Projects
Supporting and accelerating the energy transition through experimental research
An overview of the projects of RCSG
Kansen voor West – Doorontwikkeling Fieldlab
Het project beoogd om het RCSG en de Energy Cave door te ontwikkelen voor een bredere toepassing binnen de energietransitie, met name de warmtetransitie, en de totstandkoming van een betere aansluiting met het MKB. Met betrekking tot het laatste, biedt de doorontwikkeling van deze faciliteit bredere mogelijkheden aan MKB partijen voor de (door)ontwikkeling opschaling of implementatie van innovatieproducten, processen en diensten gerelateerd aan de energietransitie waarbij de focus ligt op de warmtetransitie. Het innovatieve RCSG lab en de Energy Cave zijn in goed overleg parallel ontwikkeld als onderdelen van het field lab. Het doel van dit project is om nieuwe faciliteiten te ontwikkelen (field lab 2.0) die nog beter aansluiten bij de vragen rondom de ontwikkeling van duurzame warmte, bijv. omdat hier samen met bedrijven innovaties kunnen worden getest. Het gaat hierbij specifiek om het ontwikkelen van pilot systemen voor duurzame warmtenetten met meerdere warmtebronnen, zoals geothermie (bodem energiesystemen en proxies voor geothermie), zonnethermie en warmte opslag systemen. Hierbij ligt niet de nadruk op het ontwikkelen van de bronnen maar op de interactie en afstemming van meerdere bronnen op een warmtenet. Binnen het fieldlab wordt gezocht naar de optimale instellingen door het vergaren van meet- en testdata. Concreet betekent dit dat er vanuit diverse projecten faciliteiten worden aangelegd, zoals flow loops (deels uit composiet materialen), gesloten bodemlussen en een experimenteel bodemenergie systeem die in het kader van het fieldlab worden verbonden om zo een warmtenet systeem te simuleren, waarbij eventueel het gebouw kan worden aangesloten. Hierbij ligt primair de focus op het onderzoeks- en opleidingskarakter. Het fieldlab heeft namelijk ook als doel om een showcase te worden om een nieuwe lichting installateurs en ontwikkelaars kennis te laten nemen met deze nieuwe systemen. Daarnaast zullen er binnen dit project activiteiten worden ontplooid om samen met relevante MKB partijen de bestaande installaties in te zetten, uit te breiden en langdurig beschikbaar te houden voor testen van nieuwe technieken relevant voor het realiseren van projecten die aansluiten bij de pertinente vraagstukken binnen de energietransitie. Het eindresultaat is een set aan state-of-the-art opstellingen waarvan de toepassing gevalideerd is door testen met andere partijen. Hiermee wordt de opschaling voor ontwikkeling van duurzame en slimme energiesystemen gefaciliteerd. Daarnaast zal samen met de Energy Cave een programma opgesteld worden rondom de nieuwe faciliteiten voor kennisoverdracht in de vorm van stages, praktijklessen en bezoeken op locatie.
Realization of a test well for research on GEothermal and thermal storage through inNOVATIVE drilling – GENOVATIVE
Research areas:
- Demonstration and development of new drilling technologies
- Data acquisition for monitoring performance and safety
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- Heat storage
The project goals of GENOVATIVE were:
- Investigate and demonstrate the feasibility of Lateral Well construction with Enhanced Casing Installation- Rotary Steerable System (ECI-RSS), thereby de-risking its use for upcoming projects;
- Examine the placement and performance of permanent downhole monitoring tools (e.g. fibre optic cables) for measuring temperature and other parameters;
- Realize a test well at RCSG that can be used for small-scale test of thermals storage and calibration and verification of logging tools over new suits of (steel/composite) casing and casing-formation bonding.
The results of the project were that a research well was drilled at the Rijswijk Centre for Geo-energy (RCSG) in 2022 with an open connection to the Maassluis formation around 200m depth. It is completed with a casing string that is composed of screens and an alternation of steel and composite casings. This is the first time that this type of composite casing is installed in a well in the Netherlands. Monitoring tubes and a fibre optic cable (DTS and DAS) were installed on the outside of the casing. The annular space was back-filled by using a chute with gravel and clay according to the BRL guidelines. One section is filled with cement. A permit is in place to use this well for experiments for testing high temperature storage, once a second well is realized. The innovative drilling technique (ECI-RSS) that is developed by Huisman Geo could only partly be tested during drilling due to an unforeseen technical failure that could not be resolved within the available project time. Within this project the application of several innovations were tested under field conditions, such as the drilling tools and techniques, the new types of casings, the installation and application of optical cables for monitoring. The research well is adding a valuable asset to the RCSG which will be ready to be used for testing.
