Inverse heat transfer applied to a hydrogeological and thermal response test for geothermal applications

Actual thermal response tests, used to estimate the subsurface thermal conductivity in the geothermal domain, do not provide any estimate on the velocity of the groundwater flow and its orientation. These parameters are important for sizing geothermal borefield, since they influence the heat transfer around a geothermal borehole and the surrounding ground. To correct this shortcoming, a conceptual test has been developed in which heating cable sections inject heat in a borehole. Three temperature probes are strategically located at the borehole edge. This paper applies inverse heat transfer strategies to this thermal response test concept in order to identify the ground thermal conductivity, as well as the groundwater flow velocity and its direction. The suggested thermal response test and parameters estimation methodology are detailed. The influence of initial guessed values for the three unknown parameters was also studied. The work presented in this paper was carried out by numerical simulations.