Tucson Basin
An Investigation of Thermal Springs throughout Arizona: Geochemical, Isotopic, and Geological Characterization, Arizona Basin and Range Province
Love, D.S.
Gootee, B.F.
Cook, J.P.
Mahan, M.K.
Under the Department of Energy (DOE) National Geothermal Data System (NGDS) (Contract DE-EE0002850) Supplemental Data project to discover new geothermal data, the Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) investigated the geochemical makeup of groundwater from select thermal springs and wells during late 2012 through 2013. In addition, the related geological context was investigated to evaluate potential groundwater transport mechanism(s) and heat source(s) relevant to geothermal energy production. Chemical analysis of thermal groundwater may be used to estimate subsurface temperatures by applying chemical geothermometry techniques, thus attempting to specify reservoir temperatures and to model possible sources of heat. An exploration program that integrates geochemical indicators of aquifer geometry and temperature with geology, geophysics, well targeting and well testing is likely to lower the cost of building sufficient confidence in resource conceptual models capable to commit to a generation capacity and plan well targets for development (Powell and Cumming, 2010). This report is intended to discuss the geochemistry and geology in relation to the select hot springs and wells sampled throughout Southern Arizona. This report presents the data and our interpretation to the extent of our limited understanding of geochemistry and complex factors that contribute to the geothermometry. It is meant to provide data for geothermal experts and others interested in pursuing additional interpretation. The geothermometry model devised by Tom Powell and William Cumming (Powell and Cumming, 2010) supports many of the common graphic analyses of water chemistry used to interpret hot spring and thermal well groundwater in geothermal exploration and development. The model provides geochemistry interpretative tools with proven value in exploring and characterizing the properties of both volcanic and forced-convection geothermal reservoirs. Cross-plots and ternary diagrams are generated from measured concentrations of chemical species using formulas based on equilibrium reactions and empirical relationships.
Investigation of Thermal Springs throughout Arizona: Geochemical, Isotopic, and Geological Characterization, Arizona
Investigation of Thermal Springs throughout Arizona: Geochemical, Isotopic, and Geological Characterization, AZ - Appendices
Love, D.S., Gootee, B.F., Cook, J.P., Mahan, M.K. and Spencer, J.E., An Investigation of Thermal Springs throughout Arizona: Geochemical, Isotopic, and Geological Characterization, Arizona Basin and Range Province, 2014, Arizona Geological Survey Open-File Report -14-06, 129 p.
Prepared for U.S. Department of Energy Under the National Geothermal Data System Supplemental Project Contract DE-EE0002850
Geologic Evaluation of the Tucson Basin for Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Potential
The Department of Energy (DOE), including its National Energy Technology Laboratory and West Coast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership (WESTCARB), have established national programs to evaluate the technical feasibility of long-term subsurface geologic storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) produced by industrial activity. The WESTCARB is a consortium of seven western U.S. States and one Canadian Province that is one of seven regional North American partnerships established to evaluate technical aspects of high-volume CO2 capture and sequestration. Collaborative WESTCARB research programs have included more than 90 public agencies, private companies, and non-profit organizations. The Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) began work in 2010 on WESTCARB Phase III – Arizona Geological Characterization (California Energy Commission Agreement Number 500-10-024). As part of WESTCARB Phase III, the AZGS is evaluating the potential for CO2 sequestration in geologic formations that are below a level of 800 meters (m) (2,625 feet (ft)) depth below land surface (bls). This evaluation is directed at porous and permeable geologic formations with impermeable sealing strata in Cenozoic sedimentary basins in the Basin and Range Province, and Paleozoic sedimentary formations of the Colorado Plateau. An initial screening of Cenozoic sedimentary basins with significant depth and volume below the 800 m (2,625 ft) bls level resulted in 10 candidate basins from a total of 88 basins (Spencer, 2011). This report represents ongoing WESTCARB assessment of CO2 storage potential in the Tucson basin, one of 10 Cenozoic basins in Arizona identified during the preliminary evaluation, and is part of Tasks 2 and 3 of Arizona WESTCARB Phase III. Task 2 consists primarily of characterizing basin structure, stratigraphy, lithology, and the nature of seals or a cap rock. This task also includes determining the storage capacity of permeable sediments below 800 m (2,625 ft) depth (Spencer, 2011). Task 3 is to determine if, and at what depth, saline groundwater approaches 10,000 milligrams per liter (mg/L) of total dissolved solids (TDS), characterized in a separate salinity study (Gootee et al., 2012). This concentration represents the threshold above which water is considered non-potable and unsuitable as drinking water (United States Environmental Protection Agency 1991). Based on the extent of permeable strata underlying impermeable strata, saturated with saline groundwater above 10,000 mg/L, the CO2 storage volume below 800 m (2,625 ft) can be revised from earlier estimates (Spencer, 2011).
