Assessment criteria and risk mitigation of hydrogeothermal energy portfolios for district heating.

Abstract. Geophysical properties of the subsurface and the vertical stress acting within are key prerequisites to understanding fundamental geological processes and mitigating risks associated with the economic usage of the subsurface. In SE Germany, the North Alpine Foreland Basin (NAFB) is a well-studied sedimentary basin, which was extensively explored for oil and gas in the last century and which is currently explored and exploited for deep geothermal energy. The up to 5 km thick Cenozoic basin fill comprises mostly shales, marls, sandstones, carbonates, and coarse-grained clastics; in particular, Oligocene–Miocene age sediments display significant lateral lithological variability due to two marine transgressions. In addition, Cenozoic marine sediments in the eastern part of the basin are significantly overpressured. The basin sediments overlay Mesozoic passive margin sediments. Here, karstified Upper Jurassic carbonates represent the main target for deep geothermal exploration and production. Even though the North Alpine Foreland Basin has been well studied during its economic development, the relationships between basic geophysical parameters, such as bulk density and seismic velocity, both of which are key for seismic imaging and the prediction of physical rock properties, have not yet been systematically investigated. The same is true for the distribution of vertical stress gradients, a key input parameter for geomechanical modelling and the prediction of natural and induced seismicity. To improve the understanding of density–velocity relationships and the distribution of vertical stress gradients, we systematically analysed 78 deep wells with total depths of 650–4800 m below ground level, which form two overlapping datasets: bulk density and sonic velocity data from 41 deep boreholes were used to establish velocity–density relationships for the main lithological units in the North Alpine Foreland Basin in SE Germany. We applied these newly derived relationships to velocity data of a second set of 55 wells, which at least penetrated the Cenozoic basin fill section in the study area and spliced resulting bulk densities with measured but scarcer measured bulk density data. We integrated these spliced bulk density profiles to vertical stress to investigate the spatial distribution of vertical stress gradients. Thereby, we observed an eastward decrease in vertical stress gradients, which correlates well with the geological configuration of the North Alpine Foreland Basin in SE Germany. In addition, we investigated the distribution of vertical stress gradients at the top of the economically important Upper Jurassic carbonates. As a practical result, we provide lithologically constrained velocity–bulk density relationships and depth-dependent vertical stress gradient models, which can be used as an improved input for future geophysical, geomechanical, geological, and rock physics studies in the North Alpine Foreland Basin, both in fundamental and applied research contexts.

Great differences are encountered among Caucasus region countries with respect to energy resources reserves and economic conditions. Thermal power plants consist of obsolete and inefficient units, while the Soviet-type large heating systems in the area collapsed after 1992 and their reconstruction is considered uneconomic. Renovation needs of the power and heat sector, and the potential of Fluidised Bed Combustion implementations in decentralized cogeneration units were investigated, since operating oil and gas power plants exhibit high fuel consumption, low efficiency and poor environmental performance. Results showed significant prospects of Fluidised Bed Combustion utilization in decentralized cogeneration units in the Caucausus region heat and power sector. Their introduction constitutes an economically attractive way to cover power and heat demands and promotes utilization of domestic energy resources in all of three countries, provided that financial difficulties could be confronted.

The North Alpine Foreland Basin is the peripheral foredeep of the Northern Alps, extending from Lake Geneva in the West to Upper Austria in the East. The largest portion of the foredeep consists of an undeformed part, called Foreland Molasse, and a small, deformed belt along the North Alpine Thrust Front, called Subalpine Molasse. Spanning up to 150 km in N-S direction, the North Alpine Foreland Basin has its widest extent in SE Germany (Bavaria). Here, the physical properties of the Cenozoic basin fill and its underlying Mesozoic passive margin sediments display a high degree of heterogeneity in both the Foreland Molasse and Subalpine Molasse parts. Since 2016, we systematically analysed data from more than 300 deep wellbores, with vertical depths up to 5 km below ground level, to understand the distribution and interplay of these heterogeneities: We used minimum stress magnitude measurements such as formation integrity and leak-off tests in combination with geophysical borehole measurements such as density and velocity to infer the distribution of lateral and vertical stresses in the SE German part of the North Alpine Foreland Basin. Collection of pore pressure indicators and measurements such as drilling mud weights, drilling problems, well tests and wireline formation tests and their correlation with vertical stress and sediment compaction allowed us to also infer the regional distribution of pore pressure and to model the variable styles of deformation of the Subalpine Molasse along the North Alpine Thrust Front. In this contribution, we give a graphical overview of how stress, pore pressure and deformation are linked and driven by sediment composition and compaction. We also set our findings into context with high frequency, large amplitude variations of temperature and fluid flow patterns, proposing an updated model for the distribution and interference of physical properties and processes in the North Alpine Foreland Basin in SE Germany.

