ I (O-* 90 96 sa turotedl
\\
I I I 1 I I \
.
0 (00 200 Mo
Temperature, OC
Fig. 4. Prel i mi nary curves showi.ng the rates of di ssol vi ng and preci pi tati ng
of quartz as a f uncti on of temperature. Di ssol vi ng - Amount of t i me
necessary f or water i n a geothermal reservoi r to become 90% saturated
wi th H Si 0
sol uti on is 14.9 cm / ml (equi val ent i n the reservoi r to 1 ml of
i f the rati o of the si l i ca surf ace area to the volume of
2
4 4
sol uti on wi thi n a f racture of 1. i n 2 area). Preci pi tati ng - Amount of
time necessary f or water i n a pi pe which contai ns twi ce the saturati on
concentrati on of H Si 0
saturati on i f the pi pe has a rati o of surf ace area to volume of
to preci pi tate enough quartz to reach 110% of
4 4
sol uti on of 6 . 6 cm2 /ml (%800 f t 2 / gal ).
These rates w i l l be f aster f or cri stobal i te and amorphous si l i ca
and al so hi gher due to any i n di rect proporti on to thei r hi gher a
catal ysi s, f or example by F- of C1-.
SiOz
- 189-
HEATE
PNEUMATIC
RELIEF
Fi g. 5. Experi mental system f or determi ni ng reacti on rates. I n
the 1 l i ter pressure vessel, ei ther wel l characteri zed rock
or mi neral samples are hel d i n ci rcul ati ng sol uti ons at
temperatures up to 450C and pressures to 3500 p.s.i .
Analyses of peri odi c samples of sol uti on and of deposi ts
i n the heat exchanger, pl us eval uati on of al terati on of the
rock sampl es, permi ts determi nati on of the pri nci pal
reacti ons and the deri vati on of thei r rate constants.
References
1 - Crerar, D. A. and G. M. Anderson. 1971. S ol ubi l i ty and sol uti on reactions
Chem. Geol . , V. 8,
of quartz i n di l ute hydrothermal sol uti ons.
pp. 107-122.
2. Fournier, R. 0. and J . J . Rowe. 1962. The solubi
along the three-phase curve, gas pl us l i qui d
Am. Mineral., V. 47, pp. 897-902.
i t y of cri s tobal i te
plus cri stobal i te.
3. I l er, R. K. 1973. Col l oi dal S i l i ca, Surface and Col l oi d Science, V . 6,
4. Kennedy, G. C. 1950. A porti on of the system s i l i cawater, Econ. Geol.,
5. Kitahara, S. 1960. The s ol ubi l i ty equi l i bri um and the rate of sol uti on
Ch. 1, Wiley, New York.
V. 45, pp. 629-653.
of quartz i n water a t high temperatures and pressures, Rev. Phys.
Chem. J apan, V. 30, pp. 122-130.
conditions, Science, V. 173, pp. 533-534.
equi l i bri a, and reacti on rates, J . Phys. Chem., V. 74, pp. 346-355.
quartz i n water i n the temperature i nterval from 25O t o 3OOOC.
Geochim et Cosmochim Acta, V. 26, pp. 1029-1043.
9. Siever, R. 1962. S i l i ca s ol ubi l i ty 00-2OOOC and the diagenesis of
si l i ceous sediments. J . Geol., V . 70, pp. 127-150.
10. Van Li er, J . A., P. L. DeBruyn and J . Thor. G. Overbeck. 1960. The
s ol ubi l i ty of quartz. J . Phys. Chem., V. 64, pp. 1675-1682.
11. Voloson, A. G., 1 . G. Khodakovskiy, and B. N. Ryzhenko. E qui l i bri a i n
the system Si02-HZO a t elevated temperatures along the lower
three-phase curve. Geochern. I nt. , V . 9, #3, pp. 362-377.
6. Mackenzie, F. T. and R. Gees. 1971. Quartz: Synthesis a t earth-surface
7. Marshal 1, W. L. 1970. Complete equi 1 ibrium constants, el ectrol yte
8. Morey, G. W., R. 0. Fournier and J . J . Rowe. 1962. The s ol ubi l i ty of
-191-
PREDICTING EXPLOSION-GENERATED PERMEABILITY
AROUND GEOTHERMAL WELLS
C. R. McKee and M. E. Hanson
Lawrence Livermore Laboratory
Uni versi ty of Cal i forni a
Livermore, Cal i forni a 94550
The problem o f sti mul ati ng geothermal reservoi rs has received
attenti on i n recent years. Detonating explosives i n a borehole i s one
technique f or sti mul ati ng them.
where preci pi tati on of sol i ds near the producing wel l has s i gni f i cantl y
reduced the permeabi l i ty around it. However, the enhancement o f the
permeabi l i ty around the borehole has i t s e l f not been well-defined, and
hence, the effects o f explosive sti mul ati on are di f f i c ul t to predi ct.
Below, we outl i ne a theory which has correl ated wel l wi t h exi sti ng
measurements of permeability enhancement.
can be found i n Ref. 1.
Explosives may al so have an appl i cati on
A more complete development
Theory
The theory i s based on l i nki ng the Carmen-Kozeny expression,
wi th the parameters involved i n the dynamic explosion process, I n Eq. (11,
9 i s the porosi ty and S i s the speci fi c surface area.
To rel ate thi s formula t o the complex phenomena of an explosive
detonation, it i s useful to view the explosion process i n two stages.2
The f i r s t stage i s dominated by a large-amplitude stress wave. The second
stage involves an expansion of the cavi ty by high-pressure gases from the
detonation. The effects of the f i r s t stage on the media are of a dynamic
nature, whi l e those o f the second stage extend over a much longer time
i nterval and can be regarded as quasi stati c processes. To obtai n a
descri pti on o f permeability, we must rel ate these processes t o Eq. ( 1 ) .
According t o Kutter and Fairhurst, 2 the pri nci pal rol e of the stress
wave i s t o i ni t i at e fractures. The fracture density n i s rel ated to the
porosi ty and speci fi c surface by
where w i s the crack width. Gri f f i th3 postulated a f ai l ur e cr i ter i on for
real materi al s. From tensi l e tests, he learned that the average stress
at rupture was small compared wi th the theoreti cal strength of the sol i d.
- 192-
He concluded that energy i n the test piece was not uniformly di stri buted.
A t poi nts where the cracks ori gi nate, hi gh concentrations of s trai n energy
must exi st. We assume that these concentration points are macroscopic
flaws i n the materi al . A real geologic medium w i l l contain a di s tri buti on
of flaws having vari ati ons i n length and ori entati on. Flaws may be natural l y
occurring fractures having a di s tri buti on i n length and ori entati on, grai n
boundary weaknesses, and sol uti on channels.
I f si mi l ar specimens o f a given materi al are subjected t o f ai l ure
tests, they do not a l l f a i l a t the same stress, A di s tri buti on of breakage
strengths w i l l be found.4
contains a di s tri buti on o f fl aw strengths. Vari ati on i n stress l evel s
from an applied load a t fl aw ti ps i s proporti onal t o the square root of
thei r length^.^
extending under a given applied stress.
I t can therefore be i nterpreted that the material
Longer f l aws w i l l therefore have a higher probabi l i ty o f
The dynamic stress wave w i l l cause a l l flaws whose strengths are less
than the magnitude o f the l ocal l y applied stress to extend. A rel ati on
between the growth o f flaws or the increase i n speci fi c surface and energy
can be obtained from comminution theory. Several comminution rel ati ons
have been proposed.
Law, which states that an increase i n speci fi c surface area i s di rectl y
proporti onal t o the energy input:
The one most appl i cabl e t o our si tuati on i s R i tti nger' s
S a E . (3)
R i tti nger' s law has been substantiated by the general scal i ng laws of
Langefors and Kihlstrom,6 which have been veri f i ed for burden dimensions
varying between 0.01 and 10 m wi th a l o7 vari ati on i n explosive charge.
Creating fractures does not i n i t s e l f generate permeability. This i s
because the stress wave propagates at the compressional-wave vel oci ty Cp ,
whi l e fractures can grow i n a recti l i near path a t a maximum vel oci ty l / 3 c
New fractures w i l l then be i ni ti ated on other fl aw si tes i n the material.
A t thi s moment i n the process, the medium consists of a noninterconnected
system of fractures wi th essenti al l y no new porosi ty.
,
Hence, the stress wave w i l l i nevi tabl y outrun the fractures it generates. P
The second stage of the essenti al l y continuous explosion process i s
dominated by the quasi stati c expansion of the gas i n the cavi ty.
cavi ty voi d space i s produced by i rreversi bl e pressure-volume work of the
explosive gases. Void space i s created both by free-surface displacement
and by compression o f the surrounding rock. This model assumes that the
fracture porosi ty surrounding the cavi ty i s created by i rreversi bl e radi al
compression and the tangenti al tension of the surrounding rock. The
fracture porosi ty w i l l be proportional t o the f i r s t i nvari ant of the s trai n
tensor, 6
The
where A i s the f i r s t i nvari ant and contri butes t o porosi ty onl y when i t
assumes pos i ti ve values (di l atati on).
- 193-
I f we use t he dynami c wave sol ut i ons of Sel ber g, 7 t he energy decay
l aws at t he wave f r ont ar e gi ven by:
E a l / r 2 ( dynami c, spheri cal geomet r y)
and
E a l / r ( dynami c, cyl i ndr
I f t he st at i c, sol ut i on f or a pr essur
i dent i cal l y zer o i n bot h cyl i ndr i cal
r ock wi l l exhi bi t bi l i near behavi or ;
cal geomet r y) . ( 6 1
zed cavi t y i s used, di l at at i on wi l
and spher i cal geomet r i es. However
1 1 . and hence, t he- el ast i c modul i w
have di f f er ent val ues i n t ensi on and c ompr e~s i on. ~~~
anal ysi s of Hai mson and Thar pY8
Fol l owi ng t he
be
wher e f = 2 for spheri cal geomet r y and f = 1 f or cyl i ndr i cal geomet r y.
For wel l st i mul at i on, t he f ol l owi ng appear s t o be a good appr oxi -
mat i on. 1
wher e E i s a smal l posi t i ve number . Subst i t ut i ng ( 3 ) , (5), ( 61, (71, and
(8) i nto ( l ) , and assumi ng t he expl osi vel y gener at ed porosi t y to be smal l ,
t he f unct i onal behavi or of t he per meabi l i t y i n t he l i near el ast i c case
wi l l be appr oxi mat el y
k n. , l / r 4 ( cyl i ndr i cal symmet r y) (9 1
and
k Q l / r 5 ( spher
Compar i son wi t h Exper i ment
cal symmet r y
Ther e ar e onl y t wo known expl osi ve st i mul at i on exper i ment s report i ng
ext ensi ve per meabi l i t y measur ement s as a f unct i on of di st ance f romt he
borehol e. They ar e t he 5 kt Har dhat nucl ear event l o f i red i n gr ani t e,
and t he 59 kg chemi cal expl osi ve det onat ed i n coal near Kemmer er , Wyomi ng.
Fi g. 1 shows t he compar i son bet ween t he t heor et i cal expr essi on
[ Eq . (l o)] and t he measur ed per meabi l i t y ar ound Har dhat .
t he compar i son bet ween t he per meabi l i t y measur ed as a f unct i on of di st ance
f r omt he cyl i ndr i cal cavi t y and Eq. (9) f or coal .
Fi g. 2 shows
Di scussi on
*
Despi t e a l arge var i at i on i n expl osi ve yi el d and rock t ype
bet ween t he Har dhat t wcl ear event and t he Kemmer er coal exper i ment ,
the predi cti ons of the theory i n both spherical and cyl i ndri cal symmetries
are i n excel l ent agreement wi th the experiments. No measurements are
avai l abl e f or geothermal reservoirs. However, because of the agreement
obtained to date, we bel i eve that reasonable predi cti ons can be made f or
speci fi c geothermal reservoirs. For very deep applications, overburden
stresses must be included t o obtai n the correct decay laws. P racti cal
implementation w i l l requi re careful evaluation of exi sti ng explosives
for s ui tabi l i ty and safety i n the hot environment of geothermal reservoirs.
References
1. McKee, C. R., and M. E. Hanson, Explosively created permeability
from si ngl e charges. SOC. Pet. Eng. J . (Dec. 1975) 495.
2. Kutter, H. K., and C. F ai rhurst. On the fracture process i n bl asti ng.
I nt. J . Rock Mech. Min. Sci. (1971) Vol. 8, 181.
Mech. Del f t, The Netherlands (1924) 55-63.
3. Gri f f i th, A. A . , Theory o f rupture, Proc. F i r s t I nt. Congr.
4. Weibull, W., A s tati s ti cal theory o f the strength of materia
Drgvetensk. Akad. Handl. No.
5. Sneddon, I . N., and M. Lowengrub
theory of el as ti ci ty. J ohn W i
6. J aeger, J . C., and N. G. W. Cook
Chapman and Hal 1, London (1969
S.
49.
Crack problems i n the cl assi cal
ey E Sons, 1 nc., New York (1969) 29.
Fundamentals o f rock mechanics.
199.
7. Selberg, H. L., Transient compression waves from spherical and
8. Perkins, T. K., and W. W. Krech. The energy balance concept of
cyl i ndri cal cavi ti es. Arki v f or Fysik (1953) Vol. 5 , 97.
hydraul i c fracturi ng. SOC. Pet. Eng. J . (March 1968) 1-12;
Trans. AIME, Vol. 243.
bi l i near el as ti c rock. SOC. Pet. Eng. J . (Apri l 1974) 145-151.
of a grani ti c rock mass fol l owi ng a contained nuclear explosion.
J . Pet. Tech. (May 1966) 619-623; Trans. AI ME, Vol. 237.
Kemmerer coal. Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, Report UCRL 51790
(1975) (To appear i n the I nt. J . o f Rock Mech. and Mining Sci.)
9. Haimson, B. C. , and T. M. Tharp. Stresses around boreholes i n
10. Boardman, C. R . , and J . Skrove. Di s tri buti on i n fracture permeability
1 1 . Hearst, J . R. Fractures induced by a contained explosion i n
- 195-
- 1
>
I-
-I
w
H
< m1
5
W
W
CL
1
0-
o - ~
,o-5
-
__
- EXPERIMENT
- A Hori zontal
o Verti cal
-
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 0 20
SCALED RADI US - r/rC
Fig. 1 . Comparison of theoretical and measured permeability values. The
log of permeability k is given as a function of distance scaled
in terms of the cavity radius rc .
in both horizontal and vertical holes, and is independent of
direction.
Permeability was measured
- 196-
Fig. 2. Coal postshot permeability versus radius f or a
chemical explosive detonated i n a coal seam.
emplacement geometry possessed cyl i ndri cal symmetry.
P ermeability i s i n Darcies, whi l e the radi al distance
i n meters i s measured from the axi s of the cavi ty.
The small box on the upper r i ght represents two
measurements.
The
- 197-
SUMMARY OF OUR RESEARCH I N GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI R SI MULATI ON
Char l es R. Faust and J ames W. Mer cer
U.S. Geol ogi cal Sur vey
Rest on, Va. 22091
Our r esear ch ef f or t has concent r at ed on devel opi ng t heoret i cal and
numeri cal model s f or t he pur pose of si mul at i ng geot her mal r eser voi r s. The
f i r st heat - t r anspor t model we devel oped was si ngl e- phase ( 1 i qui d wat er) ,
t wo- di mensi onal ( areal ) , and was based on t he Gal er ki n, f i ni t e- el ement
met hod. Thi s model was appl i ed to t he Wai r akei geot her mal f i el d, whi ch we
wer e abl e t o si mul at e unt i l appr oxi mat el y 1962 at whi ch t i me t he r eser voi r
became t wo- phase.
Mor e r ecent l y we have f or mul at ed t he equat i ons of t wo- phase ( st eam-
wat er) , heat t r anspor t i n t er ms of ent hal py and pr essur es2
t he basi c mass, moment umand ener gy bal ances i n t er ms of f l ui d pr essur e and
ent hal py yi el ds t wo nonl i near , part i al di f f er ent i al equat i ons t hat ar e val i d
for bot h l i qui d- and vapor - domi nat ed hydr ot her mal r eser voi r s, as wel l as f or
r eser voi r s t hat may i ncl ude both si ngl e- and t wo- phase r egi ons. I n addi -
t i on, t hi s f or mul at i on el i mi nat es t he i nt er phase condensat i on t erms.
For mul at i on of
Sol ut i on of t hese equat i ons i s per f or med usi ng bot h f i ni t e- el ement
and f i ni t e- di f f er ence t echni ques. The f i ni t e- el ement met hod i s capabl e of
usi ng hi gher or der el emect s, i ncl udi ng Her mi t e cubi cs. Al so, Newt on- Raphson
i t erat i on may be used i n both model s ( f i ni t e- di f f er ence and f i ni t e- el ement ) .
Model r esul t s f or one- and t wo- di mensi onal pr obl ems have been com-
pared wi t h both anal yt i cal sol ut i ons and l abor at or y resul t s. 3
pr obl ems have keen si mul at ed and a sensi t i vi t y anal ysi s of some par amet er s
has been made. Resul t s of t hese numeri cal exper i ment s have gi ven i nsi ght
i nt o t he quest i on of whi ch numeri cal t echni ques ar e sui t abl e f or a par t i cu-
l ar geot her mal r eser voi r pr obl em. Based on t hese r esul t s, wor k on ext endi ng
t he Wai r akei si mul at i on has been i ni t i at ed.
Hypot het i cal
REFERENCES
1 .
2.
3 .
4.
Mer cer , J . W. , G. F. Pi nder , and 1 . G. Donal dson: "A Gal er ki n- Fi ni t e
El ement Anal ysi s of t he Hydr ot her mal Syst emat Wai r akei , New Zeal and, "
J . Geophys. Resear ch (1975) - 80, No. 17, 2608- 2621. .
