Geothermal produced fluids: Characteristics, treatment technologies, and management options
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NATIONAL GEOTHERMAL DATA SYSTEM (NGDS) GEOTHERMAL DATA DOMAIN: ASSESSMENT OF GEOTHERMAL COMMUNITY DATA NEEDS
To satisfy the critical need for geothermal data to ad- vance geothermal energy as a viable renewable ener- gy contender, the U.S. Department of Energy is in- vesting in the development of the National Geother- mal Data System (NGDS). This paper outlines efforts among geothermal data providers nationwide to sup- ply cutting edge geo-informatics. NGDS geothermal data acquisition, delivery, and methodology are dis- cussed. In particular, this paper addresses the various types of data required to effectively assess geother- mal energy potential and why simple links to existing data are insufficient. To create a platform for ready access by all geothermal stakeholders, the NGDS in- cludes a work plan that addresses data assets and re- sources of interest to users, a survey of data provid- ers, data content models, and how data will be ex- changed and promoted, as well as lessons learned within the geothermal community.
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The Geothermal Data Repository: Ten Years of Supporting the Geothermal Industry with Open Access to Geothermal Data: Preprint
The Department of Energy's (DOE) Geothermal Data Repository (GDR) is celebrating its tenth anniversary! Over the last decade it has grown from the simple idea of storing public data in a centralized location to a valuable tool at the center of the US geothermal scientific community and an integral part of the DOE Geothermal Technologies Office (DOE GTO) project management strategy. Researchers funded by the DOE GTO have contributed over 1,300 data submissions to the GDR. These data have been used to further advancements in geothermal science, economic analysis, exploration, research, development, and operational efficiency. The adoption of open data methodologies and a data management strategy that prioritizes universal open access and standardized, interoperable data have further increased the value of GDR data, making them available across a distributed network of data sharing partners and improving their utility to other industries and related fields, including material science and space exploration. Incorporating feedback from users has been critical to the GDRs success, allowing it to grow over the years to meet the evolving needs of the geothermal community. This paper will explore some of many changes that occurred throughout the GDRs tenure and the lessons learned along the way, as well as highlight some of the new features and recent improvements that been implemented to support innovation, reduce duplication of effort, and advance the geothermal industry as a whole.
accessibility↗
The Geothermal Data Repository: Ten Years of Supporting the Geothermal Industry with Open Access to Geothermal Data
The Department of Energy's (DOE) Geothermal Data Repository (GDR) is celebrating its tenth anniversary! Over the last decade it has grown from the simple idea of storing public data in a centralized location to a valuable tool at the center of the US geothermal scientific community and an integral part of the DOE Geothermal Technologies Office (DOE GTO) project management strategy. Researchers funded by the DOE GTO have contributed over 1,300 data submissions to the GDR. These data have been used to further advancements in geothermal science, economic analysis, exploration, research, development, and operational efficiency. The adoption of open data methodologies and a data management strategy that prioritizes universal open access and standardized, interoperable data have further increased the value of GDR data, making them available across a distributed network of data sharing partners and improving their utility to other industries and related fields, including material science and space exploration. Incorporating feedback from users has been critical to the GDR's success, allowing it to grow over the years to meet the evolving needs of the geothermal community. This paper will explore some of many changes that occurred throughout the GDRs tenure and the lessons learned along the way, as well as highlight some of the new features and recent improvements that been implemented to support innovation, reduce duplication of effort, and advance the geothermal industry as a whole.
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Project Title: Geothermal Play Fairway Analysis of Potential Geothermal Resources in NE California, NW Nevada, and Southern Oregon: A Transition between Extension$-$Hosted and Volcanically$-$Hosted Geothermal Fields
Final report for the UCD-LBNL effort to apply Geothermal Play Fairway Analysis to a transition zone between a volcanically-hosted and extensionally-hosted geothermal. The project focusses on the geothermal resources in northeastern California.
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FlowDash Geothermal Energy Enhancer: Where is Next Geothermal Resource? Machine Learning + Multiple Datasets => Geothermal Exploration Indication?