Looptijd: 2020 – 2022
Project partners: Huisman Geo, EBN
Sources and Links:
DEmonstrate Production Enhancement with LOw cost sIde track drilling – DEPLOI
Research areas:
- Demonstration and development of new drilling technologies
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- Heat storage
The goal of the executed project was to mature and demonstrate, under actual downhole hydrostatic conditions at the RSCG, a novel directional abrasive drilling technology which enables the drilling of long horizontal wells from a vertical well through the reservoir. This technology is based on directional abrasive drilling with down hole re-use of abrasives which could contribute significantly to the cost-effective drilling of geothermal wells. The project delivered experimental results of a full-scale prototype with steering capabilities for optimized well trajectory control of abrasive drilling for horizontal wells. A plan to initiate pilot projects was delivered as part of this project.
The aim of the first work package was to understand how directional steel shot drilling of multi-laterals can enhance geothermal development and how the technology compares to other techniques to enhance flow from (geothermal) wells. In the report the importance of Canopus Directional Steel Shot technology is explained to drill multilaterals for the future development of geothermal energy and therefore the need for the technology that enables horizontal drilling. It includes a brief discussion of the need for boosting production per well and scope for existing well performance enhancement options and their production. The second part of the report investigates the value of the steel shot drilling compared to other drilling enhancement technologies. It includes comparison with novel, and conventional drilling technologies. Finally, an overview is given of the investigations that are needed to increase the Technical Readiness Level (TRL) to the point where it can be applied in pilot and field demonstrations. These investigations focused on operational issues on hydraulics and wellbore cleaning, and base system investigation of directional control and robustness of the steering sub.
The experimental work of the second work package was looking into some specific issues of the proposed abrasive jetting drilling technology. This novel directional drilling technology is based on the ability to transform a continuous supply of steel shots into a controlled fluctuating concentration while eroding a rock ahead of the bit. The key component of a successful application is the ability to transport both the steel shots and the cuttings, in particular in the horizontal leg of the well, because the drilling string can get stuck when the removal of cuttings is not properly done. An experimental investigation has been undertaken for the particle transport, hole cleaning requirements, and steering concept at a dedicated flow loop in TNO’s Rijswijk Centre for Sustainable Geo-Energy (RCSG). The results of these experiments enable the definition of the Equivalent Circulating Density (ECD) and the impact of transient effects on the ECD. This will determine the optimal hole cleaning while drilling multilaterals and the maximum length the technology can drill while staying within the safe ECD margin. The reported outcomes of the experimental study focus on the capabilities of the experimental setup to validate hole cleaning and annular pressure drop equations. These capabilities are demonstrated by the executed tests divided into three phases; 1) the impact of steel shot transport on the hole cleaning and the ECD in an annular configuration, 2) the impact of realistic operational conditions, such as (ec)centricity and pipe rotation, rheology, abrasives type and concentration and addition of drilled cuttings on the solids transport in the horizontal section, and 3) the transformation of a continuous supply of steel shot particles into a well-controlled fluctuating concentration. The value of experimental research on the flow loop was demonstrated by valuable results that proved to be sufficient for modeling the conditions for hole cleaning to estimate the reach of long laterals and to prove the steering concept. Mimicking the complex drilling conditions for testing hydraulic requirements during the drilling has significantly derisked the performance of the tool bringing the technology to a higher Technical Readiness Level (TRL) level. Whereas the investigation focused on the particular aspects of the steel shot drilling, the experimental set-up, and the results can be applied more generic for other types of horizontal drilling.
Activities of the last three workpackages revolved around the testing of the technology under relevant subsurface conditions that can be mimicked in the so-called 50T drilling set-up. The main application of the 50T drilling machine is to test the performance of drilling technologies on different rock specimens under downhole pressure conditions, with varying mud properties and drilling parameters. The mechanical back-bone of the machine is formed by the platform on four legs and a base construction anchored to the floor. The actual drilling process takes place in the so-called “bombe”, a pressure vessel that can sustain pressures up to 250 bar, and houses the rock specimens to be drilled. The activities involved the preparation of the equipment and the integration of the steel shot subsystems. Phase one was dedicated to the operational preparation of the 50T drilling system and training of the staff. The phase was completed with the first successful drilling test to confirm operability and functionality of the machine. In the second phase fully operational steel shot injection unit was connected to the 50 T drilling machine, whereas functionality of the system was tested by conducting a series of drilling tests in concrete and granite rock samples. In the final phase the Canopus steering sub was installed as the last part of system integration and further tests were undertaken.
