Integrating geothermal energy in buildings
 
Developing the geothermal resource
 
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DEVELOPING THE GEOTHERMAL RESOURCE
Research and development projects


In a new situation where fossil fuel resources are becoming increasingly rare with a subsequent dramatic rise in their costs, we are seeing a renaissance of world-wide interest in geothermal energy. In this context, BRGM is involved in many projects at national and international levels via many programmes, due mainly to a financial support from ADEME and the European Union (5th, 6 th and 7th FRDP) and more recently from the ANR (Agence Nationale de la Recherche; National Research Agency ).

BRGM's experience in Research and Development covers all fields of geothermal energy. The work is carried out by multidisciplinary teams whose principal skills are:

• Multidisciplinary syntheses on geoscientific data for charaterizing a geothermal resource in a given region;
• Geological monitoring of the cuttings, cores, logs from exploration and geothermal production wells;
• Geochemical monitoring of well fluids (water, gas), chemical and isotopic analyses of thermal waters and soil gases;
• Characterization, analysis, interpretation and modelling of fracturing in crystalline rocks for EGS and high-energy volcanic systems;
• Geophysical exploration of the high-energy resources using various methods (magnetotellurics, gravimetry, ground/airborne magnetism, coastal seismics, broadband seismics) to obtain 3D imagery of the geothermal fields;
• Surveillance of geothermal sites exploiting a high-enthalpy resource by geophysical methods (seismic, gravity, geodesic and electric).

 

• Development of computational tools and methods for the digital modelling of flows and underground transfers;
• Characterization, behaviour and impacts of systems exploiting the resources of deep aquifers;
• Thermo-hydrodynamic modelling (THM) of hydraulic stimulations for EGS using specific calculation codes;
• Design, development and follow-up of THM percolation experiments on fractured samples in the laboratory;
• Geochemical laboratory experiments (batch tests, column tests, etc.) for characterizing and understanding the water-rock-gas interaction processes that take place in geothermal reservoirs;
• Tracing tests with chemical tracers to assess the status of hydraulic connections between wells and also for estimating the capacity of the studied reservoirs and the circulation velocity of the fluids.

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1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
 
Joule-HDR Programme.
HDR II
     
Hot Dry Rock Energy
       
                 
GE-Islebar
         
 
Injectivity
                         
         
Enhanced Productivity
                 
                                     
European 6th FRDP Projects                        
EGS Pilot Plant
                         
CAMELIA
   
                         
ENGINE
                         
I-GET
                           
LOW-BIN
                             
GTH-R
                                   
ADEME + partnerships              
Lamentin
             
               
Morne Rouge-Diamant
           
               
Réunion
             
               
Bouillante
GHEDOM
 
GHEDOM-2
 
                     
Eaux chaudes
CITFL
 
               
Hydro-Meca 1
           
                 
Hydro-Meca 2
         
                   
GEFRAC 1
 
GEFRAC 2
 
                     
COPGEN
 
CLASTIQ
 
                                       
    Electricity   Heat-direct or mixed Heat/Electricity        

Summary table of the R&D projects concerning the geothermal resource
 
Heat production projects
Electricity production projects
EGS Projects
 

BRGM - Département Géothermie - 3, avenue Claude-Guillemin - BP 36009 - 45060 Orléans cedex 2 - France - Tél.: 02 38 64 34 34