Hungary has favorable geothermal conditions. The paper discusses the thermal and hydrogeologic conditions of the Neogene groundwater reservoir below the Great Hungarian Plain. In the exploration of the reservoir one of the most problematic issues, is the interaction between gravitydriven and overpressured flow regimes, especially along conductive faults. A combination of structural geology supported by seismic interpretation, hydrogeochemistry, and hydraulic evaluations can help to delineate the two flow regimes and determine the origin of the water: meteoric (and thus rechargeable) or syn-sedimentary (and thus non-rechargeable) pore water. These results can be incorporated into basin-scale digital models of the Neogene reservoir. The models can be used to predict the response of the reservoir to the water production and injection, and can help to exploit more efficiently and sustainably the thermal waters of the Great Hungarian Plain reservoir.
Budapest is famous for its thermal springs and spas and outstanding thermal water resources. In the 21 st century renewable energy utilization -including the use of geothermal energy -became the focus of interest. Improving the use of the different forms of geothermal energy requires the assessment of their possibilities. The potential for deep geothermal doublet systems for direct heating in Budapest was evaluated based on the temperature conditions, the depth and reconnaissance of the carbonate reservoir. NW Buda is not appropriate for thermal water exploration. SW and SE Budapest have better temperature conditions but the lithology of the reservoir is uncertain. Beneath Pest the thermal water is well exploitable. It is obvious from the map of the region that the area is promising; however, due to the hydraulic continuity of the system, reinjection is desirable. Considering the reliability of the employed data the geothermal potential map is suitable only for general orientation and guidance.The geothermal potential map for Groundwater-sourced Heat Pump Systems (GHPS; scale = 1:40,000) was assembled by evaluating the thickness and appearance of the gravel strata and water table, complemented by the sulfate content as an aggressive component of groundwater. The original geothermal potential map series can be used for the evaluation of potential sites in Budapest. It can be concluded that the Buda side of the Danube River is almost entirely unsuitable for shallow groundwater-based heat pump installations. The only areas under consideration are Óbuda and the riverbanks. On the Pest side, there is no gravel in the central part; the largest areas close to the river and in the immediate surroundings are uncertain, with patches of suitable and possible categories. The southern and eastern area of Pest is the most prospective for GHPS installation. The potential maps only consider natural parameters; however, installation may be strongly influenced by the urbanization and the city environment.
Europe's largest thermal water system can be found in the capital of Hungary. The springs and wells that supply the famous baths of Budapest discharge mainly from a regional Triassic carbonate rock aquifer system. The springs have mostly been substituted by wells; only a few natural springs are known today, most of which are drained unused into the Danube.In this study, first the heat potential of these unutilized spring waters in the three natural discharge areas was assessed. Secondly, the heat potential of used thermal waters of three baths was calculated. At the springs discharge and temperature measurements were carried out. In the case of the baths, water management data were evaluated. At the Boltív Spring at the foot of Rózsadomb, the heat potential calculation shows that cooling the spring water to 5 °C would provide 6 MW th thermal capacity, providing a stable energy source for heat pumps. From the overflowing water of the springs of Rudas Bath at the foot of Gellért Hill, a total of 107 kW th heat could be utilized when cooling it to 5 °C, possibly by heat pump system. However, the heat potential of the Bründl Spring is not sufficient for geothermal utilization, mainly due to lack of end users in the vicinity of the spring. Together with the wastewater of the thermal baths, the effluent springs and wastewaters of pools carry a total of 25 MW th waste heat, which is a considerable amount compared to the needs of a public institution. The importance of this study is in the assessment of such potential heat sources (unused lukewarm and thermal springs, wastewater of spa pools) which are present either naturally or artificially, and do not require further thermal water production for heating purposes.
In the Danube Valley, a chain of saline lakes and a salinized area are situated in the discharge zone of two different waters. The two watertype were followed till the near surface by regional chemical and hydraulic investigations (Mádlné Szõnyi and Tóth 2009). The goals of this study were to prove the presence of these different waters in the near surface zone around the Lake Kelemenszék, and allocate their connection to the lake and to the salinized ground surface. Near-surface geophysical measurements (VES, RMT) supported the regional hydraulic and chemical results. The sediments are saturated by saline water down to 110 m beneath the lake, and to the east the fresh water is prevalent. The local chemical investigations strengthened this distribution. Highly saline water with Na-HCO 3 -Cl-type discharges into and around the lake. To the east there is a continuous change towards a (Ca,Mg)-(HCO 3)2 -type fresh water discharge. The interface between the two water types is a 2-3 km wide transition zone. The results of the investigations proved that the saline water of the deep flow system rises to the surface and provide salt for the salinization of the area.
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