By: Franyi Sarmiento, Ph.D., Inspenet, July 1, 2022
The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), the German Research Center for Geosciences GFZ and the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research UFZ will install a subway research facility that aims to answer fundamental questions about reservoir technology and well safety of geothermal systems. The laboratory will be called “GeoLaB” or “Geothermal Laboratory in the Crystalline Basement” and the Helmholtz Association is investing 35 million euros in this project.
[post_relacionado]“With the subway laboratory, we are breaking new scientific ground and taking a decisive step forward for geothermal research worldwide,” says Professor Oliver Kraft, vice president of research at KIT.
“Using the latest methods, we can record thermal, hydraulic, chemical and mechanical parameters. In this way we will gain a fundamental understanding of geothermal transport processes and also make a significant contribution to safety research for geothermal energy,” added Kraft.
“Deep-sea heat is a natural resource that we have not yet adequately investigated. We need not only the data for this, but also fast approval procedures and an open dialogue with citizens. Here, too, the research at GeoLaB will make important contributions and enable a knowledge-based approach. Different forms of geothermal energy could soon make an important contribution to the thermal transition in many urban areas.” added Professor Susanne Buiter of the German Research Center for Geosciences GFZ.
The project partners of the Helmholtz Association, together with external partners under the direction of KIT, are excavating a new mine in the Black Forest or Odenwald. Then, a one kilometer long tunnel will lead to the caverns where the subway research facility will be located. Controlled high flow experiments and rock flow tests will be conducted in this laboratory.
GeoLaB was built specifically in the crystalline subsoil as the vast majority of German cities have this type of rock at depths that can be drilled. “Therefore, the transfer effect of GeoLaB can be of enormous importance for the thermal transition in metropolitan areas,” said Professor Ingo Sass, Head of the Geoenergy Section at GFZ.
This material from the Piensa Geotermia portal has been edited for clarity, style and length.