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Coastal Caisson / Coastal Synergy
Geothermal Well Monitoring Project
Project Details
Use of geothermal energy has long been understood to be a cost effective means to provide
heating (its primary application) to homes, industrial processes, and other applications
in which conveniently available sources of the earth’s core temperature could be accessed.
More recently, methods/systems to cool such applications have gained appeal especially
where the heat produced by condenser cores can be extracted more efficiently.
Such systems bathe the condenser core in cool water in lieu of blown air resulting in
reduced condenser core dimensions and increased effectiveness. This stems from the
drastic difference in conductivity and specific heat between air and water.
The proposed study will entail thermal modeling of various geothermal well configurations,
the instrumentation and long-term monitoring of an active heat transfer well, and the
optimization of systems for various soil conditions and well diameters.
Task 1: Thermal Modeling
Preliminary numerical modeling of existing wells at Coastal Caisson’s home office will
be conducted in an attempt to identify the heat diffusion potential. From which a
proposed instrumentation scheme will be implemented involving the existing and
supplemental wells. These model runs will use software developed in-house at USF for
determining the heat dissipation signature of drilled shafts in a variety of soil strata.
Task 2: Instrumentation and Monitoring
Using information derived from preliminary modeling in Task 1, one geothermal well will
be heavily instrumented with thermocouples and thermal integrity access tubes to obtain
both long-term temperature trends as well as the exact vertical temperature distribution
in the soil surrounding the well. It is envisioned that a minimum of two surround points
of interest will be monitored along with the centerline well temperature using on-site
data loggers capable of being monitored remotely. This should afford the ability to
oversee wells performance without additional personnel and the associated travel and
onsite time. The exact number and location of access tubes will be determined from Task 1
results citing the zone of influence around the well that will provide useful information.
Task 3: Geothermal Well Optimization
It is the intention of this Task to determine the efficiency of a given well with regards
to a heat production source. Therein, the diffusion of heat into the surround soil will
slow as the ground is gradually warmed. A steady state level of heat dissipation will be
identified for geothermal wells under varied circumstances and in cases where the ground
continues to increase in temperature, the rate of efficiency reduction will be assessed.
Under the latter conditions, it is possible that a loss in efficiency could coincide with
the reduced thermal loading that is consistent with seasonal changes. Under these
conditions the increased soil temperature would become available for extraction in reverse
cycle applications. The intent of USF’s proposed efforts is to ascertain soil parameters
that can be used by others to better understand the dissipation and storage capabilities
of the soil.
Geothermal Well Systems:
Geothermal System A
Geothermal System B
Geothermal System C
Geothermal System D
Geothermal System E
Geothermal System F
