Geothermal potential areas identification using GIS and potential methods in the central part of the state of Hidalgo, Mexico
Abstract
Geothermal resources are known for their most common thermal manifestations: hot springs. Currently, in the state of Hidalgo, geothermal energy is limited to the direct use of balneology, however, it is not the only application from which some socio-economic benefit can be obtained. Generating electricity from the Earth's internal heat is the process of greatest benefit from geothermal energy since the end of the 20th century. In Mexico, the first geothermal plant was installed in the Pathé community, in the state of Hidalgo; Since then and until today, the field of exploration towards geothermal energy has been extended, establishing up to now 5 geothermal plants throughout the country with a net capacity of 950 MW.
There are few investigations directed to geothermal exploration in Hidalgo, for this reason, a methodology is proposed to locate the geothermal potential found in the region by means of a qualitative analysis with those variables that favor the accumulation of geothermal energy, these variables are: geomorphology, geology, chrono-stratigraphy, heat flow and geophysics, using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and potential methods.
The study area is the state of Hidalgo, but those areas of lesser relevance were discriminated allowing the delimitation of a particular area, this area was called geothermal play, which is located in the central portion of the state. The area covers approximately 7200 km2 with a length close to 170 km and is distributed with a preferential northwest-southeast direction (NW-SE). In order to determine the potentially geothermal areas, the Weighted Sum method was used through map algebra to obtain a geothermal potential index, this method allows the assignment of weights according to the degree of relevance for the accumulation of geothermal energy from of a previous reclassification of the analyzed variables. With the results of this research, a map was designed that shows the areas with the lowest and highest geothermal potential, and thus, provide information to the geothermal industry, generating information that will be useful for prospecting this resource and its future application in the energy sector.
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References
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