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EPOS-eNLarge

EPOS-eNLarge: bridging scales for sustainable use of our subsurface

Increasing use of the subsurface, for example for geothermal energy production or energy storage, is crucial for achieving the (inter)national goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. EPOS-eNLarge creates the research capabilities for the scientific breakthroughs that are urgently needed for efficient and safe use of the subsurface. EPOS-eNLarge provides the missing link to apply our understanding of micro-scale processes in the subsurface at the kilometer-scale where subsurface operations (and the effects of these) take place. EPOS-eNLarge further ensures that unique research data of the Dutch subsurface is made openly available, and centrally accessible for future re-use, alongside other European data.

Website EPOS

Infrastructure and User Services

EPOS-eNLarge builds and integrates multiscale facilities (from grain / pore scale to field scale) with key elements for the experimental study of the dynamics of processes at different scales and provides experimental facilities for upscaling and validation of models, via field-scale monitoring. Facilities include a.o.:

  • Laboratory setups to visualize dynamic changes due to fluid flow and deformation processes in 2-D and 3-D, using X-ray scanning, microfluidics and laser ultrasonic acoustic imaging.
  • Experimental rock mechanics and fluid flow facilities to bridge the scales between lab experiments to the scale of subsurface reservoirs.
  • The Delft Subsurface Urban Energy Lab: built around the TU Delft campus geothermal project which will be further developed with an ultra-deep monitoring borehole, a shallow high-temperature heat storage system and groundwater monitoring system to assess environmental risks. 
  • The ORFEUS Data Center is a highly mature data sharing platform which provides seismological data services for researchers worldwide. It will be expanded to include internationally standardized, distributed fibre-optic data and access services for subsurface imaging, and monitoring of temperatures and strains during subsurface operations.

Services provided to the scientific community will include facility access, open data services for laboratory data, geo-energy test beds, and the expanded ORFEUS Data Center, with optimum accessibility via the European  central portal EPOS.


EPOS-eNLarge enables the execution of major research agendas including the National Science Organisation (NWO) programme on the effects of use of the subsurface, the Dutch research council - research on geothermal energy, and the Horizon Europe energy programme.

Examples/description of the type of research

EPOS-eNLarge enables ground-breaking fundamental research to tackle questions related to the behaviour of subsurface reservoirs, caprocks and their systems of faults and fractures when used for geo-energy. The physics and chemistry of geomaterials are known to be scale dependent: the properties and processes occurring at the smallest scale impact the macroscopic responses which influence surface effects and thus impact the overall success of geo-energy. Subsurface operations for geo-energy projects take place at kilometer scale, while the response of the subsurface to these operations is frequently governed by micrometer-scale processes. Therefore, new knowledge developed needs to be physics-based and multi-scale, to truly understand the processes, which enables a reliable extrapolation in time and to be relevant for a multitude of applications and projects. This will enable improved predictions of project performance, including risks, sustainability and safety, and therefore create societal impact.

The overarching scientific breakthrough that EPOS-eNLarge aims to facilitate achieving physics-based understanding of the subsurface. It is crucial to make the connection between processes governing behaviour at microscopic level and the observed phenomena at field scale. A particular challenge is the validation of the developed models on all scales. EPOS-eNLarge provides the research capabilities that enable scientific breakthroughs in the use of the subsurface for geo-energy.

How to access the infrastructure?

EPOS-eNLarge makes data produced within and outside its infrastructure openly available on the European data platform of EPOS. It also provides free-of-charge access to its lab facilities.

Disciplines

Earth sciences Technology
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