Investigation of hydrothermal activity at Campi Flegrei caldera using 3D numerical simulations: Extension to high temperature processes

Abstract

Hydrothermal activity at Campi Flegrei caldera is simulated by using the multiphase code MUFITS. We first provide a brief description of the simulator covering the mathematical formulation and its applicability at elevated supercritical temperatures. Then we apply, for the first time, the code to hydrothermal systems investi- gating the Campi Flegrei caldera case. We consider both shallow subcritical regions and deep supercritical regions of the hydrothermal system. We impose sophisticated boundary conditions at the surface to provide a better description of the reservoir interactions with the atmosphere and the sea. Finally we carry out a parametric study and compare the simulation results with gas temperature and composition, gas and heat fluxes, and temperature measurements in the wells of that area. Results of the parametric study show that flow rate, composition, and temperature of the hot gas mixture injected at depth, and the initial geothermal gradient strongly control parameters monitored at Solfatara. The results suggest that the best guesses conditions for the gas mixture injected at 5 km depth correspond to a temperature of ~700 °C, a fluid mass flow rate of about 50–100 kg/s, and an initial geothermal gradient of ~120 °C/km.