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The potential use of mine water for a district heating scheme at Caerau, Upper Llynfi valley, South Wales, UK

Peter Brabham, Manju Manju, Hywel Thomas Orcid Logo, Gareth Farr, Robert Francis, Ramsha Sahid, Sivachidambaram Sadasivam

Quarterly Journal of Engineering Geology and Hydrogeology, Volume: 53, Issue: 1, Pages: 145 - 158

Swansea University Author: Hywel Thomas Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1144/qjegh2018-213

Abstract

The feasibility of recovering heat energy from mine water contained within an abandoned coal mine in South Wales is assessed for a proposed district heating scheme. The study area is the village of Caerau, in the Upper Llynfi Valley, Bridgend County Borough, South Wales, UK, comprising around 750 re...

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Published in: Quarterly Journal of Engineering Geology and Hydrogeology
ISSN: 1470-9236 2041-4803
Published: Geological Society of London 2020
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa52885
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Abstract: The feasibility of recovering heat energy from mine water contained within an abandoned coal mine in South Wales is assessed for a proposed district heating scheme. The study area is the village of Caerau, in the Upper Llynfi Valley, Bridgend County Borough, South Wales, UK, comprising around 750 residential houses, a primary school and 17 commercial properties. This paper describes: an archival geological and mining desk study focussed on Caerau colliery, consideration of regional mine linkages, GIS techniques used to create a 3D initial conceptual geological mine model of Caerau workings, permitting and licencing requirements, community engagement activities undertaken and the findings of a single exploratory borehole. The borehole intersected a void space in flooded mine workings around the horizon of the Six Foot seam at a depth of 224 m below ground level, as predicted by the conceptual mine model. The rest water level within the borehole lies at 92m below ground level and the measured in situ temperature of the mine water at the base of the borehole was 20.3 °C. An unexpectedly high and sustained geothermal gradient of approximately 53 °C/km was calculated from repeated measured temperature profiles.
College: Faculty of Science and Engineering
Issue: 1
Start Page: 145
End Page: 158