Geothermal Assessment of the Reno-Tahoe Airport, Nevada

摘要

The Moana geothermal system in southwest Reno, NV has been used for decades for domestic and commercial space heating using a the low temperature resource, intercepted at relatively shallow depths (≤90°C at ≤305 m(＜1,000 ft)). As such, several commercial properties in southwest Reno have expressed interested to the authors in utilizing geothermal resources for building heating and cooling including the Grand Sierra Resort, Reno-Sparks Convention Center, Atlantis Casino and the Reno-Tahoe Airport. However, data in these areas to evaluate the geothermal potential has been sparse. Recent funding from DOE afforded the opportunity to fill in some data gaps in this area to begin evaluation of the geothermal potential outside of the main Moana geothermal system. This work included drilling a 305 m (1,000 ft) temperature gradient well on the Reno-Tahoe International Airport property. Unconsolidated sediments were penetrated throughout the length of the well, which had an equilibrated, conductive temperature gradient of 56°C/km. The Moana resource (west of the Airport) is being used by the Peppermill Hotel-Casino, pumping 79°C waters from 425 to 1,341 m (1,400 to 4,400 ft). Based on this new gradient well, the depth in the Airport area to attain the top of a resource with similar temperatures would be approximately 1,220 m (4,000 ft). Hence, preliminary indications are that there is not a currently economic resource beneath the Airport property, due to the large depths of drilling that would be required to penetrate the unconsolidated sediments and intersect the fractured andesite unit hosting the resource on the west side of the Airport site.