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The Zhacang thermal field, Qinghai Province, China: its geology, geophysics, chemistry, and conceptual model

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Abstract

The Zhacang thermal field has the highest temperature and the most typical characteristics among the 84 geothermal anomalies discovered in Qinghai Province, China. It is located 15 km southwest of Guide County and has a total area of 8.4 km2, where two geothermal wells have been drilled since 2011. This paper summarises the geological conditions, drilling data, geophysical exploration data, and hydrochemical characteristics of the Guide–Zhacang geothermal field. The Zhacang geothermal field has a high geothermal flow value and is rich in geothermal resources with high thermal conductivity (2.910 W/(m•K)) and high geothermal flow value (87–117 mW/m2). The main strata are made up of Neogene mudstone, Triassic sand slate, and Indosinian granite and granodiorite, which provide a good thermally insulating cover layer and storage zone. The Zhacang and Reguang faults are deep, which helps the deep heat source and underground hot water move upward. The source of borehole hot water and hot spring water in the Zhacang geothermal field is atmospheric precipitation with a recharge elevation of 3320–3470 m, and the circulation depth is −2888.6 m. The results of explorations and surveys are integrated to propose a new conceptual model of the Zhacang geothermal reservoir.

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Funding

This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41772238 and 42002258), the Foundation Research Project of Qinghai Science and Technology Agency (2016-ZJ-769), and the Geological and Prospecting Foundation of Qinghai Province (2016020160sh010).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Civil Engineering, Shandong Jianzhu University, Jinan, 250101, Shandong, China

    Ling Zhou

  2. College of Construction Engineering, Jilin University, Changchun, 130026, China

    Yanjun Zhang

  3. Key Lab of Geo-Environment Qing Hai Province, Xining, 810007, China

    Yinfei Luo & Yude Lei

  4. Environmental Geological Prospecting Bureau of Qinghai Province, Xining, China

    Yinfei Luo & Yude Lei

  5. East China University of Technology, School of Civil & Architecture Engineering of ECUT, Nanchang, China

    Shuren Hao

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  1. Ling Zhou
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  2. Yanjun Zhang
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  3. Yinfei Luo
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  4. Yude Lei
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Correspondence to Ling Zhou.

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Responsible Editor: Domenico M. Doronzo

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Zhou, L., Zhang, Y., Luo, Y. et al. The Zhacang thermal field, Qinghai Province, China: its geology, geophysics, chemistry, and conceptual model. Arab J Geosci 14, 711 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-021-07040-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-021-07040-3

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