Research advances in multi-field coupling model for geothermal reservoir heat extraction

Abstract

As a kind of clean renewable energy, the production and utilization of geothermal resources can make a great contribution to optimizing the energy structure and energy conservation and emission reduction. The circulating heat extraction process of working fluid will disturb the equilibrium state of physical and chemical fields inside the reservoir, and involve the mutual coupling of heat transfer, flow, stress, and chemical reaction. Revealing the coupling mechanism of flow and heat transfer inside the reservoir during geothermal exploitation can provide important theoretical support for the efficient exploitation of geothermal resources. This paper reviews the research advances of the multi-field coupling model in the reservoir during geothermal production over the past 40 years. The thrust of this paper is on objective analysis and evaluation of the importance of each coupling process and its influence on reservoir heat extraction performance. Finally, we discuss the existing challenges and perspectives to promote the future development of the geothermal reservoir multi-field coupling model. An accurate understanding of the multi-field coupling mechanism, an efficient cross-scale modeling method, as well as the accurate characterization of reservoir fracture morphology, are crucial for the multi-field coupling model of geothermal production.

Keywords

• Coupled THMC process
• Heat extraction
• Geothermal reservoir
• Operating parameters
• Numerical codes
• Geothermal energy