Mer cer , J . W. , and C. R. Faust : "Si mul a
Hydr ot her mal Reser voi r s, " paper SPE 5520
Meet i ng of SOC. of Pet . Eng. of AI ME, Da
Faust , C. R. , and J . W. Mer cer : "An Ana
Fi ni t e- El ement Techni ques f or Geot her mal
5742 to be present ed at 4t h SPE Symp. on
voi r Per f or mance, Los Angel es, CA. , Feb.
i on of Wat er - and Vapor - domi nat ed
pr esent ed at 50t h Annual Fal l
l as, Texas, Sept . 28- Oct . 1, 1975.
ysi s of Fi ni t e- Di f f er ence and
Reser voi r Si mul at i on, " paper SPE
Numeri cal Si mul at i on of Reser -
19- 20, 1976.
Faust , C. R. , and J . W. Mer cer : "Mat hemat i cal Model of Geot hermal Syst ems, "
paper pr esent ed at 2nd UN Symp. on Devel opment & Use of Geot hermal
Resour ces, San Fr anci sco, CA. , May 20- 29, 1975.
- 198-
THE PRINCETON GEOTHERMAL RESEARCH PROGRAM
George P i nder
Department of C i vi l Engineering
P rinceton Uni versi ty
P rinceton, N.J . 08540
The research program currentl y underway i n the Department of C i vi l
Engineering at P rinceton Uni versi ty can be subdivided i nto f i ve separate
i nteracti ng components. Each component addresses a speci fi c problem encoun-
tered i n the numerical si mul ati on of geothermal reservoi rs. I n thi s summary,
the components w i l l be examined independently although i n fact there are
many facets of the work which overlap and thereby provide a foundation for
the exchange of ideas between i ndi vi dual s.
The natural extension of the two-dimensional si ngl e phase areal model
of the Wairakei reservoi r i s the f ul l y three-dimensional problem. Although
the development of a three-dimensional f i n i t e element energy transport code
was re ati vel y straighforward, the cataloguing, organization and manipulation
of the l arge quanti ti es of perti nent f i el d data was more di f f i c ul t. I n pre-
paring the input data trend surfaces of the important hydrological and geo-
l ogi ca parameters were generated. I n thi s way the required information f or
each f ni te element node can be determined readi l y.
rentl y operational and the l as t elements o f data are being prepared.
The simulator i s cur-
While the correct formulation of the equations governing multi-phase
(steam-water) fl ow i n porous media i s now avai l abl e i n the l i terature, the
development of an accurate and ef f i ci ent three-dimensional simulator s t i l l
remains a formidable task. Because of the f l e xi bi l i t y and accuracy of the
f i ni t e element-Galerkin approach, thi s method has been chosen as the basis
for our general simulator. To overcome l i mi tati ons inherent i n the cl assi cal
fi ni te- el ement approach, hi ghl y ef f
combined wi th i ter ati ve methods f or
tems of al gebrai c equations.
Although the Bi ot system of
c i t y i s general l y recognized as a r
sidence, i t does not describe impor
ci ent coef f i ci ent generating schemes are
the sol uti on of the resul ti ng l arge sys-
equations based on the theory of el as ti -
gorous expression of the physics of sub-
ant phenomena observed i n the f i el d. I n
parti cul ar, it i s observed that physical systems are characterized by param-
eters which exhi bi t memory.
must be based upon vi sco- el asti c rather than el as ti c theory. Because of the
lack of understanding of the exact form of the stress- strai n rel ati onshi p,
we have assured general i ty by considering an approach which extracts the
form of thi s equation di r ectl y from avai l abl e l aboratory experiments rather
than di ctati ng i t a pr i or i .
the laplace transform i n conjunction wi th a f i n i t e element-Galerkin scheme.
A correct formulation of the problem, therefore,
The resul ti ng system of equations i s solved using
Although equations f or energy transport i n porous media have been i n
use for some time, we deemed it necessary t o ver i f y that these equations had
a sound theoreti cal basis. A systematic technique of l ocal volume averaging
- 199-
of the continuum equations was adopted and app
equation. This technique allows one t o deri ve
which contains terms accounting for mechanical
energy conduction and phase change.
When the assumption of thermal equi l i b
i ed t o the thermal energy
an equation for each phase
dispersion, interphase
ium between the various phases
i s reasonable, the equations for each phase may be added together and the
coupling terms between the phases w i l l drop out. However, i f conditions
are such that thermal equi l i bri um i s not established, appropriate consti tu-
ti ve rel ati ons can be found f or the coupling term and the equations are
solved separately f or each phase.
For the case of col d water i nj ecti on i nto a fractured geothermal
reservoi r, one might expect the col d water to move a t di f f erent vel oci ti es
i n the fractures and pores and thermal equi l i bri um between the pore and
fracture f l ui d may not exi s t. To model thi s case, the pore f l ui d and frac-
ture f l ui d were considered t o be di f f erent phases and fl ow and energy equa-
ti ons were developed f or each o f the two f l ui d phases as wel l as for the
s ol i d matri x. A t present, a Gal erki n- fi ni te element computer code i s being
developed which solves the complete coupled set of equations.
vari abl es are expanded i n terms of a new type of basic functi on which
allows for increased accuracy and a reduction i n the number of f i ni t e
element equations which must be solved.
The unknown
-200-
NUMERICAL CALCULATION OF MULTIPHASE FLUID AND HEAT FLOW
I N HYDROTHERMAL RE SE RVOI RS
J . W. P ri tchett
P.O. Box 1620
La J ol l a, CA. 92038
Systems, Science and Software
I n thi s paper one aspect o f an ongoing research program w i l l be
described. The overal l obj ecti ve i s t o develop rel i abl e computer simulators
whereby f i el d information f or a speci fi c l i qui d- or vapor-dominated geo-
thermal system can be used t o predi ct reservoi r performance and, i n addi ti on,
subsurface environmental effects. These l atter effects include land surface
subsidence, induced seismic acti vi ty, and pol l uti on of fresh water aqui fers
by geothermal brines. The approach is to develop large-scale computer pro-
grams and to val i date them using both laboratory measurements and f i el d data.
So f ar, separate codes have been developed f or describing the
multidimensional multiphase unsteady fl ow o f steam and water and of heat
i n a heterogeneous geologic setti ng i n the absence of rock deformation,
and for cal cui ati ng the response of a multidimensional rock matri x t o
prescribed pore pressure changes without s peci f i c consideration of f l ui d
flow. These codes are presentl y being combined t o produce a si ngl e f ul y-
n i nteracti ve f l ui d flow/rock deformation simulator. The separate codes
themselves may be of some i nterest, however; S. K. Garg discussed the
fi ni te- el ement rock-deformation simulator i n another presentation at th
workshop. Here, the f l ui d- f l ow simulator w i l l be discussed.
S
Mathematical Formulation
Brownel 1 -- e t a1 . (1975) have presented elsewhere the equations govern-
ing the fl ow of water and steam i n a non-deforming rock matrix. These may be
summarized as fol l ows:
Fluid Mass Conservation:
Eneryy Conservation:
+K VTJ
-201-
Ts =T
where
aL
CI
V
8,
%
and
E
s = o
( al l l i qui d)
Evap
ES
pV
PL
Q
S
P
Bul k f
Lat ent
Sol i d
Bul k f
S = l
(all vapor)
0
0
l / u
ui d i nt er nal ener gy per uni t f l ui d rol urne.
heat of vapor i zat i on per uni t f l ui d vol ume.
nt er nal ener gy per uni t t ot al vol ume.
ui d densi t y.
Vapor phase densi t y = pQ/S.
Li qui d phase densi t y = p( 1- Q) / ( l - S) .
St eam qual i t y.
St eam sat ur at i on.
Bul k f l ui d (1 i qui d; vapor phase) vi scosi t y.
Rel at i ve vapor ( l i qui d) per meabi l i t y.
Absol ut e sol i d per meabi l i t y.
M i x t u r e ( r ock- 1 i qu i d- va por ) hea t conduct i v i t y .
Por os i t y .
Pr essur e.
Fl ui d t emper at ur e.
Sol i d t emper at ur e.
Accel er at i on of gr avi t y.
Local f l ui d mass sour ce/ si nk r at e.
Local heat sour ce/ si nk r at e.
-202-
These balance laws are to be solved subject t o appropriate i ni t i a l
and boundary conditions. Furthermore, cons ti tuti ve rel ati ons must be
prescribed both f or the rock matri x and f or the i ns ti ti al f l ui d. For ti l e
rock, the density, porosi ty, di recti onal absolute peremeabilities, rel ati ve
permeability functions, heat capacity and thermal conducti vi ty must be sup-
pl i ed a t each poi nt i n the system. For the f l ui d, a large number of
properti es must be known as functions
energy ( E ) .
vapor saturati on (S)? l atent heat of vapori zati on (E
vap
), and separate
vi scosi ti es ( LI
vapor. For thi s purposey a rather elaborate system of subroutines was
developed which uses l arge data tables and various i nterpol ati on schemes
Val i d up to ul tra- hi gh pressures (several megabars) and temperatures to
3OOO"C.
of water density ( p ) and i nternal
These include pressure (P ), temperature (T), steam qual i ty ( Q ) y
vv) and thermal conducti vi ti es ( K ~ , K ~ ) f or l i qui d and
8,
Computer Code and Appl i cati ons
The system of balance equations i s solved by a f i ni t e di fference
technique which has been described elsewhere (P ri tchett -- et al . , 1975).
Essenti al l y, an imp1 i c i t-time, f i rst- order (upstream) space representation
of the equations i s employed; the i ter ati ve Alternating-Direction-Implicit
(ADI) technique i s used to reduce a si ngl e multidimensional problem to
equivalent sequence of one-dimensional problems. These one-dimensiona
problems are, of course, nonlinear i n themselves--these nonl i neari ti es
are removed by i terati on wi thi n the one-dimensional "module."
The numerical scheme has been incorporated i nto a simulator wh
possesses considerable f l exi bi l i ty. Several qeometries can be conside
an
ch
ed :
-
(1) 1-D slab, (2) 1-D cy1 i ndri cal , (3) l - D spherical, (4) 2-D planar or
areal, (5) 2-D axisymmetric, or (6) 3- D Cartesian. Each computational
zone may contain a di f f erent rock type, and any face of any zone may be
a boundary. P rovi si on i s made f or a l l practi cal boundary condi ti on options:
(1) impermeable, insulated, (2) impermeable, prescribed heat f l ux, (3) imper-
meable, prescribed temperature, (4) prescribed mass fl ux, insulated,
(5) prescribed mass and heat f l ux, (6) prescribed mass f l ux and temperature,
and (7) prescribed pressure and f l ui d heat content. Boundary condi ti on
parameters may be functi ons of time.
The simulator has been extensi vel y tested, using both si mpl i fi ed
anal yti c problems wi th known sol uti ons and bench-scale experimental
resul ts. Work i s currentl y i n progress to simulate the f i el d production
hi story at the Wairakei f i el d i n New Zealand. Garg, et al . (1975) presented
some of the tes t resul ts against l aboratory data at the United Nations Con-
ference i n San Francisco l as t May. Bri ef l y, one-dimensional simulations
were performed of laboratory experiments carri ed out by Kruger and Ramey
(1974) and Arihara (1974) a t Stanford. These experiments involved flow i n
a narrow 60 cm long tube packed wi th sandstone. I n these experiments, non-
isothermal and multiphase fl ow occurred. Results computed by the simulator
included pressure and temperature di s tri buti ons wi thi n the tube as func-
ti ons of time--agreement was general l y wi thi n experimental scatter for a l l
cases considered.
-203-
This numerical reservoi r simulator i s therefore considered opera-
tional and possesses several desi rabl e features. Mass and energy are
conserved exactly, since the numerical scheme i s based squarely upon density
and i nternal energy rather than other auxi l i ary quanti ti es. Proper treat-
ment of flow-type (i . e. , prescribed-pressure) boundaries eliminates a r t i f i c i a l
computational "energy sources" at these boundaries, even under conditions o f
fl ow reversal.
presses the computational "j i tter " produced by many other simulators--
a r t i f i c i a l os ci l l ati ons of thi s s ort occasionally cause computational catas-
trophes i n single-phase regions near the saturati on l i ne.
The use of the i mpl i ci t upstream di fference technique sup-
A recent paper by Coats et al . (1973) describes a serious computa-
ti onal di f f i c ul t y they encountered when performing a 2-D areal simulation
o f a fi ve- spot steamflood o f an oi l f i el d. The ''five-spot" pattern i s a
checkerboard-like system wi th al ternati ng i nj ecti on and production wel l s.
Coats found that i f he treated thi s problem wi th a gr i d ori ented such that
a l i ne connecting adjacent production and i nj ecti on wel l s l i es a t 45" wi th
respect to the axes the computed water i nterface expands outward i n a
roughly ci rcul ar manner, whereas i f the gr i d i s ori ented wi t h coordinate
1 ines connecting adjacent production and i nj ecti on we1 I s, thi n "fingerst'
of i nj ected f l ui d penetrate outward rapi dl y. Times o f water breakthrough
a t the production wel l di f f ered by a factor o f three f or these cal cul ati ons.
To i nvesti gate thi s problem, our geothermal reservoi r simulator was used t o
cal cul ate a five-spot col d water i nj ecti on i nto a producing hot-water f i el d,
using both gr i d ori entati ons. Times o f col d water breakthrough computed i n
these two cal cul ati ons agreed wi thi n a few percent, which i s less than the
resol uti on of the fi ni te- di fference gr i d employed. Therefore, it i s be-
l i eved that the present method i s not subject to thi s di f f i cul ty, a t l east
for problems o f geothermal i nterest.
--
Several applied cal cul ati ons have been performed so f ar using the
simulator. One seri es o f computations reported a t the United Nations Sym-
posium by Garg et a l . (1975) show that, i n a bounded geothermal reservoi r
wi th no i nternal or external heat or mass sources, rei nj ecti on of waste
water w i l l substanti al l y augment the producing l i f e and the total energy
del i verabi l i ty of the system.
a seri es of cal cul ati ons are underway which i l l us tr ate the effect of i n-
formation flashing upon wellhead pressure hi s tori es during drawdown and
shut-in wel l testi ng (Rice, 1975). As mentioned earl i er, a simulation of
the Wairakei system i s now being undertaken.
I-
A t present, under a paral l el in-house proj ect,
Coupling o f the simulator wi th the rock-response finite-element code
i s now i n progress. Completion of thi s task w i l l permit more accurate seis-
mic and subsidence predi cti ons, and w i l l al so ai d i n extending our capabi l i ty
t o include cases wherein rock composition produces a si gni fi cant fracti on of
the reservoi r dri ve (such as the geopressured systems of the Gulf Coast).
Also i n progress i s the extension of the water equation of state t o consider
brines, and the addi ti on of a solute-conservation equation to the simulator.
These features are desi rabl e when considering very sal i ne systems such as
the Salton Sea geothermal f i el d.
-204-
References
Arihara, N., "A Study of Non-Isothermal Single and Two-Phase Flow Through
Consolidated Sandstones," Stanford Geothermal Program Report
SGP-TR-2, 1974.
BroNnell, D. H., J rs . , S. K. Garg and J . W. P ri tchett, "Computer Simulation
of Geothermal Reservoirs,'' Society o f Petroleum Engineers Paper
SPE 5381, 1975.
Coats, K. N., W. D. George and B. E. Marcus, "Three-Dimensional Simulation
of Steamflooding," Society of Petroleum Engineers Paper SPE 4500
1973
Garg, S. K., J . W. P ri tchett and D. H. Brownell, J r., "Transport o f Mass
and Energy i n Porous Media,'' Proceedings Second U.N. Symposium on
Development and Use of Geothermal Resources, San Francisco,
May 19-29, 1975.
Kruger, P . , and H. Ramey, J r., "Stimulation and Reservoir Engineering of
Geothermal Resources," Stanford Geothermal Program Report
SGP-TR-1, 1974.
P ri tchett, J . W . , S. K. Garg, D. H. Brownell, J r., and H. B . Levine,
"Geohydrological Environmental E ffects of Geothermal Power
Production - Phase I , ' [ Systems, Science and Software Report,
SSS-R-75-2733, 1975.
Rice, L. F . , 'IPressure Drawdown and Build-Up Analysis i n Geothermal
Reservoirs, I ' Systems, Science and Software I nternal Report,
IR&D P roj ect 93102-02, 1975.
-205-
METHODS OF SOLUTION OF THE EQUATIONS FOR CONVECTION
I N POROUS MEDI A, WITH GEOTHERMAL APPLICATIONS
R. A. Wooding*
Applied Mathematics Di vi si on
Department o f S ci enti f i c and I ndustri al Research
Wellington, New Zealand
Various approaches t o the sol uti on of the equations of thermal
convection i n f l ui ds may be cl assi fi ed, , f or convenience, under such headings
as:
amplitude i ns tabi l i ti es , f or which R/Rc : 1 , where R i s the Rayleigh
number and Rc i s i t s c r i t i c al value f or neutral s tabi l i ty; (2) the Galerkin
method, a well-known numerical technique ut i l i z i ng truncated expansions i n
orthogonal functions, which has been applied up to R/Rc z O(10);
vari ati onal method, which seeks to establ i sh bounds on the heat transport,
for given Rayleigh number, up t o l arge R/Rc;
of the convection equations, usual l y i n f i ni te- di f f erence form, up t o
R/Rc 2 O(10).
( 1) the Stuart-Watson method, which deals wi th the behavior of f i ni te-
(3) the
(4) di rect numerical sol uti on
These techniques are considered i n rel ati on t o the equations of con-
vecti on of vari abl e- vi scosi ty f l ui d i n a porous medium.
