Prior to field development, any candidate Seasonal Thermal Energy Storage (STES) site should be subjected to a well-documented set of laboratory and/or small-scale field tests including: • Groundwater cation and anion concentrations dissolved silica pH Eh suspended solids dissolved gases • Rock or sediment particulate plugging water sensitivity mineralogy bulk chemistry thermo-mechanical properties thermal diffusivity 6) With laboratory and/or small field loop equipment designed to simulate STES operating conditions, simultaneous permeability and stress-strain measurements should be made for site-specific sediment samples being treated with heated groundwater. Emphasis should be on permeability degradation, volumetric strain increases, and water quality alterations.

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