The conducted drilling tests showcased the functionality of the steel shot injection unit and the control over the injection parameters and small deviations were observed in the drilling path. The connected Directional Module with Steering sub control unit showed that the interface and the principles behind the tool worked. The jetting action was more than sufficient for the steering. There seems to be an ROP increase resulting from the combination of PDC and SS jet drilling. Further work is needed to finalize the pulse detection at the bit, but major steps were taken in the maturation of the technology.
In the last Work Package, the potential for production increase resulting from horizontal and multi-lateral wells was investigated for three very different reservoir types:
- Homogeneous porous sandstone reservoirs such as might be typically found in The Netherlands.
- For the homogeneous, sandstone reservoir in The Netherlands, three Canopus laterals of 1000 m for the producer as well as the injector delivered 2.4 times the geothermal power of a conventional doublet
- A fractured reservoir with very high heterogeneity and uncertainty in Schlattingen, Switzerland.
- The simulated increase for the three Canopus laterals depended strongly on the assumed heterogeneous fracture distribution. On average, a horizontal well instead of a vertical resulted in an increase factor of 2.6 and three laterals in an increase of 2.8, but the range is large.
- A strongly layered, thin limestone reservoir in the Paris Basin.
- Similar increases were simulated in productivity/injectivity for the most optimistic case as in the Netherlands
These studies focused on the potential increase in productivity assuming the abrasive jet drilling technology is able to drill the used geometry. In addition for several (potential) geothermal reservoirs in Germany, a study was done assessing whether abrasive jetting would be feasible from a geomechanical perspective. For most of the potential geothermal reservoirs, abrasive jet drilling appeared feasible. For some systems (Buntsandstein and Upper Muschelkalk in Upper Rhine Graben), the amount of information was insufficient in particular due to a lack of pore pressure estimates.
Duration: 2020 – 2022
Project partners: TNO, Canopus, EBN, ODFJELL, STORENGY, BRGM, NAGRA, Technical University
Munich, Well Guidance
Sources and links:
DEmonstrate Production Enhancement with LOw Cost SIde Track Drilling – Topsector Energie
DEMONSTRATE PRODUCTION ENHANCEMENT THROUGH LOW COST DIRECTIONAL STEEL SHOT DRILLING FOR DISTRICT HEATING – DEPLOI the HEAT
Research areas:
- Demonstration and development of new drilling technologies
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- Heat storage
The
DEPLOI project concerns the Directional Steel Shot Drilling technology with
which long multilateral structures can be drilled in shallow and deep
geothermal reservoirs. The structures improve the reservoir contact such that
production is boosted by a factor of 2.5 while well construction cost only
increases by 20%.
The technology has been demonstrated in the drill test facilities of the TNO Rijswijk
Center of Sustainable GeoEnergy (RCSG) and is ready for field trials.
The
project includes constructing a prototype drilling service unit to be tested in
two trials: in Switzerland (shallow Hagerbach test site in limestone) and the
Netherlands (1600 m vertical depth in sandstone). The University of Calgary,
Canada, is to model the drilling assemblies and monitor the drilling in
real-time. TNO does the Final Acceptance Testing at the RCSG.
Project coordinator: Canopus
Duration: 2022 – 2025
Sources and links:
TEST-CEM
Research areas:
- Safe sealing of wells during and after production
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- CCUS
- Heat storage
- Storage of hydrogen, gas and compressed air
- Oil and gas in transition
Making geothermal wells sustainable reduces financial risks, attracting investments in geo-energy. An important risk in these wells is durability of cements providing well integrity under extreme temperatures (high-enthalpy wells), large temperature variations and chemically-aggressive environments common for all geo-wells. Current cement solutions either have problems under these conditions or have not been validated for durable well-applications. This project aims to reduce risks associated with compromised well integrity and use recently gained insights in the field of materials to evaluate advanced cement systems in a wide temperature range (up to super-critical) and under thermal cycling, raise their current TRL to 5-6 by optimizing and validating them in laboratory and large-scale experiments and enabling operators to select a preferred cement formulation for target conditions.
