EMOTION-Project for creating a geochemical web portal useful to accelerate the geothermal exploitation in central-northern Italy

An ever-increasing demand of energy coupled with environmental issues, that are two of the main global concerns nowadays, give a strong pulse to new energy strategies involving the use of renewable and sustainable sources, including geothermal ones. The geothermal resource in Italy is significant in the European context, although only the high enthalpy systems in Tuscany are currently fully exploited. In the past decades, several prospections were carried out by different private companies and scientific institutions, mainly through drilling activities, seismic and geochemical surveys. These prospections provided a draft of the geothermal potential of the Italian territory, especially for the central-southern Tyrrhenian margin, where the main hydrothermal areas, volcanoes and impressive geothermal manifestations are located. In this context, the three years EMOTION project (GeochEMical characterization of fluid manifestations in central-northern Italy for geOThermal assessment and development of the geothermal fluid natIONal web portal), led by INGV and funded by MUR (Ministero dell’Università e della Ricerca), aims to provide a detailed geochemical characterization of the manifestations of geothermal interest (thermal springs, mineral waters and gas emissions) in central-northern Italy (from Tuscany and Umbria northward) including published data and new acquisitions. In detail, the different hydrothermal systems occurring in the large study area of the EMOTION project will be investigated to gather information on: (I) the minimum temperature of the fluid reservoirs; (II) the chemical features of the thermal fluids; (III) the chemical physical processes controlling the chemistry of fluids circulating within the hydrothermal plumbing systems. In light of this, the ambition of EMOTION is to support the geothermal exploration for low, medium and high temperature (enthalpy) resources, especially in the early stages of the potential assessment. As a final goal, an open-access, geochemical web portal of all Italian geothermal manifestations will be made available, also including the previously investigated geothermal manifestations of central-southern Italy. In this framework, we will show the project work-flow and the preliminary geochemical critical review for Tuscany and Friuli Venezia Giulia, highlighting the missing information and the planned new sampling. The objectives of EMOTION, from the implementation of the geothermal information in the central-northern part of Italy to the easy access to the geochemical data, will facilitate the geothermal exploration, especially in the early stages, and will hopefully contribute to the enhancement of the exploitation of geothermal resources and other strategic materials throughout the national territory.