Description
The Closed-Loop Geothermal Working Group and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have studied the performance of disc-shaped and linear thermal enhancements (conductive material introduced around a wellbore) in closed-loop geothermal systems. COMSOL models were developed to investigate the increase in heat production in systems with thermal enhancements compared to those without, across a range of scenarios. This dataset includes two example COMSOL models, a summary of the simulation results, and a link to an accompanying paper. Studied are idealized versions of two thermal enhancement designs: (1) existing or newly created fractures surrounding the wellbore, filled with highly conductive material, and (2) a 'fishbone structure,' where short wellbores are drilled radially outward from the main wellbore and filled with highly conductive material.
Resources
| Name | Format | Description | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| COMSOL Thermal Enhancements Simulation Results.xlsx | XLS | Spreadsheet listing COMSOL simulation results for each scenario (for both disc and linear thermal enhancements). Disc-shaped thermal enhancement results are presented in the second tab, linear extent thermal enhancement results in the third tab. In all models, the heat transfer fluid was water, injected at 2 kg/s and 50 degrees C. These simulations results are presented with graphs in the accompanying 2024 Stanford Geothermal Workshop paper. | Open resource |
| Disc-shaped Thermal Enhancement Model.mph | Unknown | 2D steady-state COMSOL model developed to simulate disc-shaped thermal enhancements for closed-loop geothermal. Model design information and visualizations can be found in the accompanying paper. | Open resource |
| Linear Extent Thermal Enhancement Model.mph | Unknown | 3D steady-state COMSOL model developed to simulate linear thermal enhancements for closed-loop geothermal. Model design information and visualizations can be found in the accompanying paper. | Open resource |
| Paper - Thermal Enhancements for Closed-Loop Geothermal | 2024 Stanford Geothermal Workshop paper presenting the COSMOL simulation results and investigating their impact on studying the performance of thermal enhancements for closed-loop geothermal systems. | Open resource |