Cooling-induced reactivation of distant faults during long-term geothermal energy production in hot sedimentary aquifers

Kivi, Iman Rahimzadeh; Pujades, Estanislao; Rutqvist, Jonny; Vilarrasa, Víctor

doi:10.1038/s41598-022-06067-0

Cited by 25 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…The prediction of these effects can possibly be improved with heterogeneous heat transfer models because they might occur more locally along individual fractures than previously thought. This is also valid for earthquake prediction triggered by thermal stresses 32 – 36 . In our simulations, the heat transfer coefficients are considered heterogeneous but constant over time.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 69%

Velocity-dependent heat transfer controls temperature in fracture networks

Heinze

Pastore

2023

Nat Commun

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Heat transfer between a fluid and the surrounding rock in the subsurface is a crucial process not only, but most obviously, in geothermal systems. Heat transfer is described by Newton’s law of cooling, relating the heat transferred to a coefficient, the specific surface area, and the temperature difference between rock and fluid. However, parameterizing the heat transfer coefficient in fracture networks poses a major challenge. Here we show that within a fracture network the heat transfer coefficient is strongly heterogeneous but that laboratory single fracture experiments can provide a reasonable estimate in dependence of flow rate. We investigate the distribution of the heat transfer coefficient experimentally as well as numerically and analyze the heat transfer at individual fractures. Our results improve the prediction of temperatures in engineered and natural geothermal systems and allow sustainable management and design of reservoirs considering the role of individual fractures.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 69%

Velocity-dependent heat transfer controls temperature in fracture networks

Heinze

Pastore

2023

Nat Commun

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“…The direction of stress change is more destabilising for geothermal than for hydrocarbon reservoirs, and stress change magnitudes can be substantial (Fig 9), as is shown in numerical modelling studies (e.g. Candela & Fokker, 2017; Hassanzadegan et al, 2011; Kivi et al, 2022; Van Wees et al, 2020). Even so, no felt seismic events have yet been recorded near geothermal doublets in porous sandstones.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 59%

“…The stress changes induced by hydrocarbon production are dominated by poro-elastic stressing (Buijze et al, 2019b; Roest & Kuilman, 1994; Segall & Fitzgerald, 1998), whereas stress changes in geothermal doublets in porous sandstone reservoir are dominated by hermos-elastic stress changes, as the pressure changes are relatively limited and decrease rapidly with distance from the well (e.g. Buijze et al, 2022; Kivi et al, 2022). Note however that the direct pressure effect plays a role near the well, and for the faulted reservoirs or reservoirs overlying fracture (basement) rocks (Baisch et al, 2010; Hsieh & Bredehoeft, 1981; Keranen et al, 2013).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of hydrocarbon and geothermal energy production in the Netherlands: reservoir characteristics, pressure and temperature changes, and implications for fault reactivation

Buijze¹,

Veldkamp²,

Wassing³

2023

Netherlands Journal of Geosciences

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The Netherlands is in the midst of an energy transition with hydrocarbon production gradually declining, whereas the role of sustainable energy technologies is on the rise. One of these technologies is geothermal energy production from porous reservoirs at 1.5–3 km depth. As the number of geothermal projects increases, there is a growing concern that felt and/or damaging induced seismic events could occur as a result of geothermal operations. Over the last two decades, such events have occurred in the Netherlands due to gas production, notably in the Groningen gas field. However, the occurrence of felt events is limited to hydrocarbon fields in certain regions or reservoirs. Understanding where and for which plays these events are observed helps to estimate seismogenic potential for geothermal operations and other sustainable subsurface activities. Here, we summarise and review the main similarities and differences in terms of geological and geomechanical characteristics between the hydrocarbon and geothermal plays in the Netherlands, and we consider the differences in pressure and temperature changes. By doing so, we provide better insights into the factors that could play a role for fault reactivation and induced seismicity, and how these differ for hydrocarbon production and geothermal operations in the Netherlands. The review shows that geological characteristics for most geothermal target reservoirs are similar to those of hydrocarbon, albeit geothermal projects so far target higher porosity rocks than hydrocarbon reservoirs. On the other hand, pressure and temperature changes are very different, with significant depletion for hydrocarbon fields vs significant cooling around geothermal injection wells. The different operations result not only in different expected stress change magnitudes but also in a distinct spatio-temporal stress build-up on faults, which has implications for seismogenic potential and monitoring of these different operations.