Because of lack of flat land, more and more deep-cut and high-fill engineering are being carried out in mountainous areas. The original geological formations are greatly changed by ground leveling. Therefore, it is very important to analyze the seismic parameters before and after ground leveling. In this paper, the seismic motion parameters before and after ground leveling of deep-cut and high-fill engineering are compared by the establishment of seismic response analysis model in different geological conditions. The results show that the peak acceleration and the characteristic period of the response spectrum are lower than those before excavation; But the results change when filling on the foundation of bedrock or the foundation where original cover soil layers have already existed. The peak acceleration and characteristic period of acceleration response spectrum increase more than those ground motion parameters before filling in this site. Besides, when filling in the bedrock site, the peak acceleration magnification tended to decrease, with the increase of the filling thickness, and the characteristic period tended to increase. Therefore, seismic ground motion parameters after ground leveling can be lower than those before ground leveling in excavation area, conversely, ground motion parameters are higher in fill area.

For the first time, drilling- and velocity-based well analysis and 3D basin modeling were combined to test the predictability and controlling factors of overpressure in the North Alpine Foreland Basin in SE Germany. More specifically, the techniques were tested in the sub-regional context of the deep geothermal well Geretsried GEN-1 (TVD = 4852 m), located in the south of Munich. A 3D basin model based on a total of 20 wells was calibrated to the pressure distribution of four petroleum wells and tested against the Geretsried GEN-1 well. The results demonstrate that overpressure in the North Alpine Foreland Basin SE Germany can be predicted from a simple 3D basin model calibrated to a minimum number of wells. Thereby, disequilibrium compaction likely acts as the main overpressure mechanism in the study area, underpinned by significantly higher sedimentation rates at overpressured locations. 3D basin modeling also confirms the role of Upper Cretaceous shales, which, if present, serve as an important pressure barrier between the under- to normally pressured Jurassic and overpressured Cenozoic basin fill. In addition, overpressure magnitudes of the Chattian might be higher than previously expected. The results of this study have great impact on future drilling campaigns in the North Alpine Foreland Basin in SE Germany. Minimized non-productive time and drilling cost, improved well planning and increased safety are amongst the most important benefits of accurate pore pressure and overpressure prediction. The newly derived insights on the mechanisms of overpressure will greatly influence future geomechanical and tectonic studies, since pore pressure drives rock strength and principle stress magnitudes. Finally, the study is a great example for the importance of an interdisciplinary approach and the incorporation of geological conditions, when investigating drilling-related problems.

Formulation of the problem. An important component of environmental safety is the state of protection of the natural and man-made geological environment (ESGE) from the influence of dangerous natural and technogenic geological processes.At present, there are 327 cities in Ukraine that need protection from certain dangerous geological processes (groundwater underflooding, landslide displacement, subsidence of base soils, etc.). [1-4] One consequence of this is the deformations and accidents of housing and utility buildings and industrial structures. Obviously, engineering and technical security of housing, along with other parameters of life safety is the basic human need.The safety of construction, reconstruction, operation of structures, territories protection from hazardous natural and man-caused processes, assessment of the impact of construction and reconstruction facilities on the environment, risk assessment should be based on complete and reliable data on the state and dynamics of ESGE, which is the subject of engineering research [ 14]. At the same time, there is a group of factors systematically adversely affecting the receipt of reliable information in this area.This article is devoted to a detailed consideration of this problem.History of the research of the problem. Problems of engineering geology and hydrogeology of urban areas, changes in the geological environment under the influence of human activity are revealed in the works of F. Kotlova, V. Krutova, V. Osipova, E. Yakovlev and others. A significant specificity of the research of the natural and man-made environment (engineering and technical surveys) is indicated by P. Konovalov, V. Ulitsky, M. Solodukhin, G. Strizhelchik, etc. Problems of engineering research and protection of historical buildings in the construction of new and reconstruction of the existing buildings remain relevant even now, especially for such large cities as Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Donetsk, etc.The purpose of the article is to substantiate the need for a reliable assessment of the state and dynamics of changes in the natural and technical geological environment. Classification of existing factors systematically adversely affecting the receipt of reliable information and determining ways to solve the problem is aimed at reducing geotechnical and environmental risks.All large cities in Ukraine need protection from the manifestation of certain dangerous geological processes (underflooding by underground waters, landslide displacement, subsidence of base soils, etc.). The safety of construction and operation of facilities, assessment of the level of environmental hazard should be based on reliable information on the state and dynamics of the natural and man-made geological environment. To determine the severity of the environmental situation, the degree of deviation of an object or environment from a certain norm is usually used. It is important to know how far the object approached the level of destruction of its structure. The criterion for assessment can be the resource of the stability of the geological environment, determined by the permissible impact impulses (water inflow, application of static and dynamic loads, temperature effects, etc.).Today in Ukraine there is a group of factors systematically adversely affecting the receipt of reliable information on the conditions of construction sites. This can lead to plant accidents or to significant unnecessary security costs, up to and including the abandonment of construction. These factors include:1. Construction in all free areas with complex engineering and geological conditions in the central parts of cities, with maximum use of underground space;2. Increasing the weight of reconstruction of existing buildings in the total volume of construction. It should be kept in mind that engineering surveys for reconstruction, having specific features, make them more complex than surveys for new construction sites;3. A complex of administrative, economic and social factors associated with the systems of attestation of specialists, quality control, work in a market economy, etc.To create objective conditions that reduce the degree of geotechnical and environmental risks, it is necessary to implement a set of measures at the state level.