Aim
TEST-CEM aims to reduce risks associated with geothermal well cementing and use recently gained insights to develop advanced cement systems resistant to repeated thermo-mechanical cycling and chemically-aggressive environments relevant for a wide temperature range from low-mid enthalpy geothermal up to super-critical conditions. Lastly, the project aims at better informing operators and stakeholders on preferred cement formulations for dedicated applications.
Duration: 2020 – 2023
Project partners: Brookhaven National Laboratory, IMERYS, CURISTEC, EBN, Equinor, SINTEF, TNO
Sources and links:
Geo]thermica – Test-CEM – Topsector Energie
Natural sealing (1) – research and test well (TKITOETKI2019-02-GE)
Research areas:
- Safe sealing of wells during and after production
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- CCUS
- Heat storage
- Storage of hydrogen, gas and compressed air
- Oil and gas in transition
Durable and more economic P&A solutions for annular sealing and well plugging would have a beneficial impact on the feasibility and economic competitiveness of promising sustainable geo-energy options, such as geothermal energy or gas storage. Recent research focusing on safe and durable P&A options identified bentonite as a promising seal for wellbores in deep subsurface geo-energy applications. The overall advantages of using natural materials such as bentonite or rock salt over cement are their long-term sealing capacities and stability under downhole conditions. The knowledge about alternative natural sealing materials is increasing, paving the way for innovative well constructions and use of alternative sealing materials for zonal isolation and P&A of wells. The application of bentonite is generally expected to require less expensive placement equipment, lower material costs and monitoring. However, a dedicated plugging methodology for deep O&G wells does not exist.
The project proposed here aims to perform downhole qualification tests of the sealing properties of bentonite-based well plugs at relevant P&A conditions at the at the former Shell Well Technology Research Centre equipped with large-scale testing equipment and research well including a drill-rig. The test location located in Rijswijk , offers a unique opportunity to test and demonstrate new wellbore sealing materials for P&A, placement concepts and monitoring technologies. The proposed downhole testing presents an opportunity for verification of the legal conformance of the proposed methodology, which can enable a near-future application of natural seals for wellbore sealing.
Although bentonite plugging is common practice in other domains, like water wells and nuclear waste disposal and its application for O&G has been considered, verification of the sealing performance at high pressures and high temperature relevant for P&A of hydrocarbon wells (in NL) is lacking. Lab tests are conducted but upscaling from lab- to field-scale, which requires downhole testing, is required to investigate the sealing performance under actual downhole conditions. Innovations with respect to placement and improved sealing performance are needed. Verification of the sealing capacity (as required from regulations) of bentonite plugs under actual downhole conditions are required, which should include experimental investigations of the formed plugs besides the sealing tests in the wellbore itself.
Project partners: EBN B.V., Neptune Energy E&P Holding Netherlands B.V., Nouryon Holding B.V., ONE-Dyas B.V., Shell Global Solutions International B.V., TNO, TOTAL E&P NEDERLAND B.V.
Sources and links:
Natural sealing (2) – Large scale evaluation (TKITOETKI2020-05-GE)
Research areas:
- Safe sealing of wells during and after production
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- CCUS
- Heat storage
- Storage of hydrogen, gas and compressed air
- Oil and gas in transition
Utilizing innovative well sealing and abandonment methods and materials could result in massive cost savings. Materials for long-term sealing of wellbores require a unique combination of properties to provide long-term sealing integrity at the intended depth. Salt- and clay-based (bentonite) materials exhibit unique properties such as low permeability, high capillary entry pressure, coupled to mechanical ductility and chemical resistivity over a wide range of downhole environments. Furthermore, both materials are natural constituents forming effective caprocks in the subsurface, safely sealing oil and gas reservoirs over geological timescales (millions of years). This project will investigate the superior sealing capacities of natural seals and will test bentonites as reliable and cost-efficient alternatives to conventional cement-based materials.
The objective of this proposal is to continue previous research and testing of bentonites and salts on larger-scales and to address remaining technical challenges defined in previous TKI projects. In addition it will tackle a potential financial hurdle for the application of the natural sealing concept and will investigate promising chemical options to remove the casing to enable a cost-efficient option of letting existing ductile formation creep into the created “window” in the wellbore to restore the original caprock.
