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Geothermal fields of Hengill Volcano, Iceland

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Abstract

This paper provides a review of geological, geophysical, and geochemical studies for three geothermal zones of Hengill Volcano, Iceland: Nesjavellir, Hellisheidi, and Hveragerdi. We discuss the relationships between global tectonics and high-temperature geothermal systems in Iceland. The bulk of this review is devoted to studies of the physical, geochemical, and mineralogic parameters for the three areas. A separate discussion concerns surface phenomena, as well as the origin of thermal water. This review covers studies of the main aquifer complexes: Miocene/Lower Pliocene plateau basalts, Upper Pliocene/Pleistocene lavas and volcanoclastics involving tillite horizons, an aquifer complex of Holocene lava sheets as thick as 1 km, and an aquifer complex of Upper Pleistocene/Holocene alluvial eolian deposits and formations of bottom moraines. We consider a conceptual model of geothermal reservoirs characteristic for the Hengill geothermal fields.

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  1. Center of Geoelectromagnetic Research, Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences, Troitsk, Moscow Oblast, 142190, Russia

    O. K. Zakharova & V. V. Spichak

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  1. O. K. Zakharova
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  2. V. V. Spichak
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Correspondence to O. K. Zakharova.

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Original Russian Text © O.K. Zakharova, V.V. Spichak, 2012, published in Vulkanologiya i Seismologiya, 2012, No. 1, pp. 3–18.

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Zakharova, O.K., Spichak, V.V. Geothermal fields of Hengill Volcano, Iceland. J. Volcanolog. Seismol. 6, 1–14 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1134/S074204631201006X

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