Skip to main content

Quantifying the fluid flow potential of the Lower Carboniferous limestone for geothermal energy

Project title

Quantifying the fluid flow potential of the Lower Carboniferous limestone in northern England for geothermal energy

Project Lead

Professor David Healy and Professor Sandra Piazolo

Project Summary

We face an urgent need to address global warming and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere. One suggested solution is to decarbonise our heating of buildings with geothermal energy from buried Carboniferous limestones, which lie beneath several major cities in northern England. For this to work, we need to understand how fluid flows through these fractured rocks, particularly under the influence of in situ regional stress.

Project Aims & Objectives

In this project, the student will aim to deliver:

  • Regional and local scale maps of fracture systems in Lower Carboniferous limestones
  • Estimation of fracture porosity and permeability in these fracture systems
  • Understanding of stress-dependent fluid flow in these fracture systems
  • Predictive first-order models of geothermal potential in different areas

Methods & Training

  • Desk-based and field mapping of Lower Carboniferous limestone fracture sets
  • Measurement of porosity and permeability of intact and fractured limestone samples at selected confining pressures (i.e., burial depths)
  • Modelling of stress-dependent fluid flow in fractured geothermal systems
  • Training will be provided in field structural geology (including systematic sampling), experimental rock mechanics, and microscale characterisation using the Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). Experiments will be conducted in the Geosolutions Leeds Geomechanics Laboratory, and SEM analyses will be performed in the Bragg Centre for Materials Research.

Context, Outcomes & Impact

This project will benefit from the wider Geosolutions Leeds project portfolio, including ongoing research into geothermal energy, subsurface storage of CO2 and H2, and critical minerals. Geosolutions Leeds is a core part of the University of Leeds Climate Plan, an ambitious £174M programme designed to achieve Net Zero on campus by 2030 and support decarbonisation of the city and wider region.

The School of Earth & Environment (SEE) is a major international centre for Earth, Environmental, and Sustainability Science, with wide-ranging and positive impacts. Much of our work is cross-cutting, tackling complex global challenges. This research will provide novel quantitative constraints on the potential for geothermal heat extraction from fractured limestones, applicable to the UK and globally.