A Semi‐Analytical Solution for Heat Transport in Rock With Parallel Fractures and a Heat Source in Both Fracture and Matrix

Abstract

AbstractIn recent decades, numerous analytical solutions have been developed to quantify temperature perturbations in fractured rock having mobile and immobile fluid phases. The assumption of one‐dimensional heat conduction in the matrix, or neglecting heat dispersion and storage in fractures, however, are typical simplifications adopted to overcome the difficulties in mathematically representing the problem. In this study, we propose a two‐dimensional semi‐analytical solution framework based on Green's function approach for a flexible heat source definition, including source dimensions, energy delivery strength and duration, and the presence of a heat source in the matrix and/or fracture. The solution fully accounts for heat conduction, advection, dispersion, and transient heat exchange between the fracture fluid and rock matrix in a system of parallel fractures. The solution having a strip heat source extending from a fracture into the matrix indicates that one‐dimensional heat conduction in the matrix underestimates and overestimates temperature responses at early and later times, respectively. Additionally, the temperature peak arrival time is also substantially delayed by simplification. The fracture temperature grows slower near the heat source area as the fracture aperture increases. The fracture temperature growth is enhanced via the overlapped heating areas between the parallel fractures. The transient temperature analyses imply that the spatial temperature variation is strongly associated with heat delivery strength. The early time temperature variances are closely related to the heat source configurations, and the later time temperatures in the domain are mainly determined by the total energy being delivered into the domain.