GECO

A detailed and uniform monitoring program will analyze and model the reactivity and behavior of reinjected fluids in the different demosites. This will create new and more effective modeling tools to predict the reactions that will occur in the subsurface in response to the induced flows.

Together with GECO, different methods of gas capture and purification will be developed, bringing the reduction of resource consumption (electricity, water and chemicals) closer. GECO's approach consists of:

1. Capturing waste gases from the geothermal process.
2. Dissolving them in the geothermal water flows, re-injecting the aqueous solution.
3. The reinjected fluid causes the dissolution of rocks at the surface, increasing the permeability of the reservoir and fixing the dissolved gases by mineralization.

Thus, waste gases are stored in the long term, in a sustainable way, while emissions from geothermal energy are reduced, compared to traditional techniques.

Finally, the capture of gases for reuse will be tested through the production of purified CO2 streams with negligible levels of hydrogen sulfide (H2S). The valorization of this product will be demonstrated through different routes of further use as part of the GECO project.

The objective of GECO is the development of an innovative technology that seeks to:

• Reduce or Limit emissions from geothermal plants.
• Bring the benefits of geothermal energy closer to the public, increasing its acceptance.
• Generalize this new approach to geothermal energy, which has previously been successfully tested on a pilot scale.
• To develop niche markets from the project solutions.