Conceptual Modelling of Two Large-Scale Mine Water Geothermal Energy Schemes: Felling, Gateshead, UK

David Banks, Jonathan Steven, Adam Black and John Naismith
Additional contact information
David Banks: Holymoor Consultancy Ltd., 360 Ashgate Road, Chesterfield S40 4BW, Derbyshire, UK
Jonathan Steven: Groundwater & Geothermal Services Ltd., Low Cross Buildings, 4 Low Cross Street, Brampton CA8 1NP, Cumbria, UK
Adam Black: Lanchester Wine Cellars Ltd., Greencroft Estate, Tower Road, Annfield Plain, Stanley DH9 7XP, County Durham, UK
John Naismith: TownRock Energy Ltd., East Woodlands House, Dyce AB21 0HD, Aberdeen, UK

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 3, 1-28

Abstract: A conceptual model is presented of two MW-scale low enthalpy mine water geothermal heat pump schemes that are being developed in Tyneside, UK. The Abbotsford Road scheme (54.955° N 1.556° W) is operating (as of May 2021) at 20–30 L/s, abstracting groundwater (and heat) from an unmined Coal Measures Upper Aquifer System (UAS) and reinjecting to the deeper High Main Aquifer System (HMAS), associated with the High Main (E) coal workings and the overlying High Main Post sandstone. A similar scheme, 700 m away at Nest Road (54.959° N 1.564° W), abstracts at 40 L/s from the HMAS, recovers heat from the mine water and reinjects the thermally spent water to deeper workings associated with the Hutton (L), Harvey-Beaumont (N) (and possibly other) coal seams, termed the Deep Mined Aquifer System (DMAS). The three aquifer systems are vertically discontinuous and possess different hydraulic (storage, transmissivity and continuity) properties that would have been near-impossible to predict in advance of drilling. At the sites, 10 boreholes were drilled to obtain five usable production/reinjection boreholes. Development of mine water geothermal energy schemes thus carries a significant project risk, and also a potential ongoing maintenance burden related to iron hydroxide scaling. These do not preclude mine water geothermal as a useful low carbon heating and cooling technology, but the involvement of skilled hydrogeologists, hydrochemists, mining and groundwater engineers is a pre-requisite.

Keywords: geothermal; mine water; heat pump; hydrogeology; coal mine (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/3/1643/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/3/1643/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:3:p:1643-:d:739735

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().