This is the presentation delivered at the 2025 GEODE Datathon competition. GEODE is a consortium of experts that addresses technology and knowledge gaps in geothermal energy, leveraging technology and best practices from the oil and gas industry. NETL team was awarded the 1st place in the engineering track. 2025 GEODE Datathon had a total of 42 teams from top universities and several major industrial companies. This awarded work is founded on a robust idea and innovative approach that uses machine learning coupled to multiple datasets to visualize geothermal “sweet” spots/indications in Great Basin based on the data provided from the GEODE Datathon. The use case also leveraged other datasets and demonstrated insightful and valuable indications for geothermal exploration.
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Inferring Geothermal Reservoir Processes at the Raft River Geothermal Field, Idaho, USA, Through Modeling InSAR-Measured Surface Deformation
Ground surface deformations detected with Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) provide valuable information for inferring subsurface reservoir processes that are difficult to observe directly. This study aims at building a reservoir model that honors the available geological, hydrological and geo-mechanical data and also produces ground surface deformation consistent with InSAR measurements at the Raft River Geothermal Field. In the thermo-hydro-mechanical (THM) coupled model developed, the reservoir deforms as a result of the rock’s poroelastic response to changes in hydrologic pressure and thermal expansion/contraction. The results indicate that the observed deformation is the result of pressure decrease in the deep production reservoir and pressure increase in a shallower reservoir that accommodates the injected fluid (likely in the Salt Lake Formation). The combination of the uplift around injection wells with subsidence around the production wells, affected by the Bridge Fault as a flow barrier, creates a complex pattern of surface deformation in which the center of subtle subsidence significantly deviates from the location of the production wells. A parametric study suggests that (1) the Bridge Fault Zone is likely a flow barrier, (2) the surface deformation appears to be insensitive to the presence of the Narrows Structure, and (3) additional flow barriers likely exist to shape the flow system. This case study demonstrates the utility of a high-fidelity forward model that honors available known information and THM coupled processes in understanding geothermal reservoir characteristics.
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National Geothermal Data System: Transforming the Discovery, Access, and Analytics of Data for Geothermal Exploration
Compendium of Papers from the 38th Workshop on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering Stanford University, Stanford, California February 11-13, 2013 The National Geothermal Data System (NGDS) is a distributed, interoperable network of data collected from state geological surveys across all fifty states and the nation’s leading academic geothermal centers. The system serves as a platform for sharing consistent, reliable, geothermal-relevant technical data with users of all types, while supplying tools relevant for their work. As aggregated data supports new scientific findings, this content-rich linked data ultimately broadens the pool of knowledge available to promote discovery and development of commercial-scale geothermal energy production. Most of the up-front risks associated with geothermal development stem from exploration and characterization of subsurface resources. Wider access to distributed data will, therefore, result in lower costs for geothermal development. NGDS is on track to become fully operational by 2014 and will provide a platform for custom applications for accessing geothermal relevant data in the U.S. and abroad. It is being built on the U.S. Geoscience Information Network (USGIN) data integration framework to promote interoperability across the Earth sciences community. The basic structure of the NGDS employs state-of-the art informatics to advance geothermal knowledge. The following four papers comprising this Open-File Report are a compendium of presentations, from the 38th Annual Workshop on Geothermal Reservoir Engineering, taking place February 11-13, 2013 at Stanford University, Stanford, California. “NGDS Geothermal Data Domain: Assessment of Geothermal Community Data Needs,” outlines the efforts of a set of nationwide data providers to supply data for the NGDS. In particular, data