The Integration of 3D Modeling and Simulation to Determine the Energy Potential of Low-Temperature Geothermal Systems in the Pisa (Italy) Sedimentary Plain

Alessandro Sbrana, Paola Marianelli, Giuseppe Pasquini, Paolo Costantini, Francesco Palmieri, Valentina Ciani and Michele Sbrana
Additional contact information
Alessandro Sbrana: Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Pisa, Via S. Maria 53, 56126 Pisa, Italy
Paola Marianelli: Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Pisa, Via S. Maria 53, 56126 Pisa, Italy
Giuseppe Pasquini: Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Pisa, Via S. Maria 53, 56126 Pisa, Italy
Paolo Costantini: Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Pisa, Via S. Maria 53, 56126 Pisa, Italy
Francesco Palmieri: Istituto Nazionale di Oceanografia e di Geofisica Sperimentale—OGS, Borgo Grotta Gigante 42/C, 34010 Sgonico (TS), Italy
Valentina Ciani: Terra Energy, Via Lenin 132-56017 San Giuliano Terme (PI), Italy
Michele Sbrana: Terra Energy, Via Lenin 132-56017 San Giuliano Terme (PI), Italy

Energies, 2018, vol. 11, issue 6, 1-20

Abstract: Shallow, low-temperature geothermal resources can significantly reduce the environmental impact of heating and cooling. Based on a replicable standard workflow for three-dimensional (3D) geothermal modeling, an approach to the assessment of geothermal energy potential is proposed and applied to the young sedimentary basin of Pisa (north Tuscany, Italy), starting from the development of a geothermal geodatabase, with collated geological, stratigraphic, hydrogeological, geophysical and thermal data. The contents of the spatial database are integrated and processed using software for geological and geothermal modeling. The models are calibrated using borehole data. Model outputs are visualized as three-dimensional reconstructions of the subsoil units, their volumes and depths, the hydrogeological framework, and the distribution of subsoil temperatures and geothermal properties. The resulting deep knowledge of subsoil geology would facilitate the deployment of geothermal heat pump technology, site selection for well doublets (for open-loop systems), or vertical heat exchangers (for closed-loop systems). The reconstructed geological–hydrogeological models and the geothermal numerical simulations performed help to define the limits of sustainable utilization of an area’s geothermal potential.

Keywords: 3D modeling; 3D numerical simulation; geographic information systems (GIS) geodatabase; geothermal potential assessment; shallow geothermal (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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