Since the parti cul ar appl i cati on i s intended to be geothermal convec-
ti on, many si mpl i fi cati ons may have t o be accepted. F i rs t, i t i s assumed
that the fl ow can be treated as fl ow through porous media. This i s not
necessarily true, although the approximation becomes more sati sfactory if
onl y large-scale motions are considered. Secondly, the medium may not be
i sotropi c. This i s not a serious di f f i c ul ty, but isotropy w i l l be assumed
f or convenience. Thi rdl y, s al t may be transported as wel l as heat, and can
exert an influence upon f l ui d buoyancy. Evidently, the transport of s al t
would involve a strai ghtforward general i zati on o f the treatment for heat
transport (although some new phenomena are encountered), and i s not consi-
dered here. Fourthly, chemical i nteracti on o f the f l ui d wi th the medium,
which would introduce great complications, i s assumed t o be negl i gi bl e.
Very l arge temperature di fferences are encountered i n geothermal
appl i cati ons, so that the dependence upon temperature o f f l ui d properti es
needs to be taken i nto account. The most important of these i s the vari a-
ti on of vi scosi ty, which may involve an order-of-magnitude change. The
f l ui d and porous medium are assumed to be incompressible, but di l ati on and
contracti on of the f l ui d wi th temperature changes may lead to a 20% change
i n density, which i s of some si gni fi cance. This i s most readi l y taken i nto
account, whi l e retai ni ng a convenient form of the equations, by introducing
a vector proporti onal t o the mass fl ow rate, and rel ati ng thi s to the
volume flow rate q by
-
Here p i s the f l ui d density a t temperature T, and po i s a density
*NSF Foreign Energy Research Scholar at Colorado State Uni versi ty, F ort
Col l i ns, 1975-76.
- 206-
corresponding t o a reference temperature To. Then the equations of
conti nui ty, motion and heat transport take a convenient form (c. f. Wooding,
1957, 1960):
- - + V * q E aP = o
a t -m
P V
- 4 = o
k , m
1
- V P + kg - +
-
Here t i s time, P i s pressure, E i s the porosi ty of the medium,
E = C ( l - )cS ps + E CP }/ C~, ( 5 )
i s the r ati o of the heat capacity per uni t volume of saturated medium
(at temperature T) to that of the f l ui d (at temperature To)> c s i gni f i es
s peci f i c heat and s uf f i x s denotes the s ol i d medium. Also, k i s the
i ntr i ns i c permeability, v i s the kinematic vi scosi ty of the f l ui d, K
i s the thermal di f f us i vi ty of the saturated medium, here taken constant,
g is the magnitude of gravi ty and k i s a uni t vector, di rected ver ti cal l y
upwards. While Equations (2) and (47 are strai ghtforward conservation
rel ati ons, Equation (3) (Darcy's Law) i s a force- fl ux rel ati on which involves
some assumptions--notably the existence of the permeabi l i ty k.
I n addi ti on t o the foregoing, there must exi s t an equation of state
f or each temperature-dependent quanti ty.
i s taken as
Here the rel ati on for densi ty often
P - Po T - To
- -
- a
PO T*
i.e., the Boussinesq approximation, being the temperature coef f i ci ent
of l i near expansion of the f l ui d. Thermal expansion of the medium i s
neglected. A more sati sfactory representation of the thermal expansion law
requires a polynomial.
The vari ati on o f vi scosi ty wi th temperature i s qui te strongl y non-
l i near. For geothermal appl i cati ons a simple rel ati on for water i s
where the coeffi ci ent a may be O(10) (Wooding, 1957). This consti tutes
one of the main obstacles to the di rect use of some of the standard methods
of sol uti on of t he convection equations.
-207-
A further important source o f nonl i neari ty i s the term gm*VT i n ( 4) .
Since most convection studies i n the l i ter atur e correspond t o the case of
constant vi scosi ty, the l atter nonl i neari ty has received considerable atten-
ti on, whereas the parti cul ar s i tuati on o f vari abl e vi scosi ty has
received
rel ati vel y l i t t l e .
I n vi scous- fl ui d convection, the important case of a small vari ati on
of vi scosi ty has been treated by perturbati on methods by Palm (19601, Segel
and Stuart (1962), Palm and Oiann (1964), Segel (1965a, b) and others, wi th
considerable success, since the reason f or the existence of hexagonal con-
vecti on cel l s over a f i ni t e range of Reynolds number has been s ati s f actori l y
explained.
An equivalent anal ysi s f or f l o w i n porous media has not been carri ed
out, as far as i s known. However, most cases o f i nterest i n porous-media
fl ow, parti cul arl y wi th geothermal appl i cati ons, i nvol ve very l arge changes
of vi scosi ty, f or which a perturbati on anal ysi s on the above l i nes would
not be sati sfactory. Generally, it i s considered necessary to resort t o
numerical techniques., as i n papers by Wooding (1957, 1963) and recent
studies by Horne (1975) and Kassoy and Zebib (1975), or by the use of
vari ati onal techniques (e.g., Wooding, 1960, 1975).
Techniques of Sol uti on of the Convection Equations
A convenient cl as s i f i cati on i s the fol l owi ng:
1 . The Stuart-Watson Method (Stuart, 1958; Watson, 1960; Stuart,
1964; etc. ) i s used f or treati ng f i ni te-amp1 i tude i nstabi 1 i ty problems,
i.e., t o f i nd answers to the question: What happens to an i nfi ni tesmal
disturbance as it grows to f i ni t e amplitude i n a s i tuati on which i s l i nearl y
unstable? Cl earl y, a si ngl e disturbance mode w i l l , through nonl i neari ti es,
generate a "normal-mode cascade'' (Segel, 1965~) and these i n turn w i l l
i nteract t o modify the fundamental disturbance amplitude. Generally the
ef f ect i s to introduce nonlinear damping of the fundamental, so that the
disturbance grows t o a f i ni t e amplitude and a new stabl e equi l i bri um resul ts.
However, special cases of reinforcement (e.g., resonance) may be encountered.
Since the Stuart-Watson method involves expansion i n normal modes
about the neutral disturbance, and the expansion i s truncated af ter the thi rd-
order terms (c. f. Segel, 1965a), i t i s l i mi ted to fl ow si tuati ons where theam-
pl i tude remains small (although f i ni te) throughout a l l time. This general l y
r es tr i cts i t s use i n convection problems t o cases where the Rayleigh number
R 2 Rc --the c r i ti c al value f or neutral s tabi l i ty. I n s pi te of thi s l i mi ta-
ti on, the method yi el ds great physical i nsi ght i nto mechanisms of f l ui d
i ns tabi l i ty.
2. The Galerkin Method (Veronis, 1966; Straus, 1974; Clever and
Busse, 1974; etc.) i s one of the ol dest and best known. Bri ef l y, expansions
of the dependent vari abl es i n the convection equations are sought i n terms of
orthonormal functions which s ati s f y the boundary conditions term by term.
The method of truncati on of these series, f i r s t described by Veronis, i s t o
-208-
choose a "maxi mumtotal wavenumber , " i . e. , to r et ai n onl y t hose t erms f or
whi ch t he sumof t he wavenumber s i n t he var i ous spat i al di r ect i ons does not
exceed a gi ven upper bound. When t he di f f er ent i al equat i on i s l i near , i t
i s possi bl e to obt ai n r el at i onshi ps bet ween the coef f i ci ent s by t er m- by- t er m
compar i son. Ot her wi se each par t i al di f f er ent i al equat i on may be reduced to
a set of or di nar y di f f er ent i al equat i ons ( say i n t i me) or an al gebr ai c equa-
t i on, by mul t i pl yi ng by successi ve t er ms of the ort honormal set , and
i nt egr at i ng over space. The r esul t ant set of or di nar y di f f er ent i al equat i ons,
or of al gebr ai c equat i ons, can t hen be sol ved by convent i onal numeri cal
met hods.
For the case of t wo- di mensi onal convect i on i n a porous medi umwi t h
const ant vi scosi t y, St r aus (1974) has cal cul at ed t he dependence of Nussel t
number ( Nu) upon Rayl ei gh number up to R 2 380, above whi ch poi nt ( f rom
1 i neari zed st abi 1 i t y anal ysi s) , t wo- di mensi onal sol ut i ons ar e unst abl e.
For R > 100, t he ( R, Nu) - cur ve shows a si gni f i cant change i n sl ope. The
resul t s ar e i n good agr eement wi t h exper i ment al measur ement s.
3 . The vari at i onal met hod of Howard (1963) and Busse (1969) has been
used by Busse and J oseph ( 1972) and Gupt a and J oseph (1973) to cal cul at e
upper bounds to t he Nussel t number , as a f unct i on of Rayl ei gh number , f or
t hr ee- di mensi onal convect i on i n a porous medi umat const ant vi scosi t y. I n
t hi s appr oach, the equat i ons of mot i on and heat t r anspor t ar e recast as a
vari at i onal pr obl em, i nvol vi ng aver ages over t he ent i r e porous l ayer. Then
the dependent var i abl es appear i ng i n the vari at i onal probl emar e repl aced
by a "cl ass of admi ssi bl e f unct i ons" whi ch i ncl udes al l st at i st i cal l y st a-
t i onar y sol ut i ons, and whi ch sat i sf i es t he boundary condi t i ons and any
suppl ement ar y condi t i ons whi ch may be speci f i ed.
vari at i onal probl emembr ace a wi de cl ass of sol ut i ons, cor r espondi ng to
ext r eme val ues of the syst em, and t hese may be represent ed by expansi ons i n
or t honor mal f unct i ons based upon hori zont al wavenumber s an. A si ngl e wave-
number i s adequat e up to R = 221.5 ( Gupt a and J oseph, 1973), at whi ch
poi nt t he sol ut i on bi f ur cat es and t wo a- val ues ar e needed. These cal cul a-
t i ons have been car r i ed up to about R = 500 wi t h very good agr eement wi t h
exper i ment . At hi gher R, an asympt ot i c ( boundar y- l ayer ) anal ysi s based on
t hat of Chan (1971) pr edi ct s appr opr i at e qual i t at i ve behavi or , but t hese
r esul t s ar e not i n good quant i t at i ve agr eement wi t h the numeri cal st udi es.
The Eul er equat i ons of t he
4. Met hods of numeri cal sol ut i on of t he convect i on equat i ons ar e
now the subj ect of a very l arge l i t er at ur e, and ext ensi ve revi ews such as
t hose by Or szag and I srael i (1974), or of Hor ne ( 1975) f or porous medi a,
ar e necessar y to ensur e adequat e t r eat ment s. Because of l i mi t at i ons i n
comput er capaci t y and speed, most convect i on st udi es have been l i mi t ed to
t wo- di mensi onal f l ows. Convect i on i n vi scous f l ui ds wi t h l arge var i at i ons
i n vi scosi t y has been consi der ed, f or t wo- di mensi onal f l ows, by Tor r ance
and Tur cot t e (1971) and by Houst on and De Br emaecker (1974).
Hor ne ( 1975) has carri ed out some cal cul at i ons wi t h var i abl e vi scos-
i t y f or t wo- di mensi onal convect i on i n por ous medi a. i n di scussi ng hi s
r esul t s, Hor ne comment s t hat equal l y- vi gor ous convect i on occur s wi t h var i abl e
vi scosi t y at l ower appar ent Rayl ei gh number t han i n t he const ant - vi scosi t y
case, si nce R i s def i ned f or T = To, wher e vi scosi t y i s hi gh. He al so
- 209-
obser ves t hat t he r epr esent at i on of a var i abl e- vi scosi t y convect i on syst em
wi t h a const ant - vi scosi t y model i s "i nexact , but not ent i r el y wi t hout use. "
Thi s suggest s t hat an i nt er medi at e val ue of Rayl ei gh number mi ght be f ound
whi ch cor r esponds to t he const ant - vi scosi t y val ue at the same Nussel t
number . However , i n st udyi ng t he onset of convect i on i n porous medi a wi t h
var i abl e vi scosi t y, Kassoy and Zebi b (1975) concl ude t hat t he vi scosi t y
var i at i ons have subst ant i al ef f ect s upon t he f l ow pat t ern and t hat a mean
val ue of vi scosi t y cannot be t aken to est i mat e a sui t abl e i nt er medi at e
val ue of R.
Numeri cal st udi es of convect i on i n t hr ee di mensi ons i n a vi scous
f l ui d, based on t he earl y wor k of Chor i n ( 1966) , have been perf ormed by
Vel t i shchev and Zel ni n (1975), t aki ng vi scosi t y const ant . I n t hi s appr oach
t he equat i ons ar e r epr esent ed i n f i ni t e- di f f er ence f or m, usi ng ' ' pri mi t i ve"
var i abl es, i . e. , vel oci t y component s ( u, v, w) , t emper at ur e and pr essur e.
Cal cul at i ons wer e car r i ed out i n a r ect i l i near domai n wi t h hori zont al
di mensi ons 2.34 and 4. 03 t i mes t he dept h.
model s, t he domai n i s l i mi t ed to a f i ni t e box. ) I nt erest i ng st abl e convec-
t i ve f l owpat t er ns ar e obt ai ned, not abl y t wo- di mensi onal rol l s f or l ow to
i nt er medi at e val ues of t he Rayl ei gh number , t hr ee- di mensi onal f l ows i n a
hi gher , somewhat nar r ower , r ange, and unst eady mot i ons above t hat . These
f l owt r ansi t i ons ar e accompani ed by changes i n sl ope of t he Rayl ei gh
number - heat f l ux cur ve.
( I n common wi t h ot her numeri cal
For t hr ee- di mensi onal Convect i on i n a por ous medi um, r el at i vel y f ew
r ef er ences can be f ound. Hol st and Azi z ( 1972) used a combi nat i on of
successi ve over - r el axat i on f or t he sol ut i on of t he equat i on of mot i on
( reduced to Poi sson' s equat i on) wi t h cent er ed di f f er enci ng f or t he f i r st
der i vat i ons of t he heat equat i on. However , t he mor e advanced t echni ques of
di r ect sol ut i on ut i l i zed by Hor ne and O' Sul l i van (1974) and Hor ne (1975)
ar e f ast er and mor e accur at e. These empl oy an Ar akawa (1966) f i ni t e-
di f f er ence scheme to eval uat e t he t erms ar i si ng f romgm*VT i n ( b ) , and an
ext ensi on of t he Buneman al gor i t hm ( Buzbee, Gol ub and Ni el son, 1970) to
eval uat e the Poisson equat i on. Hor ne (1975) has used t hese t echni ques to
cal cul at e sol ut i ons f or t hr ee- di mensi onal convect i on i n a cubi cal box,
t aki ng a 17 x 17 x 17 mesh, at R = 500. For a uni f or ml y heat ed l ower
boundar y, convect i on i s f ound to t ake t he f ormof t wo- di mensi onal r ol l s,
even when t he i ni t i al per t ur bat i on i s t hr ee- di mensi onal .
I t i s pl anned to publ i sh a mor e det ai l ed t r eat ment at a l ater dat e.
-2 10-
References
Arakawa, A,, 1966, Computational design f or long-term numerical i ntegrati on
of the equations of f l ui d motion: Two-dimensional incompressible flow;
P art I , J . Comp. Phys. 1, 119-43.
Buzbee, B. L., C . H. Golub and C. W. Nielson, 1970. On di rect methods of
sol vi ng P oisson's equations; S. I .A.M. J . Num. Anal. 7, 627-56.
Busse, F. H., 1969, On Howard's upper bound f or heat transport by turbul ent
convection; J . F l ui d Mech. 37, 457-77.
Busse, F. H. and D. D. J oseph, 1972, Bounds f or heat transfer i n a porous
layer; J . F l ui d Mech. 54, 521-43.
Chan, S. , 1971, I nf i ni te P randtl number turbul ent convection; Studies i n
Appl. Math., 50, (l), 13-49.
Chorin, A . J ., 1966, Numerical study of thermal convection i n a f l ui d
l ayer heated from below; AEC Res. and Dev. Rep. No. NYU-1480-61, New
York Univ., Aug.
Clever, R. M. and F. H. Busse, 1974, Transi ti on t o tirne-dependent convection;
J . F l ui d Mech. 65, 625-45.
Gupta, V. P. and D. D. J oseph, 1973, Bounds for heat transport i n a porous
layer; J . F l ui d Mech. 57, 491-514.
Holst, P. H., and K. Aziz, 1972, Transient three-dimensional natural convec-
ti on i n confined porous media; I nt. J . Heat Mass Transfer, 15, 73-90.
Horne, R. N. and M. J . O'Sullivan, 1974, Osci l l atory convection i n a porous
medium heated from below; J . F l ui d Mech. 66, 339-52.
Horne, R. N., 1975, Transient effects i n geothermal convective systems; Ph.D.
Thesis, School of Engineering, Univ. of Auckland, New Zealand, 112 pp.
Houston, M. H., J r., and J . De Bremaecker, 1974, AD1 sol uti on of free con-
vecti on i n a vari abl e vi scosi ty f l ui d; J . Comp. Phys. 16, 221-39.
Howard, L. N., 1963, Heat transport by turbul ent convection; J . F l ui d
Mech. 17, 405-32.
Kassoy, D. R. and A. Zebib, 1975, The i nfl uence of vari abl e vi scosi ty due
to l arge temperature di fferences on the onset of convection i n porous media;
Rep. CUMER 75-4, Dept. of Mech. Eng., Univ. of Colorado, 18 pp.
Orszag, S. A. and M. I s rael i , 1974, Numerical si mul ati on of viscous
incompressible flows; Ann. Rev. F l ui d Mech. 6, 281-318.
Palm, E., 1960, On the tendency towards hexagonal c el l s i n steady convection;
J . F l ui d Mech. 8, 183-92.
-21 1-
Pal m, E. and H. Oi ann, 1964, Cont r i but i on to t he t heory of cel l ul ar t hermal
convect i on; J . Fl ui d Mech. 19, 353- 65.
Segel , L. A. and J . T. St uar t , 1962, On t he quest i on of t he pref erred mode
i n cel l ul ar t hermal convect i on; J . Fl ui d Mech. 13, 289- 306.