acquisition, delivery, and methodology are discussed. The paper addresses the various types of data and metadata required and why simple links to existing data are insufficient for promoting geothermal exploration. Authors of this paper are Arlene Anderson, US DOE Geothermal Technologies Office, David Blackwell, Southern Methodist University (SMU), Cathy Chickering (SMU), Toni Boyd, Oregon Institute of Technology’s GeoHeat Center, Roland Horne, Stanford University, Matthew MacKenzie, Uberity, Joe Moore, University of Utah, Duane Nickull, Uberity, Stephen Richard, Arizona Geological Survey, and Lisa Shevenell, University of Nevada, Reno. “NGDS User Centered Design: Meeting the Needs of the Geothermal Community,” discusses the user- centered design approach taken in the development of a user interface solution for the NGDS. The development process is research based, highly collaborative, and incorporates state-of-the-art practices to ensure a quality user interface for the widest and greatest utility. Authors of this paper are Harold Blackman, Boise State University, Suzanne Boyd, Anthro-Tech, Kim Patten, Arizona Geological Survey, and Sam Zheng, Siemens Corporate Research. “Fueling Innovation and Adoption by Sharing Data on the DOE Geothermal Data Repository Node on the National Geothermal Data System,” describes the motivation behind the development of the Geothermal Data Repository (GDR) and its role in the NGDS. This includes the benefits of using the GDR to share geothermal data of all types and DOE’s data submission process. Authors of this paper are Jon Weers, National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Arlene Anderson, US DOE Geothermal Technologies Office. Finally, “Developing the NGDS Adoption of CKAN for Domestic & International Data Deployment,” provides an overview of the “Node-In-A-Box” software package designed to provide data consumers with a highly functional interface to access the system, and to ease the burden on data providers who wish to publish data in the system. It is important to note that this software package constitutes a reference implementation and that the NGDS architecture is based on open standards, which means other server software can make resources available, and other client applications can utilize NGDS data. Authors of this paper are Ryan Clark, Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS), Christoph Kuhmuench, Siemens Corporate Research, and Stephen Richard, AZGS.
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Mining G.O.L.D. (Geothermal Opportunities Leveraged Through Data): Exploring Synergies Between the Geothermal and Mining Industries
This report analyzes potential collaborations between the geothermal and locatable mineral industries (focused on the portion of the Basin and Range Province within Nevada, United States of America). The objectives of this study included analyzing: 1. The type and quality of data collected by the locatable mineral industry to determine feasibility for geothermal resource exploration; 2. The regulatory pathways and potential barriers that could prevent development of geothermal resources discovered via a mining claim (and vice versa) in the United States; 3. The historical development of geothermal resources discovered via mineral exploration data in the United States and illustrations of co-located mining and geothermal power projects; 4. The value propositions for both the locatable mineral and the geothermal industries to collaborate. This article concludes that many of the data collected by the mining industry as part of locatable mineral exploration (e.g., copper, gold, lithium) would also be useful for identifying and developing previously unknown geothermal resources (and in some notable cases, already have led to geothermal resource development). In addition, for minimal costs, the mining industry could catalogue these data and potentially monetize the data itself or use the data in the future to develop a geothermal project. Leveraging these locatable mineral data to develop geothermal resources and/or co-located minerals and geothermal resources would represent significant cost savings when compared to developing geothermal resources under a business-as-usual scenario as well as compared to current generating technologies (e.g., diesel-powered generators) employed at remote mining operations. Ultimately, leveraging mining industry data, knowledge, and expertise serves to effectively expand the geothermal exploration workforce, increase the rate of geothermal resource discovery, and potentially reduce geothermal electricity's levelized cost of energy (LCOE) by 23%-29%.