This project combines previous sub-systems of the concept of natural formation sealing which have been developed within the TKI New Gas Program Line Decommissioning and Abandonment. Based on previous findings the proposed work in this proposal will combine three major natural sealing topics in one project to provide a comprehensive and aligned technology development for a fast field application and market uptake of the natural sealing technology. The specific activities in this project comprise: 1. Bentonite placement and sealing performance optimization, together with innovative coating options for an ideal sealing performance at full-scale, including downhole sealing tests in the OIC-WT test well 2. Rock-salt stimulation and self-sealing full-scale as well as field testing at OIC-WT and in Nouryon’s Hengelo-01 well 3. Investigate controlled chemical casing and cement dissolution options on large-scale to overcome high casing removal costs and enable an economic application of the natural sealing and placement concept
The project aims at investigating and testing, on large- and full-scale, that natural formation sealing of deep wellbores is feasible and can result in a cost-efficient and simultaneously more reliable and sustainable way of constructing, remediating, re-using or plugging existing and new deep wells for geo-energy purposes. It will prepare for natural sealing field trials in deep oil and gas wells and support the fast implementation of this promising sealing technology. Current estimates of abandonment costs for all existing Dutch O&G wells are >3 billion Euros. The potential cost reduction when expensive rigs for casing pulling/milling and cement placement equipment can be re-placed with natural sealing rig-less operations is substantial and have been estimated to be up to 70%. These cases show the high cost saving potential and could be projected on the total estimated P&A cost which would result in several billions savings for the Dutch geo-energy companies and society.
Project partners:
EBN B.V., Neptune Energy Netherlands B.V., Nobian Industrial Chemicals B.V., ONE-Dyas B.V., Shell Global Solutions International B.V., TNO, TOTAL E&P NEDERLAND B.V., Wintershall Noordzee B.V.
Sources and links:
Natural sealing (3) – Field Pilot P&A Using Bentonite (TKITOETKI2021-06-GE)
Research areas:
- Safe sealing of wells during and after production
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- CCUS
- Heat storage
- Storage of hydrogen, gas and compressed air
- Oil and gas in transition
Durable and cost-efficient solutions for annular sealing and well plugging can save billions of predicted well abandonment costs and would strongly contribute to the economic competitiveness of all sustainable geo energy options exploiting the deep subsurface. In recent years ductile natural downhole materials such as clays (bentonites) or evaporates (rock salt or squeezing salts) have been identified as promising solution to provide a reliable alternative well sealing and plugging option, also for deep applications below 1500m. Unlike cement, the conventional sealing material of choice, natural downhole material like bentonite is ductile, self-healing, chemically stable under (acidic) downhole conditions and is considered more cost-efficient. The R&D Program Natural Formation Sealing has investigated the functional bentonite sealing performance in the light of the P&A application for geo energy wells starting with feasibility studies (TRL2) up to full-scale rig-test in 2020 (TRL5). The logical next step is to conduct a P&A field trial (TRL6) before operators can perform necessary qualification and pilot testing of this sealing technology as final demonstration to the regulator(s).
A field trial is extremely difficult to organize for obvious reasons such as timing, costs or liability arrangements. Therefore, the consortium is very pleased to have the opportunity to conduct a research field trial in a typical Dutch onshore gas well (owned by NAM/Shell). This well is scheduled for abandonment and, after abandonment is finished, the project will install bentonite plugs at relevant depth of ca. 2000m and test the plug properties with respect to Dutch Mining Law requirements. Being part of an existing P&A operation, the project can deploy available permits, equipment and staff, which strongly reduce the costs of the field test compared to a stand-alone field test. Based on the detailed planning provided in this proposal, a priority candidate well in the Groningen area has been selected according to test requirements and the P&A plans of NAM. The overall goal of the project is to create a downhole field lab” at ~2000 meters to conduct the essential testing with hydrostatic pressure, real downhole fluids and elevated temperature to validate the sealing performance of bentonite as barrier material for well sealing and plugging at operational conditions.
Key activities of this project will comprise: – Small and/or large-scale experiments specifically dedicated to de-risk the execution of the field trial, based on latest details of the exact well design and how the well will be left by NAM (e.g. top of cement and fluid type in the well) – Validation of placement concepts, including coating options or wireline concepts, to ensure good plug performance – The final verification of a test and monitoring concept for the downhole sealing test based on the detailed preparation and planning provided in this proposal – The actual conduction of the field trial: placement, pressure testing of the plug including retrieving an aliquot for inspection in the lab – Microscopic and petrophysical evaluation of the retrieved sample martial in the lab to confirm the sealing properties of the placed, hydrated bentonite plug – To validate numerical models for bentonite plug performance prediction – Communication to other national and international research groups, companies, policy makers and stakeholders to facilitate a near-future application of the technology.