Geologic Evaluation of the Tucson Basin for Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Potential v. 1.0
Plate 1. Geologic Map of the Tucson Basin, southeastern Arizona: Geologic evaluation for CO2 sequestration potential
Plate 2. Geologic cross-sections of the Tucson Basin A-A', B-B'
Plate 3. Geologic cross-sections of the Tucson Basin
Gootee, B.F., 2012, Geologic Evaluation of the Tucson Basin for Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Potential. Arizona Geological Survey, Open-File Report OFR-12-40, 11 p., 2 appendices, 3 plates.
Preliminary Evaluation of Cenozoic Basins in Arizona for Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Potential
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), through its National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), established a national program to evaluate the feasibility of separating carbon dioxide (CO2) from industrial sources and pumping it underground for long-term storage or disposal. This program was established in response to concerns that CO2 emissions from fossil-fuel combustion, and from other industrial processes such as cement production from limestone, are increasing atmospheric CO2 concentration and solar-energy absorption, thereby causing global warming. Carbon dioxide removal from industrial sources and storage in geologic reservoirs is known as "geologic sequestration." A major aspect of the DOE program is to evaluate subsurface geology to determine the potential of underground rock formations for long-term CO2 sequestration. WESTCARB (West Coast Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership) is a consortium of seven western U.S. States and one Canadian Province that is one of seven regional North American partnerships established to evaluate technical aspects of high-volume CO2 capture and sequestration. Collaborative WESTCARB research programs have included more than 90 public agencies, private companies, and non-profit organizations. The Arizona Geological Survey began work in 2010 on WESTCARB Phase III – Arizona Geological Characterization. This report represents an initial WESTCARB assessment of CO2 storage potential in Arizona's Cenozoic basins, and is part of Task 2 of Arizona WESTCARB Phase III (California Energy Commission Agreement Number 500-10-024). The focus of this study is Cenozoic basin volume and volume below 800m depth, with the purpose of reducing the number of basins subjected to further carbon-sequestration evaluation. Basin volume below 800m depth is important because CO2 will remain in a liquid state at pressures corresponding to rock overburden at such depths. Successful sequestration requires both adequate permeability and porosity for large-volume CO2 injection, and an impermeable cap rock that will prevent movement of CO2 to shallower depth and escape to the atmosphere. Basin stratigraphy and sediment characteristics are not the subject of this report, however, but will be evaluated for a subset of basins identified in this study that are both large and deep.
416 W. Congress, Ste 100
Preliminary Evaluation of Cenozoic Basins in Arizona for CO2 Sequestration Potential
Spencer, J.E., 2011, Preliminary Evaluation of Cenozoic Basins in Arizona for Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Potential. Arizona Geological Survey Open File Report, OFR-11-05, 14 p.
On 24 May 2011, the original document was replaced with version 1.1. Figure 2 was modified to show major cities and highways in Arizona. On 25 January 2012, version 1.2 was published with the correct name for the National Energy Technology Laboratory included.
416 W. Congress, Ste. 100
Arizona has Salt!
Rauzi, S.L.
Arizona has several deposits of subsurface salt (sodium chloride) that are thicker than the Grand Canyon is deep (Peirce, 1981a). These deposits are some of the thickest in the world (Peirce, 1989; Faulds and others, 1995, 1998). Salt in Arizona is solution mined for industrial purposes near Phoenix and used to store liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) near Phoenix and Holbrook. Salt deposits near Phoenix and Kingman are being considered for the storage of natural gas. Several other basins have potential for the discovery and development of significant salt deposits.
Arizona has Salt! - 41 p.
Rauzi, S.L., 2002, Arizona has Salt!. Arizona Geological Survey, Circulars (C)-30, 42 p.