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Discovering Blind Geothermal Systems in the Great Basin Region: An Integrated Geologic and Geophysical Approach for Establishing Geothermal Play Fairways: All Phases
Most geothermal resources in the Great Basin region of the western USA are blind, and thus the discovery of new commercial-grade systems requires synthesis of favorable characteristics for geothermal activity. The geothermal play fairway concept involves integration of multiple parameters indicative of geothermal activity to identify promising areas for new development. This project integrated multiple datasets to apply the play fairway concept and assess geothermal potential in a large region of the Great Basin in Nevada. It is therefore referred to as the Nevada play fairway project. This project was a strong collaborative effort between several organizations, led by the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology at the University of Nevada, Reno, but with key support from the U.S. Geological Survey, ATLAS Geosciences, Inc,, Hi-Q Geophysical, Inc., Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Utah Geological Survey, and Innovative Geothermal Ltd. In Budget Period 1 of this project, available data for nine geologic, geochemical, and geophysical parameters were initially synthesized to produce a new detailed geothermal potential map of 96,000 km2 from west-central to eastern Nevada. These parameters were grouped into subsets and individually weighted to delineate rankings for local permeability, intermediate permeability, regional permeability, and thermal potential, which collectively defined geothermal play fairways (i.e., most likely locations for significant geothermal fluid flow). This initial work was aimed at reducing the risks in regional exploration and therefore facilitating discovery of new commercial-grade systems in blind settings, as well as in areas with surface expressions of geothermal activity. Budget Period 2 of the project involved detailed analysis of some of the most promising areas identified in Phase 1. Twenty-four highly prospective areas, including both known undeveloped systems and previously undiscovered potential blind systems, were identified for further analysis. After reconnaissance of these areas, five of the most promising sites were selected for detailed studies. Multiple techniques were employed in the detailed studies, including geologic mapping, shallow temperature surveys, gravity surveys, Lidar, geochemical studies, seismic reflection analysis, and 3D modeling. The goal of the detailed studies was to identify specific areas with the highest likelihood for high permeability and thermal fluids, such that drill sites could be targeted. Three main sets of predictive maps were generated for each detailed study area: 1) play fairway maps, 2) play fairway error maps, and 3) direct evidence maps. Local- and intermediate-scale permeability models were revised to reflect results of the detailed geologic, geophysical, and geochemical analyses. Budget Period 3 of the project involved more detailed geophysical analyses and temperature-gradient (TG) drilling in southeastern Gabbs Valley and northern Granite Springs Valley, deemed the two most promising sites, with the goal of providing preliminary validation of the play fairway methodology. In southeastern Gabbs Valley, the collocation of a favorable structural setting (displacement transfer zone and fault intersections), Quaternary faults, intersecting and terminating gravity gradients, magnetic low, shallow (2 m) temperature anomaly, low resistivity anomaly, and promising geothermometry from nearby water wells provided evidence for a blind system. Drilling of six TG holes defines an apparent geothermal system at this locality with temperatures as high as 124°C at 152 m. This system is blind, with no surface hot springs, fumaroles, or paleo-geothermal deposits. For northern Granite Springs Valley, a favorable structural setting (termination of a major Quaternary normal fault), terminating gravity gradient, magnetic gradient, newly discovered sinter deposits, nearby warm water wells, previously drilled TG holes in the vicinity, and promising geothermometry suggest a hidden system. Drilling of six new TG holes yields temperatures of ~96°C at ~250 m, suggesting the presence of a geothermal system. Major lessons learned in the course of this project include: 1) initially identified sites commonly include multiple favorable structural settings at a finer scale; 2) promising sites in Cenozoic basins cannot be recognized without detailed geophysical surveys; and 3) play fairway analysis should be refined as the exploration program vectors into the most promising sites and finer-scale data are acquired. In addition to producing copious amounts of data, this project resulted in 16 published papers, 10 abstracts, more than 40 presentations across the U.S. and abroad (including several keynote addresses), 2 Masters theses, and 7 media reports.
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Geothermal Codification Impacts on Geothermal Development and Investments
The United States leads the world in geothermal energy production with 3187 MW online in 2012. Across the globe, advancing geothermal exploration technologies serves an important role in lowering geothermal development costs and decreasing exploration risk. However, the aggregation, analysis, and reporting of new geothermal resources lack standard reporting guidelines in most geothermal producing countries with the notable exception of Australia and Canada. In order for the United States to remain the global leader in geothermal energy development, the industry must continue to grow its investment potential. Providing prospective investors with geothermal resource estimates under clearly defined industry guidelines and standards would enhance industry credibility and ultimately encourage greater investor confidence in geothermal development. In 2009, an intergovernmental collaboration of experts developed the United Nations Framework Classification (UNFC), a universally applicable system for classifying and evaluating fossil energy and mineral resources. The U.S. geothermal industry can leverage the Canadian and Australian codes efforts and the UNFC to develop its own reporting standard for geothermal resources. This paper will review lessons learned from Australia and Canada's Geothermal Codification, analyze the impact of each effort on the nation's geothermal industry and investment climate, and begin to evaluate the utility of the UNFC in geothermal applications.