The presented approach including the development of dedicated placement technologies for bentonite placement below 1500m is unique in the world. The major project result is a downhole placed and tested bentonite plug with a verified performance under actual hydrostatic and chemical conditions in relevant operational environments of ~2000m depths (TRL 6). This is the essential and ultimate step to provide the knowledge to develop a new, innovative sealing and placement product for deep wellbores before the operators can apply this technology as real P&A plug or actual zonal isolation in pilot projects (TRL 7-9). Bentonite well sealing could become a key element to lower costs, increase safety and reduce the environmental footprint of well sealing, re-use and abandonment, and is thus actually crucial for all sustainable geo energy technologies making use of the deep subsurface. Overall, the method could be a game-changing technology providing long term zonal isolation performance and economic abandonment procedures at the same time which would strongly facility the energy transition by making sustainable geo energy application more efficient.
Project partners: EBN B.V., Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij B.V., Neptune Energy E&P Holding Netherlands B.V., Nouryon Holding B.V., ONE-Dyas B.V., SHELL International B.V., TNO, TOTAL E&P NEDERLAND B.V., Wintershall Noordzee B.V.
Sources and links:
New design for sustainable BTES
Research areas:
- Interaction between well and surrounding rocks (near-well domain)
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- Heat storage
In this project, the Rijswijk Centre for Sustainable Geo-energy (RCSG) field lab is testing whether the same amount of heat can be extracted from the ground with a shallow closed geothermal energy system that is 10x shallower than normally applied. The new design would only have to go 15 instead of 150 meters deep into the ground. If this innovation proves feasible, the entry costs for such a heating system can be significantly reduced. Less deep drilling also means less inconvenience during installation and easier maintenance. In this way, more homes can be taken off the gas grid faster and more affordably.
Duration: 1 May2021 – 1 March 2022
Project partners: TNO, Eco-Well, Platform 2050
Sources and links:
WGoBES: Heat Pump Network with optimized BTES for collective use (MOOI322009)
Research areas:
- Demonstration and development of new drilling technologies
- Interaction between well and surrounding rocks (near-well domain)
- Safe sealing of wells during and after production
- Data acquisition for monitoring performance and safety
- Re-use of
existing infrastructure - Social development and education around the energy transition
Application areas:
- Geothermal
energy - Heat storage
The heat transition of existing homes is progressing slowly. The scale of large heat networks often does not match the development of heat demand and residents’ wishes. Housing corporations need a system solution for making common housing types such as terraced houses or apartment blocks more sustainable. They are looking for a small-scale and cost-effective system solution that can be rolled out in a modular way. Closed geothermal energy systems (BTES) are developing rapidly. In 2022 ~ 15,000 new systems will be installed with a depth range of 100 to 350m. BTES power can potentially be increased tenfold by deeper BTES. As a result, a block of terraced houses or a block of flats can be heated with 1 BTES connected to a heat pump network (HPN). The costs are also lower and the environmental impact smaller because fewer drillings are required. However, there are questions from governments and the drinking water sector about the protection of (fresh) groundwater. There is a need for safe and detectable sealing materials whose safety can also be demonstrated and thus guaranteed in the long term.
The proposal includes the elaboration, optimization and validation of BTES and HPN for 4 – 12 homes powered by a deep geothermal energy system (400–800 metres). Knowledge and experience with regard to the development and operation of deep geothermal energy systems still needs to be built up to make market development a success.
The project focuses on 3 goals:
· Development of safe and sustainable packing materials for deep geothermal energy systems. This is necessary for optimal protection of the groundwater and to maintain support from governments and the (drinking) water sector.
· Increasing the yield of soil energy systems. The capacity of a geothermal energy system can be
increased tenfold.
· System optimization through smart WPN control. A system consists of 4 – 12 homes with or without solar panels, a WPN and a deep geothermal energy system.
