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Modeling fluid flow in a heterogeneous, fault‐controlled hydrothermal system

Modeling fluid flow in a heterogeneous, fault‐controlled hydrothermal system Previous studies have shown that most hydrothermal systems discharging at the land surface are associated with faulting, and that the location, temperature and rate of discharge of these systems are controlled by the geometry and style of the controlling fault(s). Unfortunately, the transport of heat and fluid in fault‐controlled hydrothermal systems is difficult to model realistically; although heterogeneity and anisotropy are assumed to place important controls on flow in faults, few data or observations are available to constrain the distribution of hydraulic properties within active faults. Here, analytical and numerical models are combined with geostatistical models of spatially varying hydraulic properties to model the flow of heat and fluid in the Borax Lake fault of south‐east Oregon, USA. A geometric mean permeability within the fault of 7 × 10−14 m2 with 2× vertical/horizontal anisotropy in correlation length scale is shown to give the closest match to field observations. Furthermore, the simulations demonstrate that continuity of flow paths is an important factor in reproducing the observed behavior. In addition to providing some insight into possible spatial distributions of hydraulic properties at the Borax Lake site, the study highlights one potential avenue for integrating field observations with simulation results in order to gain greater understanding of fluid flow in faults and fault‐controlled hydrothermal and petroleum reservoirs. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Geofluids Wiley

Modeling fluid flow in a heterogeneous, fault‐controlled hydrothermal system

Geofluids , Volume 9 (2) – May 1, 2009
14 pages

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References (35)

Publisher
Wiley
Copyright
© 2009 Blackwell Publishing Ltd
ISSN
1468-8115
eISSN
1468-8123
DOI
10.1111/j.1468-8123.2008.00236.x
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that most hydrothermal systems discharging at the land surface are associated with faulting, and that the location, temperature and rate of discharge of these systems are controlled by the geometry and style of the controlling fault(s). Unfortunately, the transport of heat and fluid in fault‐controlled hydrothermal systems is difficult to model realistically; although heterogeneity and anisotropy are assumed to place important controls on flow in faults, few data or observations are available to constrain the distribution of hydraulic properties within active faults. Here, analytical and numerical models are combined with geostatistical models of spatially varying hydraulic properties to model the flow of heat and fluid in the Borax Lake fault of south‐east Oregon, USA. A geometric mean permeability within the fault of 7 × 10−14 m2 with 2× vertical/horizontal anisotropy in correlation length scale is shown to give the closest match to field observations. Furthermore, the simulations demonstrate that continuity of flow paths is an important factor in reproducing the observed behavior. In addition to providing some insight into possible spatial distributions of hydraulic properties at the Borax Lake site, the study highlights one potential avenue for integrating field observations with simulation results in order to gain greater understanding of fluid flow in faults and fault‐controlled hydrothermal and petroleum reservoirs.

Journal

GeofluidsWiley

Published: May 1, 2009

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