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Discovering Geothermal Systems in the Great Basin Region: An Integrated Geologic, Geochemical, and Geophysical Approach for Establishing Geothermal Play Fairways
The Great Basin currently hosts ~24 geothermal power plants with more than 600 MW of capacity, but estimates suggest that the region is capable of producing much greater amounts of geothermal energy. Recent studies indicate that a combination of geological, geochemical, and geophysical features characterize the most robust geothermal systems. Considering that most of the geothermal resources in this region are blind, it is imperative that the favorable characteristics for geothermal activity be synthesized and techniques perfected for the discovery of new viable systems. We therefore utilized a multi-disciplinary approach and synthesized 9 geologic, geochemical, and geophysical parameters to produce a new detailed geothermal play fairway map of a large transect across the Great Basin region (96,000 km2) from west-central to eastern Nevada, with the primary objective of facilitating discovery of commercial-grade, blind geothermal fields (i.e. systems with no surface hot springs or fumaroles). Our analysis included: 1) structural settings (i.e., patterns of faulting), 2) age of recent faulting, 3) slip rates on recent faults, 4) regional-scale strain rates, 5) the tendency of faults to slip or dilate based on their orientation in the regional stress field, 6) earthquake density, 7) gravity data, 8) temperature at 3 km depth, and 9) geochemistry from springs and wells. These parameters were grouped into subsets to delineate rankings for local permeability, regional permeability, and heat, which collectively defined the geothermal play fairways (i.e., most likely locations for significant geothermal fluid flow). A major challenge was developing appropriate weightings of individual data types to best predict permeability and overall geothermal potential. Rigorous statistical methods, utilizing 34 benchmarks of known relatively high-temperature (>130°C) geothermal systems in the region, were employed to determine the hierarchal weights of each parameter. The new geothermal potential maps will help to reduce the risks in prospecting for new geothermal systems throughout the region.
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The Geothermal Artificial Intelligence for geothermal exploration
Exploration of geothermal resources involves analysis and management of a large number of uncertainties, which makes investment and operations decisions challenging. Remote Sensing (RS), Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) have potential in managing the challenges of geothermal exploration. In this paper, we present a methodology that integrates RS, ML and AI to create an initial assessment of geothermal potential, by resorting to known indicators of geothermal areas namely mineral markers, surface temperature, faults and deformation. We demonstrated the implementation of the method in two sites (Brady and Desert Peak geothermal sites) that are close to each other but have different characteristics (Brady having clear surface manifestations and Desert Peak being a blind site). Here, we processed various satellite images and geospatial data for mineral markers, temperature, faults and deformation and then implemented ML methods to obtain pattern of surface manifestation of geothermal sites. We developed an AI that uses patterns from surface manifestations to predict geothermal potential of each pixel. We tested the Geothermal AI using independent data sets obtaining accuracy of 92-95%; also tested the Geothermal AI trained on one site by executing it for the other site to predict the geothermal / non-geothermal delineation, the Geothermal AI performed quite well in prediction with 72-76% accuracy.
