SAM - Energy

Leaders: Steve Quenette (VPAC), Huilin Xing (UQ), Klaus Regenauer-Lieb (UWA, CSIRO), Lutz Gross (UQ)

Goals: Thermal, mechanical, fluid transport modeling for geothermal energy, petroleum exploration and sequestration.

There is an increasing convergence of computational resources and software ability towards physics-based forward models at geographically relevant scales. Together with the increased fidelity and availability of constraining data, these models are beginning to play a significant role in the programs oriented around Australia’s energy.

Demonstrator project: A collection of geothermal modelling applications which support geothermal exploration: including heat flow models at the regional scale, crustal heat transport by fluid flow at low temperature, a hot-dry rock simulator, and a geothermal, multiphase-fluid-transport engineering model. The collection also includes a suite of benchmarks and verification models.

Related project: Basin formation and fill with sediment production and transport. Linkage-supported co-investment to study feedbacks between tectonics and surface processes.

Back to SAM