Evaluation of Medium-Deep Geothermal Resources Based on Seismic Imaging Technology: A Case Study of the Midu Basin in Yunnan Province
<p>(<b>A</b>) Map of China, with the blue arearepresenting Yunnan Province, the small black rectangle represents the study area; (<b>B</b>) map of the location of the study area and related feature (modified from [<a href="#B23-energies-17-03948" class="html-bibr">23</a>]).</p> "> Figure 2
<p>A Map showing the distribution of major faults in the Midu area (modified from [<a href="#B25-energies-17-03948" class="html-bibr">25</a>]).</p> "> Figure 3
<p>Locations of the seismic stations of Midu geothermal field. (Triangles indicate stations; red line indicates fault; velocity profile taken along the white dashed line in the next section).</p> "> Figure 4
<p>Monitoring period station locations and local earthquake distribution in the Midu geothermal field research area. (<b>a</b>) Triangles and stars represent stations and seismic events, respectively. The gray line indicates the travel time from sources to stations; (<b>b</b>) green dots represent initial S-wave arrivals, while red dots represent initial P-wave arrivals.</p> "> Figure 5
<p>This figure depicts the average Vp/Vs and the selection of the initial P−wave velocity model, where (<b>a</b>) shows the yellow line as the Vp/Vs fitting line, and (<b>b</b>) shows the green line as the initial P−wave velocity model by Chen et al., 2016 [<a href="#B33-energies-17-03948" class="html-bibr">33</a>] and the black line represents the initial velocity model used by Zhang et al., 2020 [<a href="#B34-energies-17-03948" class="html-bibr">34</a>] for the dense station tomographic imaging in Binchuan, which is also the initial velocity model used in this study.</p> "> Figure 6
<p>Trade-off curves for damping parameters of Vp (<b>a</b>) and Vp/Vs (<b>b</b>), and travel-time residuals before and after inversion for Vp (<b>c</b>) and Vp/Vs (<b>d</b>).</p> "> Figure 7
<p>Synthetic checkerboard test results for Vp and Vp/Vs at different depths. The theoretical model applies ±5% perturbations to Vp and Vp/Vs in adjacent grid cells. Blue contour lines enclose areas with a resolution greater than 0.1.</p> "> Figure 8
<p>The map views of Vp and Vp/Vs tomography at depths of 0 km, 3 km, and 6 km, obtained by inverting P-wave and S-wave data. The black lines represent faults.</p> "> Figure 9
<p>The vertical cross-section of Vp (<b>a</b>) and Vp/Vs (<b>b</b>) model. The line of section is the white dashed line in <a href="#energies-17-03948-f003" class="html-fig">Figure 3</a>.</p> "> Figure 10
<p>Geothermal genetic model of Midu basin, the red arrows in this figure represent the direction of heat flow. The main heat flow rises upwards along the lower segment of the Midu fault, while the secondary heat flow radiates from the granite body to the surrounding areas.</p> ">
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Geological Setting
3. Data Acquisition and Processing
3.1. Data Acquisition
3.2. Data Processing
4. Result and Geological Interpretation
5. Discussion
5.1. Faults System
5.2. Geothermal System
6. Conclusions
- (1)
- Through data analysis and epicenter relocation, it is confirmed that the boundary faults of the Midu basin do not strictly control the seismic faults. Currently, the seismic activity in the basin is not strong, with earthquakes mainly distributed in the northern part of the basin. The active faults include the northeast-trending Maosupo Fault, which is more active than the northwest-trending Midu Fault, and the Yinjie Fault. These faults provide a relatively stable seismic source for tomographic imaging in the study area.
- (2)
- Both Vp and Vp/Vs reflect the velocity stratification of different geological units and layers in the Midu basin. They respond significantly to the major faults at depth, with Vp/Vs delineating porous media and basin boundaries more clearly. The sedimentary rocks from the Neogene basin to the Cretaceous to the Triassic are primarily sandstone and mudstone, but their velocity ratios vary significantly due to different compaction effects. The Neogene basin, with higher porosity and water content, serves as the main thermal reservoir in the basin. Large-scale mildly acidic rock bodies at the bottom and western part of the basin constitute potential heat sources, while extensive basalt and limestone in the eastern basin basement serve as potential thermal reservoirs.
- (3)
- The development of the Midu Fault is segmented. The current fault, known as the controlling basin fault, primarily controls the sedimentation range of the Neogene basin and serves as the main conduit and storage structure for water. Below the Neogene, early formed west-dipping reverse faults exist, with the Midu Fault cutting through the acidic rock bodies at the basin bottom during this stage. This fault serves as the main thermal control structure in the basin, providing deep thermal sources.
- (4)
- Seismic tomography indicates effective spatial relationships among heat sources, thermal control structures, water-conducting structures, and thermal reservoirs in the geothermal system of the Midu basin. These relationships correlate with the segmented nature of the Midu Fault. The geothermal system of the basin can be divided into two layers: a medium-low-temperature geothermal system in the Neogene porous media and a medium-high-temperature geothermal system in the Paleogene-Mesozoic basin underlying the Neogene basin. The western side of the Midu basin is a favorable target for exploring medium-high-temperature geothermal resources.
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Number | Name | TOutlet | Type | TSiO2 | TNa-K | TNa-K-Ca | Altitude/m | D/m |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | BZQ | 57.0 | HCO3-Na | 96.1 | 201 | 209 | 1800 | 3287 |
2 | XSD | 47.3 | HCO3-Na | 91.7 | 160 | 202 | 1750 | 2537 |
3 | SZ | 36.1 | HCO3-Na | 107.3 | 187 | 306 | 1700 | 2804 |
4 | GQ | 53.2 | HCO3-Na | 116.9 | 166 | 270 | 1696.5 | 3374 |
5 | JL | 72.5 | HCO3-Na | 110.4 | 218 | 185 | 1675 | 3098 |
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Li, J.; Zhang, X.; Xu, C.; Li, C.; Tan, H.; Yu, Z.; Zhang, Y. Evaluation of Medium-Deep Geothermal Resources Based on Seismic Imaging Technology: A Case Study of the Midu Basin in Yunnan Province. Energies 2024, 17, 3948. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17163948
Li J, Zhang X, Xu C, Li C, Tan H, Yu Z, Zhang Y. Evaluation of Medium-Deep Geothermal Resources Based on Seismic Imaging Technology: A Case Study of the Midu Basin in Yunnan Province. Energies. 2024; 17(16):3948. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17163948
Chicago/Turabian StyleLi, Jie, Xuebin Zhang, Chao Xu, Chuan Li, Hui Tan, Ziye Yu, and Yunpeng Zhang. 2024. "Evaluation of Medium-Deep Geothermal Resources Based on Seismic Imaging Technology: A Case Study of the Midu Basin in Yunnan Province" Energies 17, no. 16: 3948. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17163948