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Integrated Geologic and Geophysical Approach for Establishing Geothermal Play Fairways and Discovering Blind Geothermal Systems in the Great Basin Region, Western USA: A Progress Report
We have undertaken an integrated geologic, geochemical, and geophysical study of a broad 240-km-wide, 400-km-long transect stretching from west-central to eastern Nevada in the Great Basin region of the western USA. The main goal of this study is to produce a comprehensive geothermal potential map that incorporates up to 11 parameters and identifies geothermal play fairways that represent potential blind or hidden geothermal systems. Our new geothermal potential map incorporates: 1) heat flow; 2) geochemistry from springs and wells; 3) structural setting; 4) recency of faulting; 5) slip rates on Quaternary faults; 6) regional strain rate; 7) slip and dilation tendency on Quaternary faults; 8) seismologic data; 9) gravity data; 10) magnetotelluric data (where available); and 11) seismic reflection data (primarily from the Carson Sink and Steptoe basins). The transect is respectively anchored on its western and eastern ends by regional 3D modeling of the Carson Sink and Steptoe basins, which will provide more detailed geothermal potential maps of these two promising areas. To date, geological, geochemical, and geophysical data sets have been assembled into an ArcGIS platform and combined into a preliminary predictive geothermal play fairway model using various statistical techniques. The fairway model consists of the following components, each of which are represented in grid-cell format in ArcGIS and combined using specified weights and mathematical operators: 1) structural component of permeability; 2) regional-scale component of permeability; 3) combined permeability, and 4) heat source model. The preliminary model demonstrates that the multiple data sets can be successfully combined into a comprehensive favorability map. An initial evaluation using known geothermal systems as benchmarks to test interpretations indicates that the preliminary modeling has done a good job assigning relative ranks of geothermal potential. However, a major challenge is defining logical relative rankings of each parameter and how best to combine the multiple data sets into the geothermal potential/ permeability map. Ongoing feedback and data analysis are in use to revise the grouping and weighting of some parameters in order to develop a more robust, optimized, final model. The final product will incorporate more parameters into a geothermal potential map than any previous effort in the region and may serve as a prototype to develop comprehensive geothermal potential maps for other regions.
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Integrated Geologic and Geophysical Approach for Establishing Geothermal Play Fairways and Discovering Blind Geothermal Systems in the Great Basin Region, Western USA: A Progress Report
We have undertaken an integrated geologic, geochemical, and geophysical study of a broad 240-km-wide, 400-kmlong transect stretching from west-central to eastern Nevada in the Great Basin region of the western USA. The main goal of this study is to produce a comprehensive geothermal potential map that incorporates up to 11 parameters and identifies geothermal play fairways that represent potential blind or hidden geothermal systems. Our new geothermal potential map incorporates: 1) heat flow; 2) geochemistry from springs and wells; 3) structural setting; 4) recency of faulting; 5) slip rates on Quaternary faults; 6) regional strain rate; 7) slip and dilation tendency on Quaternary faults; 8) seismologic data; 9) gravity data; 10) magnetotelluric data (where available); and 11) seismic reflection data (primarily from the Carson Sink and Steptoe basins). The transect is respectively anchored on its western and eastern ends by regional 3D modeling of the Carson Sink and Steptoe basins, which will provide more detailed geothermal potential maps of these two promising areas. To date, geological, geochemical, and geophysical data sets have been assembled into an ArcGIS platform and combined into a preliminary predictive geothermal play fairway model using various statistical techniques. The fairway model consists of the following components, each of which are represented in grid-cell format in ArcGIS and combined using specified weights and mathematical operators: 1) structural component of permeability; 2) regional-scale component of permeability; 3) combined permeability, and 4) heat source model. The preliminary model demonstrates that the multiple data sets can be successfully combined into a comprehensive favorability map. An initial evaluation using known geothermal systems as benchmarks to test interpretations indicates that the preliminary modeling has done a good job assigning relative ranks of geothermal potential. However, a major challenge is defining logical relative rankings of each parameter and how best to combine the multiple data sets into the geothermal potential/permeability map. Ongoing feedback and data analysis are in use to revise the grouping and weighting of some parameters in order to develop a more robust, optimized, final model. The final product will incorporate more parameters into a geothermal potential map than any previous effort in the region and may serve as a prototype to develop comprehensive geothermal potential maps for other regions.