Segel , L. A., 1965a, The st r uct ur e of non- l i near cel l ul ar sol ut i ons to t he
Boussi nesq equat i ons; J . Fl ui d Mech. 21, 345- 58.
Segel , L . A., 1965b, The non- l i near i nt er act i on of a f i ni t e number of di st ur -
bances to a l ayer of f l ui d heat ed f rombel ow; J . Fl ui d Mech. 21, 359- 84.
Segel , L. A., 1965c, Non- l i near hydr odynami c st abi l i t y t heory and i ts appl i -
cat i ons to t hermal convect i on and curved f l ows. I n Non- Equi l i br i umTher mo-
dynami cs Var i at i onal Techni ques and St abi l i t y.
I . Pr i gogi ne, eds. , Uni v. of Chi cago Pr ess, Chi cago, 1 1 1 .
RT J . Donne1 l y, R. Her man,
St r aus, J . M. , 1974, Large ampl i t ude convect i on i n porous medi a; J . Fl ui d
Mech. 64, 51- 63.
St uar t , J . T. , 1958, On t he non- l i near mechani cs of hydr odynami c st abi l i t y;
J . Fl ui d Mech. 4, 1- 21.
St uar t , J . T. , 1964, On t he cel l ul ar pat t er ns i n t hermal convect i on;
J . Fl ui d Mech. 18, 481- 98.
Tor r ance, K. E . and D. C. Tur cot t e, 1971, Thermal convect i on wi t h l arge
vi scosi t y var i at i ons; J . Fl ui d Mech.
Vel t i shchev, N. F. and A. A. Zel ni n,
convect i on i n ai r ; J . Fl ui d Mech. 68
Ver oni s, G. , 1966, Mot i ons at subcr i t
a rot at i ng f l ui d; J . Fl ui d Mech. 24,
47, 113- 25
975, Numer
353- 68.
cal val ues
545- 54.
Wat son, J ., 1960, On t he non- l i near mechani cs of
cal si mul at i on of cel l ul ar
of t he Rayl ei gh number i n
wave di st ur bances i n st abl e
and unst abl e paral l el fl ows; Par t 2; The devel opment of a sol ut i on f or pl ane
Poi seni l l e f l owand f or pl ane conet t e f l ow; J . Fl ui d Mech. 9, 371- 89.
Woodi ng, R. A., 1957, St eady st at e f r ee t hermal convect i on of l i qui d i n a
sat ur at ed per meabl e medi um; J . Fl ui d Mech. 2, 273- 85.
Woodi ng, R. A., 1960, Rayl ei gh i nst abi l i t y of a t hermal boundar y l ayer i n
f l owt hr ough a porous medi um; J . Fl ui d Mech. 9, 183- 92.
Woodi ng, R. A, , 1963, Convect i on i n a sat ur at ed por ous medi umat l ar ge
Rayl ei gh number or Pecl et number ; J . Fl ui d Mech. 15, 527- 44.
Woodi ng, R. A., 1975, I nvest i gat i on of si mi l ar i t y cr i t er i a f or a geot her mal
syst em; Par t I , Theor et i cal anal ysi s.
-21 2-
A HELE-SHAW MODEL OF HEAT CONVECTION I N POROUS ME DI A
UNDER GEOTHERMAL CONDI TI ONS
H. W. Shen
Department of Ci vi 1 Engineering
Colorado State Uni versi ty
F ort Col l i ns, Colorado
Evidence from New Zealand indicates that geothermal fiaelds occur a t
reasonably regular i nterval s of about 15 k i lometers apart. I nvestigators
have speculated that these regular i nterval s may be indications of the scale
of the heat convection cel l s.
Wooding (1975) has described the four we1 1-known approaches t o
solve the equations of conti nui ty, motion and heat transport f or heat con-
vection i n porous media. Unfortunately, t o date, none of thew methods has
provided solutions f or a i l geothermal conditions wi th a Rayleigh number up
to the order of 1000 and al so allowed the vi scosi ty to vary.
the permeability i s i n the order of 3 x 10-11 cm2, the change of density Ap
i s 0.2 gm/cm3, the length scale L
p i s 0.001 to 0.01 poise (dependin on the temperature of the f l ui d) and the
be from 100- 1000.
I n New Zealand,
i s about 5 x 105 cm, the dynamic vi scosi ty
thermal di f f us i vi ty k i s 0.003 cm9 /sec. The range of Rayleigh number would
The Stuart-Watson method has been applied to small vi scosi ty change
the c r i ti c al value f or neutral s tabi l i ty) .
The Galerkin method
and low Rayleigh number ( R * Rc
For high Rayleigh number the method i s not applicable.
has been applied to two-dimensional constant vi scosi ty cases. The vari a-
ti onal method has been applied to three-dimensional constant vi scosi ty cases
wi th R - 500. The methods of numerical sol uti on have been applied t o both
constant and vari abl e vi scosi ty cases. Due to the great cost involved i n
computer solution, a rel ati vel y large mesh was used a t R = 5010. The accur-
acy of these resul ts i s questionable.
Since none of these above-mentioned equations can provide solutions
f or vari abl e vi scosi ty i n high Rayleigh number regions, physical models are
parti cul arl y attracti ve at thi s stage. I f properly designed, physical models
should provide (1) approximate f i nal solutions; (2) veri fi cati on of numerical
and anal yti cal solutions; (3) a sol uti on obtained from keeping variable-
vi scosi ty terms i n the equation versus a sol uti on obtained froin assuming
constant vi scosi ty i n the equation; and (4) change of sol uti on forms wi th
i ncreased Ray l e i gh number.
Analys i s
Two-dimensional experiments cannot f u
dimensional si tuati on of a geothermal region,
s trate the influence of large vari ati ons of v
convecting plumes o f hot water.
-21 3-
l y represent the three-
but they are useful t o demon-
scosi ty on the form of
For two-dimensional convection i n the (x,z) plane, the usual
s t ream-f unct i on representation
gives, af ter el i mi nati ng pressure from Darcy's law,
a a* a a$ ae
ax az ax
- (a x) +- (a 5) =-
where 8 i s a dimensionless f l ui d density, and a = (v/k)/(u/k)o i s
a dimensionless vi scosi ty parameter. The s uf f i x o refers to the lowest
temperature i n the system. Typically, a w i l l vary from 1 a t the cold
end of the range to about 0.1 at the hot end--an order-of-magnitude change.
A further equation describes heat or mass transport
where
i s the Rayleigh number. Also, i n ( 3) -r i s a dimensionless time
def i ned by
( 3)
(4)
The parameters i n (4) and (5) are defined i n terms of the problem
under study. ko is the permeability of the medium, g i s gravi ty, Ap i s
the density difference between hot and cold, uo i s the vi scosi ty o f the cold
fl ui d, K i s the di f f us i vi ty of the density- controlling property, and L i s
a length scale- - typically the depth i n the case of a saturated porous layer
i n which convection i s taking place, i s the rati o
of the heat capacity of the medium to that o f the f l ui d. The s uf f i x s refers
t o the medium.
E = ((1-n) csps +ncp)/cp
Two-dimensional systems governed by the above equations may be
solved, f or example, by physical modelling or by computer methods.
Descr i o t i on of He le-Shaw Mode 1
A typi cal physical model of two-dimensional convection i s shown i n
Fig. 1 below. A Hele-Shaw cel l i s formed from two s tri ps of 1/4-inch thi ck
polished pl ate glass, separated by stri ps of waterproof adhesive tape. I n
the example shown, a cavi ty 20 cm x 1 cm is formed i n the (x,z) plane. The
thickness of the cavi ty i s very small so that a slow viscous f l ow occurs
between the plates.
two-dimensional flow i n a porous medium o f permeability
d i s the pl ate spacing.
The fl ow averaged between the plates i s analogous t o
k = d2/12 cm2, where
-2 1 4-
Fi gure 1. P l an Vi ew o f Hel e- Shaw Cel l
The cel l i s mounted wi th the x-axis horizontal, and wi th the z-axis
a t an angle a
g si n a. This i s useful f or adjusting the Rayleigh number R to a
desired value.
to the horizontal so that the effecti ve gravi ty component i s
I n the case shown, the cel l i s f i l l e d wi th a f l ui d of density
and vi scosi ty (say) which represents a geothermally heated f l ui d. The
cel l i s immersed i n a transparent tank f i l l e d with f l ui d of density
and vi scosi ty u0, representing cold groundwater.
p1
po
Since the width of the cel l i s very large compared wi t h L, the
sidewall boundary conditions w i l l be ignored. The following i ni t i al and
W
W = E
where w i s verti ca
w =
-
boundary conditions are taken to apply:
= o , e = o ( t =o , O < Z < l )
x) 9 e = 1 ( t =O , z =1 >
- -
velocity, ~ ( x ) i s a small noise signa
ae
az
0, - = 0 ( t > 0, 2 = 0)
(i nsul ati ng impermeable boundary condition)
aw
- = 0 , e - 1 ( t >o , z = i )
az
(constant pressure, constant density, boundary condition).
-2 15-
These conditions could correspond to a geothermal f i el d si tuati on
where a period of vol cani ci ty has i nj ected a large amount of heat, i n the
form of magmatic steam, i nto a deep groundwater aquifer, so that the whole
aqui fer i s i ni t i a l l y very hot.
col d surface water intrudes from above, displacing the hot water which
appears a t geothe ma 1 a reas.
After the vol cani ci ty has quieted down,
The experiment i s aimed
(1) To model the deep groundwater motion (at least i n two dimensions)
which i s not accessible to geophysical observation at the
present time,
(2) To provide an experimental relationship between the heat f l ux
out of the region (expressed as the Nusselt number) and the
Rayleigh number.
I t i s necessary that the f l ui d i ni t i a l l y i n the cel l be marked wi th
a dye so that convective motions may be photographed and studied.
colored f l ui d can also be used f or photometric work--to determine how much
of athe i ni t i a l f l ui d has been displaced from the cel l and so arri ve a t es ti -
mates f or the Nusselt number, a t various values o f the Rayleigh number.
This
F i el d values of parameters based upon measurements i n the Taupo
Volcanic Zone, parti cul arl y Wai rakei geothermal fi el d, give the following
approximate results:
Permeability k (verti cal ) = 3 x 10-l' cm2
Density difference Ap = 0.2 gm/cm3
Verti cal scale L = 5K m
Cold water vi scosi ty po = 10-2 poise
Thermal di f f us i vi ty K = 3 x 10-3 cm2/sec
R = *
kgApL - 3 x x 103 x 0.2 x 5 x l o5 =
Po IC 10-2 3 10-3
, and
For the time constant based upon cold water viscosity, E = 1
--I ELL 1Q12 seconds or roughly 30,000 years.
However, since the hot water
R K
vi scosi ty
pl
9 0.1 po, the Rayleigh number based on thi s value would be
roughly 1000, and the ti me constant would be reduced t o the order of 3000
years. It seems l i kel y that the f l ow pattern would exhi bi t some properties
o f both high and low Rayleigh number.
I n two recent experimental runs using sucrose solutions i n the
Hele-Shaw cel l , the parameters were approximately as follows:
-2 16-
Run No. 3
1 cm
2.63 x cm2
1.28 gm/cm3
0.5 poise
1.16 gm/cm3
0.05 poise
10
0.3 x loa5 cm2/sec
0.12 gm/cm3
6 O . 5
250
1
0.37 hour
74
Run No. 4
1 cm
2.63 x l om5 cm2
1.28 gm/cm3
0.5 poise
1.225 gm/cm3
0.167 poise
3
0.3 x l oT5 cm2/sec
0.055 gm/cm3
3".5
50
1
1.5 hours
49
The second-last entri es i n thi s table are the cold-water time scales,
whi l e the f i nal entri es,
time achieved experimentally.
T(max), are the maximum values of dimensionless
I t i s i nteresti ng t o note that T = 50 corresponds to an elapsed
time of 1.5 mi l l i on years on the prototype cold-water time scale, or
150,000 years on the hot-water time scale.
estimated l i f e of the geothermal acti vi ty i n the Taupo Volcan'ic Zone. I t
follows that the hypothesis of a phase of i ni t i a l volcanism i r not contra-
di cted by experiment, which shows that plumes of hot water art: s t i l l present
at T =50.
These figures bracket the
As a supplement to Run No. 4, at R = 50 and pO/pl = 3, a computer
run was made using a program which solves the convection equations by
fi ni te- di fference methods.
O'Sullivan, of the University of Auckland, but has been modified t o include
a modest vari ati on of vi scosi ty and also to compute transport of dissolved
s a l t . The development of convective plumes i n the computer rim, for con-
vection i n a rectangle of width:height r ati o 4, i s qual i tati vel y si mi l ar to
that observed i n the physical model. However, there has not been time to
make detailed comparisons, especially of Nusselt numbers.
This program i s due pri nci pal l y t o Dr. M. J .
-2 17-
The enti re study i s based on the assumption of homogeneous geo-
l ogi cal conditions which i s normally not valid. By varying the si ze of
the gap between the pl ates and by placing sources and sinks i n the flow,
di fferent geological conditions may be simulated. This is planned f or
future studies.
Acknowledgment
This model was suggested t o the author by Dr. Robin Wooding, and
we are j oi ntl y conducting thi s research project.
Reference
Wooding, R. A., 1975. Methods of sol uti on o f the equations f or convection
i n porous media, wi th geothermal applications. Presented at the Stanford
Workshop on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering and We11 Stimulation,
Stanford, California, Dec. 15-17.
-218-
NUMERICAL AND ANALYTICAL STUDIES ON HEAT AND MASS TRANSFER
I N VOLCANIC ISLAND GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI RS
Ping Cheng
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Uni versi ty of Hawaii
Honolulu, Hawaii 96822
The Hawaii Geothermal P roject i s a mul ti di sci pl i nary research ef f or t
wi th the major objectives of locating a sui tabl e geothermal resource on the
island of Hawaii and uti l i z i ng the heat to produce el ectri ci t, y by means of
a research-oriented power plant. As a primary f i r s t step of thi s proj ect,
the potenti al geothermal resources on the island of Hawaii must be studied
and s uf f i ci ent information obtained to permit a reasonable prediction to be
made of the behavior of the geothermal f i el d, as well as the environmental
impact o f the uti l i z ati on o f the resources.
The Hawaiian I slands were formed by volcanic action.
high porosity and permeability of the basal ti c formation, aquifers at
shallow depth are l i kel y to be unconfined from the top.
tul ated that a magma chamber a t shallow depth and the numerous hot i ntrusi ves
that form a di ke complex can provide the heat source for the heating of the
groundwater i n the aquifer (Furumoto 1975). As the high permeability of
the formation permits a continuous recharge from the ocean and rai nf al l , it
has been speculated that most of the geothermal resource at shallow depth i n
the island i s probably warm water at low or moderate temperatures (Macdonald
1973).
layers are formed at great depth where hot water may be found (Furumoto 1975).
As the basal ti c rock hardly deforms under pressure, a large scale land
surface subsidence resul ti ng from the withdrawal of geothermal fl ui ds i s
not anticipated. However, the uti l i z ati on of geothermal resources i n the
island i s not free from other adverse environmental impacts. The most
serious potenti al hazard i s the pos s i bi l i ty of the contamination of the
freshwater lens during the rei nj ecti on o f the toxi c fl ui ds i nto the formation.
The predi cti on of the fate of the injected f l ui ds under di fferent operating
conditions thus meri ts careful consideration.
Because of the
It has been pos-
Because of a self-sealing ef f ect it i s possible that impermeable
The following i s a sumnary of the progress we have made i n the past
two years on the theoreti cal study of heat and mass transfer i n a volcanic
island geothermal reservoir. Many of the resul ts are of a fundamental nature
and are, therefore, applicable to other liquid-dominated reservoirs.
Numerical Studies on Heat and Mass Transfer i n
Liquid-Dominated Geothermal Reservoirs
Free Convection i n I sland Geothermal Reservoirs. The problem o f
steady free convection i n an island aquifer, confined by caprock a t the tqp
and heated by bedrock from below, i s considered by Cheng, Yeung E Lau (1975).
The effects o f thermal conditions a t the caprock, the geometry of the
-219-
reservoir, the vari ati on of Rayleigh number, the si ze of the heating
surface, and the dike i ntrusi on on f l ui d flow and heat transfer character-
i s ti cs i n the reservoir are examined. The numerical resul ts show: (1) As
a resul t o f geothermal heating, cold seawater w i l l move inland from the
ocean i n the lower porti on of the aquifer; r i s e up as a thermal plume af ter
s uf f i ci ent heat i s absorbed; spread around under the caprock and f i nal l y di s-
charge to the ocean i n the upper porti on of the aquifer. This open stream-
l i ne convective pattern always exi sts i n an island aquifer. ( 2) I f the
heating surface i s s uf f i ci entl y large, mul ti pl e closed-streamline convective
cel l s w i l l also be generated i n the i nteri or porti on of the aquifer. These
recycling convective cel l s prevent the complete mixing of cold water from
the coast and the warmer water i n the i nteri or. (3) The number of these
closed-streamline
heating surface but al so the manner i n which it i s heated, i.e., whether it
i s heated by bedrock from below or the dike complex on the side. (4) Away
from the thermal plumes, verti cal temperature prof i l es exhi bi t a temperature
reversal si mi l ar to that measured by Kel l er (1974). (5) The heat transfer
rate on the bottom heating surface i s independent of the thermal boundary
condition a t the caprock.
f l ui d adjacent to the heating surface and i n the thermal plume; thi s
boundary layer behavior i s very pronounced at large Rayleigh number.
convective cel l s depends not only on the size of the
(6)
The temperature gradient i s large i n the
A perturbation analysis was made f or steady free convection i n an
island geothermal reservoir unconfined from the top (Cheng E Lau 1974; Lau
E Cheng 1975). The analysis i s applicable f or aquifers wi th low Rayleigh
numbers (i.e., aquifers at low temperature or wi th low permeability) where
heat conduction i s predominant. The effect of geothermal heating on the
upwelling of water tabl e i s shown. To investigate the upwelling of water
table at high Rayleigh numbers, numerical methods must be used for the
solutions of the governing non-linear parti al di f f erenti al equations wi th
non-linear boundary conditions. This phase of the work i s currentl y
underway.
