Combined application of vertical electrical sounding and 2D electrical resistivity imaging for geothermal groundwater characterization: Hammam Sayala hot spring case study (NW Tunisia)

- We use ERT and VES for the characterization of the Hammam Sayala hot spring (NW Tunisia).
- Using ERT we delineate three different zones: sandstones, thermal water plume, and clay.
- We are able to detect thermal plumes and estimate its geometry.

The following work is an attempt to enhance and optimize the potential exploitation of the Hammam Sayala thermal spring (NW Tunisia). This hot spring is located at 10 km of South-western Béja city, with higher temperature values around 42 °C and a low discharge value of about 1 l s−1. The geological and structural settings of the study area are complex and associated with faults and Triassic intruded salt and evaporate.An integrated geophysical approach using Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT), Induced Polarization (IP) and Vertical Electrical Sounding (VES) techniques can provide a high-resolution subsurface image of the principal geothermal plume and associated pathways. These data were used to determine and understand the mechanisms responsible of the rise of hot water flowing out onto the surface.Our results add new information of the hydrothermal system's context in Hammam Sayala area, which can help to create a therapeutic center opening new perspectives in the Béja region and to encourage regional thermal tourism development.