Educational assistance programmes from the government and other parties allow people to focus on education without being burdened by costs. In Indonesia, various aid programmes are available, including Bidik Misi for new students and special programmes for active students in need. These programmes aim to help poor, high-achieving students continue their education. However, there are problems in the determination of aid recipients. Aid funds are often misused by some students for hedonistic lifestyles. This is due to a selection system that is not objective and is still influenced by "insider power". Assessments based on students' economic conditions and achievements are often ignored, and priority is given to students who have connections in related institutions. This practice contradicts the purpose of the educational assistance programme, which is supposed to help students with economic limitations. Therefore, this research uses a Decision Support System (SDM). This study involved 15 students as data samples and used 5 assessment criteria. The selection of data samples was carried out by applying the Combined Compromise Solution method, one of the methods in decision making. From the selection process, 3 students were selected who were entitled to receive assistance. They are Siti Humairoh with a final score of 2.5395, Hafid Bangko in second place with a score of 2.2353, and Syfa Zahra in third place with a score of 2.1629. The three students have fulfilled all the requirements and they can proceed to the initial data validation process.

Summary The Bavarian Foreland Molasse Basin (BFMB) in SE German is the most prolific geothermal play in Germany and displays variable lithological, geomechanical and temperature distributions, which impact deep geothermal exploration and are likely related to the regional permeability distribution of seal rocks. The thermal water is produced from Upper Jurassic Carbonates from depths between 500–5000 m below ground level and at temperatures between 30–150°C. In addition, the BFMB provides units which are utilized for gas storage, and parts of the BFMB have also been identified as possible sites for nuclear waste storage. In order to better understand sealing capacities and in particular thermo-hydraulic processes in the BFMB, more than 500 wells have been screened and a regionally representative subset with high data quality have been analyzed to better understand vertical effective stress and sediment compaction variations on a regional scale. The results will be used to calibrate a 3D basin model of the BFMB to obtain regional insights on the permeability distribution and thermo-hydraulic dynamics in the BFMB. In this contribution we will present the overall workflow and first results from regional compaction and vertical effective stress analyses.

Under the same geological conditions, the thickness and length of the reinforced strip, the slope ratio of the reinforced embankment, the modulus of elasticity of the fill and the reinforced strip, and the friction angle at the interface between the reinforcement and the soil, are the main design parameters that have an important influence on the stress, deformation, and stability of the encompassing reinforced soil embankment. To quickly and accurately determine the optimal design parameters for reinforced soil embankments with wrapped faces, ensuring minimal cost, while maintaining structural safety, we propose a design parameter prediction model based on a GA–BP neural network. This model evaluates parameters within their specified ranges, using maximum lateral displacement, maximum vertical displacement, maximum stress in the XZ direction, the maximum shear strain increment, and the safety factor, as assessment criteria. The primary objective is to minimize the overall cost of the embankment. A comparison with five machine learning algorithms shows that the model has high prediction accuracy, and the optimal design parameter combinations obtained from the optimization search can significantly reduce the cost of the embankment, while controlling the displacement and stability of the embankment. Therefore, the GA–BP network is suitable for predicting the optimal design parameters of reinforced soil embankments with wrapped faces.

The development and application of the reinforced concrete arch bridge has been several decades in China. However, the research on arch bridge is relatively slow in recent years, due to the limit of arch bridge’s dependence on geological conditions , the characteristics of its structure and construction technology . Especially ,many reinforced concrete arch bridges which were built after 1940s has been subjected to earthquake, flood or beyond design life. And there is lack of some corresponding researchs on assessment criteria. This paper aims to put forward some state evaluation methods and suggestions by the test and analysis of dynamic characteristics of reinforced concrete arch bridge. Keywords: reinforced concrete arch bridge; state evaluation; dynamic test; modal analysis

Uciążliwość eksploatacji złóż węgla kamiennego wynikająca z warunków geologicznych i górniczych