Prevalence of Radon-Resistant Construction in the Phoenix and Tucson Metropolitan Areas, Arizona
Leighty, R.S.
Spencer, E. J.
Radon is a colorless, odorless gas produced by the natural radioactive decay of uranium. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has determined that exposure to indoor radon increases human risk of developing lung cancer. Indoor-radon levels generally correlate with uranium concentration in underlying rocks and soil, and some areas of Arizona are known to have elevated levels of uranium.
Harris, R.C., Leighty, R.S., and Spencer, E. J., 1998, Prevalence of Radon-Resistant Construction in the Phoenix and Tucson Metropolitan Areas, Arizona. Arizona Geological Survey Open File Report, OFR-98-09, 8 p.
Geologic Map of Quaternary and Upper Tertiary Deposits, Tucson 1o x 2o Quadrangle, Arizona
Jackson, G.W.
The Tucson 1o x 2o quadrangle exhibits a wide variety of basin landforms and late Cenozoic surficial geologic deposits. Several factors contribute to this diversity. The Tucson quadrangle spans the transition between the relatively low ranges and typically undissected basins of south-central Arizona and the higher ranges and typically dissected basins of southeastern Arizona. Dissected basins have been dominated by base-level lowering of axial streams and their tributaries, while undissected basins have had relatively stable base-levels. The higher ranges of the eastern half of the quadrangle receive more precipitation due to orographic lifting of moist air. This Is superimposed on a distinct regional climatic gradient, with increasing annual precipitation and cooler annual temperatures from west to cast across the quadrangle. Lithologies vary dramatically both within mountain ranges and between ranges; in some cases, rock type appears to profoundly affect piedmont evolution. Scale 1:250,000
Geologic Map of Quaternary and Upper Tertiary Deposits, Tucson 1o x 2o Quadrangle, Arizona. Scale 1:250,000
Pearthree, P.A., McKittrick, M.A., Jackson, G.W. and Demsey, K.A., 1988, Geologic Map of Quaternary and Upper Tertiary Deposits, Tucson 1o x 2o Quadrangle, Arizona. Arizona Geological Survey Open File Report, OFR-88-21, 1 map sheet, map scale 1:250,000.
COMPILATION OF UNPUBLISHED ARIZONA K-Ar DATES FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA LABORATORY OF ISOTOPE GEOCHEMISTRY, 1971-1991
Damon, E.P.
Shafiqullah, M.
This compilation reports the results of 296 K-Ar analysis that were done during 1971-1991 on rock samples from throughout Arizona and, for a small number of samples, from bordering areas of adjacent states and from the Pinacate volcanic field of northwestern Sonora, Mexico. All of the reported analysis were done at the Laboratory ofIsotope Geochemistry at the Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona. Most of these dates have not been previously published. Those that have been published have not included analytical data. Some of these dates have not been released because, for various reasons, it seemed likely that they did not accurately represent rock age or cooling through the argon closure temperature. 57 pages.
COMPILATION OF UNPUBLISHED ARIZONA K-Ar DATES
Damon, E.P., Shafiqullah, M., Harris, R.C., and Spencer, E. J., 1996, COMPILATION OF UNPUBLISHED ARIZONA K-Ar DATES FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA LABORATORY OF ISOTOPE GEOCHEMISTRY, 1971-1991. Arizona Geological Survey Open File Report, OFR-96-18, 53 p.
Geothermal resource potential of the Tucson Basin, Arizona
The Tucson basin, located in southeastern Arizona, underlies a rapidly growing metropolitan area. Because of Tucson's rapid growth and because it's economy relies heavily upon the aerospace, agriculture, defense, education, electronics, mining, and tourism industries, significant opportunities exist for direct-heat utilization of geothermal water. Geothermal energy could have economic impact by stabilizing energy costs to resource users. The purpose of this report is to outline known occurrences of thermal (>300 degree C) water around Tucson. Identification of the main geologic and geohydrologic features which determine the temperature distribution beneath Tucson provides a basis to formulate geologic models which have use in exploration and evaluation of area resources. (66 pages)
Witcher, J.C., 1982, Geothermal resource potential of the Tucson Basin, Arizona. Arizona Geological Survey Open File Report, OFR-82-03, 66 p.