Withdrawal and Reinjection of F luids i n I sland Geothermal Reservoirs.
The problem of withdrawal of f l ui ds i s investigated by Cheng E Lau (1975)
and Cheng E Teckchandani (1975). I t i s found that (1) the withdrawal rate
i s l i nearl y proportional to the withdrawal pressure; (2) a symmetric location
of withdrawal si tes wi th respect t o heat source w i l l enhance the convective
heat transfer from the bottom heating surface and thus prolong the lifespan
of a geothermal wel l ; ( 3) as a resul t of withdrawal of f l ui d, the temperature
above the si nk w i l l decrease whi l e the temperature di stri buti on below the
sink i s less affected; and (4) the temperature of withdrawal f l ui d i s
rel ati vel y unaffected by the withdrawal rate. The reasons for (3) and (4)
can be explained as follows: As a resul t of withdrawal of fl ui d, the flow
f i el d below the sink w i l l experience a favorable pressure gradient, thus
ai di ng the upward movement of the convecting flow, which i n turn enhances
the convective transfer on the bottom hot surface. On the other hand, the
flow f i el d above the sink w i l l experience an adverse pressure gradient which
w i l l retard the upward movement of the hot f l ui d or, i n some cases, reverse
the di recti on of the convecting flow i f the withdrawal pressure i s large.
-220-
The problem o f rei nj ecti on of f l ui d i s studied by Cheng & Yeung (1975)
and Cheng & Teckchandani (1975). I f the injected f l ui d i s colder than the
surrounding f l ui d, a cold region i s created above the i nj ecti on point. For
a fi xed rei nj ecti on rate, the i nj ecti on pressure decreases ast Rayleigh number
i s increased. I n other words, less i nj ecti on pressure i s needed for an
aquifer at high temperature or wi th high permeability.
number, the i nj ecti on rate i s l i nearl y proportional to the i nj ecti on pressure.
For 21 fi xed Rayleigh
Analytical Studies on Heat and Mass Transfer
i n Liquid-Dominated Geothermal Reservoirs
From the numerical solutions f or free convection i n geothermal
reservoirs by Cheng, Yeung E Lau (1975), it i s observed that boundary layer
behavior i s pronounced f or flow near the heating surface and i n the thermal
plume a t large Rayleigh numbers. Thus the boundary layer approximations
analogous to the cl assi cal viscous flow theory can be applied. With these
approximations, anal yti cal solutions have been obtained for the following
problems.
Steady Free Convection About Vertical Intruded Bodies. Within the
framework of boundary layer approximations, s i mi l ari ty solutibns are obtained
for free convection about a verti cal hot dike wi th surface temperature being
a power function of distance from the ori gi n; i.e.,
and Tm
away from the dike. For the special case of an isothermal dike ( A =0) hi th
a height L and a width S, the local boundary layer thickness 6(x), and the
total surface heat transfer rate Q are given by (Cheng E Minkowycz 1975)
Tw =T, +Axh where Tw
are the wall temperature and the temperature of the surrounding f l ui d
6(x) = 6.3
J
PmKB!3L
!Ja
Q = 0.88Sk(Tw-Tm)32 [
where p, , u, and 6 are the density, vi scosi ty, and the thermal expansion
coeffi ci ent of the f l ui d, K i s the permeability o f the saturated porous
medium, ci = k /(pC)f i s the equivalent thermal di f f us i vi ty where k denotes
the thermal conductivity of the saturated rock and (pC)f the product of the
density and speci fi c heat of the f l ui d.
Approximate anal yti cal solutions f or free convection about a
verti cal cy1 i ndri cal i ntrusi ve are also obtained (Minkowycz Cheng 1975).
I t is found that the r ati o of total heat transfer rate for a cylinder to
that f or a f l a t pl ate depends only on the dimensionless parameter
-221-
tL where 6~ E 2
'I2 wi th ro denoting the radius of the
0.5
1 .o
cylinder. The r ati o varies between 1 t o 3 when EL varies between 0 and 10.
4.9
4.4
Buoyancy induced Flows Adjacent t o Heated impermeable Horizontal
Surfaces. S i mi l ari ty solutions f or free convection above a heated horizontal
impermeable surface wi th a power law vari ati on o f wall temperature are also
obtained by Cheng E Chang (1975). The local thermal boundary layer thickness
~ T ( X > and the total surface heat transfer rate for a horizontal heating
surface wi th a length L and a width S are:
1.5
2.0
and
4.0
3.6
3
Q = C2Sk(T,-T,) 4/ 3 [ pmKBL
Pa
1 /3
Y
where the values of C1 and c2 depend on the values of A and are tabulated
i n Table 1 .
To gain some feel i ng of the order of magnitude of various physical
quanti ti es given by Eqs. (1-4), computations a r t carri ed out for a heating
surface of 1 km by 1 km a t a temperature of 300 C embedded i n an aquifer a t
15C.
p, = 0.92 x 106 g/m3, C = 1 cal/g-"C,p = 0.18 g/sec-my k =0.58 cal/sec-"C-m,
and K = 10-l2m2.
di ke increases from zero at the ori gi n to 70 m a t 1 kin; the total heat
transfer rate i s 75 MW.
the boundary layer thickness increases from zero at the ori gi n t o 200 m at
1 km wi th a total heat transfer rate equal t o 20 MW.
The physical properties used f or the computations are B = 3.2 x 10-4/c,
With these values, the boundary layer thickness along a
For a horizontal heating surface o f the same size,
Table 1 VALUES OF C, ANE C, FOR EQS. ( 3 ) & (4)
I L
x
c2
1.23
1.32
1.45
1.57
-222-
Buoyancy Plumes Above a Horizontal Line Source. S i mi l ari ty solutions
f or plume r i s e above a horizontal l i ne source i n a saline aquifer have been
obtained by Cheng (1975). The problem i s an extension of the work by
Wooding (1963).
thickness of the plume i s given by
The spreading of the buoyancy plume or the boundary layer
6 =
( 5)
where Q i s the rate of heat generated per uni t length of the l i ne source.
Eq. (5) shows that the spreading of the plume increases as ~ 2 . 1 3 , and
decreases as K or Q are increased.
and wi th Q = 20 kw, the plume spreading i s about 120 m a t 1 km above the
poi nt source.
Using the previous physical properties
Future Work
Continuous ef f ort w i l l be devoted to the numerical solutions of
free convection i n unconfined geothermal island aquifers wi th recharge from
the ocean and rai nf al l . The i nteracti on of production and withdrawal wells
w i l l also be examined. The effects of non-local thermodynamic equilibrium,
the layer structure of the rock formation, and the i rregul ar boundary of
the reservoir w i l l also be studied.
pursued f or other problems of free and forced convection i n geothermal
reservoi 1-5.
Boundary layer analysis i s being
This study i s part of the Hawaii Geothermal P roject funded i n part
by the RANN program of the National Science Foundation of the United States
(Grant No. Gl-38319), the Energy Research and Development Administration
of the United States (Grant No. E(04-3)-1093), and by the State and County
of Hawai i .
-223-
Ref er ences
Cheng, P. , "Buoyancy Pl umes above a Hori zont al Li ne Sour ce i n a Porous
Medi um, ' ' i n preparat i on.
Cheng, P. & Chang, I - Dee, "Buoyancy I nduced Fl ows i n a Porous Medi um
Adj acent to i mpermeabl e Hori zont al Surf aces, ' ' Hawai i Geot hermal Pr oj ect ,
Engi neeri ng Pr ogr am, Techni cal Report No. 12, December 1 , 1975.
Cheng, P. & Lau, K.H., "St eady St at e Free Convect i on i n an Unconf i ned
Geot hermal Reservoi r, ' ' J . of Geophysi cal Resear ch, V. 79, 4425- 4431 (1975).
Cheng, P. E, Lau, K. H. , "The Ef f ect of St eady Wi t hdrawal of Fl ui d i n Conf i ned
Geot hermal Reservoi rs. " To appear i n the Pr oceedi ngs of the Second Uni ted
Nat i ons Symposi umon t he Devel opment and Use of Geot hermal Resources.
Cheng, P. & Mi nkowycz, W. J . , "Si mi l ari t y Sol ut i ons f or Free Convect i on About
a Di ke, ' ' Hawai i Geot hermal Pr oj ect , Engi neeri ng Pr ogr am, Techni cal Report
No. 10, Oct ober 1975.
Cheng, P. E Teckchandani , L . , "Transi ent Behavi or of Li qui d- Domi nat ed
Geot hermal Syst ems, " i n progress.
Cheng, P. , Yeung, K. C. & Lau, K.H., "Numeri cal Sol ut i ons f or St eady Free
Convect i on i n Conf i ned I sl and Geot hermal Reser voi r s, " present ed at t he
1975 f nt ernat i onal Semi nar on Fut ure Energy Pr oduct i on- - Heat and Mass
Tr ansf er Pr obl ems, August 25- 30, 1975, Dr ubr ovni k, Yugosl avi a. Al so Hawai i
Geot hermal Pr oj ect , Engi neeri ng Pr ogr am, Techni cal Report No. 8, August 1975.
I sl and
of Exp
Kel l er
to t he
Cheng, P. G Yeung, K. C. , "St eady Rei nj ect
Reser vo i r s , I ' i n prepara t ion.
Fur umot o, A . S. , " A Syst emat i c Programf or
of Hawai i , " present ed at t he Annua
on of Fl u
Geo t herma
I nt ernat
ds i n I sl and Geot hermal
Expl orat i on on t he
onal Meet i ng of Soci et y
or at i on Geophysi ci st s, Denver , Col or ado, Oct ober 13- 17, 1975.
G. W. , " Dr i l l i ng at t he Summi t of Ki l auea Vol cano, " Report submi t t ed
Nati onal Sci ence Foundat i on by Col or ado School of Mi nes (1974).
Lau, K. H. & Cheng, P. , "The Ef f ect of Di ke I nt rusi on on Free Convect i on i n
Unconf i ned Geot hermal Reservoi rs, " accept ed f or publ i cat i on i n the I nt er-
nat i onal J ournal of Heat and Mass Tr ansf er , 1975.
Macdonal d, G. A . , "Geol ogi cal Pr ospect s f or Devel opment of Geot hermal Energy
i n Hawai i , " Paci f i c Sci ence, V. 27, No. 3, 209- 219 (1973).
Mi nkowycz, W. J . & Cheng, P . , "Free Convect i on About a Verti cal Cyl i nder
Embedded i n a Por ous Medi um, " Hawai i Geot hermal Pr oj ect , Techni cal Report
No. 11, November 1975.
Woodi ng, R. A. , "Convect
Number or Pecl et Number
on i n a Sat urat ed Por ous Medi umat Large Rayl ei gh
J . of Fl ui d Mechani cs, V. 15, 527- 544 (1963).
-224-
RESEARCH ON NUMERICAL MODELING OF LIQUID GEOTHERMAL SYSTEMS
Michael Sorey
U.S. Geological Survey
Menlo Park, CA 94025
We have developed a numerical code, cal l ed SCHAFF, whtich can treat
problems involving s l i ghtl y compressible f l ui d and heat transfer i n mul ti -
dimensional porous media. Solutions to the appropriate parti al di fferenti al
equations are obtained by the integrated f i ni t e di fference method which i s
essenti al l y equivalent to making mass and energy balances over f i ni t e sub-
regions or elements.
i s solved by an i terati ve procedure and solutions to the f l ui d flow and
energy equations are coupled by i nterl aci ng i n time so that the temperature
and vel oci ty f i el ds are interdependent. The useful concepts o f f l ui d and
thermal time constants as indicators o f nodal response times and numerical
s tabi l i ty l i mi t s are an inherent part of the numerical scheme.
The resul tant system of f i ni t e difference equacions
I n applying the numerical model to the problem of ci rcul atory convec-
ti on i n saturated porous media, we have discussed the relevant aspects as
they pertai n to geothermal systems and show i n Fig. 1 that resul ts from
SCHAFF on the rel ati onshi p between the Rayleigh number and the dimensionless
heat transfer coeffi ci ent or Nusselt number are i n good agreement wi th
numerical and experimental resul ts from other authors. We then used the
numerical model to extend these resul ts to include the effects of temperature
dependent parameters and density vari ati ons with pressure. Variations i n
f l ui d vi scosi ty and thermal expansivity wi th temperature resul t i n substantial
differences i n the values o f the c r i ti c al Rayleigh number for the onset of
convection and the Rayleigh number-Nusselt number rel ati onshi p compared wi th
corresponding constant parameters resul ts (Fig. 2) . However, cons ideration
of f l ui d density as a functi on of pressure produced no noticeable effect
on convective motion.
Numerical simulations of more r eal i s ti c models for ci rcul atory
convection show that f or l ateral l y bounded reservoirs, conduction of heat
across the verti cal sidewalls resul ts i n si gni fi cant lowering of the rate
of verti cal heat transfer through the reservoir. For a l ateral l y extensive
reservoir, consideration of impermeable or less permeable layers above and
below the convecting layer removes the res tri cti ve assumption of constant
temperatures boundaries on the permeable layer and has the effect of lowering
the value of the c r i ti c al Rayleigh number Rac whi l e retarding convective
heat transfer a t values of Ra above Ra,.
i s shown i n F i g . 3 .
The isotherm pattern for Ra = 100
Heat and mass transfer associated wi th hot spring systems was
analyzed to determine the amount of heat l os t by conduction to the rocks
surrounding the spring conduit. As isolated cyl i ndri cal conduit model and
a f aul t plane conduit model were considered, and the temperature drop i n
-225-
the hot spr i ng wat er bet ween t he sour ce reservoi r and the sur f ace due to
t he conduct i ve heat l oss as det ermi ned numeri cal l y as a f unct i on of f l ow
rat e i s shown i n Fi g. 4. The st eady st at e t emper at ur e di st r i but i on f or
t he case wher e t he rock sur r oundi ng t he spri ng i s i mpermeabl e ( Fi g. 5)
shows t hat heat loss f romt he spri ng di st or t s t he normal l y hori zont al
posi t i on of the i sot herms out to di st ances compar abl e to t he dept h of the
spri ng condui t . Conduct i ve heat f l ux at t he l and sur f ace i s hi gh near t he
spri ng but near the normal or background l evel beyond one condui t dept h.
Usi ng a radi at i on boundary condi t i on at t he l and sur f ace as i n Fi g . 5
produces a mor e real i st i c surf i ci al t emper at ur e di st r i but i on t han a
const ant t emper at ur e boundary condi t i on. The t i me requi red f or the con-
duct i ve t hermal r egi me to equi l i br at e f ol l owi ng t he devel opment of hot spri ng
act i vi t y can be appr oxi mat ed by t he expr essi on L 2 3 2 K , wher e L i s t he dept h
to t he sour ce reservoi r. For unconsol i dat ed sedi ment s wi t h l ow thermal
conduct i vi t y, t he equi l i br at i on t i me i s about 50, 000 years f or a reservoi r
at 1 km.
The ef f ect s of f l ui d ci r cul at i on i n the rock surroundi ng the
spri ng condui t wer e exami ned f or syst ems i n whi ch t he equi val ent Rayl ei gh
number ( i n t he absence of hot spr i ng act i vi t y) was both above and bel ow
t he cri t i cal val ue of 4 T*.
due to the presence of the hot spr i ng, but causes onl y sl i ght ef f ect s on
t he thermal regi me i n the rock surroundi ng t he spri ng condui t and on t he
conduct i ve heat l oss and t emper at ur e dr op associ at ed wi t h t he spr i ng.
t he case wi t h Ra>47r2, ci r cul at or y convect i on resul t i ng f romt he t emper at ur e
di f f er ence Tb- T, bet ween t he sour ce reservoi r and t he l and sur f ace
domi nat es t he thermal and hydr ol ogi c regi mes and si gni f i cant l y reduces
t he conduct i ve heat l oss and t emper at ur e drop f or the spri ng.
Wi t h Ra<h2, ci r cul at or y convect i on i s set up
For
The resul t s of thi s i nvest i gat i on demonst r at e the usef ul ness of
numeri cal model l i ng to descr i be the nat ural condi t i ons of heat t ransf er
and f l ui d f l ow i n geot hermal areas. Gi ven prel i mi nary t her mal , hydr ol ogi c,
and geochemi cal i nf or mat i on, thi s t echni que can be used ef f ect i vel y ss
a gui de to f ur t her dat a col l ect i on i n undevel oped areas. As suf f i ci ent
paramet ri c and geomet r i c i nf ormat i on i s obt ai ned to al l owsi mul at i on of
t he nat ur al syst ems, t he numeri cal model can be used to eval uat e met hods f or
energy devel opment . I n par t i cul ar , st udi es ar e bei ng pl anned of energy
devel opment under condi t i ons of f l ui d rei nj ect i on whi ch can mai nt ai n t he
reservoi r f l ui d i n a l i qui d st at e and possi bl y resul t i n t he recovery
of si gni f i cant f r act i ons of st ored heat. Numeri cal st udi es of t he
f easi bi l i t y of st ori ng and recoveri ng wast e thermal wat er f rompower pl ant
oper at i ons i n col d wat er aqui f er s are al so ant i ci pat ed. I n addi t i on, a
modi f i cat i on of t he SCHAFF programto i ncl ude st r ess- st r ai n behavi or
of porous medi a i s cur r ent l y bei ng tested f or si mul at i on of l and subsi dence
associ at ed wi t h geot hermal reservoi r devel opment .