Duration: 2023 – 2025
Project partners:
Sources and links:
MOOI GO 2022 openbare projectsamenvattingen.pdf (topsectorenergie.nl)
MOOI-indieners gebouwde omgeving zorgen vooral voor schaalsprong warmtetransitie | Topsector Energie
Com2Heat: Replacement of steel by composite in low & medium temperature heat systems (MOOI322013)
Research areas:
- Flow from wells for an optimal energy system
- Data acquisition for monitoring performance and safety
- Social development and education around the energy transition
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- Heat storage
The Netherlands has the ambition to accelerate the transition away from natural gas for heating the built environment. An important responsibility is to keep the energy transition affordable for large groups in the Netherlands and to strengthen energy-related economic activities. Collective heat networks integrated with various sustainable sources, such as solar heat and geothermal energy, in combination with heat storage, offer a reliable, affordable and large-scale solution for 5-7 million homes and buildings. However, costs can be substantially reduced in terms of construction, installation, maintenance, electricity for pumps and heat loss reduction by using composite material instead of metals. Composite material has been used for decades in, among other things, the process industry. The advantages of composite are that it is resistant to corrosion and precipitation, is 4 to 5x lighter than steel with up to 4x lower ecological costs and production takes place locally. At national level, billions can be saved in this way on direct costs and emission-related costs. However, not all components are available in composite, which means that rapid implementation is not yet possible.
The aim of this project is to develop and disseminate knowledge and an ecosystem for the design, production, installation and operation of collective heating systems built entirely of composite material. The system aspects of this project are cross-company and sector-wide. Stakeholders from the value chain work together in this unique consortium; the end users, the design and service companies, the composite manufacturing companies and academics. A top-down framework of system requirements will be developed and then the essential subsystems and components will be developed with necessary new manufacturing technology.
The composite subsystems are functionally tested and then integrated in Rijswijk and Schiebroek to test the physical interfaces and perform system flow tests. The ambition is to raise the subsystems and the integrated system to a TRL level of at least 6 and possibly 7 (ready for scaling up). The test system in Rijswijk is also suitable for the education and training modules that are also being developed in this project for vocational training and knowledge dissemination in and outside the sector.
Duration: 2023 – 2025
Project partners:
Sources and links:
MOOI GO 2022 openbare projectsamenvattingen.pdf (topsectorenergie.nl)
MOOI-indieners gebouwde omgeving zorgen vooral voor schaalsprong warmtetransitie | Topsector Energie
WarmingUP GOO: WarmingUP Geothermie en Opslag Opschaling (MOOI322012)
Research areas:
- Interaction between well and surrounding rocks (near-well domain)
- Safe sealing of wells during and after production
- Flow from wells for an optimal energy system
- Data acquisition for monitoring performance and safety
- Social development and education around the energy transition
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- Heat storage
Geothermal energy and underground heat storage are important for making the heat supply in the Netherlands more sustainable. Approximately 26% of the total heat demand from the built environment can potentially be made more sustainable with geothermal energy. In combination with large-scale heat storage (HT-ATES), this is a winning combination for an efficient and sustainable heat supply.
The MOOI project WarmingUP GOO focuses on the upscaling of geothermal energy and HTO. Geothermal energy and HTO are closely linked and have similar obstacles:
1. Subsoil data are only available to a limited extent, particularly for the soil layers on which HTO and shallow geothermal energy focus.
2. HTO systems in the Netherlands are still in the pilot phase: scaling up requires experience, knowledge development and knowledge sharing.
3. There is more experience with geothermal energy, where better use of available data can contribute to increasing the efficiency of individual installations and of the sector as a whole.
4. Obtaining public support is a point of attention for both geothermal energy and HTO.
The aim of the project is to accelerate the application of geothermal energy and underground heat storage in the Netherlands. We do this through research aimed at (1) increasing insight into the (mid-deep) subsurface, (2) accelerating the roll-out of HTO, (3) process improvement of geothermal installations and (4) increasing social support.
The results of this project contribute to MOOI mission B.2: making collective heat supply for the built environment more sustainable through research and development of renewable heat sources and heat storage.