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Water Resource Assessment of Geothermal Resources and Water Use in Geopressured Geothermal Systems (Rev.1)
With a potential threefold increase in geothermal electricity generation by 2035, geothermal energy is increasingly recognized for its potential to reduce carbon emissions (EIA 2011a). Energy and environmental analyses are critical to developing a robust set of geothermal energy technologies that meet future demand. Previous work has summarized what is currently known about the life-cycle freshwater requirements of geothermal power-generating systems and the water quality of geothermal waters. This report builds upon that work, presenting an assessment of freshwater demand for future growth in utility-scale geothermal power generation and an analysis of freshwater use in low-temperature geopressured geothermal power generation systems. This is part of a larger effort to compare the life-cycle impacts of geothermal electricity generation with other power generation technologies. This report is organized with an introduction followed by two primary analysis sections. The introduction gives the background of the project and its purpose and summarizes the geothermal electricity generation technologies evaluated in this study. These technologies include conventional hydrothermal flash and binary systems, enhanced geothermal systems (EGS), and geopressured geothermal systems.
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Geothermal Play Fairway Analysis of Low-Temperature Resources for Sedimentary Basin Geothermal Play Types: An Example in the Denver Basin
This project is part of a nationwide effort to highlight the advantages of incorporating low-temperature geothermal resource evaluation into the implementation of combined heat and power (CHP), and geothermal direct use (GDU) technologies (e.g., space heating and/or cooling). The initiative aims to hasten the nation's decarbonization process by exploring the potential for using low-temperature geothermal resources (< 150 Degrees Celsius) in selected sedimentary basins that have several population centers. The Play Fairway Analysis (PFA) techniques were modified from earlier studies of sedimentary basin geothermal play types (SBGPTs) that assessed the viability of low-temperature resources. The decision-making process for leveraging low-temperature geothermal resources for GDU and CHP applications is complex and considers a variety of factors, including geological, economic, and risk criteria. This study covers workflows, relevant datasets, python code, and both common and composite maps used to create low-temperature geothermal resource favorability maps for the Denver Basin, which extends across Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming. The replication of these methodologies in other SBGPTs can evaluate potential for low-temperature resources. The proposed geothermal PFA approach for low-temperature geothermal resources includes: (1) identifying available relevant data and grouping data sets into PFA criteria (e.g., geological, economic, and risk criteria); (2) analyzing data gaps enable future focalized exploration; (3) performing uncertainty quantification; (4) weighting relevant data; (5) developing favorability and common risk maps for low-temperature geothermal resources to identify potential locations for more focused data collection. This project will facilitate future deployment of CHP and GDU by providing data, tools, and a workflow applicable to low-temperature geothermal resources in sedimentary basins.
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Technical, economic, and load-following capabilities assessment of grid-connected geothermal and geothermal-solar hybrid systems
The technical and economic performance as well as the load-following capabilities of grid-connected geothermal hybrid systems were assessed in this work. The analyzed geothermal hybrid configuration is composed of a binary geothermal plant integrated with a concentrating solar-thermal system and underground thermal energy storage (UTES) through a primary heat exchanger. Physics-based models for the hybrid system for plant generation capacities of 1, 25, and 50 MW were developed from validated models for each subsystem. Also, an economic model was developed that accounts for different hybrid system capabilities, solar field sizes, and thermal storage duration. The advantage of the geothermal hybrid system was assessed by comparing the performance with the baseline benchmark geothermal plant with a similar configuration and generation capacity. It was found that hybridizing geothermal plants with concentrating solar and thermal energy storage not only improves the thermal efficiency by up to 8 percentage points when additional heat from the solar-UTES loop rises the evaporator temperatures from 70 to 125 °C, but also enhances the load-following capability for the geothermal plant, which can meet a typical residential load profile with a power rate of change 0.25 kW/s with an absolute error under 13 kW for a 1 MW plant. Other benefits of hybridization include resource preservation and a potential LCOE reduction of up to 56% for a 50 MW geothermal hybrid plant having a 50% solar share, a 1.4 solar multiple, and 24-h storage capacity. The results presented in this work demonstrate that hybridizing geothermal systems transforms them into a flexible and cost-effective solution for addressing the dynamic requirements of modern electric grids.
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