Coupling of thermal-hydraulic-mechanical processes for geothermal reservoir modelling

Abstract

This paper uses a fully coupled framework of thermal-hydraulic-mechanical processes to investigate how the injection and extraction of fluid within a geothermal reservoir impacts on the distributions of temperature, pore pressure, and deformation within the rock formations. Based on this formulation, a numerical model is developed in light of the thermodynamics of porous materials. The proposed procedure relies on the derivation of dissipative flow rules by postulating proper storage and dissipation functions. This approach opens new horizons for several resource engineering applications. Since it allows for full coupling, this formulation can play a key role in predicting risks when used for reservoir simulation. The results indicate that the injection-extraction process and temperature change have a definite impact on altering the in-situ properties of the reservoir.

Keywords

poro-mechanics / resource engineering / fluid injection and extraction / temperature change / pore pressure / stress / deformation / uplift / subsidence

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