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“…From the hydraulic point of view, faults can act as barriers or conduits to flow along and across them (Caine et al, 1996), the choice of which may strongly impact fault stability (Vilarrasa et al, 2016;Wu et al, 2021;Kivi et al, 2022b). The fault architecture may be extremely complex, producing anisotropic and heterogeneous permeability fields (Rinaldi et al, 2014).…”

Section: Fault Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Accordingly, stress perturbations and/or strength alterations on seismogenic faults (faults prone to seismic slip), driven by coupled thermal-hydraulic-mechanical-chemical (THMC) processes of fluid flow in porous and/or fractured rocks, may result in earthquakes. The impacts of THMC processes on induced seismicity have been largely acknowledged in recent years mainly by incorporating them into process-based modeling of induced earthquakes (Cappa and Rutqvist, 2011;Ghassemi and Zhou, 2011;De Simone et al, 2017;Vilarrasa et al, 2021;Kivi et al, 2022b). Nevertheless, the governing mechanisms of seismic sequences (1) unexpectedly triggered after the causative operation ceased, i.e., post-injection seismicity (Segall and Lu, 2015;Johann et al, 2016), (2) located tens of kilometers away from the operation sites (Goebel et al, 2017;Yeck et al, 2017) or (3) vertically offset by up to several kilometers from the fluid injection/withdrawal horizon (Eyre et al, 2019;Vilarrasa et al, 2021;Zhai et al, 2021) remain largely elusive.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Global physics-based database of injection-induced seismicity

Kivi

Boyet

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Abstract. Fluid injection into geological formations for energy resource development frequently induces (micro)seismicity. If intensely shaking the ground, induced earthquakes may cause injuries and/or economic loss, with the consequence of jeopardizing the operation and future development of these geoenergy projects. To achieve an improved understanding of the causes of induced seismicity, develop forecasting tools, and manage the associated risks, a careful examination of seismic data from reported cases of induced seismicity and the parameters controlling them is necessary. However, these data are hardly gathered together and are time-consuming to collate as they come from different disciplines and sources. Here, we present a publicly available, multi-physical database of injection-induced seismicity (Kivi et al., 2022a; https://doi.org/10.20350/digitalCSIC/14813), sourced from an extensive review of published documents. Currently, it contains 158 datasets of induced seismicity driven by various subsurface energy-related applications worldwide. Each dataset covers a wide range of variables, delineating general site information, host rock properties, in situ geologic and tectonic conditions, fault characteristics, conducted field operations, and recorded seismic activities. We publish the database in flat-file formats (i.e., .xls and .csv tables) to facilitate its dissemination and utilization by geoscientists while keeping it ‎‎directly readable by computer codes for convenient data manipulation. The multi-disciplinary content of this database adds unique value to databases focusing only on seismicity data. In particular, the collected data aims at facilitating the understanding of the spatiotemporal occurrence of induced earthquakes, the diagnosing of potential triggering mechanisms, and the developing of scaling relations of maximum possible earthquake magnitudes and operational parameters. Conclusively, the database will boost research in seismic hazard forecasting and mitigation, paving the way for increasing contributions of geoenergy resources to meeting net-zero carbon emissions.

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Cooling-induced reactivation of distant faults during long-term geothermal energy production in hot sedimentary aquifers

Cited by 25 publications

References 61 publications

Velocity-dependent heat transfer controls temperature in fracture networks

Velocity-dependent heat transfer controls temperature in fracture networks

Comparison of hydrocarbon and geothermal energy production in the Netherlands: reservoir characteristics, pressure and temperature changes, and implications for fault reactivation

Global physics-based database of injection-induced seismicity

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