OpenFlexGeoenergy - Open-source softvare tool for simulation of advanced geothermal systems

Assoc. Prof. Luka Perković, PhD, principal investigator, RGNf, defended his doctoral dissertation in Zagreb in 2014 at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture, University of Zagreb. His research areas are computational fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, combustion and radiation modeling, computational hydrodynamics/aerodynamics, energy planning, renewable energy sources, energy storage and energy economics. The most significant projects he worked on as a collaborator are: Implementation and validation of combustion and radiation models into the FIRE Code, led by

Prof. Dr. Sc. Neven Duić, (2008-2015), cooperation with the company AVL-AST d.o.o., High Altitude Wind Energy - HAWE, led by Prof. Dr. Sc. Neven Duić, EU - FP7. (2010 - 2014), ICT-aided integration of Electric Vehicles into the Energy Systems with a high share of Renewable Energy Sources - iRESEV, manager prof. Ph.D. Joško Deur, HRZZ (2012 - 2014), Transforming abandoned wells for geothermal energy production – TRANSGEO, manager prof. Tomislav Kurevija (2023 – 2026), Interreg EU, Fostering the implementation of shallow geothermal hybrid heating and cooling systems in the Danube Region - GeoHeCo, manager prof. Tomislav Kurevija (2024 – 2026), Interreg EU and others.

Prof. Tomislav Kurevija, PhD, RGNf (CroRIS ID: 575; Scopus ID: 6504576390), coordinates activities related to dynamic simulation of deep geothermal reservoirs in terms of heat and mass transfer, i.e. multiphase flow in porous and fractured rock. His role also includes coordination of multiphase flow simulations in production and injection wells and implementation of expert knowledge in the field of well completion and management of the production and injection process of reservoir fluids of various characteristics. He received his doctorate in thermogeology, defending his thesis entitled "Energy evaluation of shallow geothermal potentials of the Republic of Croatia".

Prof. Daria Karasalihović Sedlar, PhD, RGNf (CroRIS ID: 3384; Scopus ID: 37665925800), coordinates activities related to the economics of capital-intensive advanced geothermal systems. One of the main tasks of the research is to identify and quantify the risks related to financing initial investments in the process of exploration and exploitation activities, as well as revenues from the operation of geothermal systems, i.e. the sale of useful forms of energy (electricity and heat). The activities it is engaged in will result in an estimate of the levelized cost of produced heat and electricity and the net present value of projects with respect to the thermohydraulic characteristics and system limitations.

Assoc. Prof. Anamarija Grbeš Babić, PhD, RGNf (CroRIS ID: 29186; Scopus ID: 56781557600). The project activities include the implementation of a detailed life cycle analysis (LCA) of advanced geothermal systems and their comparative comparison with other sources of useful forms of energy. The LCA study covers the life cycle of the construction, exploitation and decommissioning of geothermal systems (cradle-to-grave) taking into account the technical characteristics of surface and underground equipment as well as emissions during plant operation.

Assoc. Prof. Anja Vrbaški, PhD, RGNf, (CroRIS ID: 27199; Scopus ID: 55293667300), is engaged in the development and optimization of numerical solution procedures within the OpenFlexGeoenergy tool. She received her PhD from the Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science, in Applied Mathematics. Her research area is modeling, mathematical analysis, and homogenization of multiphase fluid flow problems through porous media with multiple spatial and/or temporal scales. In this project, she also investigates how the presence of different temporal and spatial scales of physical phenomena affects simulation results, where she is engaged in increasing the stability, robustness, and accuracy of the proposed numerical solvers, as well as optimizing the algorithms used to obtain the final solution for the operation of advanced geothermal systems.

Asst. Prof. Marija Macenić, PhD, RGNf (CroRIS ID: 32104; Scopus ID: 55895084700), works on the characterization of different types of deposits with regard to the possibilities of sustainable exploitation of the energy of the deposits. Doc. Macenić is a project associate on several projects with topics of exploitation of shallow and deep geothermal energy sources (TRANSGEO, GeoHeCo), and in her doctoral research she dealt with the possibilities of revitalization of existing wells for energy purposes using closed systems. She received her doctorate with the topic "Conceptual model of geothermal energy exploitation by revitalization of abandoned oil and gas wells in the continental part of the Republic of Croatia".