Furt her wor k on t he cal cul at i onal model i s al so pl anned. I ncorporat i on
of a sui t abl e scheme f or t reat i ng ani sot r opy and associ at ed t ensori al
quant i t i es such as permeabi l i t y and t hermal di sper si vi t y woul d ext end t he
range of the probl ems whi ch coul d be anal yzed wi t h SGHAFF. I t woul d al so
be desi r abl e to i ncl ude a general mesh- gener at i ng r out i ne and a gr aphi cs
capabi l i t y f or f l ui d vel oci t y vect or pl ot t i ng.
- 226-
References
Sorey, M.L., Numerical mode
di ssertati on, University of
ing of l i qui d geothermal systems, Ph.D
Cal i forni a a t Berkeley, 1975.
Witherspoon, P.A., Neuman, .P., Sorey, M.L., and Lippmann, M. J . ,
Modeling geothermal systems, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory report,
LBL-3263, May 1975.
Sorey, M.L., and Lewis, R.E., Convective heat flow from hot springs
i n the Long Valley Caldera, Mono County, Cal i forni a, to be published
i n JGR special issue on Long Valley, February, 1976.
Lachenbruch, A.H., Sorey, M.L., Lewis, R.E. and Sass, J .M., The near
surface hydrothermal regime of Long Valley Caldera, to be published i n
J GR special issue on Long Valley, February, 1976.
-227-
3
3
"00
e,
\
3
3
3
0
E
0
(3
0
'J
0
hl
z
-228-
ZI
0 0
u >
m m
m c
r m
3 c
c
u1 .- ..
o
czc
0
.-
N U
.- $
LL
u m
I I
o u
a;
0 0
L *
U
u
o m
3-0
- a
Y-u
m
u 3
c -
o m
u >
K Q )
o
a m
or i
-0
I I
.-
22
3
urn
m a
I >
o I
a3
E U
o
u w
Q)
rT:
u m
.-
3E
s m u 5 E
n r - K m
E c -
3 O O E m
C Nv) 0 1
m o *-
a, - m o
n c r c u I
E .- c
rn c m
3 L-0 m @
,I- o - o o ,,- a- I
Figure 3. isotherms for 3-layer cellular convection
model with Ra = 100.
-229-
T, =O
X
h
L
Cylindrical h4odcl
1\
2
c J . >
Tb
r
Cylindrical h4odcl
I
Figure 4. Relationships between dimensionless flow rates (Mc, MP) and
dimensionless temperature drop (1-0 ) due to conductive
heat loss in cylindrical and fault plane hot spring models.
SP
-23 0-
1 Km 180C
Figure 5. Steady state temperature di s tri buti on i n f aul t plane hot
spring model wi th di scharge = IO5 Kg/d, W = lorn,
D = I Knl, and Ra = 0 ( k = 01, and H =
-an2 a t land surface.
cal/sec - O C
-231-
FI NI TE ELEMENT SOLUTI ON OF GEOTHERMAL ENERGY EXTRACTI ON
Z. P. BaZant , S . Nemat - Nasser , and H. Oht subo*
Depar t ment of Ci vi l Engi neeri ng
Nor t hwest er n Uni versi t y
Evanst on, I L 6021
The obj ect i ve of t hi s t heoret i cal wor k i s to si mul at e numeri cal l y
t he f ol l owi ng t wo basi c probl ems i n t he area of geot hermal energy ext r act i on:
( 1 ) i ni t i at i on and ext ensi on of f r act ur e
i n hot dry rocks by hydraul i c
f r act ur e; and ( 2) ci r cul at i on of wat er t hr ough t he f ract ured zone and back
up to t he ground surf ace. I n addi t i on, i t has become evi dent t hat t he
f ol l owi ng t hi r d probl emarea al so requi res caref ul consi der at i on: ( 3) t he
st udy of t hermal l y i nduced secondar y cr acks and t hei r ef f ect s on power
product i on. The basi c met hod of appr oach i nvol ves a f i ni t e- el ement
numeri cal si mul at i on coupl ed wi t h some anal yt i cal comput at i ons.
Basi c Eauat i ons
The basi c f i el d equat i ons f or t he wat er f l owand heat t ransf er i n
a crack have been f or mul at ed f or one- and t wo- di mensi onal cases. These
equat i ons i ncl ude (a) cr ack wi dt h varyi ng ar bi t r ar i l y i n t i me and space;
( b) heat convect i on due to f l owof wat er , heat conduct i on i n wat er , and
heat suppl y by conduct i on f romt he r ock; (c) an accur at e mat hemat i cal model
f or t he t her modynami c propert i es of wat er ( accordi ng to 1968 ASME St eam
Tabl es) , i . e. , t he pr essur e- densi t y- t emper at ur e r el at i onshi p ( wi th t he
dependence of compr essi bi l i t y, thermal expansi on coef f i ci ent and heat
capaci t y on pressure and temperature) . The basi c di f f erent i al equat i ons
have been obt ai ned by appl yi ng t he condi t i ons of conser vat i on of mass,
of l i near moment um, and of energy to the cr oss- sect i on of cr ack, usi ng an
assumed vel oci t y pr of i l e. I n t he case of uni di rect i onal f l ow, f or exampl e,
t hese equat i ons ar e:
momentum; d s . a ' a ~ -
at ax L p w 3- -
energy; PdW Z + c w q % + { at
a( OW)
- (@ - ax
equat i on of st at e f or wat er ; p = f (p, T) ; ( 4 )
__-I I _-- - _ -. --_ . -._ --_
-
" Vi si t i ng Research Schol ar ; on l eave f r omUni versi t y of Tokyo, Tokyo, J apan.
-232-
where p i s the mass density; q i s the mass fl ux across the width of the
crack; p i s the pressure; T i s the shear force at the interface between
f l ui d and rock; gx i s the average body force on the fluid,; Cw, k , and h
define the heat capacity, heat conductivity wi thi n the f l ui d, and heat
conductivity between f l ui d and rock, respectively; T and Tr are the f l ui d' s
and the rock's temperature, respectively. The equation of state f or water
i n the range of pressure and temperature relevant to the geothermal problem
i s given i n the 1968 ASME steam tables. This equgtion i s used i n the
numerical calculations.
The parameters cx and 6, as well as the shear force T, i n Eqs. ( 2 )
and ( 3) depend on the geometry of the vel oci ty prof i l e across the crack
width. For a parabolic profi l e, for example, one has CL = 1.2, B = 1.54 and
T =61-14 where u i s the f l ui d viscosity. However, i n the operation stage,
the f l ui d vel oci ty can be high and a turbulent flow wi th an almost uniform
prof i l e of mean vel oci ty may be a more appropriate assumption.
2'
P W
F i ni te Element Formulation f or the F l ui d
-
To obtain the corresponding finite-element equations, l i near spatial
vari ati on for pressure, temperature, and mass flow wi thi n each element is
assumed.
basic finite- element equations f or the f l ui d flow. For the iunidirectional
flow, for example, these equations are
Then a systematic application of Galerkin's method gives the
I n these equations superimposed dot denotes
0 s (5)
0 2 (6)
N
N
= o . (7)
H
the parti al time deri vati ve; p
T, and q denote pressure, temperature, and mass flow at the two nodes of each
element: and the coefficient matrices, as we1 1 as the corresponding forcing
functions, are ei ther Songtant or nonlinear functions of p , w, and 8, as well
as l i near function of p , w, and $.
Eq. (4) are suffi ci ent f or the cal cul ati on o f the f l ui d flow, provided that
the crack width i s known a t a l l nodal points. For an assumed crack width
(obtained i n a previous time step) these equations are solved f or p , q, p,
and T i s time steps with i terati on a t each step, unti l the maximum change
of each quantity wi th respect to the previous value i s less than a prescribed
l i mi t ; see, however, the following discussion.
%
Equations (5) - ( 7 ) together wi th, the equation of s tate f or water,
-233-
Combination of F i ni te Element Model wi th Analytical Solutions
Test runs of the f i ni t e element program f or the sol i d i n combination
wi th the f i ni t e element program f or the flow i n the crack have indicated
that the requirements f or computer time are extremely high and convergence
very slow. The extension jumps of the crack i n the f i ni t e element gri d
must be very small, or el se enormous spurious changes of pressure i n the
f l ui d are obtained. Dense spacing of the nodes i n turn requires very
short time steps, i n order to avoid numerical i ns tabi l i ti es . However, the
response of the el as ti c rock due t o pressure i n the crack as well as
cooling from the crack can be qui te accurately described by anal yti cal
formulas, and thi s allows reduction of computer time as wel l as higher
accuracy of numerical calculations. It i s therefore concluded that the
following numerical approach i s most effecti ve:
(a) I n case o f hydraulic fracturi ng, the pressure i n wate
hydrostatic remains essenti al l y uniformly di stri buted at a
water temperature i s equal to that of the adjacent rock.
the finite-element program f or the sol i d alone may be used
f l ui d pressure as the input;
i n excess of
1 times and
n thi s case,
treati ng the
(b) I n case of operation stage, the finite-element program f or the f l ui d
fl ow and the heat transfer i n the f l ui d may be used i n conjunction wi th
anal yti cal solutions f or the el as ti c sol i d (rock) and the heat conduction
i n the rock (using the concept of cooling penetration depth and the heat
transfer coefficient). .
F i ni te Element Formulation f or the Solid (Rock)
For analyzing the fracture of the s ol i d (rock), a two-dimensional
f i ni te element program wi t h a water- fi l l ed crack has been wri tten. The
cri teri on for the propagation of the crack can be formuldted i n thi s program
ei ther by means of a stress- intensity factor, or by means of a strength
( l i mi ti ng stress value i n the f i ni t e element).
cri teri on i s usually more appropriate, provided the rock i s rel ati vel y
homogeneous and flawless and the crack i s s uf f i ci entl y large. Among the
various methods of evaluating the stress i ntensi ty factor i n the f i ni t e
element analysis, the method of cal i brated crack- ti p element of ordinary
type has been chosen as the most ef f i ci ent one. This program must be
subjected to more testing, and the method by which the boundary conditions
representing the surrounding i nf i ni te sol i d can be best simulated, must be
i denti fi ed.
The former type of strength
Examples and Estimates
I n order to develop an understanding f or the various physical
processes which are involved i n thi s general area, some simple anal yti cal
resul ts have been developed. I n the following, these resul ts are br i ef l y
discussed.
Crack Ext ensi on: The ext ensi on of a cr ack i n a rock mass as a
f unct i on of the total mass f l owcan be est i mat ed i n the f ol l owi ng manner.
I f the maxi mumcr ack openi ng i s A and t he crack radi us i s R , then f or an
4 2
el l i pt i cal openi ng t he total f l ui d vol ume i n the crack i s gi ven by -vAR .
3
On the ot her hand, accordi ng to t he Gr i f f i t h cr i t er i on, one has p - S = AR-'
and A = B( p- S) R wher e A = , S i s t he t ect oni c st ress normal t o t he
EY
2 ( 1 -v 2)
2
, y i s the sur f ace ener gy, E i s the el ast i c
4(1-v )
f ace of t he cr ack, B =
modul us of the r ock, and v i s t he correspondi ng Poi sson' s rati o. I f M = pV
i s the total mass of t he f l ui d i n the cr ack, one then obt ai ns
2/5
R = R (E) I
0
0
-1/5
p - s =(Po - s> (E) 9
0
(9)
wher e subscr i pt o ref ers to t he i ni t i al val ues. For exampl e, i f t he f l ui d
i s pumped i n at a const ant rat e q, one has M =M, +gt , and Eqs. (8) and
( 9 ) gi ve the crack radi us and the correspondi ng pressure as f unct i ons of
t i me; t he l at t er i s i l l ust rat ed i n Fi g. 1. Except f or t he t ransi ent ef f ect s,
i t i s seen t hat ( p- S) remai ns rel at i vel y const ant as the crack gr ows.
Heat Ext r act i on: For t he heat ext r act i on i n a st eady- st at e operat i on
t he f ol l owi ng equat i on est i mat es the t emper at ur e of t he f l ui d al ong a
"st reamtube' ' ( see Fi gs. 2 and 3) :
-235-
where
T =water temperature
T = rock temperature
W
r
= length of the stream tube
a =2K/cwq
q = mass flow per uni t length measured normal t o the stream tube
C =water heat capacity,
W
and where "in" denotes the "i nl et" and "0" denotes the outl et values. Here
i s given by
where
= rock's mass-density
'r
k = rock's heat conductivity
r
Cr = rock's heat capacity
t = time
Fig. 2 shows the resul t obtained from (10) f or a case i n which Ro = 1200rn,
TLn= 3OO0C, T; =24OoC, TAn =6soC, and q =0.2 kg/m sec. These resul t s
check very accurately wi th the numerical resul ts. This i s shown i n Fig. 3
where the resul ts of the finite-element sol uti on of the complete set of
equations are shown by sol i d l i nes.
which a thermal gradient
of the cr ack. This requ
wi th some anal yti cal est
The example of F
exi sts, i s very small
res that the numerica
mates.
It should be noted that the thermal boundary layer i n the rock, i n
when compared wi th the length
calculations be coupled
gs. 2 and 3 does not nclude the secondary cracking
due to the very large thermal stresses which may develop as the rock i s
cooled. Both anal yti cal and numerical calculations have shown that these
secondary cracks are very l i kel y to develop and change the nature of the
heat flow as wel l as that of the f l ui d flow. These and other related
problems are now being studied.
-236-
-
p = p - s
2
M
MO
-
A
2-
-
P/Po
%
I -
/
/
Y
I I I I I
I
3
1
4 5
Fi gure
-237-
f r act ur e
A/
300
250
200
T, "C
I 50
100.
Ti"= 65OC
i ni t i al rock t emper at ur e
-I-<
1-
I
q = 0.2 kg/m sec
I
q = 0.1 kg/m sec
4 175
---
I 0
out l et
st r eam t u be
t i nl et
I I I I
I /4 1/2 3/4 I
Figure 2
30C
200
T, "c
100
65
I I
500 1000 m
X
Fi gure 3
-239-
NUMERI CAL MODELI NG OF HYDROTHERMAL REACTI ONS
I N GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI RS
Char l es G. Sami s
Pennsyl vani a St at e Uni versi t y
Uni ver si t y Par k, PA 16802
Al t hough t he cor r osi on and scal i ng probl ems associ at ed wi t h handl i ng
geot hermal f l ui ds ar e wel l known, t he ef f ect s of hydrot hermal react i ons
ar e of t en overl ooked i n geot hermal reservoi r model i ng. Wat er - r ock chemi st ry
can be expect ed to af f ect t he evol ut i on of a reservoi r i n at l east t hree
ways:
sol ved sol i ds - t hi s i s especi al l y i mport ant i n t wo- phase r egi mes, (b) t he
porosi t y and permeabi l i t y change wi t h t i me due to di ssol vi ng and preci pi t a-
ti on as wel l as due to t he vol ume change associ at ed wi t h al t er at i on, and
( c ) t he heat s of react i on may cont r i but e di rect l y to the energy product i on.
( a) t he t her modynami c pr oper t i es of wat er ar e af f ect ed by the di s-
Tabl e 1 summar i zes the i mpor t ant hydrot hermal react i ons i n a gr ani t i c
sour ce rock t oget her wi t h t he heat s of react i on and associ at ed vol ume
changes. Not e t hat t he avai l abl e chemi cal energy i s compar abl e to the
thermal energy whi l e t he associ at ed vol ume changes ar e an or der of magni -
t ude l arger t han t hose due to t hermal cont r act i on.
Al t hough si gni f i cant chemi cal energy exi st s, i t cannot al ways be
ext r act ed.
of reservoi r condi t i ons under whi ch one coul d expect to ext ract si gni f i cant
chemi cal heat . For t he case of di ssol vi ng- preci pi tati on r eact i ons, a com-
pari son of t hermal energy wi t h chemi cal energy l eads to a si mpl e rel at i on
bet ween sol ubi l i t y and heat of react i on f or a gi ven rat i o of chemi cal to
thermal energy ext r act ed. Because t he rat e of di ssol vi ng i s cont rol l ed
by t he sol ubi l i t y at t he out l et t emper at ur e, t he resul t i ng rel at i on i s
i ndependent of al l cr ack and f l owparamet ers. I n t he case of quar t z, t he
sol ubi l i t y at 3OO0C i s too l ow f or chemi cal heat to make a cont r i but i on -
t hermal energy i s ext ract ed f ar f ast er t han chemi cal i n al l cases.
One of t he f i rst quest i ons we addressed was t he del i neat i on
I n t he case of al t er at i on r eact i ons, however , t he react i on rat e i s
not l i mi t ed by sol ubi l i t y and, dependi ng on t he al t er at i on r at e, si gni f i cant
chemi cal energy may be ext ract ed. We have del i neat ed the combi nat i ons of
f l owpar amet er s, crack par amet er s, heat s of react i on and al t erat i on rates
f or whi ch chemi cal energy associ at ed wi t h t he al t er at i on may be ext ract ed.
One of t he obj ect i ves of our qxperi ment al programi s to det er mi ne al t erat i on
rat es i n t ypi cal reservoi r r ocks, and t hus assess t he i mport ance of such
react i ons to t he total t hermal regi me.
The changes i n porosi t y and permeabi l i t y associ at ed wi t h both di s-
sol vi ng and al t er at i on react i ons ar e easi l y i ncorporat ed i nto t he st andard
f i ni t e di f f er ence schemes commonl y used i n numeri cal reservoi r model i ng.
Our appr oach to the i ncl usi on of such ef f ect s wi l l be di scussed.
PROGRESS REPORT ON A MATHEMATI CAL MODEL OF A
PARALLELEPI PED RESERVOI R WI TH NO PENETRATI NG
WELLBORE AND MI XED BOUNDARY CONDI TI ONS
A. Barel l i and G. Manetti
ENEL Cent r o Ri cerca Geot er mi ca, Pi sa, I tal y
R. Cel ati
CNR - l st i t ut o l nt er nazi onal e per l e Ri cer che Geot er mi che,
Pi sa, I t al y
and
G. Neri
ENEL - Gr uppo Mi ner ar i o Lar der el l o, I tal y
The obj ect of t hi s wor k i s to devel op a mat hemat i cal model , as sug-
gest ed by H. J . Ramey El ], f or si mul at i ng unst eady f l ow i n geot hermal
reservoi rs cont ai ni ng a si ngl e phase f l ui d.
or const ant pressure wal l s, accor di ng to t he most pr obabl e geol ogi cal con-
d i t i ons.
