Department of Informatics and Mathematical Modeling and Center for Energy Resources Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, has an opportunity to support a 3 year-PhD project entitled:

Numerical modeling of geothermal reservoirs through geophysical, geostatistical and flow data

in the framework of the project Heat Storage in Hot Aquifers (HeHo), supported by The Danish Council for Strategic Research. The PhD project will be carried out as a cooperation between CERE – DTU Informatics, CERE - DTU Civil Engineering, The Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS), and ETH Zürich.

The project is financed by The Danish Council for Strategic Research and DTU Informatics. Preferred starting date is 1. February 2012.

Description of the broader project
In this project we will develop new technology to improve planning of energy storage in geothermal reservoirs through high-quality experiments and modelling. Geothermal reservoirs have high temperature, so energy may be stored in these geological layers with minimal heat loss. The technology will be based on a multidisciplinary approach combining small scale geochemistry/rock physics with large scale seismic inversion and history matching of production data. The focus will be on Danish geothermal reservoirs, because heat storage is likely to be the missing link in planning sustainable energy production in Denmark, where several sources of energy should interplay. Energy sources as waste incineration and wind are not controlled by immediate energy demands. By storing energy at low heat loss in hot aquifers we obtain an effective interplay between different sources of energy, so that the degree of coverage with sustainable energy can increase at an acceptable cost.

The imminent question with respect to establishing heat storage in geothermal reservoirs is how the reservoirs will react to the introduction of water with a higher temperature than the natural: How will the reservoir rock react chemically and mechanically, how will the heat and fluid distribute in the reservoir, what is the energy loss related to this storage method?

The target of the specific PhD project
The goal of the PhD project is to develop new mathematical and numerical methods to analyze geophysical data and well production data with the aim of investigating flow, heat transport and heat conduction in geothermal reservoirs. Structure and properties of geothermal reservoirs can be investigated by means of two different methods: The ?rst method is seismic inversion, where seismic waves generated by near-surface explosions or in boreholes, and re?ected from geological structure in the reservoir, are analyzed. From these data, structure and mechanical/elastic properties of the reservoir can be calculated. The second method is history matching where measurements of pressure, water production and water temperatures in wells are used to calculate permeabilities, porosities and heat conduction in reservoir rocks. The PhD student will be engaged in seismic waveform inversion, flow simulation, thermodynamics and data inversion, with special emphasis on developing the mathematical, numerical and physical theory required for adaptation of these methods to geothermal data analysis.

Required skills

• A physics or engineering degree (M.Sc.) with mathematics, numerical analysis or computer science as an important element
• Good programming skills, preferably in Matlab, C and FORTRAN
• Good writing skills in English

Useful skills

• Experience with numerical solution of inverse problems
• Experience with seismic data analysis
• Experience with porous flow modeling

Approval and Enrolment
The scholarship for the PhD degree are subject to academic approval, and the candidates will be enrolled in one of the general degree programmes of DTU. For information about the general requirements for enrolment and the general planning of the scholarship studies, please see the DTU PhD Guide.

Salary and appointment terms
The salary and appointment terms are consistent with the current Danish rules for PhD degree students.

Further information
The project will be supervised by Professor Klaus Mosegaard.

Further information concerning the application is available at the DTU Informatics PhD homepage, the DTU Informatics Graduate School ITMAN homepage or by contacting the responsible ITMAN Graduate School secretary: Ulla Jensen, DTU Informatics, phone: + 45 4525 3359.

Application
Applications must be submitted in English and we must have your online application by Sunday January 8^th, 2012. Please open the link in the grey bar below: "apply for this job online" (“søg stillingen online”).

Applications must include:

• CV
• cover letter outlining the motivation for PhD studies and for this particular project
• references
• documentation of a relevant completed M.Sc. or M.Eng.-degree
• course and grade list of bachelor and master degrees
• this excel sheet with calculated weighted average for bachelor and master degrees

All candidates irrespective of age, gender, disability, race, religion or ethnic background are encouraged to apply.