Journal
HYDROGEOLOGY JOURNAL
Volume 25, Issue 7, Pages 1967-1984Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s10040-017-1600-6
Keywords
Groundwater and heat flow; Glaciation; Numerical modeling; Thermal conditions; Italy
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Thermal springs are widespread in the European Alps, with hundreds of geothermal sites known and exploited. The thermal circulation and fluid outflows were examined in the area around Bormio (Central Italian Alps), where ten geothermal springs discharge from dolomite bodies located close to the regional ZebrA(1) thrust. Water is heated in deep circulation systems and upwells vigorously at a temperature of about 40 A degrees C. Heat and fluid transport is explored by steady and transient three-dimensional finite-element simulations taking into account the effect of the last glaciation, which in the study area was recognized to end around 11,000-12,000 years ago. The full regional model (ca. 700 km(2)) is discretized with a highly refined triangular finite-element planar grid. Numerical simulations suggest a reactivation of the system following the end of the Last Glacial Maximum. Results correctly simulate the observed discharge rate of ca. 2,400 L/min and the spring temperatures after ca. 13,000 years from deglaciation, and show a complete cooling of the aquifer within a period of approximately 50,000 years. Groundwater flow and temperature patterns suggest that thermal water flows through a deep system crossing both sedimentary and metamorphic lithotypes along a fracture network associated with the thrust system. This example gives insights into the influences of deep alpine structures and glaciations on groundwater circulation that control the development of many hydrothermal systems not necessarily associated with convective heat flow.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available