Effects of regional groundwater flow on the performance of an aquifer thermal energy storage system under continuous operation

Lee, Kun Sang

Effects of regional groundwater flow on the performance of an aquifer thermal energy storage system under continuous operation | Effets des écoulements régionaux d’eau souterraine sur la performance de stockage d’énergie dans un aquifère thermal en fonctionnement continu Efectos del flujo regional de agua subterránea sobre el rendimiento de un sistema acuífero de almacenamiento de energía térmica bajo operación contínua 区域地下水流对连续开采下含水层热能储系统的影响 광역 지하수 유동이 연속 운전 중인 대수층 축열시스템의 거동에 미치는 영향 Efeitos do fluxo regional das águas subterrâneas no desempenho de um sistema aquífero de armazenamento de energia térmica sob operação contínua

2014

Lee, Kun Sang

Numerical investigations and a thermohydraulic evaluation are presented for two-well models of an aquifer thermal energy storage (ATES) system operating under a continuous flow regime. A three-dimensional numerical model for groundwater flow and heat transport is used to analyze the thermal energy storage in the aquifer. This study emphasizes the influence of regional groundwater flow on the heat transfer and storage of the system under various operation scenarios. For different parameters of the system, performances were compared in terms of the temperature of recovered water and the temperature field in the aquifer. The calculated temperature at the producing well varies within a certain range throughout the year, reflecting the seasonal (quarterly) temperature variation of the injected water. The pressure gradient across the system, which determines the direction and velocity of regional groundwater flow, has a substantial influence on the convective heat transport and performance of aquifer thermal storage. Injection/production rate and geometrical size of the aquifer used in the model also impact the predicted temperature distribution at each stage and the recovery water temperature. The hydrogeological-thermal simulation is shown to play an integral part in the prediction of performance of processes as complicated as those in ATES systems.

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