Chai, Yutong2026-05-192026-05-192026-05-192026-05-12https://hdl.handle.net/10012/23339Geothermal energy offers a stable and sustainable source of baseload power that can significantly contribute to global decarbonization efforts. The Mount Meager Volcanic Complex (MMVC) in British Columbia is widely recognized as Canada’s most promising high-temperature geothermal resource, with reservoir temperature exceeding 250 °C recorded through previous exploration. However, uncertainties regarding the in-situ stress conditions, fractured reservoir behavior, and potential for induced seismicity continue to limit the development of geothermal energy at this site. This thesis aims to address the knowledge gap by in-situ stress characterization, geothermal systems design, and induced seismicity assessment. The characterization of the in-situ stress field within the Mount Meager region is challenging due to its complex surface topography that standard technique doesn’t account for. In this work, a three-dimensional numerical model based on the Displacement Discontinuity Method (DDM) is developed to address this challenge. The numerical results indicate that topography strongly influence the near-surface in-situ stress field. Based upon this discovered in-situ stress information, geothermal heat extraction potential at Mount Meager is assessed using both a closed-loop geothermal system and an enhanced geothermal system. For the closed-loop system, a coupled thermo-mechanical numerical model is developed to simulate long-term operation of a vertical coaxial borehole heat exchanger installed within the Mount Meager reservoir. The simulation results demonstrate that closed-loop geothermal systems can extract heat from low-permeability basement rocks through conductive heat transfer while producing relatively localized thermoelastic stress perturbations. For the enhanced geothermal system that relies on fluid circulation through fracture networks, a coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical (THM) model is developed to simulate long-term operation of fluid injection and production at Mount Meager. The results show that convective heat transfer through connected fracture networks significantly enhances heat extraction efficiency compared with conduction-dominated closed-loop systems. It is also shown that system performance depends strongly on fracture connectivity, reservoir geometry, and operational parameters. Seismic risk analyses are also conducted for the more promising enhanced geothermal systems. This starts with the investigation of the mechanical behavior of faults subjected to geothermal stress perturbations. Numerical analyses demonstrate that fault orientation, dip angle, and depth strongly influence stress concentrations and displacement along fault planes, highlighting the importance of geological structure in controlling fault stability during geothermal operations. Then a fully coupled THM model incorporating discrete fracture networks is used to assess the seismic risk associated with geothermal energy development. The simulations indicate that both pore pressure increases and thermally induced stress redistribution can promote slip along critically stressed fractures. Sensitivity analyses show that injection pressure, injection temperature, fracture density, and reservoir depth exert significant control on the magnitude and spatial distribution of seismic events. Overall, this thesis provides an integrated understanding of geothermal energy development potential at Mount Meager by linking in-situ stress characterization, geothermal system design, and seismic risk analysis. The results demonstrate that geothermal development at Mount Meager is technically feasible and provide a quantitative framework for evaluating geothermal system design, reservoir stability, and seismic risk in fractured volcanic environments.enDoctoral Thesis