This report details the Battery Performance and Cost model (BatPaC) developed at Argonne National Laboratory for lithium-ion battery packs used in automotive transportation. The model designs the battery for a specified power, energy, and type of vehicle battery. The cost of the designed battery is then calculated by accounting for every step in the lithium-ion battery manufacturing process. The assumed annual production level directly affects each process step. The total cost to the original equipment manufacturer calculated by the model includes the materials, manufacturing, and warranty costs for a battery produced in the year 2020 (in 2010 US$). At the time this report is written, this calculation is the only publically available model that performs a bottom-up lithium-ion battery design and cost calculation. Both the model and the report have been publically peer-reviewed by battery experts assembled by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. This report and accompanying model include changes made in response to the comments received during the peer-review. The purpose of the report is to document the equations and assumptions from which the model has been created. A user of the model will be able to recreate the calculations and perhaps more importantly, understand the driving forces for the results. Instructions for use and an illustration of model results are also presented. Almost every variable in the calculation may be changed by the user to represent a system different from the default values pre-entered into the program. The distinct advantage of using a bottom-up cost and design model is that the entire power-to-energy space may be traversed to examine the correlation between performance and cost. The BatPaC model accounts for the physical limitations of the electrochemical processes within the battery. Thus, unrealistic designs are penalized in energy density and cost, unlike cost models based on linear extrapolations. Additionally, the consequences on cost and energy density from changes in cell capacity, parallel cell groups, and manufacturing capabilities are easily assessed with the model. New proposed materials may also be examined to translate bench-scale values to the design of full-scale battery packs providing realistic energy densities and prices to the original equipment manufacturer. The model will be openly distributed to the public in the year 2011. Currently, the calculations are based in a Microsoft{reg_sign} Office Excel spreadsheet. Instructions are provided for use; however, the format is admittedly not user-friendly. A parallel development effort has created an alternate version based on a graphical user-interface that will be more intuitive to some users. The version that is more user-friendly should allow for wider adoption of the model.

Because of the complex geological and hydrological conditions and the virtual lack of thermal springs, regional geothermal investigations in Hawaii require the use of techniques substantially different from those conventionally applied in other geothermal environments. The large number of hydrological wells in the state provides an appreciable source of groundwater chemical data. However, largely because of the island environment, interpretation of much of these data as geothermal indicators becomes ambiguous. Initially, SiO/sub 2/ and temperature of groundwaters were used to identify thermally anomalous zones, but on a regional basis it has been found that these criteria are not always successful. As a further criterion for assessment, the Cl/Mg ratio of the groundwater has been used. On a state-wide basis, this ratio has been successful in further screening the SiO/sub 2/-temperature selected sites, and in defining more specific areas which warrant further investigation. Temperature, SiO/sub 2/ and Cl/Mg values for nearly 400 groundwater samples are included.

There has been a dramatic increase of student groups participating in international service learning projects. For engineering students it is not difficult to identify meaningful educational objectives. The students improve their analytical and problem solving skills. They design and build something that fulfils a list of engineering specifications; they execute a solution to some problem. However, these projects have a human dimension. Service-learning involves changes in peoples’ beliefs, attitudes and values; impacting both the students and the recipient community. It is important for the academic community to develop assessment criteria that includes perspectives from all stakeholders engaged in the experience. It is imperative to assess not only the technical success but also the sustainability of the project and its larger effect. In courses involving service-learning, assessment needs to occur on three levels: the traditional evaluation of the student’s knowledge of the technical content, the assessment of the experiences impact on the students’ broader more humanistic “soft skills”, and the customer’s satisfaction. The paper examines the obstacles and opportunities in assessing project success from multiple international service-learning programs, and compiles insights and reflections that could serve to inform future projects.

Pedestrian scenarios refer to all types of transit, including unidirectional, bidirectional, and crossing actions. This study argues that pedestrian scenarios are critical normative factors that must be considered when implementing street changes in existent residential areas. It focuses on pedestrian safety and reliable access. Making improvements to urban streets without adhering to the assessment criteria for street design results in the presence of more cars on the road, which makes crossing streets unsafe. The aim here is to provide assessment criteria for street development projects. This study used three qualitative methods, starting with a scoping review to define the urban street improvement assessment criteria. A spatial analysis was conducted using geographical maps and site visits to determine how specific residential areas have changed. Then, a storytelling analysis method, based on episodic narrative interviews with an anonymous sample of 21 residents, workers, and visitors, was imposed. The results yielded pedestrians’ stories about how street improvements affected pedestrian scenarios on two streets in the Ard el Golf residential area in Cairo, Egypt. The results showed that unplanned changes in urban streets’ socio-spatial configurations affected residents’ preferences for pedestrian safety and their reliable access to services on either side of the street. Our results reveal that practitioners can develop these assessment criteria for pedestrian preferences through storytelling techniques. The concluding remarks outline a set of criteria for assessing improvement projects of urban streets. The added value here is that practitioners can learn from users’ storytelling, and thus avoid street risks when undertaking improvement projects on other urban streets and cities.