At present our model consi der s a non- penet r at i ng wel l bor e as i t wi l l
f i r st be appl i ed to Tr aval e geot hermal f i el d wher e many dat a ar e avai l abl e
f or a pr oduct i ve wel l wi t h no penet rat i on at al l .
The comput er programi s easi l y modi f i ed, however , to sui t ot her wel l
condi t i ons such as parti al penet rat i on or f ract ured wel l s. The f i ni t e
radi us of our wel l was si mul at ed comput i ng the pressure dr op at a gi ven
di st ance f romt he poi nt si nk.
bot t om, was obt ai ned f romGr een' s i nst ant aneous sour ce f unct i ons VI I (x),
VI 1 ( y ) , I X ( z ) accordi ng to the nomencl at ur e used i n ref . [21.
The reservoi r i s a homogeneous, i sot ropi c paral l el epi ped wi t h no- f l ux
A paral l el e7i ped wi t h no- f l ux wal l s and t op, const ant pressure at t he
The sol ut i on for const ant rat e q i s:
0
i-
h - 4
-242-
I f we define the dimensionless groups as follows:
eq. ( I ) gives:
nz 7
Subst i tut
We carri ed out summations for several values of t along wi th
DA
numerical integration.
We had some computing di f f i cul ty i n evaluating the series wi th very
small values of tDA as they do not rapi dl y converge.
by solving two-dimensional problems whose solutions were already known by
the superposition i n space of exponential integrals [31.
We tested our method
The great advantage of thi s method i s that we can change boundary
conditions simply by changing a FORTRAN subroutine. The program was f i r s t
used to produce Horner graphs f or comparing the theoreti cal and experi-
mental pl ots, wi th a view t o selecting the appropriate model.
Figures 1, 2 , 3 and 4 show the Horner pl ots f or a cube and a square
parallelepiped both having a constant pressure or closed bottom. These
theoretical Horner pl ots do not give the strai ght l i ne section wi th slope
of 1.15 found i n two-dimensional models. This means that the procedure
commonly used for evaluating the kh product cannot be di rectl y applied
when the hypothesis of thi s model are appropriate.
REFERENCES
[ l ] H. J . Ramey, Written communication (1975).
[2]
A. Gringarten, H. J . Ramey, "The use of source and Green's functions
i n solving unsteady-flow problems i n reservoirs," SOC. Pet. Eng. J .
285- 296 (Oct. 1973); Trans., AI ME, vol. 255.
[31 H. J . Ramey, A. Kumar, M. S. Gulati, "Gas well test analysis under
water-drive conditions," American Gas Association, Arlington,
Vi rgi ni a (1973).
-244-
-245-
NOMENCLATURE
c = compr essi bi l i t y
k = permeabi 1 i t y
M = poi nt wher e pressure i s measured
pD = di mensi onl ess pressure dr op
A = pressure drop
q = f l ow rat e
t = t i me
P
= ar ea- based di mensi onl ess t i me
t~~
X9Y = hor i zont a 1 coord i nat es
z = verti cal coor di nat e
r~ = hydraul i c di f f usi vi t y
'DA' T D A = di mensi onl ess vari abl es of i nt egrat i on
3 = vi scosi t y
T = var i abl e of i nt egrat i on
= porosi t y
SUBSCR i PTS
e = reservoi r di mensi ons
w = sour ce or si nk l ocat i on
V l i ( x ) , V I 1 (y) = Basi c i nst ant aneous sour ce f unct i ons, f or <an i nf i ni t e
pl ane sour ce i n an i nf i ni t e sl ab reservoi r wi t h prescri bed f l ux at
t he boundar y, appl i ed to the - x and y coordi nat es.
I X ( z ) = Basi c i nst ant aneous sour ce f unct i on f or an i nf i ni t e I pl ane sour ce
i n an i nf i ni t e sl ab reservoi r wi t h prescri bed f l ux at z:=O and
prescri bed pressure at z=ze.
F i g . 1 - Closed cube wi t h costant pressure at the bottom
HORNER PLOT
80- I
I
ul
z
CI
.-
52
-
1
1 10 103 1b 4
Fi p . 3 --Cl osed paral l el epi ped wi t h c os t ant pressure at the bottom
f i g .Z-Closed cube
=10
Fi g.4 - Closed Par ai l el ePi Qt d
-246-
FUNDAMENTAL STUDY OF CHANGING OF PHASE I N POROUS MATERIALS
Serge Bories
l ns ti tut de Mechanique des Fluides
Toulouse, France
The research program on geothermal energy developed i n our laboratory
for the l as t two years i s mainly focussed on the fundamental problem of
changing of phase i n porous media.
I n thi s report I would l i ke to discuss two points: the main
objectives of thi s program and our current acti vi ti es .
Statement of the Problem
A high energy geothermal system i s generally defined as an aquifer
i n which thermodynamic conditions, i.e., pressure and temperature, are
rel ati vel y important and thus may be used t o produce mechanical and
el ectri cal energy.
A number of studies have been conducted during the l as t ten years
to understand the existence of hot temperature geothermal fi el ds; convection
i s now recognized as one of the main causes.
The ef f ect of convection i s to induce an important upward head
fl ux and therefore very high temperatures i n the upper part of the reservoir.
The heat accumulation i n the upper part o f a geothermal fi el d, i.e.,
the stored energy, i s composed of two parts:
( 1 ) The energy stored wi thi n the sol i d phase. This i s general l y
the more important aspect, and
The energy stored wi thi n the f l ui d phase.
(2)
Although during production only the f
phase i n the reservoir, heat transfer
and the f l ui d phase. It i s therefore
the vaporization may be considered as
of energy and the thermodynamic evolu
ui d i s recovered, due to changing of
occurs between the sol i d matrix
evident that s ol i d contr bution t o
most important as far as the recovery
ion of the reservoir are concerned.
This problem of heat transfer between the porous matrix and the
f l ui d i s parti cul arl y important i n the case of a fissured medium wi th large
block dimensions, which often occurs i n geothermal fi el ds. I n that case
it i s unreal i sti c t o assume an equilibrium temperature between the f l ui d
and the matrix blocks while the f l ui d i s flowing and changing 'of phase
the fissures i s taking place. The best we can do i s t o t r y to define a
mean heat transfer between the rocks and the fl ui d. If the blsocks are micro-
porous, the problem i s very si mi l ar to that of heat transfer wi th changing
of phase i n a dispersed medium. This i s the problem we are interested in.
wi thi n
-247-
Mathematical Model, Dimensionless Parameters
I n a f i r s t approach, by making the following assumptions:
a. Rigid porous media
b. Capi l l ary effects negl i gi bl e
c. Negl i gi bl e compressibility work
d. Steam i s considered as a perfect gas
e. Equilibrium Temperature between the f l ui d and the sol i d.
The governing equation may be wri tten as
Mass conti nui ty equation, heat transfer equation
and the pressure equation
Dimensional analysis from these equations leads to dimensionless
qual i ti es, taking i nto account the influence of
P orosity
Nature of porous medium
Grain-size or pore diameter
I ni t i al conditions
Boundaries conditions
This model w i l l be tested and used t o determine experimental
correl ati ons by using the data obtained on an experimental model which
i s described next.
Exper imen ta 1 Model
This model i s one dimensional with a ci rcul ar section of 5 an
diameter and a length of two meters. To avoid perturbating influences i n
the production section it i s constituted of two symmetrical parts so the
temperature gradient i n thi s section i s equal to 0 and then no ends
effects can modify the steam qual i ty.
The porous media is set inside an i nsul ati ng envelope and an outside
metal cylinder maintains the pressure and ensures control l ed heating.
The f l ui d i s injected i nto the porous media and maintained under
pressure, saturation (gamma ray absorption), mass balance and steam
qual i t y (condenser).
By using these resul ts and having defined the heat transfer from
envelope to the porous media ( thi s parameter takes an important place i n
the energy balance), we wi 11 determine (1) the porous material contri buti on
to the vaporization, and (2) the os s i bi l i ti es of testi ng the mathematical
model.
The experimental mode
model has been established t o
t o the porous media.
i s
est
now almost fi ni shed and a simple numerical
mate the heat transfer from the envelope
We have obtained a qual i tati ve simulation of the effect, i n the
example where saturation i s uniformly varying i n the porous media.
-248-
THERMAL DEPLETION OF LIQUID-DOMINATED
GEOTHERMAL RESERVOI RS WITH FRACTURE AND PORE PERMEABILITY
P. W. Kasameyer and R. C. Schroeder
Earth Sciences Geothermal Group
Lawrence Livermore Laboratory
U. of California/Livermore, Ca 94550
The l i f eti me of a geothermal power pl ant i s strongly dependent on
the fracture spacing and fracture permeability of the geothermal reservoir.
This conclusion i s based on sol uti on of three coupled l i near rate equations
for the time dependence of the average temperature of the rock, pore f l ui d
and fracture f l ui d. By averaging temperature over the enti re reservoir and
assuming a l l the f l ui d i s reinjected, effects such as drawdown are ignored,
and an upper bound f or the reservoir heat content and average wellbore
temperature i s determined as a function of time.
rock to the f l ui d by conduction both i n fractures and i n pores and by the
flow of f l ui d through the pores i s accounted f or i n thi s model.
Heat transfer from the
Several approaches to the problem of thermal depletion of a geo-
thermal reservoir are possible. A volumetric estimate of heat i n place may
be based on an estimate of the volume of f l ui d available
(Towse, 1975).
Heat obtained from the rock may be estimated and included i n the thermal
resource estimate. An estimate for the resource l i feti me i s then made by
assuming some fracti on of the thermal resource i s recoverable (White and
W i 11 iams, 1975). A complete numerical simulation of the coupled heat-flow
and mass-flow equations f or specified well and reservoir geometries can be
attempted. Numerical simulations are complex and often involve so many
adjustable parameters that i t i s often di f f i c ul t to gain i nsi ght i nto a
problem from such a solution. Our approach i s to idealize the problem
(see e.g., Bodvarsson, 1972) and consider only the essential aspects of the
heat and mass transport as discussed below. I n thi s way, a model i s
obta ned which involves a small number of parameters and provides i nsi ght
i nto the reservoir behavior during production.
The speci fi c quest ions of i nterest are: 1) how much heat can be
extracted from the reservoir rocks when reservoir f l ui d i s produced wi th
complete rei nj ecti on; and 2) how w i l l the reservoir heat extraction be
affected by the presence of fractures?
For a porous reservoir, essenti al l y a l l of the heat above the re-
i nj ecti on f l ui d temperature can be removed from the rock.
are present i n the reservoir, they may short- ci rcui t the injection-production
process and cause a rapid temperature decline.
If fractures
Our model of the system i s represented by Fig. 1. The resource
consists of three components: rock matrix, f l ui d i n i nter s ti ti al pore space,
and f l ui d i n the fractures (fissures, faul ts, etc.). The two fl ui ds are
represented by the si ngl e box i n F i g. 1 . Three coupled di f f erenti al
equations represent the idealized model. I n defining the equations, we do
not need to gi ve the number or di stri buti on pattern of the individual
geothermal wells. Rather, i t i s assumed that a system of production and
i nj ecti on wells exi sts which can accommodate the required fl ow rates f or a
specified level of power extracti on from the f l ui d. I n thi s summary, we
consider only the case of fractures which are perpendicular to the wellbores
of the production and i nj ecti on wells. For verti cal wel l s the fractures are
assumed t o be horizontal. I f i ncl i ned (or horizontal) wells are dri l l ed, the
fractures are again perpendicular t o the flow i n the well system.
The fractures are modeled by a series of channels between paral l el
plates, as shown i n Fig. 2. Two parameters are used to specify the fracture
di stri buti on, w, the aperture or opening of the fracture, and D, the distance
between fractures.
The r ati o of fracture f l ui d to pore f l ui d flowing i nto the production
well i s calculated from the assumed permeability of the porous slabs and the
calculated permeability due to the fractures.
t o pore f l ui d i s given by the steady-state conduction equation. An exact
cal cul ati on of the heat exchange from rock to fracture f l ui d i s too di f f i c ul t,
because i t would depend on the enti re temperature hi story of the f l ui d
passing the rock. We estimate that heat transfer term at any time from the
instantaneous average temperature difference between the rock and the fracture
fl ui d. This approximation i s tested i n resul ts t o be shown l ater (F i g. 5).
The heat transfer from rock
Calculated upper bound curves f or the average temperature of a
reservoir are shown i n Fig. 3. The reservoir has the volume estimated f or
the Salton Sea KGRA (Towse, 1975). The flow rate from the production wells
i s suffi ci ent to produce 1000 MW o f el ectri c power, assuming that 16% of
the energy coming from the reservoir i s converted to useful power.
If no fractures are present, the temperatures o f the f l ui d and rock
remain equa? and the heat content decays exponentially. The time constant
of the decay can be calculated from the total thermal mass of the rock and
.Fluid. The top l i ne i n Fig. 3 represents the exponential decay, but the
scale i s expanded so that the l i ne looks almost strai ght.
When fractures are present, the depletion curves are calculated by
keeping the pore f l ui d and rock i n equilibrium. We assume that the fractures
communicate between i nj ecti on and production wells. The f l ui d produced i s a
mixture of fracture f l ui d, which cools rapidly, and pore fl ui d, which cools
slowly. The rapid decay of average temperature f or the mixture i s apparent
i n Fig. 3 .
Although thi s very simple cal cul ati on leads to an appreciation of
the effects of fractures on f i el d l i feti me, it does not represent a good upper
bound for the useful l i f eti me of a geothermal reservoir because regions of
njected f l ui d are averaged wi th regions of hot f l ui d near production cool re
we1 Is.
p rod u c t
vo 1 umes
F i g. 4 shows how we estimate the temperature prof i l e between the
on and i nj ecti on wells. The reservoir i s represented by several
i n series. Each volume may have a very complicated shape and i s
not necessarily si ngl y connected. The f l ui d i s assumed to move through the
reservoir wi th no mixing, i.e., the f i r s t volume f i l l s completely wi th
c
-250-
rei nj ect i on f l ui d bef ore any rei nj ect i on f l ui d reaches tfj e second vol ume.
We choose a t i me- st ep suf f i ci ent to exchange f l ui d i n one vol ume, sol ve f or
the t emper at ur e decl i ne i n each vol ume i ndependent l y usi ng the method descri bed
above, and t hen move the f l ui d to the next vol ume. I n several st eps, we can
cal cul at e t he t emper at ur e decl i ne at t he l ast vol ume, whi ch represent s t he
regi on nearest t he product i on wel l .
The most i mport ant assumpt i on we have made i s t hat t he f l ui d moves
wi t hout mi xi ng, whi ch i s consi st ent wi t h our desi r e to f i nd an upper bound.
To t est our met hod, and our appr oxi mat i on of t he heat - t r ansf er bet ween rock
and pore f l ui d, we compared our cal cul at i ons to the numeri cal resul t s of
Gr i ngar t en, et al . (1975), f or hot dry rock wi t h mul t i pl e f r act ur es. As
shown i n Fi g. 5, the t wo numeri cal met hods agreed cl osel y.
Fi g. 6 shows our cal cul at ed wel l bor e t emperat ures f or a resource
wi t h t he vol ume of t he Sal t on Sea Geot hermal Fi el d ( SSGF) (Towse, 1975),
and an ef f ect i ve power product i on of 400 MW. Power coul d be produced at
t hat l evel f or 20 year s f romt he hot f l ui d alone. Our cal cul at i ons f or a
porous medi umwi t h no f r act ur es i ndi cat e a l i f et i me of up to 3 . 3 t i mes
as l ong, because of heat ext ract i on f romt he rock.
Fr act ur es cause a mor e rapi d decl i ne of product i on t emper at ur e. The
cal cul at ed t emperat ure drop af t er 20 year s i s used as a measur e of the ef f ect
of f r act ur es.
of val ues of w and D. The dashed l i nes i ndi cat e di f f erent rat i os of pore
f l ui d and f r act ur e f l ui d i n the product i on wel l .
I n Fi g. 7, t hat t emperat ure drop i s cont oured f or a vari et y
For smal l w or D, t he depl et i on i s the same as i f f r act ur es wer e
absent . I f more t han 10%of the f l owoccur s i n wi del y separat ed f r act ur es,
t he wel l bor e t emper at ur e decl i nes more r api dl y. The depl et i on i ncreases when
w3
D > 50 mand - > 2. ~10' 12 (m2).
D
I n summar y, resource est i mat es shoul d consi der the heat i n t he rock
mat ri x i n addi t i on to that i n t he geot hermal f l ui d. Fracture: ; may cause a
si gni f i cant l y gr eat er t emperat ure decl i ne than woul d be predi ct ed f r om
est i mat es based on porous f l owal one. Thi s resul t i s very i mpor t ant f or t he
desi gn and product i on of a l i qui d- domi nat ed hydrot hermal syst em, because
&el l s are t arget ed on f r act ur es whenever possi bl e, i n or der t o i ncrease t he
f l ow rat e per wel l . Our resul t s emphasi ze t hat i f rei nj ect i on wel l s and
product i on wel l s i nt ersect the same f r act ur e syst em, t he usef ul l i f et i me of
t he product i on wel l s may be dramat i cal l y r educed.
Ref er ences
G. Bodvar sson, "Thermal Probl ems i n t he Si t i ng of Rei nj ect i on Wel l s, "
Geot her mi cs, Vol . 1 , No. 2 (1972).
D. Towse, " An Est i mat e of t he Geot hermal Energ
Tr ough, Cal i f orni a, " UCRL- 51851 ( J une 18, 1975r.
