Geochemical modelling of copper precipitation as consequence of steel corrosion in flow‐through experiments mimicking a geothermal production well

In my thesis work, 0D geochemical numerical models were implemented in order to qualitatively and quantitatively understand the results of a set of experiments obtained from a physical model, to simulate the concretion effects on high enthalpy geothermal wells. In particular a set of flow-through simulation results based on the physical model were used to reproduce the precipitation of metallic copper resulting from steel corrosion in a geothermal production well positioned at Groß Schönebeck, Germany. The numerical models were implemented with PHREEQC hydrogeochemical simulator (Appelo and Parkhurst, 1999). Although the predications obtained from the numerical simulations have not systematically matched the experimental data obtained by physical model, nevertheless, very useful information on the behaviours of these kind of processes has been obtained. Now this useful information is used at the German Research Center for Geosciences (GFZ) in Potsdam to develop more accurate new research lines.