Duration: 2023 – 2025
Project partners: TNO, EBN, Tullip, HVC, Almere, Den Haag, KWR, Deltares, UU, Witteveen & Bos, Shell, Ennatuurlijk, TU Delft, If Technology, Geothermie Nederland, Aardyn, WEP, bodemenergieNL, IKBE
Sources and links:
MOOI GO 2022 openbare projectsamenvattingen.pdf (topsectorenergie.nl)
MOOI-indieners gebouwde omgeving zorgen vooral voor schaalsprong warmtetransitie | Topsector Energie
DEEPLIGHT
Research areas:
- Demonstration and development of new drilling technologies
- Safe sealing of wells during and after production
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- Storage of hydrogen, gas and compressed air
- Oil and gas in transition
The long-term goal of the DEEPLIGHT new game-changing drilling system is to improve the economics of geothermal heat production, thereby delivering a cost-efficient base load for carbon-neutral heat networks. This new drilling system is based on Electric Pulsed Power (EPP) technology and a new way of casing placement while drilling.
The novel EPP drilling technology will be capable of drilling much deeper wells with larger diameters than current drilling technology. Because there is no mechanical contact for torque and weight on the bit for rock breaking, no heavy equipment is needed, and no trips for bit replacements are required.
EPP drilling with integrated casing placement will improve the economics of geothermal projects and boost the development of the sustainable heat sector.
Duration: 2022 – 2025
Project coordinator: TNO
Sources and links:
Drag Reduction in Geothermal & District Heating systems to LOWer investment and operational costs – DRAGLOW (MOOI32022)
Research areas:
- Flow from wells for an optimal energy system
Application areas:
- Geothermal energy
- Heat storage
The energy transition to reduce CO2 emissions is both a technical and public challenge. Natural gas will be replaced by low carbon heat supply. District heating is a proven concept and these systems are expected to fulfill 50% of the thermal energy needs of buildings in the Netherlands. Integrated geothermal multi-source district heating can deliver low-carbon heat to the built environment. This proven concept is simple and robust but require major investments with low returns. The main challenges are to reduce cost of infrastructure and operations, and minimize environmental impact. As water is the medium to be circulated to transport heat through the system, high pumping power is required to overcome flow resistance in pipelines. Additionally, to control flow resistance pipe diameters must be increased, raising infrastructure costs. Reducing flow resistance or drag is possible using so called Drag Reducing Agents (DRA’s), currently primarily used in the oil and gas industry. Adding low concentrations of DRA molecules to the water can significantly reduce flow resistance, allowing pipe diameters to be considerably smaller (CAPEX) and lowering the required pumping power (OPEX).
The goal of this project is to assess the techno-economic viability of DRA’s for geothermal multi-source district heating networks. The project investigates the technical and economic contribution of DRA’s to district heating networks and geothermal wells. The DRAGLOW project focuses on the development of technical knowledge and system design tools which should lead to practical usable solutions and instruments for cost-effective geothermal Multi-Source district heating systems in the built environment. Preliminary analysis revealed that substantial reduction in CAPEX and OPEX is feasible by controlling the flow resistance in the pipelines and all subsystems of the district heating system. If the flow resistance can be reduced substantially, 20-30% cost reduction is within reach. DRA’s lower the pumping and construction costs in oil pipelines by reducing the friction between the oil and the pipe surface. This concept triggered the idea to apply such agents in the very cost driven geothermal and heat network systems. Several groups of molecules have drag reducing properties depending on the conditions such as liquid composition, temperature and Reynolds number.
In the last decades several DRA molecules have been applied in different sectors. The aim of DRAGLOW is to identify and characterize suitable agents for geothermal and district heating systems which will have both its own set of functional and implementation requirements. The specific risks and opportunities will be investigated and the techno-economic impact will be modelled based on a reference case to fully understand the benefits of required DRA’s. Implementation of DRAGLOW leads to: Substantial cost reduction for the sector; Validated, standardized methods to test and qualify DRA materials for application in geothermal multi-source district heating networks; Classification of the drag reducing performance of selected and tested presently available DRA products under relevant geothermal and district heating flow conditions; Classification of DRA products for reservoir compliancy for relevant sedimentary formation in the Dutch sector; Tools and models to design low drag network architecture; Engineering & construction guidelines and models; Business assessment model for geothermal and district heating networks; Data sets of the results available for the sector via our website.
Duration: 2021 – 2024
Project partners: Aedes Places B.V., ECW Geomanagement B.V., EnerTrans, Gemeente Amsterdam Stadhuis, Gemeente Rotterdam, Nouryon Functional Chemicals B.V., ROEMEX, Techn. Universiteit Delft, TNO, Wayland Energy B.V., Well Engineering Partners (WEP) B.V.
Sources and links:
Home | Mijnsite 1 (draglow.nl)