Resource i n t he Sal t on
D. F. Whi t e, D. L . Wi l l i ams eds. , "Assessment of Geot hermal Resources of
the Uni ted St at es - 1975, " U. S. Geol ogi cal Survey Ci rcul ar 726.
S
0
.-
*.r
0
0
t;
L
a
0
e
%
L
.I
0
L
3
aJ
cr:
+.r
S
m
+.r
E E
2 0
2 e
0
-252-
FIGURE 2.
-25.3-
Y
A COMPARISON OF FRACTURE APERTURE FOR THE
SALTON SEA KGRA, 1000MWe, 1500 m FRACTURE
SPACING.
0.
F w=l.xlO
6O 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Time (years)
FIGURE 3.
-254-
w
a
a
3
I-
U
W
e
z
W
-255-
..-
HOT DRY ROCK WITH MULTI PLE FRACTURES RESULTS FROM
TWO NUMERI CAL METHODS
6oo r- I 1 I I
- 160 m
$3 This study \
E" I \ - Gringarten, et al. [1975j
Q)
u
I I I I
20 40 60 80 1
Ti me (yrs)
FiGURE 5 .
k! WELLBORE TEMPERATURE VS. TIME
. -_ -_ _ _ _
SSG F-400 megawatts i ni ti al power extracted (wi t h fractures)
I I I
I I
- Inj ecti on temperature 1 -
' 300 - I " ' - - - I
-- - .
_----- ~
L,
FIGURE 6 .
-256-
..-
k! ! CONTOURS OF PRODUCTION FLUID TEMPERATURE
DECLINE AFTER 20 YEARS, FOR DIFFERENT
FRACTURE DISTR1BUTIONS (SSGF, 400MW)
10
AT = 35 K
I
A T = l K
-
R = 1.0
f I I I I l l I I I
3 X 1 0'3 3 x 10-3
Wrn)
FIGURE 7 .
GEOTHERMAL ENERGY FROM A BOREHOLE
I N HOT DRY ROCK - A PRELI MI NARY STUDY
Devr aj Shar ma & Ti du Mai ni
Advanced Technol ogy Gr oup
Dames & Moor e
London, S W14 8SN, Engl and
A si mpl e pr ocedur e f or cal cul at i ng heat t r ansf er bet ween ci r cul at ed
wat er and hot dr y rock i n a si ngl e, concent r i c- annul us geot her mal wel l i s
pr esent ed.
pr ocedur e to a proposed wel l i n Sweden.
Al so pr esent ed ar e t he r esul t s of an appl i cat i on of t he
The concept exami ned consi st s essent i al l y of pumpi ng wat er , at
nat ur al l y- occur r i ng t emper at ur es, down a cyl i ndr i cal wel l dr i l l ed several
ki l omet er s i nt o the ear t h, and ext r act i ng i t i n a heat ed st at e t hr ough an
annul ar cyl i nder ( see f or exampl e, Smi t h et al . , 1973) . Two di f f er ent
schemes embodyi ng t he same concept ar e exami ned i n t he pr esent i nvest i -
gat i on. These ar e i l l ust rat ed i n Fi gs. 1 and 2 . I n t he f i r st , col d wat er
i s pumped i nto t he i nner cyl i nder and ext r act ed t hr ough t he annul ar space.
I n t he second, t he si t uat i on i s exact l y r ever sed.
--
The pr obl em, i n both schemes, i s to pr edi ct t he out l et t emper at ur e
of wat er under gi ven condi t i ons on t he one hand; and on the ot her , to
predi ct t he t emper at ur e dr op i n t he rock mass sur r oundi ng t he wel l , ot her -
wi se known as ener gy depl et i on of t he geot her mal r eser voi r . ( See
Gr i ngar t en -- et al . , (1975) f or anal yt i cal sol ut i ons to a pl ane- cr ack
si t uat i on embodyi ng a si mi l ar concept . )
i n t wo st ages.
Such pr edi ct i on was under t aken
Met hodol ogy Adopt ed
I n or der t o r ender t he pr obl emt r act abl e to si mpl e mat hemat i cal
anal ysi s i n St age 1, cer t ai n si mpl i f yi ng assumpt i ons ar e made. By vi r t ue
of t hese assumpt i ons, t he pr ocess of t hermal ener gy gai n by t he f l owi ng
wat er was decoupl ed f r omt hat of ener gy loss by t he sur r oundi ng rock mass.
Then, an or di nar y di f f er ent i al equat i on was f or mul at ed to r epr esent t he
ener gy- gai n pr ocess, and sol ved anal yt i cal l y wi t h speci f i ed rock t emper a-
t ur es as boundar y condi t i on. A ser i es of such sol ut i ons was obt ai ned and
t he i nf l uence of si gni f i cant par amet er s was i nvest i gat ed. Dur i ng t hi s
st age, onl y a rough est i mat e of r ock- mass ener gy depl et i on was made.
Thi s est i mat e i ndi cat ed t hat such a depl et i on woul d be mi ni mal .
I n St age 2 , t he coupl ed, and essent i al l y unst eady- st at e, pr ocesses
wer e model l ed by par t i al - di f f er ent i al equat i ons, whi ch wer e sol ved by an
i nt egr at ed, f i ni t e- di f f er ence t echni que. A comput er programembodyi ng
t hi s t echni que was used to i nvest i gat e t he i nf l uence of si gni f i cant
par amet er s. Such i nvest i gat i ons ar e cont i nui ng and the r esul t s present ed
her e ar e prel i mi nary.
Mat hemat i cal Det ai l s
1 . Si mpl i f yi ng Assumpt i ons
The f ol l owi ng assumpt i ons ar e made, i n both St age 1 and St age 2
cal cul at i ons, concer ni ng t he pr ocess of t hermal ener gy gai n by ci r cul at i ng
wat er :
a) The f l ow i s f ul l y- devel oped, i . e. , essent i al l y one- di mensi onal
i n nat ur e, both wi t hi n t he i nner t ube and i n t he annul ar space.
b) The f l ow i s t ur bul ent .
c)
Wi t hi n t he t emper at ur e r ange encount er ed, t he ci r cul at i ng- wat er
pr oper t i es r emai n essent i al l y const ant .
d)
The r ock- mass t emper at ur e var i es l i near l y wi th dept h bel ow t he
ear t h' s sur f ace.
2. St age 1 Cal cul at i ons
The or di nar y di f f er ent i al equat i on gover ni ng t he st eady- st at e
ener gy gai n by ci r cul at i ng wat er i n Scheme 1 i s
and, i n Scheme I 1 i s
The symbol s i n t he above equat i ons ar e def i ned i n Fi g. 3 , and i n
t he nomencl ature' . The sol ut i on to Equat i on (1) i s ( Shar ma, . 1975)
and to Equat i on ( 2) i s
-259-
These solutions, obtained w
are represented i n Figs. 4 and 5.
the values of heat-transfer coeffi c
Kays and Leung ( 1 963). Furthermore
a thermal gradient "a" of 0.034.
th known values of rock temperature,
n order to make these representations,
ent h were extracted fromthe work of
a borehole of 4 in. was presumed and
I t can be observed from Fig. 5 that Scheme I I i s preferable to
Scheme 1 . However, the influence of ci rcul ati ng water flow i n cooling the
adjacent rock and hence depleting the geothermal energy source cannot be
observed by the decoupled technique. I n order t o cal cul ate thi s depletion,
i t i s necessary to perform cal cul ati on of the coupled processes.
3. Stage 2 Calculations
The Stage 2 calcu ations involved the sol uti on of the coup
problem.
Circulating-water energy gain
This problem i s expressed mathematically thus:
-
Tw - L o
-
T,,,
-
wi th the i ni t i al and boundary conditions:
; t c o
- 7 t ) / O
Rock-rnass energy loss
ed
-260-
wi th the i ni t i al and boundary conditions:
r
3
t2 0
The coupled solutions to Equations ( 5 ) and (7) wi th boundary
conditions (6) and (8) were obtained wi th an integrated fi ni te- di fference
procedure described by Sharma (1975). I nvestigations i n thi s connection
are s t i l l continuing. However, a resul t of the application of the procedure
to Scheme I I (Fig. 2 ) i s i l l us trated i n Fig. 6. This resul t appears to
indicate that the rock-face temperature drops more rapi dl y due to the
circulating-water energy gain, than the replenishment possible due to heat
conduction from the surrounding rock mass. It i s cl ear that a simple
borehole type of approach i s not s uffi ci ent f or extracti ng geothermal
energy i n meaningful quanti ti es. I t i s concluded from the present study
that ei ther explosives or hydraulic fracturi ng w i l l have to be used i n order
to provide suffi ci ent contact area f or effecti ve energy extraction. I n
countries such as Sweden where abnormally high horizontal stresses exi st,
i t i s l i kel y that horizontal fractures can be created, thereby providing
a vast surface area of contact at constant high temperature ( thi s i s cl earl y
an advantage over other parts of the world where verti cal fractures are more
common). We are currentl y studying the problem of geothermal energy gain
from ci rcul ati ng water flow through arbitrarily-shaped fractures. This
study i s based upon a mathematical model involving the numerical sol uti on
of parti al di fferenti al equations governing convective heat and mass transfer.
I n a continuing study, account w i l l be taken of phase change, dissolution,
turbulence and other influences on thermal energy transfer.
Acknowledgment
The authors wish to thank Professor P.A. Witherspoon of University
of Cal i forni a, Berkeley, Dr. U. Lindblom of Hagconsult, Stockholm and Dr .
R.J . Hopkirk of Elektrowatt, Zurich f or thei r encouragement and support.
-26 1 -
References
Gringarten, A.C. , P.A. Witherspoon and Y. Ohnishi (1975).
heat extracti on from fractured hot dry rock," J . Geophys. Res., 80, (8)
pp. 1120-1 124.
"Theory of
Kays, W.M. and E. Y. Leung (1963).
537-57
I nt. J . Heat and Mass Transfer, - 6, pp.
Sharma, D. (1975). " A fi ni te- di fference procedure for cal cul ati ng
simultaneous heat and mass transfer i n geothermal applications." Paper i n
pri nt.
Smith, M. , R. P otter, D. Brown and R.L. Aamodt (1973). "I nduction and
growth of fractures i n hot rock" i n Geothermal Energy, Stanford University
Press, Stanford, Ca. 94305, Ch. 14, pp. 251-265.
Nomenclature
P
X
geothermal gradi ent
speci fi c heat capaci ty o f rock mass and
ci rcul ati ng water respecti vel y
water-rock surface heat-exchange coeffi ci ent
depth of borehole
ci rcul ati ng water mass flow rate
perimeter of borehole
radi us coordinate
radi i of borehole and rock mass considered
respect i vely
time coordinate
vel oci ty o f ci rcul ati ng water
depth coordinate
dens i ty
i nverse depth coordi nate
-262-
hot water out
col d water i n
Fi g. 1 I l l ustr ati on of geothermal
wel l ; Scheme I .
col d wa
ter out
Fi g. 2 I l l ustr ati on of geothermal
wel l ; Scheme 11.
-263-
Fi g. 3 I l l ustr ati on o f coordi nate
sys tern.
- 2 64 -
1 oc
8C
T
( OC )
60
40
20
1c
80
T
(OC)
60
40
20
RI = 0.102 m
L = 900 ni
10
Fi g. 4. Effect of flowrate on temperature ri se of
ci rcul ati ng water, Scheme I .
- - - r m- r - r - - - r - r ~
//
RI = 0.102 m
L = 900 m
10 l o2 x(n1) 1 o3
F i g. 5 Effect of flowrate on temperature ri se of
ci rcul ati ng wat er , Scheme 11.
-265-
100
80
T
( O C )
60
40
20
I I I I I I I l l I I I I I I I
RI = 0.102 in
L = 900 m
m = 10 kg/s
T = 20 OC
Ro = 100 m
w 9 0
Fi g. 6 Outl et temperature of ci rcul ati ng water;
coupled problem.
. %
-266-
f unct
formu
funct
THE USE OF GENERAL SENSITIVITY THEORY TO ANALYZE THE GEOTHERMAL
RESERVOI R MODEL'S SENSITIVITY TO THE PERMEABILITY FUNCTIONS
Robert W. Atherton
Systems Control, Inc.
1801 Page M i 11 Road
Palo Alto, Ca. 94304
S ensi ti vi ty theory i s concerned wi th studying how a model depends
upon i t s parameters, constants or functions. Models of real physical
processes, such as flow i n a geothermal reservoir, are implemented vi a
numerical simulations. The resul ts of the model u are available only for
certai n values of the parameters po.
on p i s not known, s ens i ti vi ty studies are typi cal l y done by random or
quasi-organized searches of the parameter space p , and computer output i s
generated for sets of points po for the parameters.
Because the exact dependence of u
The mapping u (p) and i t s derivatives are of great i nterest. The
derivatives are defined to be s ens i ti vi ty functions. For constant parameters.
the s ens i ti vi ty functions are - and f or parametric functions u 06p where
u ' * i s the Frechet deri vati ve of u(p), and 6p i s a vector of perturbation
au I
a P j P
P
ons.
I have developed a general s ens i ti vi ty theory (1,2,3) which allows the
ati on of an auxi l i ary or dual model from which the s ens i ti vi ty
ons can be calculated di rectl y. Thus, the state and s ens i ti vi ty
functions can be generated for "l i kel y" values of p, and the s ens i ti vi ty
functions indicate how u w i l l change for changes i n p i n the neighborhood
of Po.
I n the fol l owi ng sections I w i l l summarize general s ens i ti vi ty
theory and i t s usefulness by presenting two examples from reservoir
modeling.
General Sens i t i vi ty Theory
The deri vati on of the general s ens i ti vi ty theory i s based upon the
use of the i mpl i ci t function theorem for operators on Banach spaces.
view the model as
I
Then the imp1 i c i t function theorem asserts the existence of u(p)
such that
N(U(P ), P) = 0 ( 2)
-267-
We now differentiate (2) in the sense of Frechet to get
I
u' +" 0 ) 6p = 0
Nu P P
In the case of constant parameters ( 3) becomes
au
We will exhibit specific examples in the next section.
Flow in Anisotropic Porous Media
For the model I take the following set of equations (4)
VP +p 0 ' v =0
. " - .
-
A * V = O
..,
Where V is the superficial velocity. D ... i s the dispersion tensor;
..
e =
..
(5) and , ( 6) define a
P = (Dll. DI2' D
I
Computing derivatives R
U
K' .
P
t
R. =
U I
0
0
Let ~p = u l * 6p
P
r
F-', and 5 i s the permeabi 1 i ty tensor. Equations
.. . %
model R (u, p) where u = (vl, V 2 ' V 3 ' p) and
- - . . , ."
l
and R
P
v2 v3 0
0 v2
0 0
0 0 0
V
ci
V
0
-
3
v3
v2
0
( 3 )
( 4 )
Then we have 24 sensitivity equations in the form
R i *
+R;. 6p -. =0
-268-
..-
wher e bp ar e t he per t ur bat i ons i n t he di sper si on or per meabi l i t y f unct i ons,
and @ =0 on t he boundary of the domai n.
-
Because R i s l i near i n u, t he sensi t i vi t y and the model ar e
governed by t he same basi c oper at or .
A Nonl i near Exampl e
For a nonl i near exampl e, I t ur n to a model of Peaceman and Rachf ord
[51
k @ ar e f unct i ons of x and y onl y.
kx' y'
Nonl i near i t i es ar e i nt roduced vi a
1-I = f ( P, C) Y = f (c)
I n addi t i on
The st at e i s gi ven by u = ( P, c) and t he par amet er s of P = ( kx, ky)
. . ,
I wi l l not wr i t e out R' and R' . However , i t i s of i nt erest to
U P
not e t hat because of t he nonl i near coupl i ng, 5c can af f ect p even i f
up i s zer o; and conver sel y.
Summar y and Concl usi ons
I have bri ef l y sket ched sensi t i vi t y t heory and i ts appl i cat i on to
t wo pr obl ems.
t he compl ement of t he physi cal model .
i n p of unusual behavi or f or u can be f ound mor e easi l y f romst udyi ng the
behavi or of t he sensi t i vi t i es t han f r omst udyi ng u al one.
i s t rue even i n cases wher e u(p) i s known.
A key poi nt to r ecogni ze
i s t hat t he sensi t i vi t y model i s
A powerf ul r esul t i s t hat r egi ons
Thi s obser vat i on
-269-
..-
I expect t he t echni ques of gener al sensi t i vi t y anal ysi s t o be
usef ul i n f or mul at i ng and usi ng geot her mal r eser voi r si mul at or s under
condi t i ons of l ar ge par amet er uncer t ai nt y.
Ref e r en ces
[ l ] At her t on, R. W. , " The Appl i cat i on of Oper at or Der i vat i ves t o
Pr obl ems i n Chemi cal Engi neer i ng, " 68t h Nat i onal AI CHE Meet i ng, Los
Angel es, Ca. , November 1975, and submi t t ed to Chem. Eng. Comnun.
[21 At her t on, R. W. , "On t he Model - Sensi t i vi t y Oper at or : Par t I Const ant
Par amet er s" Sl A M Fal l Meet i ng, San Fr anci sco, Ca. , December 3 - 5,
1975 and submi t t ed t o Sl AM J . Appl . Mat h.
[31 At her t on, R. W. ,
Par amet r i c Funct
141 Sl at t er y, J . C. ,
McGr aw- Hi l l , New
[51 Peaceman, D. W. ,
"On t he Model - Sensi t i vi t y Oper at or : Par t I I
ons, " I bi d.
Moment um, Ener gy, and Mass Tr ansf er i n Cont i nua,
Yor k, 1972, pp. 190- 215.
and H. H. Rachf or d, J r . , " Numer i cal Cal cul at i ons
of Mul t i di mensi onal Mi scr i bl e Di spl acement , ' ' -- SPE J , December 1962,
327- 339
-270-