Asst. Prof. Josipa Kapuralić, PhD, RGNf (CroRIS ID: 32103; Scopus ID: 57205338349), deals with the interpretation of simulation results of the OpenFlexGeoenergy tool from the point of view of lithology and the possibility of reservoir fluid yield in the near-well zone of reservoir fluid production. She also deals with the development of tools for the analysis and synthesis of simulation results and their storage in a big dana database that will be publicly available for download. She will coordinate activities related to machine learning in order to more quickly identify the possibility of operating advanced geothermal systems without conducting long-term simulations. She received her PhD from the RGNf with the topic "Determination of the structure of the crust and lithospheric mantle in the Dinarides and southwestern part of the Pannonian Basin using the method of near-earthquake tomography".

Ivan Smajla, PhD, senior research assistant at RGNf (CroRIS ID: 34212; Scopus ID: 57203622722), works on the economics of advanced geothermal systems with a special emphasis on their integration into existing energy systems. He also deals with the assessment of the opportunities and risks of generating revenue from advanced geothermal systems on day-ahead and intraday markets. He received his PhD from the RGNf with the topic "Short-term natural gas consumption forecasting using gas smart meters in distribution systems".

Filip Milešević, research assistant at RGNf, is working on developing machine learning methods for faster recognition of the operation of advanced geothermal systems without conducting lengthy simulations. He is involved in the process of analyzing and synthesizing simulation results and creating a publicly available database of results.

Marco Pola, PhD,  senior researcher at HGI (CroRIS ID: 35344, Scopus ID: 55270219900), deals with the implementation of reservoir submodels related to the flow of reservoir fluid with variable density and viscosity parameters during the exploitation of thermal energy from the reservoir. He graduated in geology and technical geology from the University of Padua in 2008. He received his PhD in earth sciences from the same university in 2012. His doctoral research focused on the development of a conceptual model of the Euganei geothermal system (northeastern Italy), integrating geological, hydrogeological and geochemical data and physical validation using variable density numerical modeling.

Staša Borović, PhD, senior research associate at HGI  (CroRIS ID: 29511, Scopus ID: 56469379800), deals with testing, synthesis and analysis of the results of numerical simulations of reservoirs with special emphasis on guidelines on the limits of sustainability of thermal energy exploitation of reservoirs with regard to the requirements for the delivery of useful forms of energy. Dr. sc. Borović received her doctorate with the topic "Integrated hydrogeological-hydrochemical model of the Daruvar geothermal aquifer", and in her previous research she has dealt, among other things, with hydrothermal systems and the possibilities of using deep and shallow geothermal energy in heating and cooling systems in Europe.

Ante Marušić, PhD, Assistant Professor at FSB (CroRIS ID: 32223; Scopus ID: 57052430000), is working on the implementation of a process control and regulation system for advanced geothermal systems, and on modeling the demand for useful forms of energy that a geothermal plant must deliver. Assistant Professor Marušić is an expert in the field of dynamics and process control in thermal power plants, and his expertise in the field of high-temperature latent heat storage will also be of exceptional importance.

Marina Budanko, PhD, Assistant Professor at FSB (CroRIS ID: 32515; Scopus ID: 59250293700), is investigating the impact of different types of expanders on the efficiency of advanced geothermal systems, which will provide a clearer and more complete picture of the operation of one of the critical plant components in the flexible environment of future energy systems. Associate Professor Budanko is an expert in the field of thermodynamic analysis of turboexpanders in various applications in mechanical engineering, including geothermal power plants based on the organic Rankine cycle. She is currently participating in the implementation of the project.

Prof. Keita Yoshioka, PhD, professor at MUL (Scopus ID: 14032617100), He is engaged in the integration of all thermohydraulic features of surface equipment and wells with the OpenGeoSys model as part of the OpenFlexGeoenergy tool development activities. Prof. Yoshioka participated in the development of the OpenGeoSys program in terms of computational analysis of fractured rocks, and more recently he is involved in coordinating activities related to geothermal energy utilization.

Chaofan Chen, PhD, senior lecturer at MUL (Scopus ID: 57202830697), radi na razvoju i implementaciji različitih značajki naprednih geotermalnih sustava u OpenGeoSys programu. Dr. Chen je također sudjelovao u razvoju programa OpenGeoSys i TESPy simulatora površinske opreme  i to u smislu iskorištavanja geotermalne energije i korištenja geoloških formacija kao toplinskih spremnika.